With one special election already slated for November, it appears that Sunflower County residents will have to gear up for an additional voting process in late September.
During the Sunflower County Board of Supervisors meeting on Monday, Circuit Clerk Carolyn Hamilton informed the county leaders that the Sunflower County Consolidated School District intends to hold a special election on September 28.
"It won't be a cost to the county. The school board will pay for the election. It is a special election that they have the authority to set for a bond issue,” Hamilton said.
Hamilton said the SCCSD was meeting this week and would follow up to the BOS with a more official notice.
District 1 Supervisor Glenn Donald raised several questions about any potential accompanying expenses and the timing. He mentioned the special election that was already on the books for November and addressed the economic feasibility of placing the SCCSD’s bond issue in conjunction with that process.
Donald indicated that he had recommended to someone associated with the SCCSD that they meet with Hamilton and try to put the issue on the November special ballot to save the added expense of an additional election.
Hamilton said she had mentioned the November 2 general and special elections to the school board officials and relayed that they could share the cost; however, they reportedly decided not to accept that option. "They wanted to have their own day. They didn't want to piggyback off no day," Hamilton said.
She mentioned the amount of work that goes into preparing for an election and indicated that it would have been easier to have it all at the same time. Hamilton said that she has submitted a proposed budget to the school district and that the cost is estimated to be around $40,000 including all fees.
Donald then asked if the SCCSD was aware that they would be responsible for paying the cost to put on the election and Hamilton assured him that they had been made aware.
Donald further implied, "All they're going to do is charge it back to the county on an increase in next year. If they spend X amount of thousands of dollars you can guarantee its coming back on the county. They're trying to be smart, but they can't outsmart me on this," Donald said.
Although he did not verbally identify who he spoke with, Attorney Johnny McWilliams said he was asked if the county could just handle the bond issue as a regular election, pay whatever the expenses are for everyone who normally gets paid, send the school district a bill and just allow them to reimburse the county.
"I think that's reasonable, McWilliams said.
He then suggested that the school board simply submit a letter validating that they would reimburse the county and move forward from that.
Donald also questioned whether the county leaders had the authority to set the dates for the school board election and was told that the county lawmakers have no jurisdiction over the school board's decision.
McWilliams said, "The school board proposes the election to the election commission and this board has no say over it, don't have any say on the date, or anything else about it."
He then added, ``I'm sure they would like to have your support; maybe they'll get it, maybe they won't, but it's not an election you have really anything to do with it."
Donald then verbally expressed his lack of consensus with McWilliams' pronouncement. "If they're going to do a $30 million bond, or $40 million bond, or whatever they gone do, the people gone look back at the County Board of Supervisors because we the ones gone levy the taxes for it. Don't care how you look at it, the Board of Supervisors is the only somebody that levy taxes."
Donald continued by stating that the school board is not authorized to levy any taxes. McWilliams responded, "In this event, if this tax gets levied, it's gone be because 60% of the citizens voted to levy it."
He later clarified his statement to be that it had to be 60% of those who voted.
In other business,
The Sunflower County Ministerial Alliance Counseling Service Incorporated presented a proposal requesting $40,000 in assistance from the county to establish a transitional home for county citizens who may be in need of those services.
A motion was made by District 1 Supervisor Glenn Donald to have the board draw up a resolution to petition the state legislature for a local/private agreement to be able to appropriate the funds to the group. He said it was the “only legal way” the county could do it.
The county leaders also received a resolution from the North Sunflower Medical Center requesting $610,000 in COVID-19 relief money for an infrastructure project to improve sewer and drainage at the hospital in Ruleville, but no action was taken.
The county lawmakers reappointed two people to the Sunflower County Economic Development Board. In District 3, Supervisor Ben Gaston reappointed Richard Noble and in District 4 Supervisor Anthony Clark reappointed David Ruffin. Both were approved for a five-year term ending in June 2026.
