Osceola County voters will decide this fall whether to approve a temporary property tax increase that the school district said could help prevent cuts to teachers, school safety and student programs.
The Osceola Board of County Commissioners voted to put the operational millage referendum on the November ballot, which does not impose the tax but rather gives voters the final say.
If voters approve it on Nov. 3, the four-year tax is expected to generate around $62.5 million a year for the School District of Osceola County, with a proportional share going to their charter schools.
The proposal is for a one-mill property tax, meaning $1 for every $1,000 of taxable property value.
For example, a home with a taxable value of $350,000 would pay an estimated $350 a year under the proposed tax, or about $29 a month.
The tax would be in place for four years starting July 2027, and after that, voters would have to approve it again for the district to continue collecting the additional revenue.
The district said an independent citizen advisory committee would oversee how the money is spent, but it will be used for:
- Teacher and staff compensation and benefits
- School safety and security personnel
- Academic programs, arts, music, and athletics
- Student activities
The referendum request has been building for a while, in early July Osceola Public School’s Superintendent Mark Shanoff appeared before the county commission to make a case for putting the tax question before voters. He outlined the district’s financial pressures and the potential impact of additional cuts on staffing, school safety, and student programs.
In his presentation he said the district has already cut more than $60 million from its budget over the past two years, and about 80% of their budget goes toward salaries and benefits. The additional reductions would likely affect the employees and services they provide in schools.
“We have the second lowest administrative overhead per pupil among the 67 counties, we're operating very lean already,” Shanoff said during the July county commissioners meeting. “We're looking at a 100 million dollar shortfall over the next four years.”
According to Osceola schools, the county has the fourth-lowest average teacher salary in Central Florida, coming in at an average of $52,840.
Apart from teacher benefits, Osceola schools rely on partnerships with local law enforcement agencies to provide school resource officers, including the Osceola County Sheriff’s Office, Kissimmee Police Department and St. Cloud Police Department.
The additional revenue they seek could help maintain those partnerships and keep law enforcement officers in schools.
Osceola isn’t the first Central Florida county to introduce millage to the ballot. Both Orange and Marion County voters have approved a one-mill operating referendum, with the option to renew it in November as well.
According to Marion County Schools, the current one-mill levy generates about $41 million annually, and OCPS generated about $242 million this past school year.
With the commission’s approval, the question will now go before Osceola County voters on Nov. 3.
“We're very grateful for you taking that ministerial act, so then we can move forward and send this to the voters for their consideration,” Shanoff said after the referendums approval.
Voters will decide whether to approve the four-year, one-mill tax. If it passes, the district expects to collect about $62.5 million annually.
If voters reject it, the district will not receive the additional revenue and will have to continue balancing its budget without the proposed millage.
