Mahoney still plans to push for consolidation without referendum
State Rep. Timothy Mahoney, D-South Union, said he will press on with the issue of countywide school administration consolidation by lobbying the school boards of Fayette County school districts separately despite a court ruling keeping him from placing a referendum on this year’s ballot.
Last month Judge Ralph C. Warman struck a petition filed by Mahoney for the Nov. 8 municipal election that asked voters to consider consolidating the administrations and school boards of the six school districts in the county.
Mahoney said he will not appeal the decision, but added that because it wasn’t placed on the ballot this year, he can attempt to have it placed on next year’s ballot.
Mahoney said an independent study regarding how consolidation could achieve cost savings should be released by the middle of the month. Once it is available, Mahoney said he will hold informational meetings to discuss the study.
“I want to give people a choice,” Mahoney said. “I am going to focus on cost savings and hopefully the school districts will institute the consolidation voluntarily.”
Warman found that Mahoney’s petition asked to put an advisory question on the ballot, and that the election bureau does not have the authority to do that.
On Aug. 22, Robert S. Frasconi of Uniontown and Delinda Young of North Union Township argued the petition did not meet the requirements of the Pennsylvania Election Code and is not authorized by statute. The two argued the question was not binding, which is required of referendum questions under the law. An attorney for Mahoney argued that it was.
The question, attached to petitions signed by 2,629 county voters, read: “Do you support the dissolution of the school boards and administrations of the Fayette County public schools and the creation of a countywide school board and administration to oversee the daily operations and finances of each independent school district?”
Mahoney’s attorney, Daniel L. Webster, had argued the statute under which the request was filed deals with intergovernmental cooperation and also states it would be binding if the referendum passed and would take effect after the terms of current board members expire.
Young and Frasconi also took issue with affidavits of circulator Mahoney filed.
While Webster argued that a majority countywide vote would prompt the change to a countywide school board, Warman ruled that the statute doesn’t outline the dissolution of a local government as a whole.
When contacted separately, Frasconi and Young each declined comment on the ruling and what plans they have to help combat increasing taxes and school inequities, but both said anyone interested in their views could read Young’s blog notenoughsaid.blog.com.