An independent committee told the Riverside Unified School District (RUSD) Board of Education Thursday that its annual review of Measure O bond funds found the district had used the money in accordance with the law during the last fiscal year.
“I know it’s not always glamorous or fun, but it’s important and necessary,” Trustee Brent Lee said during the March 12 board meeting. “Not only to be in compliance with the state law, but also reassure the public that their dollars are being spent how they were intended to be spent.”
The Citizens Bond Oversight Committee is a 13-member panel required by state law to review bond spending and later present its findings to the public. Chani Beeman, the committee’s chair, said the members met four times between July 2024 and June 2025, to review the fiscal year’s expenditures and inspect facilities to ensure the spending matched.
During that time, RUSD spent $55 million to build a two-story science building at John W. North High School, complete construction on Casa Blanca Elementary School and purchase land for the soon-to-be-built Ofelia Valdez-Yeager Elementary School, among other projects. By the end of June 2025, the committee reported that the district had about $17 million left in Measure O funds.
Erin Power, RUSD’s assistant superintendent, told the board that the district had since issued the remaining Measure O bond funds and estimated the district would have $40 million at the end of the current fiscal year on June 30.
“Let me tell you, this committee asks questions, as they are supposed to do,” Beeman told the board. “ If you look at any of our reports, we look into the details and ask questions about why that expenditure was made, and district staff comes back with an answer.”
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Beeman also told the board the committee uncovered an incident of fraud in September 2024 where more than $900,000 was stolen from Measure O funds. She said the Federal Bureau of Investigation opened an investigation and was able to recover about $150,000. The rest of the stolen money was reimbursed through the district’s insurance fund.
The committee, Beeman added, reviewed the incident. Power also said that the district had taken measures to address it.
“We implemented the training for all staff at the time,” she said. “Then we also do this training annually, and with all onboarding of new staff, to help them recognize any instances of potential fraud.”
The yearly report also came six months after a California Court of Appeals upheld a lower court ruling rejecting claims the district had misused bond funds by building new campuses rather than upgrading old facilities, according to the Raincross Gazette. It also came nine months after the state’s Joint Legislative Audit Committee voted to approve State Sen. Sabrina Cervante’s request to audit the district over the proposed STEM Education Center, which RUSD has said it plans to use Measure O proceeds to fund.
Voters approved the $392 million Measure O bond in 2016. RUSD has used the funds over the years to upgrade several of its facilities across the district, including classroom renovations at Alcott Elementary, system modernizations at Sierra Middle School and remodeling at Arlington High School.
The district said it also planned to use the money to cover the cost of The STEM Education Center and Highgrove II Elementary School, both of which the report said were on hold.
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