ORLANDO, Fla. – Brevard County voters will find themselves dealing with a long list of issues and amendments on their November ballot.
The county is asking voters to decide on a property tax increase to give a raise to staff at Brevard Public Schools.
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They are also asking voters to once again decide whether to keep a property tax measure in order to buy and maintain more environmentally endangered land.
Then there are six charter amendments on the ballot, with issues ranging from affordable housing to recalling school board members.
Ad Valorem Millage Increase
BALLOT LANGUAGE
For increasing teacher and staff pay, funding for technical training for students, and other similar purposes, shall the School District of Brevard County authorize a one mill ad valorem millage for four years to ensure student achievement, recruit and retain teachers and staff with competitive salaries, and distribute funds as statute requires to charter schools based on their proportionate share of district enrollment, with all expenditures to be reviewed by an independent Citizens’ Oversight Committee.
BREAKING IT DOWN
The measure is a 1 mil ad valorem tax rate, which would give Brevard Public Schools an extra $1 per $1,000 of taxable value for a property in Brevard County. So if a property’s taxable value is $200,000, it means the taxpayer would pay an extra $200 in taxes per year.
The school district said the money is needed because “flat funding, inflationary costs and state unfunded mandates have resulted in over $38 million in operating budget reductions.”
Moreover, while the state has raised minimum teacher salaries, salaries for veteran teachers continue to lag. According to data from the Florida Department of Education, the county’s average salary for teachers is $49,990.84, below the state average of $51,598.82.
Brevard County ranks second in terms of teachers’ average years of experience – 13.7 years. St. Johns County ranks first with 14.3 years of experience.
The county has a large shortage of school staff, especially teachers and bus drivers, according to the district. The district says it needs more money to hire and retain qualified staff.
While the majority of the revenue would go toward salaries, some of it would also go toward funding teachers who take on extra activities like coaching, career and technical education programs, performing arts and classroom technology.
The district is also proposing an oversight committee of residents to review the expenditures.
The tax would last for four years.
BOTTOM LINE
A “YES” vote means you approve of raising property taxes to pay for teacher salaries
A “NO” vote means you do not approve
Environmentally Endangered Land Bond Referendum
BALLOT LANGUAGE
Shall Brevard County issue bonds to extend the Environmentally Endangered Lands program to acquire, improve and maintain wildlife habitat, wetlands, woodlands, and lands that protect Indian River Lagoon and St Johns River, and maintain and improve nature education centers, with citizen oversight, which bonds don’t exceed $50,000,000 aggregate principal amount, bear interest not exceeding maximum legal rate, mature twenty years from issuance and are payable from levying annual ad valorem taxes not exceeding 0.1465 mills?
BREAKING IT DOWN
The county is once again asking residents to pay a tax so it can issue bonds to buy environmentally-sensitive land through the Environmentally Endangered Lands Program.
The tax was first approved in 1990 to buy and manage green space around the Indian River Lagoon, the St. Johns River and other natural spaces to protect wildlife.
The tax was renewed in 2004.
The new referendum would raise up to $50 million in bonds, paid by a property tax rate of up to 14.65 cents for every $1,000 of taxable value on a property.
That’s less than the current EEL tax, which is a maximum rate of 28.5 cents per $1,000 of taxable property.
The tax has preserved 28,000 acres of land – about 2% of Brevard’s total acreage. It has protected 35 miles of Indian River Lagoon shoreline.
It also led to the creation of 75 miles of public trails, and three nature/education centers.
Environmentalists said the tax is still needed for another 20 years to help fill gaps in conservation lands, which will help link wildlife habitats together.
Advocates said the program is helping to mitigate stormwater flooding and pollution in environmentally-sensitive areas. They said it’s also helped make ecotourism an important industry in Brevard County.
Critics of the program, however, said the economic impact is overstated, and that more land is needed for development since the county has an affordable housing issue.
BOTTOM LINE
A “YES” vote means you favor continuing the EEL program and the property tax
A “NO” vote means you favor getting rid of the property tax
Charter Amendments
Charter amendments in Brevard County are placed on the ballot in one of two ways.
Every three years a Charter Review Commission fields and approves proposals, which are then reviewed by an attorney review panel to see if the amendment follows state law, then it has to be approved by the county commission before going to voters.
The county commission can also propose its own charter amendments, which have to go through that attorney review panel before they are placed on the ballot.
Here are the six charter amendments that went through that process and will be on the ballot in November.
Proposal 1: Attorney Review Panel
BALLOT LANGUAGE
The County Charter does not say what will be done when the Charter’s attorney review panel determines that a proposed Charter amendment is inconsistent with the Florida Constitution, general law, and existing charter. Shall the Charter be amended to provide that proposals found to be inconsistent with the Florida Constitution, general law, or the existing Charter be returned to the County Commission or Charter Review Commission for further action if any is to be done?
BREAKING IT DOWN
As stated above, a three-attorney panel reviews all charter amendment proposals to make sure they follow the Florida Constitution and state law. But apparently, there is no mechanism for what happens if one does not.
This amendment would make it so that any proposals that don’t follow state law be sent to another body, either the county commission or the charter review commission, to make changes or take other action as needed.
BOTTOM LINE
A “YES” vote would make the proposed change to the amendment process.
A “NO” vote would leave things as they currently stand.
Proposal 2: Approval by 60% of Voters Voting on Amendment
BALLOT LANGUAGE
Shall the Charter be amended to require a vote of at least 60% of those voters voting on a proposed amendment be required to adopt the proposal? The Brevard County Charter currently requires amendments be approved by a simple majority.
BREAKING IT DOWN
This charter amendment would change the threshold of votes needed for a charter amendment to be approved. Currently, an amendment to the county charter can be approved by a simple majority of votes. This would increase that threshold to 60%, ensuring that more voters approve the changes.
BOTTOM LINE
A “YES” vote would make the proposed change to the amendment process.
A “NO” vote would leave things as they currently stand.
Proposal 3: Recall of County Officers and School Board Members
BALLOT LANGUAGE
The County Charter allows for the recall election and replacement of the Clerk of Court, Property Appraiser, Supervisor of Elections, Tax Collector, and Sheriff, in the manner provided for by state law for recall of County Commissioners. Shall the Charter be amended to add School Board Members to this list who may face recall election and replacement in the manner provided by state law for recall of County Commissioners?
BREAKING IT DOWN
Continued frustration with the school district in Brevard County was the impetus for this amendment, especially after the district implemented COVID-19 masking protocols in schools.
This charter would add school board members to the list of county officers that can be recalled according to state law, which includes “malfeasance, misfeasance, neglect of duty, drunkenness, incompetence, permanent inability to perform official duties and conviction of a felony involving moral turpitude.”
BOTTOM LINE
A “YES” vote would make the proposed change to the amendment process.
A “NO” vote would leave things as they currently stand, which means you can’t recall school board members.
Proposal 4: Charter Review Commission Proposed Amendments
BALLOT LANGUAGE
The Charter requires a panel of three attorneys to review proposed amendments for legality before placing the proposed amendment on the ballot. When the amendment is proposed by the Charter Review Commission, the panel shall be selected by the Charter Review Commission. If the panel finds a Charter Review Commission proposed amendment inconsistent with the law, it shall be returned to the Charter Review Commission for further consideration.
BREAKING IT DOWN
This harkens back to that three-attorney review panel that is part of the charter amendment process.
This amendment specifically proposes that the panel members are selected by the Charter Review Commission.
It also says that if the panel finds a CRC proposed amendment inconsistent with the law, it should be sent back to the CRC for reconsideration.
BOTTOM LINE
A “YES” vote would make the proposed change to the amendment process.
A “NO” vote would leave things as they currently stand.
Proposal 5: Filling a Vacancy in the Term of a County Commissioner
BALLOT LANGUAGE
Revises Section 2.7 of the Charter to be consistent with the Florida Constitution and to provide that vacancies resulting from death, resignation, or removal from office of a County Commissioner with less than twenty-eight months remaining in the term shall be filled by the Governor. Vacancies with twenty-eight months or more remaining in the term will be filled by election by the voters.
BREAKING IT DOWN
This amendment would allow the county to hold an election to replace a county commissioner who has resigned, died or been removed from office and there are 28 months (2 years and 4 months) or more left on their term in office.
Any vacancies with less than 28 months left in a term of office would be filled by the Florida governor.
BOTTOM LINE
A “YES” vote would make the proposed change to the amendment process.
A “NO” vote would leave things as they currently stand.
Proposal 6: Workforce and Supportive Housing
BALLOT LANGUAGE
Creates Section 1.9 of the Charter. The amendment establishes an affordable housing trust fund to assist in establishing affordable housing for renters and homeowners to create and increase workforce housing opportunities throughout the county. The trust fund shall be funded as directed by the county commission.
BREAKING IT DOWN
Several Florida counties have affordable housing trust funds, and Brevard County is looking to establish its own to create more affordable housing for the workforce.
The program would be funded by the sale of county surplus real property, as long as the funds are not already committed elsewhere, and other sources established later on. The fund has to be established before July 1, 2023.
According to the Charter Review Commission’s fiscal impact analysis, the funds amount to an average of about $55,570 a year, just from the sale of county surplus real property.
BOTTOM LINE
A “YES” vote would make the proposed change to the amendment process.
A “NO” vote would leave things as they currently stand.
You can download and read through all of the charter amendment proposals on the Brevard County website.
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