ORLANDO, Fla. – Orange County commissioners on Tuesday signed off on a plan to put a half-penny sales tax for school construction on the November ballot.
Commissioners unanimously approved the referendum, which will now go on the Nov. 5 ballot for Orange County voters.
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The referendum, which the Orange County school board approved last month, asks voters to continue the half-penny sales tax they first approved in 2002, then approved again in 2014. The money will be used to help fund construction and renovations for the next 10 years.
Orange County Public Schools says the sales tax is necessary because state funding for capital projects like school maintenance has dwindled over the years.
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A News 6 investigation in February found out some of the school maintenance money used to come from fees from telephone landlines but when those went away, so did the money. Meantime, lottery dollars now mostly fund secondary education and Bright Futures scholarships.
“The half-penny sales tax, when it comes to a revenue stream, is really the only stream we have to address growth, to build new schools, to address those major renovations,” OCPS Chief Communications Office Scott Howat told News 6′s Catherine Silver last month.
The half-cent sales tax has raised more than $4 billion for school building projects, according to the school district’s website, helping to fix or replace 132 schools and opening 65 new ones.
Orange County Public Schools is the eighth largest school district in the country, according to the U.S. Census, and the fourth largest in Florida. According to the latest Census data released in April, 53.2% of revenue for OCPS comes from local sources, including 47% in taxes and parent government contributions. 28.8% comes from state sources, and 18% comes from federal sources.
Orange County voters won’t be the only ones to decide on a sales tax for school construction. Marion County leaders approved a similar referendum for the November ballot back in February. School district officials say they are grappling with record growth and aging schools, with half of their facilities over 50 years old.
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