Seven state legislators are backing a proposal to make it easier for school districts to raise parcel taxes. The proposal would lower the threshold to pass a parcel tax for schools from the current two-thirds majority vote to 55 percent. Statewide, about two-thirds of school districts are anticipated to see budget deficits over the next year, according to the lawmakers behind the amendment.
Legislators introduced the proposal in February as Senate Constitutional Amendment 5. As a constitutional amendment, SCA-5 would require a two-thirds majority vote in both houses of the Legislature before eventually appearing on a statewide ballot measure. With Democrats holding supermajorities in both houses, the bill might fare better than it would have in years past.
