Annual Meeting Adopts Election Resolution Drafted By Union

School Clerk Must

Now Decide How

It Affects Board



The good news for Peshtigo School District residents as a result of the Annual Meeting Monday, Oct. 26 is that the tax rate for school purposes will be going down 23 cents per $1,000 of equalized value, from $7.76 last year to $7.53 this year, despite a drop in the overall Wisconsin State Aid formula.

The bad news is that legal counsel for the school board says the meaning of a resolution that passed by a 22 to 14 vote at the meeting is unclear and may or may not change how three seats on the School Board will be filled at the elections in April. Superintendent Kim Eparvier said the unclear wording could cause costly legal problems for the district.

The resolution, titled, “Change the Plan of Apportionment of School Board Members of Peshtigo School District,” was included in the agenda for the annual meeting as a result of petitions drawn up by Atty. Chris Galineau, a legal advisor for the Wisconsin Education Association Council (WEAC), at the request of Janet Rich, president of Peshtigo Education Support Person Association (PESPA.

It states: “The plan of apportionment of the school board members of the Peshtigo School District shall be as follows: the school board will consist of nine members, each of whom must be a resident of the Peshtigo School District and either the City of Peshtigo, the Town of Peshtigo, the Town of Grover or the Town of Little River.”

Currently the nine board members are elected to fill numbered seats. Candidates can live anywhere in the district and all elections are at-large, but the numbered seat system means opponents must file to fill a specific seat, which means one-on-one contests.

The PEA newsletter, “P.E.P. Talk,” urged all members who live in the district to attend the annual meeting, and flyers promoting attendance promised a pizza party afterwards.

There are approximately 130 Peshtigo employees in the two unions, Eparvier said in response to questions after the meeting.

“Resident staff members,” the newsletter urged, “we need your votes!” It explained, “A key agenda item will be the method by which school board members are elected. A vote will be taken to change the current “seat” positions to ‘at-large’ positions.

“This means that instead of two candidates running for each seat, open positions will be awarded to those with the most votes. The majority of school districts utilize the ‘at large’ method to elect board members,” the item stated.

It added, “Janet Rich was especially instrumental in distributing petitions last spring in order to bring this issue to the annual meeting for a vote.”

Petitions containing 131 signatures were turned in to the district office in mid-August. The first signature was obtained on May 13.

Rich declared at the meeting that everyone who signed the petitions knew what they were asking for. Result would be that the top three vote-getters from the entire field of candidates would be elected.

Atty. Bob Burns of Green Bay, legal counsel for the district, said before the vote that the meaning of the petition was unclear. He said one interpretation could be that no change is called for.

Time for circulating nomination papers is approaching soon, and to meet mandatory publication dates, Board Clerk Louise Stemper must decide no later than Tuesday, Nov. 24, just how publication notices will be worded, based on whether or not the resolution requires a change in the current system of numbered seats, with candidates chosen at-large throughout the district.

It is the responsibility of the board clerk to decide how to proceed, and Board Clerk Stemper has about three weeks to make that decision.

Board members whose terms are up this year are Seat 2, Stemper; Seat 3, Board President Bob Thomas, and Seat 4, Jon Olson, who was appointed in May to fill the unexpired term of Renee Clement.

The meeting was totally routine up to consideration of the reapportionment resolution. Eparvier reviewed “a Reader’s Digest version” of the budget. Because of some last minute changes in the state aid distribution formula it is slightly different from the published version. Detailed copies of the budget are available in the school business office for any interested district resident, Eparvier said.

Eparvier was pleased to point out that even with two very expensive unbudgeted maintenance projects, the General Fund balance dropped only $29,000 from last year. The projects he referred to were $58,000 to resurface the track and $144,000 for maintenance work on the elementary school roof.

This year’s budget for facilities remodeling is only $190,000, down from the $367,000 allocated last year.

Open enrollment is proving to be a big income generator for the district, Eparvier said, with 75 more students transferring in than transfered out. Each student brings an additional $6,443 income to the district.

Stimulus funds of $130,000 resulted in a “significant decrease” in the local allocation for the special education program. Special Ed income includes $1,038,585 from state and federal sources, including the stimulus money that must be spent by 2011.

The budget shows only $16,570 for the Drivers Ed program, which Eparvier noted is “very inexpensive compared with others in the state.” He said before the November board meeting he and Administrative Secretary Ruth Watson will check to be sure it includes everything.

The total operating budget is $11,768,128, up slightly from $11,676,051 last year. Net total budget is $13,731,557, up 2.32 percent from $13,419,672 a year ago. It includes $411,775 to pay off the referendum debt. There are 15 annual payments remaining.

The school tax levy of $2,634,438 is down 2.38 percent from $2,698,716 last year.

“Around the state it is not uncommon to have an increase of eight, 10, 13 percent,” Eparvier said. “We’re fortunate in Peshtigo to have a decrease!”

After the meeting Eparvier commented, “I was hired to do a job, and I am pleased that we are having a tax reduction in this community, and still maintaining a fine educational system that attracts students from other districts.”

All votes at the Annual Meeting were by show of hands.

Resolutions adopting the tax levy for operational and debt retirement budgets were approved by show of hands votes, 34 in favor and none opposed. By a vote of 35 to zero, the board was authorized to continue operating the district.

At the start of the meeting, Thomas was elected to chair the Annual Meeting. He had been nominated by Board Member Steve Coble. Coble then was also nominated to chair, and the vote was 12 for Thomas and five for Coble.

School Board salaries were unchanged. They are paid $50 per month plus $85 for attending the regular monthly meeting, plus $37.50 for each special meeting attended, and $25 for each committee meeting attended by committee members. (Non committee members may attend committee meetings but they are not compensated.) In addition, the board president receives $35 per month and the clerk and treasurer each receive $15 per month in addition to their regular board salaries and meeting stipends. A per diem of $85 per day is to be paid to board members to attend to school business or conferences with the exception of regularly scheduled committee and board meetings. The resolution establishing board pay was approved with 20 votes in favor and one opposed. There were 37 electors present.

By 29 to 0 vote, board members will continue to be reimbursed actual and necessary expenses when traveling for board duties, with mileage to be paid at the current federal rate.

A resolution authorizing the board to secure a temporary loan for operating expenses was approved 33 to one, as was a resolution authorizing sale of unneeded school property with the exception of real estate.

Continuance of the school’s breakfast, lunch and milk programs, with prices set by the board, was approved by vote of 37 to 0, largest margin of the evening.

The vote was close, 14 in favor and 11 opposed, on a standard resolution authorizing the District to “provide for the prosecution or defense of any action or proceeding in which the District is interested from this time forward through the annual meeting of the year 2010.” Asked by someone in the audience, “Why do we have this resolution?” Eparvier explained, “So we can hire legal counsel for the school district.” He said state statutes list required actions for the annual meeting and this is among them. He said it’s typical for other boards to have the same resolution, and he believed that even if the annual meeting defeated the resolution, there are other state laws that allow the board to hire legal counsel if needed.

The final resolution for the Annual Meeting was titled, “Change the Plan of Apportionment for School Board Members.”

Former Board President Jim Koronkiewicz, from the audience, asked, “I don’t understand what the resolution changes, as the board already has nine members elected at large from the entire district.”

Atty. Burns agreed, but said by law the resolution had to be on the agenda, and the resolution is “a direct verbatim” of the petition wording. But he agreed with Koronkiewicz, “the petition itself did not spell out what the apportionment would mean,” and added, “it (the resolution) does not necessarily read inconsistent with what you have right now.” He said the Wisconsin Association of School Boards (WASB) attorney agreed.

In an informational packet for board members, Eparvier had said he received inquiries regarding the petition from board members, district employes and community members. He enclosed copies of the resolution adopted at the Annual Meeting two years ago when a petition was initiated to change the board member election cycle.

He wrote, “In preparation for the Annual Meeting, i consulted with the District’s legal counsel, Bob Burns, and also called WASB and spoke with one of their attorneys, Steve Hintzman, on Oct. 19. After reading the exact petition to these gentlemen as presented on the petition signature sheets, both attorneys expressed a position that the plan for apportionment for this petition lacked clarity and fails to outline how many Board members would be elected to represent each municipality in the school district or if candidates are elected ‘at-large’.”

He went on, “Both attorneys also take the position that the wording of the petition could not be changed at the Annual Meeting. Steve Hintzman suggested that as a result of the lack of specificity of this petition, he recommended that the Board Clerk consult with the District’s legal counsel after the Annual Meeting (should the petition receive a majority vote of eligible participants) to determine from the wording of the original petition, what the plan of apportionment should be for the next election.”

He said Burns mentioned receiving a call from a WEAC employee in Madison inquiring about this local petition effort in Peshtigo.

In response to Burns’ comments, Rich objected, “I had an attorney draw it up. The intent is to have at-large elections.” She said Chris Galineau from WEAC had drawn up the petition, and it was reviewed by two other WEAC attorneys.

“If we vote yes on this, will the board come up with whatever they want?” asked Mike Watson from the audience.

Burns replied that state law says the petition “shall specify the proposed allocation between cities, towns and villages and the total number of board members.” The petition did spell out the number of board members but does not specify how representation is to be allocated. “We cannot go to each person who signed and ask what they intended,” he commented. He said the petition does not mention the current numbered seats at all, and could be interpreted as meaning exactly what is being done now, “and that is why the WASB and I believe the petition wording is unclear.”

He added that by law, when a petition is presented it must be listed for action on the Annual Meeting agenda exactly as written, “and the electorate decides if they want to pass it,” and then repeated, “but this needs clarification.”

Tavia Schoen, a teacher, said the only difference she could see between the petition itself and the resolution was the reference by number to State Statute 122.2. She asked exactly what the statute says, and Burns gave her a copy.

“If this was vague...If this left questions...why was it not changed so it was clear?” asked teacher Cheryl Lange.

“This board is not allowed to change the wording,” Burns replied. “It has to go in as people signed the petitions,”

Asked what would happen if the resolution were approved, Eparvier said the WAS recommended that the Peshtigo Board Clerk (Louise Stemper) meet with legal counsel to determine the meaning of the petition.

Koronkiewicz commented the present policy states members are elected to numbered seats with votes from the entire district, and they can live anywhere in the district.

Peshtigo Education Association (PEA) President Danny Smith disagreed. He said the petition specified at-large elections, and stressed that it did not mention numbered seats.

“The petition makes no reference to removing the numbered seats,” Burns pointed out.

“Personally I would recommend that a petition be circulated with greater specificity and be brought to the next annual meeting,” Eparvier declared. He said as it is, the resolution, if passed, will probably create some legal problems for the district, and will put the board clerk in a difficult position.

A motion to pass the resolution was made by Rich and seconded by Allen England.

Asked if the resolution would go into effect immediately if passed, Eparvier said the clerk will have to meet with legal counsel, but whatever decision is reached could be challenged in court.

Coble said people he spoke with seemed to know the intent of the petitions, and he personally is not opposed to going to an at-large district. However, he added, “I don’t want to spend a fortune on attorney fees. I’d rather wait another year.”

Schoen disagreed. “I spoke with legal counsel and they told me this is how it has to be written. There’s no reason it should not pass! Everyone who signed knew what we meant.”

An attempt to table was met with an objection that there was a motion on the floor, and was not seconded.

The resolution was approved by 22 to 14 vote on a show of hands.

Next year’s Annual Meeting was set for 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 25, 2010.

Following the Annual Meeting the board met for a brief special session at which they formally adopted the budget and set the levy as approved by the electorate.

In response to a request from Coble, Eparvier said he will have the levy broken down by community for the next board meeting.

There were no public comments and no committee reports.

Eparvier reported only two bids were received for the $1,200,000 the district will borrow to finance operations. The notes will be dated Nov. 5, 2009, and will mature on June 30, 2010.

The board approved Eparvier’s recommendation to accept the offer of M&I Bank for the $1,200,000 at 1.250 percent interest, a total of $9,791.67 for the term of the note. The only other offer, from Robert W. Baird & Company, was at 1.2824 percent interest, for a total of $10,046.67.

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