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Our call — vote YES
The measure
Proposition 428, on the November 3, 2026 ballot in the Peoria Unified School District (Maricopa County), asks voters to continue the district's 13% Maintenance & Operations (M&O) budget override for seven years. The pamphlet states the override would fund existing programs: the district's pro statement lists retaining teachers and nursing professionals, all-day kindergarten, arts and reading programs, physical education, extracurricular activities, current class sizes, and assistant principals.
What YES does
A YES vote continues the full 13% override. The estimated total override amount for fiscal year 2027/2028 is $32,824,128, funded by a levy on taxable property in the district at an estimated secondary tax rate of $1.10 per $100 of net assessed valuation. The existing override is in its first phase-out year, already reduced by one-third ($10,941,376); approval restores the full override the voters have carried since the mid-1990s. Voters rejected this override in 2025, and the district cut $11 million from its maintenance and operations budget; the pamphlet's pro statement says a further $11 million reduction follows if it is not approved.
What NO does
A NO vote continues the phase-out: another one-third reduction in fiscal year 2027/2028, and the override is no longer levied in fiscal year 2028/2029 unless renewed. Each one-third reduction lowers the secondary tax rate by $0.36, per the pamphlet.
The math
The pamphlet prints the whole picture: 13%, $32,824,128 for fiscal 2027/2028, a $1.10 per $100 NAV estimated rate that the pamphlet states is expected to be lower than the pre-phase-down override rate, and — for the owner of a home with a limited property value of $236,970, the district average — an increased cost of $85 over the current phase-down year. Reported total estimated yearly cost to the average homeowner if approved is $261. This is a continuation at the same 13%, not a new tax and not a higher percentage.
OUR CALL
Our call: YES.
Same 13% the district has carried since the mid-1990s, fully priced — total, rate, and homeowner cost all printed — funding existing classroom and operations programs the pamphlet names. The 2025 rejection started a phase-out, not a verdict that the override can never be re-asked with full disclosure. It has been. Renew it.
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Sources
- Peoria Unified Proposition 428 informational pamphlet — override amount, rate, phase-down mechanics, and average-home cost (pamphlet text as reproduced in full) — https://sites.google.com/view/peoria-united-parent-council/prop-428
- azcentral reporting — 2025 rejection, $11 million in district cuts, and estimated $261/year average homeowner cost, as recorded in the research file
Result pending. No verified call (Associated Press or official) as of November 4, 2026. This page will be updated when the race is called or certified. The original article above is unchanged.
AI-assisted article — but the sources are human, and the facts are very real.