No Decision Yet On West Deptford School Board Election Date

Don’t count on voting for new members in November this year.

While no final decision was made Monday night, school board members spent about 20 minutes discussing , with a majority either favoring staying in April, or at least waiting to see what happens with other districts that move their elections to November, though several said they’re still undecided.

The biggest concerns were over the intrusion of politics into the race, as well as the move taking away a vote on school budgets that stay within the two-percent property tax cap.

“I don’t want to see this volunteer group turn into a stepping stone because people want their name on the ballot in November,” school board President Christopher Strano said.

Don Hicks, whose term is up this year, and Ginny Brockway both stressed politics along with Strano, and Lisa Eckley said it was a major reason she hadn’t yet made up her mind on the issue.

“I think it’s good to consolidate, but the potential for making it political…makes me undecided,” she said.

Superintendent Kevin Kitchenman pointed out that politics may not be as big an issue, though, since school board members would be sectioned out of the main ballot in the event they’re shifted to the November race.

“They won’t be broken out by Democrats or Republicans,” he said.

However, Vice-President Jim Mehaffey pointed out politics still could play a role, even in an April election.

“When the budget gets voted down, then we are at the whim of politics,” he said, given the fact the township committee gets a shot at cutting the budget in that situation.

“They don’t know what the school needs…they’re just worried about getting elected again,” Mehaffey said.

The move to November would eliminate a public vote on the budget–something that concerned both board members and members of the public in attendance–provided it stays within the two-percent increase cap established by the state, which prompted more debate.

Brockway flat-out said stripping the public budget vote is a bad idea, and Strano said he was concerned about what effectively could amount to a rubber-stamped two-percent increase every year.

Mehaffey said the responsibility falls on the school board, whether the public vote stays or goes.

“The board is the one that’s going to say what goes out,” he said.

Board members also discussed the potential cost savings in moving the election, which last April cost the district $11,277, according to information provided by Kitchenman.

While a move to November would save money, Kitchenman said, there would still be a cost to the school district for the election.

“It won’t be zero,” he said.

Kitchenman also said it’s possible costs could go up, should the board keep the election in April, because of the likelihood of fewer districts holding April school elections.

Even if the school board opts to keep the election in April, that isn’t necessarily the end of the story; the township committee could vote to move the school election, or it could be moved via a ballot referendum, with the signatures of 15 percent of the voters from the 2008 Presidential election.

“The township committee…can vote to move the election, and this board has nothing to say about it,” Kitchenman said.

No formal timetable for a decision has been laid out as yet, Kitchenman said, though the state is supposed to issue some kind of guidance to school districts by the end of the month.

Still, given the opening for school board candidate applications came this time last year, and the budget process kicks into high gear next month, the deadline could be looming.

“If the board is looking to do it, they have to make some sort of decision relatively soon,” assistant superintendent and business administrator William Thompson said.

Strano said the school board most likely will vote on whether to keep the April election at the next meeting, on Feb. 13.