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BOE requests "60% law"€™ be withdrawn
(by Walt Brown - December 05, 2007)
In a unanimous vote, the Pascack Valley Regional Board of Education petitioned state legislatures and Governor Corzine to “amend Chapter 62” to eliminate the provision of a super-majority (60 percent) vote for school district special questions and restore the principle of ‘one person, one vote’ in the State of New Jersey.”
By virtue of the recently-adopted Public Law 2007, Chapter 62, any “second questions” or “third questions” – items beyond the school’s proposed budget, must now receive 60 percent of the votes cast to be approved.
In its petition to the legislators and the governor, the board said that low voter turnout, defined as “often less than 15 percent,” translates into success or failure of such initiatives by very narrow margins.
Board President Beth Politi, who is also liaison to the School Boards Association and reports to the board frequently on pending legislation, spoke of this specific issue a year ago this time. Based on “second questions” proposed in the spring budget elections in
New Jersey , Politi said, “46 of them were approved. But under this new super-majority plan, only 20 of them would have been approved.”
Politi added, “I feel, and the board has agreed with me on this, that this new legislation does a great disservice to everyone when their vote doesn’t count. What we seek is nothing more than a restoration of basic democracy – one voice, one vote.”
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