A rough day for many local referendums

Tuesday was a rough day for many referendums in the Sauk Valley, especially those that required more money to be spent. By the time Election Day was over, six referendums had been shot down - most notably the 1-cent dedicated sales tax proposal for school maintenance and repairs in Whiteside County. Voters said no, 57.5 percent to 42.5 percent. Desperate for new revenue, all county school districts except one had requested the sales tax issue be placed on the November ballot, and the county board agreed. The "no" vote means schools will not share an estimated $4 million in new tax dollars. They'll have to find another way to pay for needed repairs and upgrades, or do without. Another school referendum - this one a $5.5 million building bond issue - was defeated by Prophetstown-Lyndon-Tampico School District voters, 67.4 percent to 32.6 percent. The plan involved building school additions and shifting students around to improve efficiency and performance. In an Ogle County advisory referendum, voters said no to a proposal to fully restore the main courtroom in the 1891 courthouse. The vote was 57.3 percent no, 42.7 percent yes. The project would have cost several hundred thousand dollars. In and around Erie, voters turned down, 54 percent to 46 percent, a proposal to create the Erie Area Park District. This would have been paid for through new property taxes - a prospect that voters rejected. Roads around Harmon may become a little bumpier, after Harmon Township voters turned down, 59 percent to 41 percent, a referendum to raise more money for repairs and maintenance. Of course, the biggest expense, according to its opponents, would have been an Illinois constitutional convention. That multimillion-dollar idea was defeated statewide, 68 percent to 32 percent. Locally, it garnered "no" votes of 67.3 percent in Lee County, 71.5 percent in Carroll, 72.2 percent in Whiteside, 73.9 percent in Bureau and 76 percent in Ogle. Not all referendums failed. Amboy area voters approved, by 59 percent to 41 percent, a proposal to provide more money for firefighter safety equipment. Walnut area voters said yes to establishment of a Walnut Fire Protection District, 78.4 percent to 21.6 percent. Ogle County voters approved, 52.8 percent to 47.2 percent, an advisory referendum asking the Legislature to allow people to carry concealed firearms for protection. In another advisory measure, Coloma Township voters, by 51.6 percent to 48.4 percent, said no to paying private military corporations to train police officers and guards. So there you have it. The people have spoken. Now it's up to officials to accept those decisions and govern accordingly.