By JAMES BELL
Hays Post
At the USD 489 work session Monday night, the board directed its attorney, Bill Jeter, to submit a petition and signature collection form to Ellis County Attorney Tom Drees. The form begins the process to allow the board to collect signatures and place a sales tax issue before voters.
The sales tax would help fund a $94 million plan to upgrade schools throughout the district.
The signatures are required to put the sales tax question to voters after the Hays City Commission declined to put the question to voters at their work-session on Jan. 8.
The board will need to collect around 1,200 signature in order to put the question on the ballot, but even then it will not be guaranteed to be at the same time as the bond election, as the city commission has the power to require the election to occur during the next election in which the city is participating.
The earliest that might occur would be August 2017, Jeter told board members.
If the board fails to collect the signatures required for the sales tax initiative, the bond election would still be held, but the bond would be fully financed through property taxes.
“I don’t think anyone here would say they don’t prefer the (sales tax) option, but the timeline is the only thing that is very relevant,” board member Luke Oborny said.
The petition and signature form will be given to Drees as early as Tuesday, but state statutes provide five days for Drees to act.
“If he doesn’t act in five days, it will be approved,” Jeter said.
Even if the board collects the required signatures, they will need to be verified by the county election officer, a process that could take up to four weeks.
“We would have to be really proactive,” said Superintendent Dean Katt, in order to get the signatures to the Hays City Commission in time to have a June 7 bond election with a sales tax initiative attached.
The last meeting the Hays City Commission will host to meet that timeline is March 17.
The Board is hopeful the petition will be ready for signatures before the first of a series of town hall meetings, set for 6:30 p.m. Thursday at O’Loughlin Elementary, 1401 Hall.
A full schedule for the meetings — and presentation materials — have been made available on the USD 489 website at www.usd489.com/?p=5174.
In the meantime, the administration is directing any group or business that would like a presentation to be made to contact Sarah Wasinger, board clerk, at (785) 623-2400, Ext. 112, or by email at [email protected].