Times Orange County Poll : Majority Say They’d Hike Taxes to Support Schools

Despite their historic aversion to tax hikes, a solid majority of Orange County residents is willing to pay more for teachers’ salaries, school buildings and textbooks, a poll for the Times Orange County Edition shows.

Of the 600 Orange County adults polled from Aug. 6 to 8, 57% said they would be willing to boost instructors’ paychecks, buy students more textbooks and finance school construction or rehabilitation. Some 34% said they would vote ‘No’ on such a tax increase. Nine percent were undecided.

The poll drew mixed reactions from educators and others who support a tax increase for schools. They were pleased that a majority of the county’s citizens would support a tax hike. But they also were pessimistic that such a tax would be imposed because a two-thirds vote is required to pass such measures. Educators also said they believed that once in the ballot booth, only some of those who expressed support for a tax hike would actually vote for it.

Robert Peterson, superintendent of Orange County schools, said that since the passage of tax-cutting Proposition 13 in 1978 there has been a soaring need for money for school maintenance and transportation of pupils. Growing districts such as Santa Ana Unified, which expects 1,000 new students each year for the next decade, also are in dire need of funds to build new schools, Peterson said.

The new poll suggests that Orange County adults may be more generous with their money for schools than for other public works. Mark Baldassare, who conducted the Times Orange County poll, said he was surprised to find such a sturdy majority in favor of a tax increase for schools.

“As a general rule, it’s hard to find a majority of Orange County residents willing to support a tax increase on any issue,” said Baldassare, who has been examining Orange County opinion for eight years.

His previous polls have found Orange County adults unwilling to pay higher taxes to improve police protection, parks and recreation, streets or public health facilities, Baldassare said. In a June poll, they were divided on a proposed half-cent sales tax for transportation, with 48% in favor and 46% against, he said.

But educators who have fought for tax hikes for local school districts are pessimistic that they will come to pass.

Veterans of recent ill-fated battles for more tax dollars in the Westminster and Capistrano Unified School districts said that although a 57% support base for a proposed tax hike might reflect voters’ sympathy, it falls far short of the 66 2/3% required by state law for such measures.

Talk Is Cheap

They also said they believe the poll reflects the adage that talk is cheap.

“No one will tell you they’re against mom and apple pie, but when they get in that voting booth, it’s another thing,” said E.G. (Ted) Kopp, a trustee in the Capistrano Unified School District, where a ballot measure to raise money for new schools by creating a special tax assessment district failed, with 52.2% voting for the measure in May. It needed two-thirds to pass.

Nancy Blumenthal, president of the Westminster School District Board of Trustees, expressed a similar frustration. A proposal to levy $1.4 million in property taxes for school improvements was crushed by a nearly 3-1 margin in that district in March.

“People like to talk about it and say, ‘Oh, I’d like to do that.’ (But) when push comes to shove and it comes down to your tax dollar, you figure, ‘Let someone else pay for it,’ ” she said.

Bill Honig, state schools superintendent, said he found the poll encouraging because Orange County voters usually reject tax increases. But he, too, lamented the fact that passage of local school tax measures--something he believes a majority of voters favor--requires a two-thirds vote.

“It’s a real problem,” said Honig, who endorses a current effort in the state Legislature to eliminate the two-thirds requirement.

“People should vote by a simple majority. We’ve had a huge growth in the sheer number of students in California. We’re going to have to build (school) buildings. We need $3 billion in the next two years just to have enough schools.”

On the question of higher taxes for local schools, there was no significant difference between the responses of those who have school-age children and those who do not. Nor did opinion differ much between residents of various parts of the county.

Younger Adults Supportive

Those from 18 to 34 years old were most supportive of a tax increase for local schools, with 65% giving an affirmative nod. One of those polled, Kirk Springer, 22, a general contractor from Fullerton, said he would vote for a tax hike because schools are bound to fail their pupils if they are strapped for money.

“You get what you pay for,” Springer said. “I plan on having kids in the next five years and I’d like them to get quality education. Heck, a lot of trash men get paid more than teachers and teachers are a lot more important.”

Orange County residents 55 or older were the staunchest opponents of a tax hike for education, with 51% opposed.

“I just can’t see spending more money on something that’s not working,” said Ermine Hollaway, 64, a part-time house-cleaner from Westminster. “Most kids, when they get through school, they can’t even spell or add or write their names.”

The poll seemed to suggest that despite their anti-tax reputation, Orange County residents--with the exception of seniors--are about as willing as citizens nationwide to foot a bigger bill for education.

A Media General-Associated Press poll of 1,084 adults nationwide in May found that two-thirds favored more spending on public schools. Nine of 10 in that group--about 55% of the total number polled--said they would accept higher taxes to cover the outlay.

Gallup Poll

A Gallup poll commissioned by Phi Delta Kappa, a nonprofit organization of professional educators, and released Aug. 24, found a significant majority of Americans willing to pay higher taxes for improved education. Of 1,584 adults polled across the nation in May and June, 83% said more should be done to improve the quality of education in poorer states and communities. Of those, 62% said they would be willing to pay higher taxes to make it happen.

Last November, however, Orange County residents rejected Proposition 98, which required the state to earmark a set percentage of its annual budget for elementary and secondary schools and community colleges. That proposal passed statewide by 50.7% but only 43.8% of Orange County voters cast their ballots for it. A poll taken two months earlier, in September, 1988, showed 68% of Orange County voters supported the measure.

Baldassare has also recently found that most Orange County residents favor year-round schools and open enrollment. Combined with the surprising support for a tax hike, he said he interprets the poll as a signal that Orange County voters, especially those with school-age children, are coming to expect more from their schools and realizing that they need to help.

Still, Orange County school administrators said they do not think local bond issues and tax levies for schools will succeed as long as state law requires a two-thirds vote for approval. There is a move afoot in Sacramento to change the provision in the state Constitution that requires approval by two-thirds of the voters in a local district to authorize the issuance of bonds to finance public works.

State Sen. Bill Leonard (R-Big Bear) and Assemblyman Jack O’Connell (D-Carpinteria) have proposed statewide ballot measures to address the issue. Either bill would result in an initiative that would allow Californians to change the state Constitution to permit a simple majority of local voters to approve bond measures for acquiring or improving school properties. Further consideration of those bills is expected in the Legislature’s next term.

How the Poll Was Conducted

The Times Orange County Poll, consisting of interviews with 600 adult county residents, was conducted Aug. 6-8. The survey was taken on weekend days and weekday nights using a random sample of listed and unlisted telephone numbers.

The margin of error for a sample of this size is plus or minus 4%. For subgroups, the margin of error is higher. The margin of error for a subgroup such as the approximately 200 parents with children in school, for example, is plus or minus 7%.

All respondents were guaranteed anonymity. However, some of those who agreed were later reinterviewed for news stories on the poll.

The poll was conducted by Mark Baldassare and Associates of Irvine.

SUPPORT FOR A TAX INCREASE FOR SCHOOLS This is poll graphic info to go with TAXPOLL story by Catherine Gewertz skedded to run Monday, Sept. 11 in Part 1. Note that there is only one poll question for this story.

“Many of the public school districts in Orange County say they need more money for buildings, books and teachers’ salaries. If a vote were held today, would you vote yes or no on a tax increase in your school district?”

Yes No Don’t Know Total 57% 34% 9% Have schoolchild 60 30 10 No schoolchild 56 36 8 By Age 18-34 65 28 7 35-54 56 33 11 55+ 42 51 7 By Region North 55 36 9 West 57 35 8 Central 59 31 10 South 57 35 8

Note: Results may not add up to 100% because of rounding. Source: Times Orange County Poll