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Board approves bond‑feasibility survey contract with True North Research
Summary
The Beaumont Unified board approved a contract to conduct a bond‑feasibility voter survey for a possible November 2026 general obligation bond; consultant Tim McLarney outlined a plan for 400 likely‑voter interviews with a ±4.9% margin of error and an estimated two‑month schedule.
The Beaumont Unified School District board voted to approve a bond‑feasibility survey contract with True North Research after a presentation on Jan. 27 by Tim McLarney, the firm's president.
McLarney told trustees the survey is designed to determine whether a general obligation bond placed on a November 2026 ballot would be feasible and, if so, how to structure a measure that the community would support. He said the proposed approach focuses on likely November voters and uses stratified and clustered random sampling to ensure the sample matches district turnout demographics.
Key technical details provided during the presentation: True North proposed a sample of at least 400 interviews, which McLarney said would yield a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 4.9 percentage points at the 95% confidence level; interviews can be completed by telephone or online in English or Spanish. He described a two‑month project timeline with initial data typically available in about five to six weeks.
Board members asked about response rates and whether town halls would bias the results; McLarney explained that town halls attract a small, self‑selected group and that the survey's representative sampling is intended to capture the broader likely‑voter universe. He also described collaboration with communications consultants where appropriate; the survey firm and communications teams sometimes cooperate on bond planning work.
The board moved to approve the study and contract; the motion carried in public session. The transcript does not include a dollar amount for the contract; staff noted the research will guide decisions about measure size, project lists, tax rates and accountability provisions if trustees later decide to place a bond on the ballot.
Why it matters: The survey will give trustees statistically based guidance on whether and how to put a bond measure to voters in November 2026 and inform decisions about project scope and voter outreach.
