Petaluma board votes to place $129 parcel tax on potential Nov. 4 ballot, preserves option to withdraw by Aug. 13

The Petaluma City Elementary board on a majority vote approved a resolution to place an education parcel tax on the Nov. 4, 2025 ballot, with a plan to meet Aug. 12 to decide whether to withdraw the measure by the county's Aug. 13 filing deadline.

Superintendent Matthew Harris said the district faces an approximate $5,000,000 shortfall tied to the end of one-time federal and state pandemic funding and rising staffing costs. "We added more nurses. We added more mental health staff," Harris said, adding that staffing rose about 15% since before the pandemic and that the district must find roughly $3,000,000 more in reductions unless new revenue materializes.

Board members spent more than an hour weighing timing, turnout and cost. District counsel Meredith (district counsel) and a county elections official explained calendar constraints tied to the governor and legislature: the board would have until Aug. 13 to withdraw if it files by this Friday, but the governor and legislators have until about Aug. 22 to finalize any statewide special-election plan. Meredith said the picture is "a bit fuzzy," and added that the district would be in a stronger position if a statewide election occurs because turnout — and…