Speak Up: Would You Pay a Tax to Help Soquel Schools?

At a meeting of the Soquel Union school board Wednesday morning, the main topic of discussion will be a potential special election in May regarding a parcel tax.

The board will hold a public forum, where locals can come share their opinions on the subject. Then the board vote to either hold the special election or scrap the idea. The official decision will happen in early February.

With the Soquel Union Elementary School District short on cash (it has the second smallest dollars per student mark in the county), a $90 parcel tax could go a long way.

According to Superintendent Henry Castaniada, if the tax lasted eight years, it could raise $6.4 million. He said the district would use that to hire nine teachers, reducing class sizes from 30 to around 24 students, and the district would also allocate money toward tech-based education — an area where local schools fall far short of those over the hill. 

The election, if it passes the board, will be held May 7. Castaniada said he expects some push back from local homeowners without kids in the school district as well as vacation home owners who spend little time actually living in the area. Seniors and people on disability would be exempt from the tax.

So tell us: Would you pay a $90 tax over 8 years to help fund schools? Tell us in the comments!