Piedmont Unified School District parcel tax, Measure A (March 2013)
A Piedmont Unified School District parcel tax, Measure A ballot question was on the March 5, 2013, ballot for voters in the Piedmont Unified School District in Alameda County, where it was approved.[1]
Measure A authorized the school district to levy a parcel tax of $2,406 per parcel per year. It will last for eight years.
A two-thirds (66.67%) vote was required for approval.
Election results
| Measure A | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
 Yes | 3,414 | 76.5% | ||
| No | 1,049 | 23.5% | ||
- These final, certified, results are from the Alameda County elections office.
Support
The Piedmont Patch featured a letter to the editor written by Sue Lin and Reuben Rivera in support of Measure A. They said:[2]
| “ | We are grateful for this Administration's dedication and focus on supporting the students/children and for a School Board that continues to work well with the Administrators. The theme of 'continuous improvement' rings true despite the years of PUSD budget woes which are the result of state government cuts. An 8 year renewal of the parcel tax would allow the district to spend less time preparing and working on the passage of a parcel tax and more time on students and evolving curriculum.[3] | ” |
Kerri Lubin, a retired teacher, also supported Measure A in a letter to the editor featured in the Piedmont Patch.[4]
Opposition
Bruce Joffe, a resident of Piedmont, opposed Measure A in a letter to the editor featured in the Piedmont Patch. He said:[5]
| “ | This tax charges small parcel owners as much as 40 to 80 times more per square foot than large parcel owners. A fair and uniform tax would levy the same amount per square foot...It would be unfair to lock in a tax that is higher for nearly 3,000 owners of smaller parcels while reducing the tax on approximately 800 of the largest parcels, compared with the current tax charge. There is adequate time to fix this inequity before Piedmont needs to approve another school tax.[3] | ” |
He also argued that Measure A did not provide for adequate oversight and independent review.[5]
Impact of Borikas v. Alameda Unified School District
A December 6, 2012, appellate court ruling in Borikas v. Alameda Unified School District led the board of the Piedmont Unified School District to alter its plans for how it would structure Measure A. The school district issued a press release which said, in part, "The Court’s decision requires the Board to consider a change to the Piedmont Unified School District’s (PUSD) proposed school support tax measure, scheduled to appear on the March 5, 2013 special election ballot. Based on the Legislature’s authorizing language for school districts to levy special qualified taxes such as parcel taxes, the Court held that such taxes must be uniform for all parcels within the district other than two narrow exemptions in the statute."[6]
See also
External links
- Text of Measure A
- Website of the Piedmont Unified School District
- Piedmont Unified School District on Twitter
Footnotes
- ↑ Beverly Hills Patch, "Alameda: School officials to appeal court ruling on parcel tax," December 14, 2012
- ↑ Piedmont Patch, "Letter: 'Support an Excellent Public School System'," February 5, 2013
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Piedmont Patch, "Letter: 'Keep Piedmont a Destination for Families Who Support Education'," February 7, 2013
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Piedmont Patch, "Letter: 'Why Vote No on the Measure A Parcel Tax in March'," February 8, 2013
- ↑ Piedmont Unified School District press office, "Press Release Re: Borikas v. Alameda Unified School District," December 10, 2012
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