If you have ever been involved
with local government, you know how common corruption can become. An example of
this is how Bassett Unified School District in Los Angeles County is being
audited by the Office of Education.Mayor Louie Lujan La Puente says that the
district has been under scrutiny for a long time. As a result, the Office of
Education wants scrutinize Bassett Unified’s financial practices, calling for
an audit centered on its construction projects.
Board President Paul Solano
Board President Paul Solano
Louie Lujan says that Paul Solano
is no stranger to controversy. An
article pointed out how a suspicious $2,500 PAC contribution went to Paul
Solano, a candidate for the Bassett Unified School District in La Puente.After the
PAC donated $16,000 to an El Rancho board member’s campaign, its controlling
officer won a contract. Under Paul Solano, the district is now facing another
controversy. A state agency has begun what’s called an “extraordinary audit,”
an extensive analysis by forensic accountants who specialize in school finances
and who are trained to look for mismanagement of public funds.
Financial problems
Financial problems
With Paul Solano as president, Louie
Lujan La Puente says that Bassett has been beset by budget woes because of declining
enrollment — the state funds schools according to the number of students — and
increasing pension costs.
Last summer, the county twice
denied the board’s proposed 2019-20 budget because officials there didn’t
believe the district could meet its financial obligations through 2022. Deficit
spending from 2018 to 2019 reached more than $800,000 to balance the
budget.
Frank Morales, a resident and
former board member, said at the most recent school board meeting Feb. 25 that
he’ll be running for a board seat in November. He lambasted current members for
putting their own self-interest ahead of the district’s: “You need to think
about your students and employees.”
Louie Lujan La Puente points out
that Natalie Ybarra, the board’s most recent electee and current president,
urged parents to be patient. “We want to work on improving transparency,” she
said. “But there are some things we can’t discuss because of confidentiality
issues.”
Del Terra and Paul Solano
According to Louie Lujan La
Puente, erhaps the biggest thorn at the side of Bassett
voters is the district’s ongoing relationship with the construction firm Del
Terra, its general manager overseeing projects in the district — the same firm
that was the subject of the Montebello Unified audit. Many allege that Board
president Paul
Solano also has questionable ties to the company.
In the past two decades, five
California school districts have accused the company of mismanagement and
fraud, triggering
a host of lawsuits and audits.
Despite vocal resistance from
some parents, the board last year, in a 3-2 vote, approved
a new contract with Del Terra worth nearly $800,000 in bond
monies.“Our leaders are allowing the district, community taxpayers, and
children to get ripped off,” said Amadeo Rodriguez, a resident and former
member of the bond oversight committee, which oversees how bond money is spent.He
may have found an ally in board clerk Patrice Stanzione, who suggested
suspending Del Terra’s contract while the state investigates how it spent the
district’s bond dollars.“Our (new football) field and a bunch of donated trees
do not equal the millions of taxpayer dollars that have been collected,” she
said. “I cannot in good conscience continue our association with Del Terra
until the audit is done.”
