JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Duval County voters will get to decide on a property tax increase later this year.
Tuesday evening, the School Board voted 6-1 in favor of a resolution asking voters to approve a 1 mill property tax increase that would fund higher teacher salaries and improved athletics and arts programs at schools.
"The vote tonight does not raise anybody’s taxes," board member Lori Hershey said. "It allows us to ask City Hall to put it on the ballot for the voters to decide. I believe the community deserves to answer that question."
According to a resolution drafted by the school district, the referendum would be on Jacksonville voters' Aug. 23 primary election ballots.
Read more about property tax plans: Why Duval School leaders believe a property tax increase is necessary
Superintendent weighs in:Duval Schools Superintendent Diana Greene wants tax increase for teacher pay, arts, sports
Athletics improvements:Greener pastures ahead? Duval Schools considers turf football field upgrades
If voters approve the property tax increase, it would go into effect on July 1, 2023, and last four years. The district expects the tax to bring in at least $81 million annually for a four-year period. The district would need to go to voters every four years to extend the tax.
School Board member Warren Jones called the potential millage update not an increase, but a "partial millage restoration," citing a Department of Education mandate for school districts to roll back millage rates for the last 10 years.
"If this passes, taxpayers will still be paying less than they were in 2015," Jones said. "How can we ever reduce the achievement gap in Duval County if we don’t ensure every student has the right to have a certified teacher in front of their classroom? We have to do this."
In recent years, at least 20 other Florida school districts have used property taxes to fund things like teacher salaries, including Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade schools. Duval Teachers United President Terrie Brady said it was only right for the School Board to allow voters to decide if Jacksonville would do the same.
"We’re not collaboratively asking to sneak a tax in without asking the voters," she said. "We’re asking to allow the voters to decide is it worth the investment in our schools and our employees."
Addressing staff shortage at Duval schools after COVID pandemic
Superintendent Diana Greene said the property tax increase is necessary to help the district combat an all-time-low faculty shortage. To date, the district has over 1,050 vacancies including 466 instructional positions. Average teacher salaries rank last among the state's seven largest urban school districts and 40th among all 69 districts.
"We are competing more than ever with the private industry and other school districts in the battle of human capital," Greene said Tuesday. "For every three teachers we hire, we're probably losing about six."
The plan is for 65 percent of the property tax revenue to go toward teachers' salaries either through a tiered system or an equal amount across the board. Greene said this would help level the playing field for long time, veteran teachers who have not benefited from newly increased starting salaries.
"The problem is you have a veteran teacher making almost the same as an individual who is 17 days in the teaching profession out of college," Greene said.
Rachel Duff, a former Duval Schools teacher and 2019 Teacher of the Year finalist, said that while educating, she felt valued but didn't think her pay reflected the support.
She now works as a data research manager for the Jacksonville Public Education Fund.
"As a city, we could decide where we place value and our monetary priorities reflect that," she said, adding that Jacksonville Public Education Fund research shows public support for paying teachers more and that higher pay is linked to higher student success rates.
Additionally, student enrollment continues to shrink because of a combination of factors including the coronavirus pandemic, a rise in virtual and charter school options and more. Greene and other district leaders say boosting student experiences and teacher salaries will help Duval Schools stay competitive.
Some of the improvements mentioned that would be funded by property tax revenue include replacing worn-out football fields with artificial turf, upgrading softball and baseball fields, new playgrounds, new musical instruments, upgrading performing arts equipment and replacing old uniforms.
Duval residents react to property tax measure
During the meeting's public comment portion, local response to the property tax referendum was mixed.
David Pinter, a longtime educator and former director of school choice for Duval Schools, got choked up speaking about his love for teaching.
"I loved it. But what I found is that teachers struggle with pay. I found out very quickly, after three months, that I had to take a second job even with a master's degree," he said. "I applaud the superintendent and her boldness to bring this forward."
Still, critics of the referendum said the district should re-prioritize its existing budget instead of requesting additional taxpayer money.
Kim Stevens Perry said the increase would hurt current and retired teachers that are also property owners. She and another local who spoke during public comment, Casey Jones, both said the money the district receives from sales tax revenue should fund the district's new requests.
"I think it's time to tighten the belt a little bit," Jones said. "It's been 483 days since you asked for a sales tax and you've got the nerve to ask for more."
In 2020, voters in Duval County approved a half-cent sales tax increase to provide the district with $1.9 billion to improve the school buildings and add new technology.
The half-cent sales tax revenue can only be used for facility maintenance, security and technology upgrades, repairs and renovation and is earmarked for large-scale issues like replacing roofs and air conditioning systems as well as expanding and replacing school buildings. In contrast, Greene said this tax revenue would go toward personnel, programming and facility upgrades that benefit arts-focused students and student-athletes.
Greene said that neither funds from the school district's existing budget nor the sales tax revenue would be possible for these improvements. Greene added that the areas being targeted — arts and athletics — were selected because they currently don't receive specific categorical funding from state funding.
"If a school district goes for a referendum, they have rules. The half-cent sales tax can only be used for capital. The property tax millage can be used for a number of operations," Greene said.
Greene added that she did not recommend using the district's existing fund balance of 6.5 percent — essentially a savings account — toward the operational plans because there is a policy to remain a 5 percent fund balance.
"The fund balance is there to take care of unforeseen emergencies," Greene said. "You do not have enough money to maintain that for four years. The district’s finances are in a strong position but not in the position to find $82 million to take out."
Board member Charlotte Joyce was the only one who voted against the referendum, expressing concern over sustainability.
"My concern is the long term. What happens in four years?" she said. "I don’t want us to get to the point where we’ve inflated something … and then get to the perception that we can’t manage this budget. Are we passing the buck onto another board in the future?"
School districts that opt to supplement teacher salaries with property tax revenue ask the public to re-vote on the issue every four years.
Joyce also mentioned teacher burnout as a primary reason teachers are leaving the field.
"I want to encourage this board to be trailblazers and say maybe it’s not that [about the money], but why don’t we make things easier for them and implement things where we can support teachers?" she said. "There are things we can discuss as a board that’s innovative but I think throwing money, that’s not going to solve this problem."
Board member Elizabeth Andersen said that approaching the community and potentially requesting more money from the community has been "really difficult."
"I know the community at large will still have these questions," she said. "We've tired to be as transparent as possible. We have the opportunity to provide information and engage the community with education information that is critically important for fiscal transparency."
She added that she looks forward to potential community workshops and training on elements behind school district budgeting, such as the Florida Education Finance Program, which funds school districts.
"The vote tonight is really about allowing our community to weigh in and have a voice," she said.
Emily Bloch is an education reporter for The Florida Times-Union. Follow her on Twitter or email her. Sign up for her newsletter.