After referendums in three Lake County school districts were rejected by voters, school leaders and professional organizations are asking state lawmakers to change the language used on ballots for these funding questions.
In 2021, the Indiana General Assembly passed House Enrolled Act 1271, which revised referendum questions to include an estimated average percentage increase on residential and business property taxes. Before that, the language of the ballot question included the proposed property tax rate increase per $100 of assessed valuation.
Lake Central School Corp. Superintendent Larry Veracco took time out of the Nov. 20 school board meeting to criticize the fact that the question is worded that state property taxes would increase, even when a school district is attempting to extend an existing operating referendum at the same levy rate.
"To call it an increase when it's not, I think is disingenuous and it's unfair punishment on schools," Veracco said.
The superintendent told school board members he and Lake Central schools Director of Business Services Rob James had recently met with state Sen. Dan Dernulc, R-Highland, to discuss the wording of referendum questions.
Veracco said they suggested to Dernulc that the question could state the tax rate will stay the same, if approved, for districts seeking a referendum renewal. They also suggested the question could state the tax rate would decrease, if the measure was rejected.
"So someone who's highly motivated for their tax to go down can vote no," the superintendent said.
According to Veracco, they made "good inroads" in their conversation with the state lawmaker. He hopes the state senator will bring the matter up with his party's leadership. Republicans hold supermajorities in both state legislative chambers.
The Times reached out to Dernulc's office for further comment but did not receive a response.
Veracco said that while the wording of the referendum may not matter in communities that vote overwhelmingly in favor of it, in more tax-averse communities — such as Lake Central — more work is needed to inform voters of the true impacts of a referendum.
In 2018, Lake Central's referendum narrowly won by 4,846 to 4,217 votes, or 53.47% in favor.
Its current operating referendum runs through the end of 2026.
Lake Station Schools' current referendum was defeated by 14 votes last month. Its superintendent, Tom Cripliver has previously blamed the ballot language for confusing and misleading voters.
Multiple state professional education associations, such as the Indiana School Boards Association and the Indiana Association of Public School Superintendents, have added clarifying school referendum language to their lists of legislative priorities during the General Assembly's 2024 session.
ISBA Executive Director Terry Spradlin said they believe the current language is confusing for both voters and taxpayers.
"It's not intuitive and it's not clearly transparent," Spradlin said. "In fact, we think it could be misleading or inaccurate information to the voter."
He said the organization is advocating for more straightforward ballot language.
Spradlin said they don't want to see the referendum language revert to the wording prior to the 2021 change. ISBA is instead supporting changing the language to state the annual property tax amount a resident would pay on the median-priced home in that community.
The executive director said his group is in regular communication with lawmakers and will be lobbying them during this session to address the issue.
"We need to present a compelling argument to the legislative leaders and we would hope members of their caucuses support this change," Spradlin said.
However, Spradlin accepted other school-related matters, such as chronic absenteeism and third-grade reading proficiencies, will most likely take precedence during this shorter legislative session.
Spradlin is encouraging school officials and board members, as well as community members, to talk to their local legislators about school referenda language.
"It's going to take some effort to build momentum to bring about change," he said.
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