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Tolleson Union High School District No. 214

Voting without knowing what's on your ballot is like lighting your money on fire.

What is the upcoming election about?

The Tolleson Union High School District is asking to sell $125 Million dollars in bonds.

What are the significant dates for the election?

- If you aren't already registered to vote, the last day to register in order to be eligible to vote in this election is Tuesday, October 10th, 2023.

- Ballots will be mailed on October 11, 2023. The last day to request early ballot October 27 

- VOTED BALLOTS MUST BE RECEIVED NO LATER THAN 7 p.m., November 7th. MAIL ballots by October 31st.

Who can vote in this election?

All registered voters that reside in the Tolleson Union High School District will receive a ballot by mail with voting instructions in the envelope.

What policies did Tolleson Union High School District implement with my tax dollars?

- Dedicated to implementing and teaching Social Emotional Learning. - SOURCE 

- CASEL, a leading organization for implementing SEL in schools, displays on their website a poster to illustrate what Social Emotional Learning is. “Social and emotional learning (SEL) is a process through which children and adults develop the fundamental skills for life effectiveness. We need SEL skills for ourselves, our relationships, and our work. In OUSD, we believe that strengthening these skills enhances our ability to effectively and ethically connect across race, class, culture, language, gender identity, sexual orientation, learning needs, and age.” - SOURCE 

- SEL uses emotional responses to generate student attention to drive learning. - SOURCE 

- Taught Equity in a 12th Grade Economy Class. - SOURCE 

- Equity teaches people and children that there is systemic racism, they are entitled to reparations and more because of the color of their skin. - SOURCE

Aren’t Tolleson Union High School District schools doing a good job?

- 83.47% Graduation Rate 

- 23% of students are proficient or highly proficient at English Language Arts 

- 19% of students are proficient or highly proficient at Math 

- Had an Educator Face Discipline For Sexual Misconduct With Minors This Year. - SOURCE

Aren’t Tolleson Union High School District Teachers underpaid?

Tolleson Union pays an average annual salary of $70,191 to teachers. The average annual salary in Tolleson is $56,000.

What are taxpayers in the Tolleson Union High School District being asked?

Voters will be asked to say yes or no on one measure: 

- The sale of $125 million in new bonds

What are the current tax rates for the bond?

- The estimated average annual tax rate for the proposed bond authorization is $0.38 per $100 of net assessed valuation. 

- Shows up on your tax bill as secondary property tax. 

- Property taxes combined add up to thousands of dollars! 

- To view your current property tax liability, visit https://treasurer.maricopa.gov/Parcel/ParcelSearch.aspx

Is Tolleson Union High School District underfunded?

Tolleson Elementary spends $16,323 per student per year.

If the bond fails, how will my taxes be affected?

Once any outstanding Bonds and Overrides are repaid, you won't have to continue paying Secondary property taxes related to the bond. 

How has more funding impacted Tolleson Union High School District?

Comparing to the 2018-2019 School Year Performance to the 2021-2022 School Year Performance 

- Drop in Graduation Rate of 6.71% 

- Drop Out Rate Nearly Doubled from 1.79% to 3.38% 

- 7% Drop in Math Proficiency 

- English Proficiency Remained the Same 

- Added 1,370 Students to Enrollment: from 11,913 to 13,283 

- Reported Instances of Violence Increased from 265 to 326 [Nearly 2 Instances per Day Based on a 180 Arizonan School Year] 

- Total Students with Chronic Absenteeism Skyrocketed from 1,320 to 6,503 [Nearly 50% of Enrolled Students] 

- Total Students Enrolled in at least one Advanced Placement Course Skyrocketed by more than 3 Times from 2,700 to 8,268 

- Total Students Reported as Harassed or Bullied Remained the Same at 0

School officials claim there will be no new taxes. Is this accurate?

- Once any outstanding Bonds and Overrides are repaid, you won't have to continue paying Secondary property taxes related to the bond. 

- If the measure passes, the current Secondary tax rates will remain the same; however; 

- If the measure passes, the total amount of taxes paid will likely go higher if there is continued inflation related to property values.

What is a bond election?

It is a vote by the public to allow the School District to issue more debt for projects. The $100 million in bonds is NOT a continuation and is a separate item on the property tax statement.

What does Tolleson Union High School District intend to use the additional funds for?

• Constructing school buildings 

• Renovating school buildings 

• Purchasing pupil transportation vehicles 

• Acquiring by purchase or lease school lots 

• Improving school grounds, including adjacent ways thereto 

• Supplying school buildings with furniture, equipment and technology 

• Liquidating indebtedness incurred for the purposes set forth herein 

• Providing all utilities and other capital items necessary for the construction renovation of school buildings and for improving school grounds 

• Paying all architectural, design, engineering, project and construction management and other costs incurred in connection with the purposes set forth above 

• Paying all legal, financial and other costs in connection with issuance of the bonds

I’m renting. Why should I care about this election?

- If the bond measure is defeated, your landlord’s taxes will go down and could mitigate future rent increases. 

- Irrespective of being a property owner, we all want to see the kids receive a quality education. 

- To view your current property tax liability, visit https://treasurer.maricopa.gov/Parcel/ParcelSearch.aspx

The information above may have been compiled from the following additional sources:

Please Note: EZAZ.org takes no position for or against the items on your ballot. Vote your conscience.

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