School District Prepares for Tax Levy Balloting

As this year's political races heat up, voters in Franklin County will kick things off at the polls early next month when they decide whether to earmark a half-mill in property taxes each year for the next four years towards employee wages and benefits.

If approved by a majority of county voters at the ballot box Tuesday, June 10, the special referendum will generate in the neighborhood of $1.5 million to $1.7 million each year, beginning July 1, 2008, and ending June 30, 2012.

The ballot measure reads that the millage is "an increase," specifically for "operating expenses necessary to enhance the quality of Franklin County's public school system."

But school officials are stressing that homeowners' current school tax burden will remain unchanged if the referendum passes. This is because the district would reduce by a half-mill its current 2.0-mill capital improvement funding, bringing it down to 1.5 mills.

"We can take that half-mill out of capital improvement and put it into operating funds. This would not increase anyone's millage," said Chairman Jimmy Gander. "It would just allow us to put our money to where we think it would best be used, to invest in our people."

Finance Officer Sam Carnley has told the board that this tax shift is possible because the district this year will complete its obligation to the state to earmark 1.5 mills of capital improvement money in each of the last three years towards funding construction of the new consolidated school.

He said a total of 1.5 mills in capital improvement money will be sufficient to meet the district's ongoing obligation to service its roughly $17 million in debt for new school construction as well as the district's future school maintenance needs.

School officials also are stressing that all revenues from the four-year, half-mill levy will go towards providing raises and maintaining benefits for all employees, including administrators, principals, teachers and support staff.

Because it is not clear what the county's gross taxable valuation will be for next year, Carnley has prepared three possible amounts for projected revenues the half-mill will yield.

Working against a current gross taxable value for schools of $4.1 billion, Carnley told the school board that if the county's taxable value decreases next year by 12 percent, or by close to a half-million dollars, the half-mill levy will yield about $1.7 million each year for the next four years.

In the event the county's valuation drops by 15 percent, to $3.48 billion, the half-mill levy will yield about $1.65 million annually. If the county's valuation were to decline by 20 percent, to $3.28 billion, the half-mill levy would yield about $1.56 million annually.

The last day to register for the June 10 election is Monday, May 12. Voters will cast ballots in their usual polling places throughout the county, and all polling places will be open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m..

Heather Riley, deputy supervisor of elections, said the last day to request an absentee ballot by mail is Wednesday, June 4. She said that while there is no early voting, absentee voters can cast ballots in the Apalachicola office up through the end of day Monday, June 9. The Carrabelle annex will not be open for any absentee voting.