Alternate procedure for the election of district school board members to provide for single-member representation.

(1) This section shall be known and may be referred to as “The School District Local Option Single-Member Representation Law of 1984.”

(2) District school board members shall be elected to office in accordance with the provisions of ss. 1001.36 and 1001.361, or as otherwise provided by law, unless a proposition calling for single-member representation within the residence areas of the district is submitted to and approved by a majority of the qualified electors voting on such proposition in the manner provided in subsection (3).

(a) If the district school board is composed of five members, such proposition shall provide that the five members shall reside one in each of five residence areas, the areas together covering the entire district and as nearly equal in population as practicable, pursuant to s. 1001.36, each of whom shall be elected only by the qualified electors who reside in the same residence area as the member.

(b) If the district school board is composed of seven members, at the option of the school board, such proposition shall provide that:

1. Five of the seven members shall reside one in each of five residence areas, the areas together covering the entire district and as nearly equal in population as practicable, pursuant to s. 1001.36, each of whom shall be elected only by the qualified electors who reside in the same residence area as the member, and two of the seven members shall be elected at large; or

2. All seven members shall reside one in each of seven residence areas, the areas together covering the entire district and as nearly equal in population as practicable, pursuant to s. 1001.36, each of whom shall be elected only by the qualified electors who reside in the same residence area as the member.

(c) All members shall be elected for 4-year terms, but such terms shall be staggered so that, alternately, one more or one less than half of the members elected from residence areas and, if applicable, one of the members elected at large from the entire district are elected every 2 years. Any member may be elected to an initial term of less than 4 years if necessary to achieve or maintain such system of staggered terms.

(3) A proposition calling for single-member representation within the residence areas of the district shall be submitted to the electors of the district at any primary, general, or otherwise-called special election, in either manner following:

(a) The district school board may adopt a formal resolution directing an election to be held to place the proposition on the ballot.

(b) The electors of the school district may petition to have the proposition placed on the ballot by presenting to the school board petitions signed by not less than 10 percent of the duly qualified electors residing within the school district. The number of signatures required shall be determined by the supervisor of elections according to the number of registered electors in the district as of the date the petitioning electors register as a political committee as provided in subsection (4).