TWO SOUTHERN ILLINOIS COUNTIES WILL VOTE ON 911

Pulaski and Union County voters in Southern Illinois will decide on whether to install 9-1-1 systems in their respective counties when they go to the polls Tuesday.

In Pulaski County, voters will decide whether to impose a surcharge of up to $3 a month, with the fee added to the monthly telephone bill to install the emergency telephone system.

Union County voters are being asked to approve a $2.50 a month fee for the system, with the surcharge to start in the spring following the election.

If voters approve the propositions, it will take about two years to get the systems going. Boards would be established to oversee set-up and operations of the two respective systems.

The first 9-1-1 system was installed in Illinois in 1968 in Henry County. Illinois now has 87 basic and 47 enhanced systems in the state. Union and Pulaski counties want to install enhanced systems.

Voters statewide will vote on a referendum making education a fundamental right for Illinois children.

The constitutional amendment to make education a fundamental "right" instead of a "goal" would give the state "preponderant financial responsibility" for financing public education. The goal is to provide a thorough and efficient system of quality public education.

The proposal has attracted both praise and criticism throughout the state.

Some view the amendment as a chance to legally position schools at the top of the state's financial pecking order. Others see it as a back-door approach to getting a huge income tax increase for schools that still haven't proven their quality and efficiency.

Voters in the Anna-Jonesboro High School District will vote on yet another education bill. Voters in the district will be asked to approve a bond issue and temporary tax increase, allowing the district to pay back $365,000, which was borrowed last year to keep the school's doors open. The bond issue would be paid back over a 10-year period.