Two school board millage renewals on ballot

By GARLAND FORMAN
Co-Editor
Voters throughout Avoyelles Parish will go to the polls on Nov. 18, to vote on two Avoyelles Parish School Board property tax renewals.
Early voting has started
Early voting for the Nov. 18 elections began Nov. 3-4 and will continue from Nov. 6-9 and Nov. 11 from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the Registrar’s Office on the 2nd floor of the Avoyelles Parish Courthouse in Marksville. The office will be closed on Sunday, Nov. 5, and Friday, Nov. 10 in observation of Veterans Day.
All voters will cast ballots for a new state treasurer while voters in Ward I will also vote on a renewal of a fee for Fire District 1.
Both School Board renewals are 5-mill property taxes dedicated for maintenance, repairs, and operations. Each generates about $710,000 -- or about $1.4 million combined.
The two millages have been on the tax rolls for over 20 years, last being renewed in 2008. The taxes come up for renewal every 10 years.
If not renewed, both will expire at the end of 2018.
Dauzat stressed that the two propositions are not new taxes and that they are “vital to the school system.”
“We have already made over $3 million in cuts to the school system,” Dauzat continued. “If these two renewals don’t pass, we would have to make catastrophic cuts to the school system.”
Rejection of the renewals would result in cutting jobs, closing schools and eliminating extra-curricular activities such as football, band and field trips.
“If you don’t have money for maintenance and operations in the school system, we will have to take it from other sources like the general fund,” Dauzat said. “Currently, we receive fewer local funds than any other parish in the state except one. If we lose the revenue from these renewals, it could cause harm to the education of the children in this parish.”
The school system is trying to encourage support for the renewals on the district’s Facebook page and through the media as much as possible. However, the district cannot use public funds to pay for a pro-tax campaign.
Dauzat said he is visiting the schools and informing staff members about the Nov. 18 election.
“I’m asking the public to prove education is valued in Avoyelles Parish by voting ‘Yes’ for these renewals,” Dauzat said.
Fire District 1 fee
Fire District 1, which serves the Ward 1 area of the parish, is seeking renewal of a $45 per lot “parcel fee” to fund fire protection operations in the district. The fee generates about $55,530 a year.
State Treasurer
On October 14, state voters narrowed its selection for State Treasurer down to two people. The runoff between Democrat Derrick Edwards of New Orleans and Republican John Schroder of Covington will be on the upcoming ballot to decide who will fill the unexpired term (two years) of State Treasurer John Kennedy, who was elected to serve the state as its U.S. Senator.
Avoyelles Parish voters on October 14 went with Neil Riser who had 828 votes but finished a distant fourth state wide. Edwards had 524 votes in the parish while Schroder had 271 votes.