Humboldt State University, Eureka City Schools and other local districts could receive millions of state dollars if Proposition 55 passes in March.

The proposition would allow the state to sell $12.3 billion in bonds to construct and renovate school and higher education facilities.

Supporters of the proposition argue on the state sample ballot that California's overcrowded and aging schools desperately need the money.

"California needs to invest in education to invest in the future of our children," it states.

Opponents say the state cannot afford the bonds, and that it would only make the existing financial problems worse.

"California is facing the most severe financial crisis in the history of any state," they write.

HSU Public Information Officer Paul Mann said the university will receive $50.9 million if the bond passes, the largest chunk of which would pay for the renovation of the Forbes Building.

Equipment for the Behavioral and Social Sciences Building and improvements to the seating and mechanical systems of the Van Duzer Theater are also on the list. The bond would also pay for seismic work on the Van Duzer Theater and the university library.

Eureka City Schools would receive around $20 million to match the $40 million local bond which passed in 2002. The district plans, over the next several years, to bring all its aging school buildings up to modern condition. A seismic retrofit of the 78-year-old Eureka High School is part of the project.

"If Prop 55 doesn't pass, it will totally change our approach to our projects," said Chief Business Official Jerry Johnson. "We'll have to go into some serious triage of what gets done."

This may mean forgoing the less crucial items if the district can't afford it. For example, Johnson said, it might be possible to install new plumbing in a school which would still be left with old paint and windows. Schools must follow stringent safety requirements, and the engineering required in the high school retrofit is particularly expensive, he said.

School district's budgets, dictated according to a complex state formula, aren't set up in a way that it's easy to pay for major projects like this, Johnson said.

"Schools are very different from a normal business," he said. "We don't produce a product that is tangible and that you can hold in your hands and sell on the Internet. Our product is kids."

That means a larger percentage of the general fund goes toward human resources -- some 85 percent, compared with 65 percent or so for many industries, Johnson said. And supplies and utilities eat up much of the rest, he said, leaving little money for capital projects.

The district's annual budget has money set aside for routine maintenance, like fixing a broken window or pipe. But the money for large capital projects isn't available, he said. He added that, with a growing desire across the state to pay teachers more, there's more demand on fewer dollars.

"Every parent wants their child to have the very best teacher possible," he said.

Seven other districts would be eligible for smaller amounts of the bond money. Janet Frost of the Humboldt County Office of Education said that being eligible for the funds isn't a guarantee that the district will receive it -- but if the proposition doesn't pass, they're guaranteed not to.

Frost said the eligible districts are: Arcata School District, around $90,000; Ferndale Unified School District, $2.5 million for classroom modernization; Fortuna Union Elementary District, $3.9 million for renovations; Loleta School District, $430,000; Humboldt County Office of Education, $2 million; Klamath-Trinity Joint Unified School District, $3 million; and the Rohnerville School District, $100,000.