JACKSON VOTERS ASKED TO PASS BOND ISSUE ... AGAIN

JACKSON, Mo. -- Jackson school officials believe they can get the 57 percent approval needed to pass a funding measure voters will consider Tuesday. That is, if voters can find the measure on the ballot.

"It's the last item on the last page," said Jackson schools Superintendent Dr. Ron Anderson. "We believe if people remember to look for it back there, there's a good chance many of them will support the bond issue."

The district is requesting voter approval of a $6 million bond issue to fund construction of an 18-classroom addition, new gymnasium, and expanded kitchen and library areas. The bonds, which would mean a debt-service tax-levy increase of 10 cents per $100 assessed valuation for property owners, would be repaid over 20 years.

That tax increase amounts to about $19 more in property taxes annually for a homeowner with a $100,000 home.

Planned improvements are expected to cost just over $5.7 million. The remaining funds and any interest earned would be used to purchase classroom furniture and equipment and upgrade technology at the junior high and in other buildings in the district.

Third time this year

It will be the second time in four months the issue has gone before voters and the third time this year voters have considered a bond proposal. In April voters overwhelmingly rejected a $5.3 million bond issue that would have funded the junior high projects in addition to construction of an elementary school.

But in elections Aug. 8, a $6 million bond proposal received a majority approval but fell about 300 votes short of the four-sevenths supermajority required. Had those votes been cast in favor of the bond issue, voters would not be considering it a third time, Anderson said.

"We're trying to let people know ahead of time where it is so they don't forget it," he said. "There's going to be a lot to consider on the ballots, and we want to make sure people realize how important it is that they find the bond issue and support it."

Approval of the measure is crucial next week if the district hopes to complete a project within the next two years. Should voters reject the measure, the Board of Education members have expressed reluctance to make a fourth attempt in April municipal elections, which would be the last reasonable chance the district has to pass a bond proposal.

State law requires a four-sevenths supermajority, or 57.14 percent of votes, in the general and municipal elections. But if the measure appears in any other election prior to April 2002, a two-thirds supermajority, a little more than 66 percent, will be required for passage.

"It's almost impossible to get anything passed at that rate," Anderson said. "That's why we're hoping everyone has taken the opportunities we've provided to look at the school and see for themselves that the need is there. We need them to come out Tuesday and make a special effort to vote for this measure."