Friday, June 22, 2012
Bond Ethics -FAQ's - Part 3, Final
We have had some great discussions about bond issue ethics and what you can say and do during the bond election processes. This final blog of FAQ's asks some good technical questions so read carefully and see if you can answer them before I give the answer.
Question #7 - The Public Relations Director of the School District has given the Superintendent a bond brochure to approve before it is put in the mail. The brochure is factual in content and also contains the words such as: Needs, Best Solution, Maximize, Important, Horrible Shape, Protect, Fantastic, Enhance, Benefit. Are these terms ok to use and if not, how should they be changed?
Answer #7- No, these words are not ok to use in a school district published brochure. Under Section 255.003 of the Election Code, an officer or employee of a political subdivision may not spend or authorize the spending of public funds for political advertising. A person who violates this section commits an offense. An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor.
The needs of the district can be displayed by making the following types of information available: Growth Rates, Performance Data, Tax Rate Effects, Identify Proposed Projects, Polling Places, Student Capacity, Age or Condition of Facilities, Costs of Projects and Voter Registration Information.
Question #8- A bond election has recently been approved by voters in the District. However, one of the citizens is not happy with the results and is threatening complaints to the Texas Ethics Commission and is suggesting he will get the results of the election overturned. If he does follow through and make the complaint, what should be expected?
Answer #8 -If a complaint is filed against anyone with the Texas Ethics Commission, you will have an opportunity to respond. The Texas Ethics Commission has no authority to overturn the results of an election. A citizen must file with the District Court charging that the violation would have altered the results of the election.
Question #9 - You and a couple of your friends are thinking about forming a Special Purpose Political Action Committee in support of the upcoming bond election. You have not filed your paperwork, however you would like to get ahead of the game by pre-purchasing advertising space for every week during the election. The cost for the advertising space is $1500. Can you do this?
Answer #9- No, any GROUP wishing to form a Special Purpose Political Action Committee may not spend or collect more than $500 before filing for Appointment of Treasurer. All Political Advertising must include the name of the group paying for the ad and it's Treasurer.
As always, if you have a question about what is right or the correct way to phrase something that will be going in your brochure, you should run it by your district's counsel. We have even tried asking the Ethics Commission to rule on some phrases before it is printed and they have denied previewing the verbiage. It is best to err on the conservative side when publishing district material in order to avoid the embarrassment of having a newspaper article coming out that the district violated some ethics rules. That is never good for trying to get a bond issue passed.
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I believe that if any school district is going to get a bond passed during this economy the more information provided the better. For example, Lipan ISD had an incomplete gymnasium that had been decaying for over 10 years. Even though the economy was bad the district got a bond passd to finish the gymnasium. i believe the key factor i this was the continuous stream of infomation regarding the bond from th district to the community.
ReplyDeleteMandi Nelson
Tarleton State University
Question #7: Just the use of those words (mainly adjectives to describe) are intended to elicit an emotional response from the intended audience. This makes it nothing more than propoganda to the taxpayer - especially if they are against the bond passing. It is clear that information included should be factual and based on data. It is clear cut and hard data that leaves the subjectivity and emotions out of it.
ReplyDeleteMichelle Schwalls
Tarleton State University
As someone who previously worked in a PR position, the public relations person should know better than to use inflammatory language that is intended to get a reaction from the audience. Also, creating a publication to address bond issues that will be voted on would be considered a waste of public resources and not an effective way to use money that could be put to better use. The PR director would be better served to provide voters factual information about the school including things such as enrollment, growth, academic achievement and time its release a couple weeks prior to the election. That way, it is not promotional but could illustrate the legitamacy of the bond issue.
ReplyDelete- CAndrew - Tarleton State University
Using public funds for political advertising, whether it appears in a pamphlet, circular, flier, billboard, or other type of written communication is prohibited by Texas Electon Code 255.003. In addition, using Internet websites is also prohibited. The public relations director "should" know that it is again the law to encourage or discourage approval of the bond election. In this particular example, I would consider hiring a new PR director.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Chandra, using factual information does more to promote a bond issue. I know that May ISD in our service area narrowly passed a $3.6 million bond for improvements to the gymnasium and five classrooms. This was after the vote failed just a year earlier. I believe the results were due to the public being better informed about the needs of the district.
ReplyDeleteQuestion #7 - I agree that information published about the need for a bond should stick to factual information and avoid words such as "fantastic" and "horrible". The use of emotionally based vocabulary immediately sends up red flags to some readers that might make them take up a defensive position on the issue because they will identify such language with political camplaings and sales slogans. If the bond is really needed, factual information will be enough to educate the public in an appropriate manner.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth Garcia - Tarleton State University
Question #8 I can see why this would be a difficult issue to overturn an election or bond that the city has voted on. My question is have there been very many people that have filed a complaint about a bond being passed or a bond that has failed and what happens after a complaint has been filed?
ReplyDeleteSeveral years ago when the Ethics Commission (EC) was under sunset review, a process that each state department goes through to justify their existence, we saw an increase in the amount of complaints being filed and acted upon. Now that the public and school districts are more aware of the regulations, we have not seen as many complaints. The EC slapped a fine on several school districts and some superintendents for violations. The largest fine I am aware of was $1000. The problem is when the violation is brought to the attention of the public, it can be a PR nightmare.
DeleteIf your question is in regards to filing a complaint for voting irregularities, in my 30 year experience I have only seen one bond that was overturned because of a violation of the election code. I am sure there are more than that, but I only know of one. The situation was that there was two elderly ladies sitting in their car waiting to go vote. There was a long line and it was cold outside so they wanted to keep warm in their car. At 7pm when voting ended, the election judge went to the back of the line and said that those in line could vote, but anyone past this point could not. Well, the ladies were in their car and when they got out to be in line, the election judge would not let them vote. They filed a complaint in District Court and got the vote overturned. The district had to wait and re-do the election. Moral of the story.... don't tick of the little old ladies.
Knowledge is power. So the Ethics Commission did some education regarding the rules and regulations after several complaints came in, but it may be wise for them to do regular trainings (they could even do this online) to make sure that the rules are clear to all Districts.
DeleteMelissa Bryan, Tarleton State University
Question #8 I can see why this would be a difficult issue to overturn an election or bond that the city has voted on. My question is have there been very many people that have filed a complaint about a bond being passed or a bond that has failed and what happens after a complaint has been filed?
ReplyDeleteI would imagine there have been a few unhappy people who never formally complained. I can't imagine the bureaucracy that would ensue if everyone who really wanted to file actually did. The implications for changes in the law could be both cumbersome and troublesome.
DeleteMichelle Schwalls
Tarleton State University
The past two years Dublin ISD has tried to pass a bond for a new junior high. The former supt. had town meetings to provide information and opened the doors to the junior high to let the community see what condition the building was in, but unfortunately the bond still failed both attempts.
ReplyDeleteAs someone who knows nothing about PR or the ethical limits of use of funds for for political advertising by school boards, I found the above blog interesting. Although it seems okay to spend taxpayer money to inform voters factual information about the school including things I had no idea to the limits of the use of emotionally charged language.
ReplyDeleteIAndrade-Tarleton State University