Input is sought on district split

East- and west-siders in Salt Lake County will have the chance to sound off this week over a proposed east-side school district.

Public hearings are being held in Sandy, Cottonwood Heights, Midvale, Alta, Draper and Salt Lake County now through July on a split from Jordan School District. South Salt Lake, Holladay and Salt Lake County have done a study on splitting from Granite School District.

Those cities are considering forming a school district that would ditch the west side of Salt Lake County, effectively cutting both Jordan and Granite school districts along the Jordan River.

Two studies were completed in May showing that an east-side flight of students from Jordan and Granite school districts would force the west side to raise property taxes to manage the growth rate and new school construction. On top of that, a split would mean less money per pupil on the west side.

The situation would be particularly bleak in Granite School District. But for Jordan District, the tax base from commercial development would eventually ease the tax burden, according to the studies.

Cities and Salt Lake County must vote by July 17 whether they want to put the issue of the school-district split on the ballot. By July 24, all organizations must sign an interlocal agreement. And by Aug. 1, ballot language must be submitted in time for the Nov. 6 municipal elections.

A bill allowing such a split was passed during the 2007 legislative session. Issues about the bill are being discussed in a task force headed up by Sen. Carlene Walker, R-Cottonwood Heights, who sponsored the small-school-district bill. That task force meets today at 9 a.m. in Room W110 of the Capitol.

House Speaker Greg Curtis, R-Sandy, is also working on a bill with Sen. Howard Stephenson, R-Draper, that would equalize the burden of school construction on a countywide level.

But Riverton, Herriman, West Jordan, South Jordan and Bluffdale mayors have questioned whether it is constitutionally correct to only allow those in the new district to vote on the split. They say it violates the 14th Amendment's guarantee of one person, one vote.

The Jordan Board of Education also has sought a legal opinion, which backed the constitutional concerns. Jordan officials asked east-side mayors to hold off on the school-district split until those questions were answered.

Copies of the study are available on the Sandy, Draper and Alta city Web sites and at all county library branches.

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E-mail: astowell@desnews.com