Why the sales tax hike did not pass
Whiteside County school officials weren't alone in their misery Tuesday when voters shot down a 1 percent sales tax hike dedicated to school construction and maintenance projects.
Similar referendums in seven other counties - Adams, Calhoun, Champaign, Iroquois, Kankakee, Marion and Pike - suffered the same fate.
Only Cass County, west of Springfield, passed the measure, joining Williamson County, which passed it in February. They are the only counties to approve the increase.
In Whiteside, the measure lost, but not by a lot - 14,670 to 10,836, or 57.5 percent to 42.5 percent.
Local superintendents say the measure failed because voters weren't properly educated about the measure. Rock Falls High School officials would agree.
Only nine of the 10 area school boards wanted to put the question on the November ballot; the high school board wanted to wait until April, to give residents more time to learn about the tax and consider how it would help schools.
"I think ... we could have educated the public better on the benefits of the sales tax," said Gary Steinert, superintendent of the Whiteside County Regional Office of Education.
They also could have picked a more opportune time to put the question to voters. The large turnout the presidential election brought did not play into their favor, he said.
"I think anytime we have a large turnout, there's a possibility of not educating everybody on the [proposition]," Steinert said. "We probably missed those individuals who were there voting for president and may have not done their homework on the other issues on the ballot."
Sarah Willey, superintendent of Riverdale School, disagrees. She said the large turnout was a good thing.
"We wanted more opinions," Willey said. "We wanted to hear more of the people's will."
The battered economy didn't help, either.
"Its' really difficult for people to pay additional taxes in this time period," Willey said. "The economy took such a downturn. It really affected the outcome."
Secrets of success
How did Cass and Williamson counties get it done?
In the Beardstown School District, the largest in Cass County, voters signed on for the district's promise to use the money from the sales tax to pay off a new 1,500-student middle school/senior high school.
The district built the $21 million building 7 years ago, to replace one built in the early 1900s. The state chipped in $16 million, so the district sold $5 million in bonds.
Beardstown promised to use the estimated $467,000 a year in new sales tax revenue to reduce property taxes $230 to $300 for the average household.
"It's a tax swap," Superintendent Robert Bagby said. "Using ours for debt relief, and not for any other reason, I think is one of the reasons it passed."
They informed the voters through fliers, TV and radio spots and public meetings.
"We educated our voting public," Bagby said. "Property-tax relief is a popular subject."
Williamson County opted to hold a vote during the February primary, and labor unions endorsed and helped campaign for the initiative, said Matt Donkin, superintendent of the Franklin-Williamson Regional Office of Education.
Labor leaders emphasized to pipefitters, electricians, plumbers, carpenters, teamsters and other union workers that the sales tax could help create jobs.
"They saw how this could benefit everybody, the kids and the parents of the kids," Donkin said.
School districts also promised to use the money for specific projects.
The Cartersville district, for example, promised to use the sales money to build a new high school, while the Herrin district promised to lower property taxes to pay off bonds.
Last hurrah?
In Whiteside County, there was no referendum committee promoting the measure's passage. Rock Falls Elementary School District 13 sent out fliers. Morrison sent out brochures, and placed information on the district's Web site. There were a few informational sessions about the sales tax as well.
Morrison promised to use 80 percent of its sales tax revenue to reduce property taxes by $140 for a house worth $100,000. Rock Falls 13 promised $57 property tax reduction for a $50,000 house.
Both districts were going to use the money to pay off loans taken out to pay for state-mandated, but not funded, health/life/safety projects.
The property tax reduction apparently persuaded Morrison voters, who passed the sales tax hike, as did their counterparts in the River Bend School district, where tennis courts, a track and leaky roofs needed repair.
Sterling wanted to install energy-efficient geothermal heating and cooling systems; East Coloma and Riverdale were looking at removing asbestos.
Given the little promotion, Steinert was surprised the election was close.
"If we could get our message out of benefits to districts and how process works, I think we could get this passed in the future," Steinert said.
Whether Whiteside County school districts will pursue the sales tax again in the February primary or the April general election remains to be seen.
"I think [the county's superintendents] are probably going to meet to discuss that as an option," Steinert said.
