Background

The Santa Clara Valley Water District (SCVWD) is a countywide agency based in San Jose, California, responsible for oversight and maintenance of most water-based issues throughout the county. In 1997, the district faced a need for additional local funding to support flood control and other services, and began to research the possibility of a countywide ballot measure. In a county with over 500,000 likely voters where only 7% of the population lived in a floodplain, the district faced a great challenge in raising voter awareness.

What We Did

Our firm worked with the district for two years to analyze the community’s support for a potential measure that would require 66.7% of the vote for passage, and helped communicate the district’s responsibilities and needs to an electorate that had very little knowledge of the situation. The “Lifelines” brochure pointed out that most voters live relatively close to a stream or creek – a fact our polling showed was important to reinforce.