Tom Sheehy Testifies on Behalf of Local Control Before Education Committee

Tom Sheehy, principal and founder of the Sheehy Strategy Group, recently testified in favor of local control before the Assembly Education Committee.

On behalf of an SSG client, the Orange County Board of Education, Sheehy testified in strong opposition to Senate Bill 286 (Min), which seeks to consolidate the county’s Board of Education elections with the November statewide general election.

These efforts are “unwelcome and unnecessary,” Sheehy said. “Orange County is a Charter County that has the authority to adopt a resolution to change their Board of Education elections …. Orange County does not require a state law to do so.”

The proposed measure is an effort to usurp control of local governments by creating a state law where one is not needed, nor asked for, by local elected leaders.

Additionally, as Sheehy pointed out in his testimony, SB 286 creates new and significant workload responsibilities and costs for the county registrar. By mandating a change in county election procedures, SB 286 creates a new state mandate. Accordingly, the state’s General Fund will become liable for, conservatively, hundreds of thousands of dollars of additional expense every election cycle. Such a significant financial burden is unwise, especially as the state heads toward a possible recession.

Learn more about this issue by reading SSG’s opposition letter.

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