JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Duval County School Board is set to vote Tuesday night on whether to ask voters to renew a 1-mill property tax that the district says helps fund teacher salary supplements and other school programs, including arts, athletics and safety-related needs.
If the board approves the resolution, it will go next to the Jacksonville City Council.
If the City Council signs off, the question would appear on the November ballot.
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The 1-mill tax was first approved by voters in 2022. DCPS says renewing it would generate about $121 million a year.
According to the district, the millage has funded annual salary supplements for teachers ranging from $7,730 to $9,370, which DCPS says equals roughly $62 million each year dedicated directly to teachers.
A Duval County parent, Jamie Travis-Leonard, told News4JAX she supports keeping the tax in place, pointing to the importance of having well-paid teachers and safe schools.
“They deserve to be safe and secure while teaching and continuing to grow the future,” Travis-Leonard said. “If we don’t have competent, well-paid teachers, we won’t have those jobs.”
The district estimates the current millage provides about $12 million annually for arts and athletics combined, including:
Arts program investments, according to DCPS:
10-stage floors and seating renovations scheduled
10 high school band uniforms
32 lighting and sound upgrades
2 recording studios
233 teachers receiving direct classroom support
Athletics program investments, according to DCPS:
12 playgrounds
11 bleachers
8 tracks
6 turf fields
6 scoreboards
6 female facility upgrades
5 tennis courts
In addition to the millage discussion, the school board is expected to vote on items connected to school consolidations, including whether some unused campuses should be declared surplus.
The board will consider declaring George Washington Carver Elementary and Hidden Oaks Elementary as surplus properties that are “unsuitable and unnecessary for educational purposes,” according to the agenda.
Board members are also expected to vote on purchase and sale agreements for:
Annie R. Morgan Elementary (about $1.25 million, according to agenda documents)
Kings Trail Elementary (about $3.75 million)
District documents project that those two sales would reduce vacant seats by about 1,000.
The school board meeting is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. News4JAX will monitor the meeting and provide updates.
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