Guest Commentary
by Lou Russo
At a recent “coffee” at the Alpine Library, County Supervisor Dianne Jacob took it upon herself to comment on the ongoing lawsuit between Alpine Union School District (AUSD) and Grossmont Union High School District (GUHSD). Jacob made the comment that while she wasn’t enthused about paying legal fees, in this instance her opinion was that the costs are justified.
Putting aside the merits, or lack thereof, of this case, many in Alpine were absolutely astonished that Jacob would weigh in on this issue. County Supervisors and County Government are not in the “chain of command” of educational institutions in California. Most of Alpine couldn’t fathom a school board trustee trying to tell the County how to run its business and believe the County should stay within its “swim lane.”
Additionally, Jacob does not live within the boundaries of AUSD. What is her interest in educational issues in this district? There are plenty of County issues to deal with in Alpine.
Finally, AUSD has spent nearly $1 million, out of an overall budget of roughly $17 Million, JUST ON LEGAL FEES! This is money the taxpayers paid for the education of the children in the district, NOT to buy new Mercedes for lawyers.
Now, Jacob has quite a war chest of campaign contributions that she will probably never use, in that she is termed out of office in 2020. State law permits the “donation” of these funds to certain entities. I suggest that if she is convinced that paying legal fees is the right thing to do, she reimburse whichever side of this suit she thinks is justified for the spending that taxpayer revenue.
Just the other day, a survey confirmed that U.S. taxpayers are extremely unhappy regarding how their tax revenue is spent. Put in that category the majority of Alpine residents. Dianne, please don’t foster this spending anymore, especially when it isn’t YOUR money.
Russo is a member of the Alpine Planning Group, a former San Diego Rural Fire Board member and was a Trump Delegate from California to the Republican National Convention