Burlingame School District to study parcel tax

During a Nov. 14 meeting, trustees agreed to move forward with a feasibility study that would survey the public on how it would feel about an extended measure, including a rate increase. The survey would also test public support for moving to a per-square-footage model rather than a flat rate, the types of programming the public would support funding and different arguments for and against the measure, said Jeremy Hauser with TeamCivX, a public funding consulting agency.

“The next step for us is to put our collective heads together and start working on the poll itself and that survey instrument to make sure that we are A, testing a measure that we think will meet your needs and have a good chance of success but then B, testing the various components that are built into that measure to ensure that we’re getting as accurate and reliable data back as possible,” Hauser said during the Nov. 14 meeting.

That polling work is expected to cost the district possibly more than $55,000. To have the measure placed on the March 2024 ballot, as a handful of parents requested during the recent meeting, citing concerns for class sizes, the district would need to craft a ballot measure with legal counsel, including the full text of the measure, ballot language and a resolution calling for an election, and have that resolution approved by Jan. 8.

Proponents behind a separate citizen’s initiative tax measure being led by John Woody and Bryant McLaughlin, parents of Roosevelt Elementary School students, were aiming to have their measure placed on the ballot in March but are now shooting for the June 2024 election instead, McLaughlin said Monday. That measure, if passed, would charge property owners about 8 cents per square foot of building or $80 per vacant parcel, generating about $2 million annually.

McLaughlin, during the Nov. 14 meeting and again during a phone interview Monday, called into question the accuracy of the pollsters. He added his voice to the chorus of parents advocating for a district-led ballot measure to be put before voters sooner rather than later, noting the district hasn’t increased its parcel tax rate since 2011.

“We all want the same endpoint. We just have a different opinion on the best path to get there,” McLaughlin said Monday.

Responding to comments about class sizes, Superintendent Marla Silversmith noted most fourth and fifth grade classes in the district have fewer than 30 students in them with classes at Roosevelt Elementary being the only ones at capacity.

Trustees during their meeting also acknowledged the urgency from parents but also shared their support for gathering as much data as possible before making a decision on the potential ballot measure.

“We have some really passionate community members who really worked hard to put together the community initiative and really pushed us to come back to the table and have this conversation to move forward again. And I understand a lot of the community wants this to move faster and I totally understand and am sensitive to that,” board President Lisa Mudd said. “For me, we have to be judicious in the approach we take to bring forward a parcel or bond measure for that matter. … It takes time but it is in my opinion the right approach.”