Survey shows voters would

back tax increase for schools

District could ask for tax increase of $108 a year, for a $100,000 home

By KREMENA TODOROVA

Journal Staff Writer

NEW ULM -- A majority of voters would back a property tax increase to raise funds for local public schools, if asked to vote now, according to a survey released this week.

According to a telephone poll of 303 randomly selected voters in the area served by District 88, 56 percent of registered voters would support a tax levy, even before hearing how the money would be spent or what the taxpayers' cost would be. Twenty-nine percent would oppose it, and 15 percent are undecided.

The poll was taken by the California-based Center for Community Opinion on April 30 - May 1 and has a margin of error of 5.5 percent.

The poll also found that providing specific information of how the funds would be used increased the share of "yes" votes. When given details of what their money would buy, 62 percent of voters said they would vote for a levy, 23 percent said they would vote against it, and 15 percent remained undecided.

Support was especially strong for hiring back math teachers (81 percent), hiring back all 40 teachers cut in the past three years (70 percent), reducing class sizes (68 percent), and hiring back English teachers (68 percent). In-town busing, which was at the center of a recent fund-raising drive by the district, ranked relatively low among voters' priorities, with 55 percent support, while less than half the voters were set on restoring music programs and reducing fees for band, performing arts and athletics.

When voters were given information on the levy's impact on their taxes, the level of support dropped to 52 percent, the survey found. Opposition increased to 38 percent, and the share of undecided voters dropped to 10 percent.

Support for a tax increase is higher among women, younger voters, public school parents and town residents, the survey found.

It is lower among men, older voters, private school parents and farmers.

Private school parents have a "very weak reaction" to the need for referendum funds, with under 40 percent likely to vote in favor of a levy in the absence of specific information, said consultant Don Lifto, who discussed the findings in an informal meeting with the District 88 Board of Education this week. But they appear to find the cost acceptable, with nearly 50 percent voting for a levy when acquainted with the tax consequences.

In contrast, when confronted with cost implications, voters 65 or older -- whose support, at under 50 percent, was relatively weak from the start -- drastically reduced their backing. When familiarized with the cost, only about 36 percent of older voters would say "yes".

The same trend was found for farmers, whose support dropped from about 46 percent to 38 percent after hearing the price.

While still a majority, people who voted in four or five out of the last five elections are less supportive of a levy than less frequent voters, the poll also found.

According to consultant Lifto, the results look encouraging for the district.

"What this is saying is that it is feasible to ask the public the approve a referendum -- and expect to achieve support."

But Lifto also stressed the survey is "just a snapshot in time," with many variables likely to intervene between now and November, and that actual success depends on "a focused, well-executed campaign."

Based on a set of questions to determine the public's "threshold of tolerance", the pollsters recommend that the cost of a levy should not exceed $108 a year for a $100,000 home.

In comparison, a plan to raise a $1.3 million for the district in a failed referendum last May would have upped the tax on a $100,000 home by $150 a year.

"It's a delicate balancing act between what you need and what the community would support," said Lifto.

"The margins are thin. I'd be careful not to cut them razor-thin."

The school board has not formally announced it will seek a referendum. But district officials showered the consultant with questions related to strategies to win the public over, the best timing for a promotional campaign, and the best parameters of a ballot request.