NJSBA: 60% Voter Approval is No Solution

NJSBA: 60% Voter Approval is No Solution

The April 2007 law that created the 4 percent cap on local districts’ tax levies will also require supermajority approval of second ballot questions. In April 2008, second questions will have to receive affirmative votes by 60 percent of the voters who participate in the school election.

Second ballot questions request specific programs, items or services that, in most cases, involve expenditures above cap. In addition to imposing a supermajority approval requirement, the new law also eliminates the authority of municipal governing bodies to review defeated second questions and allow the levying of taxes for all or part of the proposals.

Impact The supermajority requirement could have a significant impact on school districts next year. Statistics compiled by NJSBA show that, in April 2007, 87 second ballot questions were proposed by 65 school districts. Voters approved 46 percent of the questions. If the 60-percent requirement had been in place, the percentage of approved second questions would have decreased to 25 percent, according to an analysis by the state school business officials association.

NJSBA data indicate that over 30 percent of the second questions on last spring’s ballot called for maintaining existing staff or programs. When broken down according to program or service, close to two-thirds of the second questions addressed the hiring or continued employment of certificated staff. Over 42 percent involved classroom equipment or curricular programs, including computers, textbooks and full-day kindergarten. Nearly a fourth addressed school security. (The percentages add up to more than 100 because many second questions incorporate several types of expenditures.)

Tax Cap Impact Although the 4-percent levy cap went into effect this year, its impact was muted somewhat by an additional $300 million in state aid. Without another increase in funding for 2008-2009, however, more school districts might need to propose second questions in April 2008.

Given the historically low voter turnout in school elections, the 60-percent supermajority could result in situations where a small number of votes would have a dramatic impact on school programs.

What You Can Do In conjunction with other educational groups, NJSBA is mounting a campaign to inform legislators that the supermajority requirement poses real harm to education.

NJSBA has posted online a sample resolution, which has already been adopted by many boards. The resolution asks the governor and the Legislature to take immediate action to rescind the supermajority requirement in favor of the simple majority that is now required for all other referendums. The sample resolution is available online.

NJSBA strongly encourages boards to adopt this resolution at their next meeting. This action will help school boards communicate concerns with one voice, and restore common sense to the school election process.