Indiana's partisan school board bill amended to have ‘blank space' next to nonpartisan candidates
Senate Bill 287, authored by Sen. Gary Byrne, R-Byrneville, Sen. Chris Garten, R-Charlestown, and Sen. Blake Doriot, R-Goshen, would change the school board election process to that of other elections, which would include a primary and general election. The school board candidates would have to declare a party.
In the House Elections and Apportionment committee last week, the bill was amended to reflect House Bill 1230, authored by Rep. J.D. Prescott, R-Union City. Prescott, who serves on the House Elections and Apportionment committee, offered the amendment to remove the primary process from the bill and stated that in the general election, a school board candidate can choose to be listed as a Republican, Democrat, independent or nonpartisan.
Prescott's amendment would maintain the original bill's requirement that school board members be paid up to 10% of the lowest starting salary of a teacher employed in the district, which would shift the current $2,000 payment.
Prescott brought forth another amendment Thursday that states if a school board candidate chooses to be nonpartisan, there will be a blank space next to their name where party affiliation would be listed.
'This option was in collaboration with the school board association and others. They felt more comfortable with an option for no identifying marker next to the name,' Prescott said.
Rep. Blake Johnson, D-Indianapolis, said the bill 'is a mess' that has been to be rewritten multiple times 'just to make it halfway functional.'
'This bill started as a solution in search of a problem. With this amendment, it becomes a fix for a complication layered on to a solution in search of a problem that didn't exist, and somehow it still doesn't work,' Johnson said. 'We're legislating blank spaces on ballots, because nothing says transparency like a big empty void next to a candidate's name.'
Rep. Tim Wesco, R-Osceola, said Johnon's argument seemed to support making school board races partisan because right now school board candidates have blank spaces next to their names.
The amendment passed 63-27.
Rep. Pat Boy, D-Michigan City, offered an amendment to the bill that would allow a school board candidate to submit a profile about their qualifications and experience, but couldn't include references to a political party, to be posted on a school district's website.
Boy's amendment would require school board candidates to be listed as nonpartisan on the ballot.
Rep. Cherish Pryor, D-Indianapolis, said Boy's amendment would allow candidates to communicate their policy ideas and positions with voters without politicizing the race.
Prescott said Boy's amendment would remove 'the primary function of the bill.'
Boy's amendment failed 29-62.
Rep. Sue Errington, D-Muncie, offered an amendment that would maintain the school board member's pay increase but remove all other portions of the bill.
Errington, who is a member of the House Elections and Apportionment committee, said she received 191 emails and calls from school board members and residents who opposed making school board races partisan. Meanwhile, she only heard from three people in support of the bill.
School districts have a hard time finding candidates to run for school board, so adding politics into the race will narrow the candidate field, she said.
'Making school board elections partisan would not serve the best interest of students or our communities,' Errington said. 'In fact, it would weaken the governance of our schools by diverting voter attention away from the credentials and educational vision of the candidates and turn it to party politics.'
Rep. Carolyn Jackson, D-Hammond, said she also serves on the House Elections and Apportionment committee, and what concerned her was testimony from people who wanted to know the ideology of school board candidates.
Jackson said people run for school board to improve education for students not to become politicians.
'We would be doing a serious injustice to our communities if we vote to enforce the candidates for school board having to declare their party,' Jackson said.
Errington's bill failed 27-63.
Senate Bill 287 moves forward for third and final consideration by the House.
akukulka@post-trib.com
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