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"Measure J" aims at improving Kern community college facilities

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Measure J will improve facilities for community colleges in Bakersfield, Porterville, and Cerro Coso. 

The measure's goals is to upgrade classrooms and labs, repairing sewage lines, leaky roofs, ensuring access for disabled, and putting more money toward their veteran programs. 

This all comes at a cost of half a billion dollars. 

The money will come from bonds, meaning higher property taxes.

Executive Director of Kern County Taxpayers Association, Michael Turnipseed says, "It's paid back on your property tax and there is a tax rate, you will see so many dollars and for junior college it's 25 dollars per hundred thousand." 

Turnipseed says if your home is worth $250,000, you'd pay $62 more a year in property taxes, if Measure J passes. He says it could be this way for at least five years, but possibly longer. 

"It'll be on your tax bill for 25 years." 

$500 million is a lot of money but supporters of the measure say investing in Kern County's higher education will improve businesses, the community, and student's learning environments. 

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