A class action was filed last week contending that public school districts in Georgia have improperly used taxpayers’ money to finance a campaign against Amendment One on the Nov. 6 ballot, according to Courthouse News. The constitutional amendment, if passed, would allow the state to create an agency that would authorize charter schools.
“The class claims the districts are violating Georgia law, which prohibits government agencies from spending public money on electoral advocacy,” the online newspaper said.
The suit says districts are “engaged in a coordinated campaign and conspiracy to avoid the constitutional and statutory prohibition against public officials using public resources to engage in political activity in support or opposition to the amendment.”
The districts used school resources to print anti-amendment materials and distributed them through students, spent public resources and employees’ time, and encouraged employees to vote “no” on the amendment, the suit reportedly said.
The suit aims to stop districts’ anti-amendment activities before the November election, and to require they reimburse taxpayers for money spent.
According to WGCL-TV, a Fulton County Schools spokesperson said that they did not have a position on the amendment, and only released informational materials on the district’s website.
