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Hernando School Board sets sales tax vote for November

 
Published April 23, 2015

BROOKSVILLE — The Hernando County School Board on Tuesday picked both the time for its planned half-cent sales tax referendum — November — and the approach for the campaign.

"We all preferred the low-cost option," school district spokesman Eric Williams said, speaking of a sales tax task force formed in February.

The strategy includes soliciting in-kind donations from media organizations, speaking to community groups, holding town hall meetings and informally polling residents rather than paying for polling.

The political action committee that pushed Brevard County's successful school-only tax last fall did so with a budget of only $112,000, Williams said. Meanwhile, the PAC that last fall supported Hernando's county-schools tax, Penny for Projects, raised far more money, $150,000, yet lost by a wide margin at the polls.

The board on Tuesday also gave approval for the formation of a PAC with a proposed budget of $112,000.

All of the board members spoke in favor of the tax, which would replace a previous half-cent tax that expired at the end of last year. Only member Matt Foreman argued for putting the vote off until the presidential primary in March or that year's general election in November, saying the additional months are needed to build a successful campaign.

"It takes time to mobilize parents, and it takes time to mobilize all the people involved with this," Foreman said. "I'm really concerned about putting together the best campaign we can."

Also, he said, turnout will be higher if the school referendum is joined with other elections. And it would save money. Holding a special election this November will cost about $232,000, compared with about $45,000 if it is part of the 2016 primary and there would be no cost if it is part of the general election.

But holding the referendum any time in 2016 means the board could not begin collecting the revenue until the start of 2017. And board member Beth Narverud said that by agreeing to do without the money for that long, the board might send the message to voters that it really isn't needed.

The earlier election date would "keep that urgent message before the county," Narverud said. "Even though the cost (of the election) is greater, I think we need that money now."

The board's decision to go with the November date, however, may be complicated by Supervisor of Elections Shirley Anderson. She told the board that a September date — which they rejected as too early to mount an effective campaign — would fit in better with her office's work to install new voter equipment. After the meeting, she said she planned to recommend that date to the County Commission.

Whenever the vote is ultimately scheduled, a big part of the campaign will be telling voters just how urgent the need is. One reason the campaign in Brevard was successful, Williams said, was that the district identified cuts that would be necessary if the tax did not pass.

Among the cuts possible in Hernando if voters do not agree to pay the estimated $8.5 million in annual sales tax revenue, he said, is a return to the unpopular policy of eliminating busing for students who live closer than 2 miles from their schools. The board would also consider cutting middle school sports, art and music programs and closing under-capacity schools.

The task force also recommended spending tax money on capital improvements, such as replacing old roofs and air-conditioning systems. Staffers have identified the need for $88 million of those types of projects across the district.

"Our needs are real," board member Susan Duval said. "They are not made up to create a sense of crisis. We are in a crisis. We need to move forward as fast as possible."

Contact Dan DeWitt at ddewitt@tampabay.com. Follow @ddewitttimes.

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