Pasco superintendent admits to 2013 bond election violation

The Pasco School District has admitted the district wrongly promoted a 2013 bond measure in survey questions it circulated among district residents and has paid a $100 fine.

Superintendent Saundra Hill paid the fine and filed a statement agreeing with the findings of the state’s Public Disclosure Commission. Commission investigators found that two survey questions put to the public in 2011 and 2012 were at least partially intended to promote the $46.8 million bond later approved by voters.

Hill’s admission negates the need for a Feb. 16 hearing and also resolves the last of several violations alleged in the case.

It was not immediately known what those survey questions were and details about the questions weren’t released by the commission.

Roger Lenk of west Pasco, noted a question from a district survey that said “the April 2011 bond election failed. Would you be willing to support a revised bond election that would cost substantially less?” in his complaint to the commission. That survey was circulated in September 2012.

School board President Scott Lehrman declined to talk about the fine Monday, referring all questions to the district’s public affairs office which was closed for the Presidents Day holiday.

District spokeswoman Leslee Caul previously said the district was aware the hearing was focused on two survey questions the district sent out to the public.

Lenk said the incident demonstrated Hill’s inability to follow the law but also the Pasco School Board’s inability to supervise and monitor her work, comparing them to a character in the ‘60s sitcom “Hogan’s Heroes.”

“The illustrious phrase, ‘I see nothing — nothing!’ while endearing to Stalag 13’s Sergeant Schultz, is a sad commentary when associated with our public officials,” Lenk said in a statement about the fine.

The bond received 62 percent approval in the election, just clearing the 60 percent threshold required for bonds to pass. It paid for the construction of the science- and technology-centric Barbara McClintock, Marie Curie and Rosalind Franklin elementary schools, and will help pay for the relocation of New Horizons High School and some improvements at Pasco High School.

By law, public employees cannot campaign for a bond or levy while on duty. Public facilities and resources also cannot be used. District officials are, however, allowed to provide information about a ballot measure and how the district would be affected if it passes or fails.

But the summer after the bond was approved, Lenk alleged in a complaint spanning hundreds of pages that Hill and other district employees used their time as well as district resources and facilities to promote the bond and work “hand in glove” with bond advocate Pasco Citizens for Better Schools. Lenk was opposed to the bond.

Lenk’s complaint languished with the PDC for nearly three years, a result of the commission’s workload of investigating allegations connected to elections, political contributions and related matters. Cases are handled in the order they are received, a commission spokeswoman said.

The commission was supposed to hear the case in December but granted the district a continuance. The maximum penalty for violations is a $1,000 fine.

Lenk criticized Hill, who is set to retire at the end of June, for wasting district resources on her defense instead of admitting wrongdoing earlier.

This story was originally published February 15, 2016 at 9:38 PM with the headline "Pasco superintendent admits to 2013 bond election violation."