- School Business Advisory Services
- Forest Reserve
Los Padres National Forest Map-see interactive link below
Q&A: Forest Reserve Apportionment
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> Are these restricted funds for districts?
- Unrestricted.
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> ECS 2300 talks about the apportionment being intended for districts of the county lying within or adjacent to the U.S. forest reserve. What exactly does “adjacent” mean?
- School district boundaries that overlay forest land aren’t so convenient for attendance purposes. As a result, pupils residing on forest land might obtain interdistrict transfers to a neighboring school district whose boundary comes up to but doesn’t overlay forest land. School Improvement plays into this as well as kids transferring under the Romero bill would be another example of how an adjacent district might become eligible.
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> How do taxes work for private homes in forest reserve territory? Are they taxed at all? Are the taxes on just the structure?
- Taxes on private homes within the forest reserve are assessed at the same rate as other properties in the county. This means they are taxed on both the land and the building.
The cabins off Paradise Road are one interesting example of private homes in the forest reserve area. The cabins were originally intended for recreational use but have since been sold off as private homes. Some of the cabins have been kept as rentals for forest rangers. Another private home that was mentioned is in the area that was burned during the Tea Fire. The owner has not rebuilt as of yet but retains rights to do so.
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> Fifty percent of the funds are for the county road fund. Is the money restricted for use on roads in the forest reserve area or can the money then be used for any roads in the county?
- The funds are restricted and applied to maintenance of roads within the forest reserve territory. The SB County Roads Department is quick to point out that there are a lot of roads to maintain in the Los Padres National Forest.
Forest Reserve
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The Forest Reserve apportionment is this county’s share of revenues from the United States forest reserve lands. In Santa Barbara County, this includes the Los Padres National Forest. Every year, the apportionment formula requires approval by the Santa Barbara County Board of Education.
In accordance with Education Code Section 2300, and apportioned over the federal fiscal year (October 1 to September 30) the Forest Reserve Apportionment is disbursed as follows:
- Eighty-five percent of funds to school districts and community colleges lie within or adjacent to the forest reserve.
- Fifteen percent of funds go to the County Education Office for the improvement of educational programs for students in the county.
The amount distributed to school districts is apportioned using a formula that allocates fifty percent of funds based on the number of pupils each school district has residing in the forest reserve area and the remaining fifty percent in proportion to national forest reserve territory located within each school district.
