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Hillsborough commissioners approve tax referendum for November ballot while county, district await appeal

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Published  August 13, 2024 5:34pm EDT
Hillsborough County
FOX 13 News

Legal battle over Hillsborough tax referendum

As the Hillsborough County Commission and the school district await an appeal, commissioners voted Tuesday to approve a property tax referendum for the November ballot. The vote complies with a judge’s recent ruling while the commission appeals.

TAMPA, Fla. - Officials with Hillsborough County Public Schools said they expect a final court ruling to come down by next Monday regarding the district's legal fight with the county commission over a proposed property tax hike to pay for teacher salaries.

RELATED: Hillsborough County commissioners vote to appeal judge's decision to approve teacher pay referendum

"100% of my attention is on the more than 200,000 students we welcomed back to school this week. I am pleased that the court has decided to fast-track this appeal so we should have a final decision by Monday," Superintendent Van Ayres said in a statement Tuesday.

This comes on the same day that the Hillsborough County Commission voted 6-1 to approve putting the schools tax referendum on the November ballot, therefore complying with a judge’s orders, while also agreeing to continue the appeals process. Commissioner Gwen Myers was the only member to vote no.

"I do not believe that a judge can order duly elected officials and violate their First Amendment right and dictate whether or not they should vote up or down on an item," Commissioner Josh Wostal said.

PREVIOUS: Hillsborough County Commission blocks tax increasing pay for teachers: 'Unprecedented action'

In April, the school district approved a measure asking Hillsborough County voters to approve a property tax hike this year. If approved, the millage would raise about $177 million annually. Most of that money would go toward increasing teacher salaries, the district has said.

"I’ll just remind everybody [of] the basis: that Florida is 50th in the nation in teacher pay," Commissioner Pat Kemp said Tuesday.

State law requires county commissions to place referendums -- like this measure -- on the ballot, but Hillsborough commissioners decided to delay this for two years until 2026.

Hillsborough County commissioners voted to approve putting a tax referendum on the November ballot, complying with a judge's order while the commission appeals.

The debate within the commission remains split down party lines: Republican commissioners have cited inflation as a reason for pushing back against the district. Meanwhile, the board’s Democratic members tried to stop the appeal during Tuesday's meeting, but their efforts died in a 3-4 vote.

"Simply just put this on the ballot, as I said before, like we should’ve done in the first place months ago," Kemp said.

The school district filed a 30-page response in court Tuesday, arguing that due to "funding constraints" and "competition from other states," it’s been difficult to recruit and retain high quality teachers. 

If the referendum ends up passing, homeowners can calculate how much they would owe by using this online calculator by the Hillsborough County Property Appraiser.

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