The Board of Trustees considered drafting a resolution in support of Proposition 15, an initiative that would bring the school additional funding of up to $6 million a year if passed.

The proposition would create a split roll property tax system, raising anywhere from $8.5 billion to $12 billion that would be used towards California schools and public services.

“It would make perfect sense,” said Trustee Jonathan Abboud. The resolution would be a welcome help, Abboud said, to a college that is set to have a deficit of up to $4.9 million for 2020-21.

Most of the board members were in support of the resolution, with Trustees Craig Nielson and Veronica Gallardo voicing concerns about whether the resolution would be the best decision at this moment.

“I just think that it’s missing some things, and if rewritten, I think it would be something we definitely could get behind,” said Gallardo. “But I think we could do better.”

Though no action was made on the resolution, board members discussed plans on what should be done if the proposition passes in November.

Superintendent-President Utpal Goswami urged the board to view the additional funding as intended for new projects instead of using it to “plug the structural deficit.”

Much of the discussion was based around making necessary changes to the budget going forward like reevaluating programs to more efficiently decide which ones need more or less funding.

“We should always be making the changes needed to meet our goals,” said Abboud.

Among the suggestions were the expansion of the hospitality programs to bring in more revenue, or consolidating programs and services to streamline the institution.

“We’ve got to accomplish a greater deal of efficiency,” said Nielson, “Or we will lose our standing.”

Nielsen said the college needs to “invest in new programs, or reinvigorate existing programs,” in order to regain some of the losses it has incurred over the past few years.

The board will reconvene for its next meeting on Oct. 8.