School Board referendum election date raises concerns

The timing of next year’s special election to renew a key revenue source for area schools will cost taxpayers more money and put the measure before fewer voters than other options available to the district that year, according to some county officials.

The referendum vote, set for March 25 to coincide with the town of Longboat Key general election, will decide whether to renew for the third time a 1-mill property tax that expires every four years and generates about $40 million annually to fund programs the School Board considers vital to the district. The measure sunsets June 30.

The School Board approved the March 25 election date by a 4-0 vote at an Oct. 1 meeting.

Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections Kathy Dent said the March 25 special election will cost district taxpayers about $400,000 and added that including the measure on the ballot for the August primary or the November 2014 general election would cost the district “absolutely nothing.”

“The key issues are the huge extra cost to the taxpayers, coupled with the low voter turnout in relation to November 2014, which will be an election for the governor, Congress and County Commission,” Sarasota County Commissioner Joe Barbetta said, referring to the referendum election. “They (the School Board) clearly should hold it then.”

School Board officials said the election should be held before June 30 to mitigate negative impacts to the budget and ensure that programs and jobs vital to maintaining the above-average standard of education in Sarasota County are not cut while waiting for an August or November vote.

“The referendum is a vote for about 12% of our operating budget,” Sarasota School Board member Jane Goodwin said. “There would be big problems if we lost $40 million from the budget. It would mean layoffs.”
Barbetta said voting for the referendum after the June 30 sunset date would not seriously impact the district’s fiscal year 2014 budget.

“In reality, it’s only seven months’ difference, and they can always do a budget adjustment mid cycle,” Barbetta said.

Based on historical election data for Sarasota County, a separate referendum election will draw about half as many voters as a general election and will have a turnout roughly on par with a countywide primary.

Voters approved the last School Board referendum in a March 18, 2010, special election that was held along with the town of Longboat Key general election — the same scenario proposed for 2014. The 2010 special election drew 70,389 total voters countywide, including 2,052 voters who voted in the Longboat Key election, according to county data.

The Nov. 2, 2010, general election, the last off-presidential cycle congressional election (similar to what 2014 will be), drew 148,307 voters countywide — more than double the number of voters who turned out for the 2010 joint School Board referendum and Longboat Key election. The 2010 countywide primary drew 63,630 voters.

Goodwin said posing the referendum as a standalone vote may decrease participation, but it will increase voter awareness of the issues at stake.

“We always thought a special election was the best way to engage the population,” Goodwin said. “We want more people to pay attention to the referendum and how important it is. We don’t want anything else on the ballot. We don’t want anything standing in the way of good dialogue with the community.”

The upcoming referendum vote was originally scheduled for March 4, 2014, but was pushed back to March 25 to coincide with the Longboat Key race.

Asked if planning the School Board’s referendum vote to accompany the Longboat Key general election would save taxpayers any money, Dent said: “It won’t save the district anything. But it will save the town of Longboat Key some money because now they can piggyback their election on the countywide vote.”