Palm Beach County School Board delays vote on property tax

A demand from Palm Beach County’s charter schools for a share of the $800 million expected from a proposed school property tax spurred the School Board to delay a vote planned for Wednesday on whether to place the tax on the Nov. 6 ballot.

The board is now expected to vote on July 18.

Several charter representatives have warned the district in recent days that Florida law requires their inclusion in the tax plan.

“The law is clear that the local discretionary millage levied ... must be shared proportionally with charter schools in Palm Beach County,” wrote Shawn Arnold, attorney for Palm Beach Maritime Academy. “I believe that this referendum needs to be explicit in stating that all public schools and their students will receive their pro rata share of the proposed referendum proceeds.”

Charter schools are publicly funded independent schools operated on contracts that are renewed by school boards subject to their performance. About 10 percent of Palm Beach County’s 200,000 public school students attend 48 charters. The School Board joined six other Florida school districts last year in suing the state over a law requiring school districts to share property tax revenue with charters.

The board had planned to vote on whether to place a question on the November ballot asking voters to approve a $1 additional property tax for every $1,000 of taxable property they own. The money would pay for improved school security and mental health care and salary supplements for teachers.

Voters already pay $7 for every $1,000 in state and local school taxes, and an additional 25 cents on every $1,000 to pay for 650 elective teachers. The 25 cent tax expires this year and would be renewed as part of the ballot proposal.

The proposed tax would raise $200 million a year for four years. Here’s the original breakdown of how the board planned to divvy up the money, before the charters said they wanted to participate:

$50 million would continue the arts teacher program and allow the school district to hire additional elective teachers.

$50 million would pay for additional school security officers and mental health counselors. These are requirements of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas Public Safety Act, passed by the state Legislature after the Feb. 14 massacre at the Parkland high school.

$100 million would supplement teacher salaries, an effort to stem the turnover rate. Teachers with one to five years of experience would get $1,000 a year, six to nine years would get $5,000 a year, and teachers with 10 or more years experience would get $10,000 a year for the duration of the tax.