Tuesday is election for three issues facing Harrison County voters.

The polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. as voters decide the fate of 11 state constitutional amendments, the creation of Emergency Services District No. 6 and how Karnack ISD will spend its wealth for the second year.

ESD No. 6

The Harrison County Commissioners' Court approved the inclusion of creating Emergency Services District 6 on the November ballot after a hearing during its Sept. 2 meeting. A petition to include the issue had been certified in August.

The district would extend north of Marshall to Caddo Lake and would be principally in Precincts 1 and 4. The city of Marshall, which has extraterritorial jurisdiction in part of the area, has agreed to the creation of the district.

The creation of a sixth district will blanket the county with fire protection and emergency services provided by ESDs rather than volunteer departments, according to a previous News Messenger article, with the difference being that the voter-approved district would have the power to collect taxes as a means of financing.

During the hearing, several members of the Woodlawn Volunteer Fire Department spoke for creating the district as it would allow the volunteers to update their personal equipment, provide better training and purchase new equipment to better protect the area.

Karnack

Chapter 41

Karnack voters are being asked to decide how their school district would share its extra revenue after being declared a Chapter 41 district.

For the purposes of the school finance system in Texas, districts are designated as either property-wealthy or property-poor.

For the past two years, Karnack ISD has been designated as property-wealthy, according to a Sept. 16 News Messenger article.

Chapter 41's provisions are sometimes referred to as the "share the wealth" or "Robin Hood" plan because districts that are deemed to be property-wealthy are required to share their wealth with property-poor school districts, Karnack High School Principal Tony Thomas said at a Texas Democrat Women of Harrison County meeting in September.

In accordance with the provisions of TEC Chapter 41, a Chapter 41 District has five options available to reduce its property wealth per WADA:

Option 1 \— consolidate with another district.

Option 2 \— detach property.

Option 3 \— purchase attendance credits from the state.

Option 4 \— contract to educate non-resident students from a partner district.

Option 5 \— consolidate tax bases with another district.

After the election is finished and the votes are tallied, officials will see which option had the majority of the votes and go from there. Districts are allowed to use a combination of options or a single one.

School officials are favoring Option 3, which would call for the district to send money to the state to help fund other property-poor schools.

Constitutional

Amendments

Voters across the state are being asked to vote on 11 amendments ranging from taxation issues to eminent domain.

Taxation issues include Proposition 2, which calls for a homestead to be valued as a residence rather than on a "best use" valuation; Proposition 3 that provides for uniform standards and procedures for appraising property; and Proposition 5 that will allow the creation of a single board of equalization for adjacent counties.

Proposition 11 deals with eminent domain and would prohibit governments from taking private property for private economic development.