BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — Brevard County school officials will ask voters in November to replace a property tax set up to fund facilities with a half cent sales tax. A portion of property taxes collected for schools is set to expire.
The superintendent of the district says the district has lost two thirds of revenue for facility repairs and renovations because of plummeting property values. The district has already compiled a list of projects totaling millions of dollars.
A new air conditioning system for Tropical Elementary School on Merritt Island will cost the district roughly 2 and a half million dollars. It's just one of about a dozen schools with more than three million dollars in work needed before they fall into disrepair.
"Infrastructure has been put off, purchasing school buses has been put off. That cannot continue inevitably, " Superintendent Dr. Brian Binggeli said.
But rather than ask voters to renew an expiring property tax set aside for school facilities, the district is looking at adding a half cent sales tax. It would raise
Brevard County's rate to 6.5 percent.
"The good thing there is that gets dispersed among more people including visitors," said Dr. Binggeli.
The district says the half cent sales tax increase will raise roughly $32 million for school buildings upgrades and buses, five times more than if the property tax was
renewed.
Some voters say they are skeptical.
"There's so many different ways you can hide it, there's so many different ways you can justify it and it never stops," said one Brevard County voter.
But electrician Charles Player says he's seen some of the work the schools need.
"It will put a lot more people to work around here like me," Player said.
The superintendent says if the sales tax isn't approved by voters, money for repairs will start to eat into operational costs and school programs.
WFTV
