A split in St. Paul and victories for some state schools

There were several local referendums across the state for Minnesota voters on Tuesday.

Some major ballot measures have passed, including one in St. Paul that will convert local elections from odd years to even years and an increase in the technology levy on Minneapolis Public Schools. Meanwhile, St. Paul voters rejected a child care tax proposal introduced by the city’s mayor strongly againstsaying it promised too much and delivered too little.

Here’s more about what happened:

St. Paul

St. Paul voters voted down a referendum that would have given the mayor the option to implement an early childcare tax that could have risen to $20 million a year, up to $110 million over 10 years. The initiative was rejected with almost 60% “no” votes.

Even if voters had passed it, Mayor Melvin Carter would have said so would not have carried out the tax increase. Carter said the language of the ballot measure was misleading because the amount raised by the levy would not be enough to cover everything in it for all low-income families.

The second ballot initiative for St. Paul voters was passed. It will take St. Paul’s odd-year city elections to move them to even years. The initiative was adopted by 61%-39%. Supporters of the move said it would attract more voters during higher turnout years while also eliminating some of the city’s spending related to off-year elections. Opponents have pointed out that the move would eliminate ranked-choice voting under current state law. They have also said this would dilute the focus on local issues during elections in odd-numbered years.

Schools

There were 54 referendums by state school districts asking voters to increase funding by approving local tax levies or increased tax levies. Of these, 31 passed and 23 failed.

One of these approved initiatives was an increase in a technology fee at the Minneapolis Public School. Voters approved a $20 million increase, bringing the levy to a total of $38 million over the next decade. The initiative was approved by 66%-34%.

School officials said the original levy does not cover all of the district’s technology expenses and those the district has drawn from its general fund in the past to offset. With an expanded tax, the district says it can use general fund dollars otherwise used for technology for other purposes, including operations.

In a Q&A with MinnPost earlier this year: Superintendent Lisa Sayles-Adams said the levy would be a “big part” of the district’s budget strategy.

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