SB 508 - This act establishes a recall election procedure for school board members. Under the act, school board members shall be subject to recall from office upon the submission of a petition signed by at least ten percent of the number of voters who voted in the most recent school board election. No proceedings shall be commenced against any member if, at the time of commencement, the member has not held office for more than ninety days; has fewer than 180 days remaining in their term; or has had a recall election determined in their favor during their current term of office. The grounds for a recall election shall include, but are not limited to, conduct that adversely affects the rights and interests of the public; abuse of power or authority; commission of an act of malfeasance; lack of responsiveness to concerns raised by the public; and moral turpitude.
Recall election proceedings may be commenced by filing a notice of intention to circulate a recall petition with the election authority that has jurisdiction over the school district. A notice of intention to circulate a recall petition shall include certain information described in the act.
Within three business days after certifying a notice of intention, the election authority shall send notification of the filing of the notice by registered mail to the school district administration, the school board, and the board member sought to be recalled. Within fourteen days after the receipt of the notice, the board member who is the subject of the notice may file a statement in answer to the statement of the proponents. The election authority shall make the answer available for public viewing upon request.
Collection of signatures on a petition for recall may begin seven days after the election authority's certification, with the date of the certification counted as the first day. Any person circulating a petition for recall shall be a registered voter in the district of the board member sought to be recalled. Each person signing a petition shall do so in the presence of the person who is circulating the petition and who will execute the affidavit of verification for each page of the petition. Each signer shall be a registered voter in the school district. The completed petition with the required number of signatures shall be notarized as described in the act and filed with the election authority.
If the election authority finds the signed petition to be insufficient, the election authority shall, within three business days after such determination, send notification of the insufficiency by registered mail to the person who filed the signed petition. The person who filed the signed petition shall have thirty days to correct the insufficiencies identified by the election authority and refile the petition. If the petition is not corrected and refiled, the petition and all its signatures shall be void.
If the election authority finds the signed petition to be sufficient, the election authority shall attach to the petition a certificate showing the result of the examination. The election authority shall, within three business days, send notification of the sufficiency and certification by registered mail to the person who filed the signed petition, the school district administration, the school board, and the board member sought to be recalled.
The act specifies the days on which school board recall elections may occur and the language that shall appear on the ballot. If a majority of the votes are in favor of removing the member, a successor shall be chosen in the same manner that any vacancy on the district board is filled. The act specifies that a school board member who has been recalled shall not fill the vacancy created by the recall, but such member may seek election to the school board at any election not held to fill the vacancy created by the member's recall.
The act requires the Secretary of State to compile an annual report listing the name of each school board member, the school district the member serves, the member's election date, and the expiration date of the member's term. Such report shall be sorted by school district names and posted on the Secretary of State's website on July first of each year.
This act is similar to SB 657 (2022), SB 891 (2022), HCS/HB 1747 (2022), HCS/HB 229 (2021), and HB 2360 (2020).
OLIVIA SHANNON