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Setting the Levy Amount with Community Input
Because of the difficulty of meeting
Oregon’s double majority voting requirement for bond levies, districts need to
generate community ownership of the bond proposal. Districts should involve key community
leaders in reviewing and setting priorities for district facility needs.The district should hire a professional survey firm to conduct a
random-sample telephone survey to assess voter understanding of the need and support for
the proposed measure. Boards can use this data to make decisions on a bond levy proposal.
Effective use of advisory committees
- Identify up to 30 community members who represent key
groups in your community to review and prioritize facility needs. Include builders,
realtors, the chamber of commerce or other key community groups, city and/or county
planners, the fire marshal’s office, the ministerial association, parents, school
district classified and certified staff, senior citizens, any other organization or agency
that has recent experience with major building or renovation projects.
- Send personal invitations to representatives. Ask them to
serve on the committee. Describe the task. Provide a timeline, which indicates the
approximate number of meetings, or hours, required to complete the task.
- Review and discuss the district’s facility needs and
establish a timeline for addressing those needs based on the desired completion date and
election date.
- Provide appropriate administrative and secretarial
support.
- Follow open meetings law requirements. The facility review
committee is an advisory committee to the school board. Its meetings are public meetings.
Notice requirements are the same as for school board meetings.
- Make sure meeting minutes and the committee’s final
report are distributed widely so that other community members become aware of the
district’s needs.
- Follow the committee’s advice as closely as possible
in determining bond levy projects and amounts.
Conducting a Community Survey
A reliable way of testing voter understanding of
and support for an issue is to conduct a random sample survey of district voters. For
statistically accurate results, the number of voters polled will depend on the number of
registered voters in a district. Survey costs vary depending on district size. Generally,
districts should conduct a 10- to 15-minute survey (40 to 50 questions, including three to
five open-ended questions) with + 5-7 percent reliability. Questions about the measure
should be specific, including the amount of the levy, what it will pay for and the tax
rate.
A number of Oregon polling firms conduct school surveys.
For a list of the firms and guidelines for writing a request for survey proposal, contact
Shannon Priem, OSBA communication services director, via E-mail
or 1-800-578-6722; (503)588-2800
in Salem. |
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