Mar
14
Voters chose the first Saturday in March for the Annual School Budget Meeting.
Saturday won out over Friday with 299 votes to 184 for Friday
Voters chose Saturdays over Fridays in a decisive vote on Tuesday March 14, 2006. The final count of 299 to 184 made it clear that the School Board’s arbitrary decision to ignore the citizens advice of 1981 was unpopular.
In 1981 taxpaying citizens advised the board in Article V of the annual budget meeting that they wanted future annual budget meetings to be held on the 1st Saturday, traditionally in the morning, in March. But in 1996 the board arbitrarily set meeting day and hour to Friday at 6:30 pm. This decision was not only unpopular but detrimental to encouraging full voter participation, because it tended to disenfranchise senior citizens and deter working families from attending an end-of-the work week meeting. But the night time meetings attracted voters with vested interests and led to lop-sided voting on teacher salary raises because of lower voter turnout.
The Plainfield Taxpayers Coalition requested the School Board to offer everyone a chance to express their preference for Saturday or Friday night meetings. You see the results above. Let us watch to be sure the 1st Saturdays in March are not ignored again.