The Duval County School Board has approved scheduling a November referendum on continuing a 1-mill property tax that supplements funding for teacher pay, the arts and sports.
Voters approved the extra tax in 2022 but it was designed to end after four years unless voters extended it again.
Voting yes in November would keep the 1-mill tax in place through June 30, 2030.
Continuing the tax is projected to generate $121 million yearly that will be used mostly to improve pay for teachers, security and other school staff, according to an issue summary circulated to board members by school district staff.
The tax doesn’t affect pay for board members, Superintendent Christopher Bernier or his senior staff, the summary says, adding that voters in 29 other Florida school districts, including Nassau and St. Johns counties, have approved similar millages.
Like now, charter schools would get their cut of an extended 1-mill tax, too, but the amount would depend on their share of student enrollment.
The summary notes that since 2008, the Florida Legislature has cut the “required local effort,” the primary millage for school funding, by more than a third, to 3.095 mills.
The school district has several separate millages that in 2025 added together to total 6.343 mills. (A mill is a tax rate of $1 for every $1,000 of property’s assessed value.)
Bernier has supported sending the millage extension to voters. The board adopted that recommendation on a 6-1 vote at its March 3 meeting. Citing strain on taxpayers, board Chair Charlotte Joyce voted no but said she would support a referendum on replacing the tax with a half-mill charge.
A series of school district advocates had already championed renewing the 1-mill levy, casting that as a step toward protecting Jacksonville’s future by investing in its A-graded school district.
“Strong public schools strengthen property values, support workforce development, and shape the future of our community,” the advocacy group Public School Defenders said in a March 2 release supporting the School Board’s resolution. “When we invest in educators, we invest in students. And when we invest in students, we invest in Duval.”
The referendum resolution the board approved will be sent to Jacksonville’s City Council to forward to Supervisor of Elections Jerry Holland.
Whether the millage is extended or not won’t have any effect on the half-penny sales tax voters approved in 2020 to pay for school construction and repairs.
This story was updated to reflect the outcome of the School Board meeting.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Duval school board votes to put 1-mill tax on ballot again
Reporting by Steve Patterson, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union / Florida Times-Union
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
