PARENTS, TEACHERS CALL ON STATE TO ADDRESS $7.6 BILLION IN DEFERRED MAINTENANCE

Ensuring every student has a safe, healthy environment in which to learn is key to their success at school. And yet all summer, Oregonians have heard about the lead levels that our children are exposed to in school. But lead is just the beginning of the story: earthquake risks, radon, mold and other asthma triggers are also concerns in a school system that has been forced to make hard choices with shrinking budgets.

With our children scheduled to return to school, the Oregon PTA, Children First for Oregon and the Oregon Education Association call on the state to address these problems.

• A study by the Oregon School Capital Improvement Planning Task Force found that facilities budgets in Oregon schools are consistently underfunded and have led to a backlog of $7.6 billion in deferred school repairs.

• Oregon’s per-student spending on facility maintenance is only 37 percent of what the National Council on School Facilities recommends – that’s a shortfall of $1133 per student.

• Maintenance spending is down 36 percent in Oregon compared to the early 2000s.

Our school infrastructure has been neglected and we know why: a steady disinvestment in public education. With fewer resources, school districts were forced to make hard choices about where to focus their investments. It’s clear that facility maintenance is one area that has suffered. This report describes several priority areas that need immediate attention:

• Lead exposure• Lead-tainted water• Radon and poor indoor air quality• Seismic risk • Mold, mildew, dust and other asthma triggers

Every student in Oregon – no matter what their zip code – deserves a healthy and safe environment in which to learn. Some school districts have passed bond measures that are a step in the right direction, but Oregon needs to make sure that every student in every school district is set up to succeed.

Fortunately, the problems outlined in this report can be addressed. But in order to do so, we need to make major investments in facilities maintenance.

Revenue can make our schools safe Oregon kids deserve to learn in healthy, safe schools. Unfortunately, because of the decline in spending on school facilities, many Oregon schools have not been kept up to a high standard. Aging school buildings were made with materials now known to be hazardous: lead pipes, lead paint, and asbestos. Naturally occurring hazards like radon also threaten the health of students and school staff, and many school buildings are seismically unsound and likely to collapse during an earthquake.

Ensuring that all schools are safe costs money. Oregon has decreased its per-student spending (adjusted for inflation to 2014 dollars) on school facilities since 2000, leaving the state with over $7.6 billion worth of deferred maintenance.1

From 2000-2004, Oregon schools spent an average of $1,047 per student on facilities construction and renovation. From 2010 to 2014, only $667 was spent per student on school facilities: a 36% decline. If districts spent the same amount per student on facilities from 2010 to 2014 as they did ten years earlier, an additional $1 billion would have been invested in making schools safe.2

Most work on school buildings is financed with bonds backed by local property taxes.3 In the March 2016 election, voters only approved some of the school bond measures eligible for a match.4 But even in districts where bonds pass, they don’t always cover the full cost of needed repairs. The measures that passed will pay for a lot of important projects, but billions of dollars worth of work still remains with no plan for addressing the issue.

1 THE SCHOOLS OUR STUDENTS DESERVE: A Statewide School Facilities Program for Oregon. Task Force on School Capital Improvement Planning, 2014. Accessed at http://www.ode.state.or.us/superintendent/priorities/final-report---task-force-on-school-capital-improvement-planning---October-2014.pdf.2 Our Oregon analysis of data from Oregon Department of Education3 Our Oregon analysis of expenditure data from Oregon Education Department4 Manning, R. May 2016 Matching Dollars Help Some Oregon School Bonds, Some Still Fail. Retrieved July 13, 2016

Lead exposure Ingesting lead can cause a host of health problems, and children are especially at risk. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, even low levels of lead in blood have been shown to affect IQ, the ability to pay attention, and academic achievement. Protecting children from lead exposure is crucial to safeguarding their health.

The most hazardous sources of lead are lead-based paint and lead contaminated dust. Though the use of lead paint declined throughout the 1950s and 60s, the federal government didn’t ban lead-based paint until 1978.5

A 2007 assessment identified 769 K-12 schools in Oregon that were built before 1978 (78% of all K-12 schools), and more than 300 built before 1950. In Portland alone, more than 70 public school buildings were built before 1978, and lead-based paint poses an unnecessary risk to students’ health. For example, flaking paint chips on the Alameda Elementary School playground puts more than 750 students at risk. And lead paint is peeling off the auditorium ceiling in Cleveland High School, falling on areas where students gather.6

Removing lead paint must be done carefully to avoid making the problem even worse. Sanding or stripping paint releases lead dust in the air, which can be inhaled or ingested. Careful mitigation is expensive; school officials estimate it would cost $870,000 to deal with lead paint at the 20 Oregon schools with the worst problems.7 At those prices, safely mitigating lead paint hazards at hundreds of other school across the state would cost tens of millions of dollars, but the health benefits to Oregon students will be immeasurable.

Lead-tainted waterIn addition to lead-based paint, high lead levels in drinking water are a major concern. The issue was brought to national attention by the crisis in Flint, Michigan, but many Oregon schools have their own problems with lead-tainted water.

Lead was commonly used for plumbing in the 20th century. Lead can leach out of pipes and fixtures and result in elevated lead levels in drinking water. Even if the pipes in a school are safe, many fixtures are made with brass components, which can leach lead into standing water. The 1986 Safe Drinking Water Act banned lead plumbing, but most schools in Oregon were built before then. A 2007 assessment identified 807 of 991 (81%) K-12 schools built before 1986.

Recent news about elevated lead tests in Oregon schools highlights the need for action.8 Elevated lead levels in water were found in 47 of the 90 schools building tested in Portland from 2010-2012.9

Lead in water is not just a problem in Portland Public Schools. In fact, the problem is statewide. In the Eugene School District, water in three schools and the district education center tested high for lead.10 At Roosevelt Middle School, water from 14 of the 25 fixtures tested had unsafe lead levels. Lead was

5 Prevention Tips. (2014). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention6 The Oregonian. Portland schools struggle with more potent toxic scare: Lead paint. 7 The Oregonian. Rebuild three Portland high schools? Or just two — and fix health hazards? Board must decide. 8 Hammond, B. (2016, May 28). Lead in school drinking water: Portland parents demand action after lapses.9 Monahan, R. (n.d.). Portland District Failed to Disclose Excessive Lead Levels at 47 School Buildings. Retrieved July 13, 2016, from http://www.wweek.com/news/2016/05/31/portland-district-failed-to-disclose-excessive-lead-levels-at-47-school-buildings/10 Roemeling, A. (2016, June 18). High levels of lead found in water at two Eugene schools, new test results show.

found in the water in ten schools in the Gresham-Barlow School District.11 Beaverton School District’s Elmonica, Errol Hassell, Greenway, Hazeldale and Rock Creek elementary schools were temporarily shut off access to drinking water in early June. The water systems in these schools were built prior to the lead ban of 1986.

The Oregon Board of Education recently adopted rules requiring all schools in the state to have a plan to test their water for lead. These tests will surely identify many more schools with lead problems.

Taking prudent steps to limit exposure, whether it’s updating fixtures, installing filters or providing alternative water sources, will require significant investments.

RadonRadon, an odorless, colorless, radioactive gas, is the leading environmental cause of lung cancer. Portland’s radon levels are double the national average, and well above the Environmental Protection Agency’s action level.12

Thanks to a new state law, all school districts will be required to test for radon by 2021.13 Portland Public Schools has already tested 800 classrooms for radon and found 121 with elevated levels.14 For many schools, lowering radon levels may be as simple as adjusting the HVAC system, but some schools will likely require additional radon mitigation systems.

Residential radon mitigation systems are relatively inexpensive, typically running between $1,000 and $1,500. The cost to lower radon exposure in school buildings will depend on the size and design of the school, and the type of foundation and construction materials. As more schools test for radon and develop plans to address high levels, these costs will become more clear.

Seismic risk Oregon experiences major earthquakes every few hundred years, and it has been a few hundred years since the last one. A major earthquake would be catastrophic. According to FEMA, around one million buildings in the Pacific Northwest would collapse or be compromised in the earthquake.15 Many public buildings in Oregon, including schools, are old and in danger of collapse. In 2007 the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI) published an in-depth seismic needs assessment of public buildings.16 Out of 3,352 buildings surveyed, 1,360 (41%) were deemed to be at high or very high risk of collapse during a major earthquake (1,018 of them K-12 schools). Another 703 sites were assigned a moderate risk of collapse (534 of them schools). More than 300,000 students attend classes in buildings that are considered to be at risk for life-threatening injuries in the instance of a major earthquake.17

11 Carson, T. (2016, June 15). Lead found in water at two more Gresham-Barlow schools12 Radon Risk in Oregon:Indoor Radon Risk Levels. (n.d.)13 Lehman, C. (2016, June 16). No Oregon School Districts Have Submitted Radon Testing Plans To State.14 Ryan, J. (2016, June 02). PPS, under fire for lead in water, reports high levels of radon.15 Schulz, K. (2015, July 20). The Really Big One.16 STATEWIDE SEISMIC NEEDS ASSESSMENT: IMPLEMENTATION OF OREGON 2005 SENATE BILL 2 RELATING TO PUBLIC SAFETY, EARTHQUAKES, AND SEISMIC REHABILITATION OF PUBLIC BUILDINGS. (2007). Retrieved July 13, 2016.17 THE SCHOOLS OUR STUDENTS DESERVE: A Statewide School Facilities Program for Oregon.

Since the 2007 DOGAMI report, a number of seismic retrofitting projects have been done. Portland voters approved a $482 million bond in 2012 to repair and upgrade schools. The renovations will focus on fixing leaky roofs, seismic reconstruction and science classroom upgrades.18 But there’s still lots more to do. Portland Public Schools announced they would seek another $750 million bond for more construction projects.19 Lane County voters recently approved three bonds for school improvements,20 but school bonds elsewhere failed.21 But even after the current funded projects are completed, the majority of the schools in Oregon will still need to be fixed or replaced to keep children and school employees safe.

Mold, mildew, dust, and other asthma triggersNearly half of all Oregon schools were built between 1918 and 1955. Many of these schools have not been remodeled since their construction, and are showing their age. At least 40 percent of Oregon schools need substantial renovations to counteract the effects of age and deterioration.22

Poor ventilation, mold, mildew and dust are all present in Oregon’s decrepit school buildings, and these trigger asthma attacks. Asthma, which causes three times more school absences than any other health condition, affects 6.3 million children in the United States.23 For low income children, and communities of color, the risk of developing asthma is higher when compared to the general population. Across the country, children with asthma missed 13.8 million school days in 2013.24 Oregon has one of the worst rates of chronic absenteeism in the nation.25 Chronic absenteeism is defined as missing 10 percent or more school days in any given academic year. Being absent so much takes a toll on a child’s ability to learn and function when compared to their peers. When triggers in school buildings cause students to go home sick, those students miss out on the education their classmates are receiving. Renovating old school buildings makes them healthier places to be.

18 Portland Public Schools. (n.d.). Retrieved July 13, 2016, from http://www.pps.net//site/Default.aspx?PageID=47819 http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2016/07/portland_public_schools_plans_2.html20 Roemeling, A. (2016, May 18). Three of four Lane County school districts pass bond measures.21 Frazier, L. (2016, May 17). Corbett, Centennial, Molalla River school bonds fail: 2016 Election.22 THE SCHOOLS OUR STUDENTS DESERVE: A Statewide School Facilities Program for Oregon. Task Force on School Capital Improvement Planning, 2014.23 Asthma. (2016, February 10).24 AsthmaStats: Asthma-related Missed School Days among Children aged 5–17 Years. (2015, October 05).25 Hammond, B. (2015, October 22). 94,000 Oregon students chronically absent from class.

ConclusionThe state of Oregon needs new revenue to deal with its school health and safety problem. With insufficient funding, schools failed to address deferred maintenance costs that now exceed $7 billion.

Voters in some school districts are approving bonds to address the most pressing problems in school buildings, but it is important that every student in the state no matter where they live has a healthy and safe learning environment.

Safer schools mean healthier students, and healthy kids learn better. Students in good health who aren’t missing classes due to illness, have higher educational achievement.26 Kids who miss school due to health problems are not likely to get the full benefit of classroom instruction.

Fortunately, these problems can be addressed. But in order to make Oregon’s schools healthy and safe for our children to learn in, we need to make major investments in facilities maintenance.

26 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014). Health and Academic Achievement.