Council OKs resolution urging people to vote

COEUR d’ALENE — The Coeur d’Alene City Council on Tuesday did not approve a resolution that called for supporting the Coeur d’Alene School District’s upcoming levy.

Instead, the council removed any words from the resolution that stated the city’s support of the two-year supplemental levy. While council members agreed that as individuals they supported the measure, they could not do so as public officials.

“The way this resolution is written right now, I can’t support (it) and don’t think it’s proper because we should not be taking a position pro or con,” said Councilman Dan English.

“We should not be in the position of using public resources when it comes down to a yay or nay kind of thing,” English added.

The council voted 5-1 to approve the resolution “urging all citizens to register to vote and to cast a ballot in School District No. 271’s supplemental levy election on May 16, 2023.”

Councilman Dan Gookin said he voted no because the resolution still contained information about the levy, including the impacts if it should fail.

“I just do not want to touch this,” he said.

During public comment, Coeur d’Alene resident Randy Neal read Idaho Code Section 74-604. It says in part:

"Neither a public entity nor its employees shall make, nor shall a public official make or authorize, an expenditure from public funds to advocate for or against a candidate or a ballot measure.

It also states: "Neither a public entity nor any of its employees shall use, nor shall a public official authorize or use, public property or resources to advocate for or against a candidate or a ballot measure."

“So what you guys are doing tonight in throwing your support of the levy is actually illegal,” Neal said. “I thought you guys would love to know that.”

Mayor Jim Hammond, who had requested the resolution be put on the agenda after receiving input from some council members, agreed.

“We’ll need to change some of that resolution relative to what Randy said,” Hammond said. “We also have talked about this earlier and decided that some of that was inappropriate.”

Under Idaho code, Title 74 deals with “transparent and ethical government," while Chapter 6 addresses “public integrity in elections act.”

Randy Adams, city attorney, said the council as individuals can take a stance on the levy.

“They can’t use public funds to do it,” he said, adding that would include use of city property or staff.

A resolution urging people to vote May 16 was acceptable, Adams said.

He said city councils in other states have come out in support of levies, but it is not allowed in Idaho.

Shon Hocker, district superintendent, said the levy is critical to its future.

Should the levy fail, Hocker said, “Our pursuit for academic excellence will be deeply challenged” and there would be significant cuts in programs and staff.

The Coeur d'Alene School District is proposing a two-year, $25 million-per-year supplemental levy that will go to voters May 16.

Voters turned down two levies at the polls March 14: a $25 million-per-year supplemental levy that would have been in perpetuity, and $5 million-per-year, five-year school plant facilities reserve levy for safety and maintenance.

Councilwoman Christie Wood said she would be voting yes.

"I hope that other individuals will do the same thing,” she said.

Councilwoman Amy Evans shared similar comments.

“I absolutely will be voting yes for this levy,” she said.

Councilwoman Kiki Miller said she was "100%" in support of the levy, "but this is kind of an awkward spot for us to be in.”

Gookin said passage of the levy was important to attract good, quality companies to Coeur d’Alene, which would mean more high-paying jobs.

“They want to see that the public supports the schools," he said.

However, Gookin said that as a councilman, he could not take a stance on the levy.

“This is not the place and mine is not the position to make a comment on this," he said. "They are separate political entities."

After some discussion, the council opted to strike any levy pros or cons from the resolution.

“It is inappropriate by Idaho code for this council and our staff to be doing any work officially to support this levy election," Hammond said.

He said the most important thing the council could do was urge people to vote.

Voter turnout in March was about 28%.

“The low percentile that voted last time is just not acceptable," Hammond said. "We need to get a much higher percentile out to vote so we know truly how the whole community feels about this issue."