Voters in Manatee County will decide whether to renew the 1 mill tax that was passed in 2018, primarily to support teacher pay, increase instructional time and expand career, technical, STEM and art programs.

The election is Nov. 2, 2021. Early voting is Oct. 23-30, 8:30 am to 6 pm, only at the Supervisor of Elections office, 601 301 Blvd. West, Bradenton. If you are not registered to vote, deadline to register is Oct. 4. Deadline to request a mail-in ballot is Oct. 23. Deadline to return the mail-in ballot is 7 pm on Nov. 2.

SCHOOL BOARD OF MANATEE COUNTY FLORIDA AD VALOREM MILLAGE ELECTION
Shall the School Board of Manatee County continue the current one (1) mill ad valorem millage from July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2025, as overseen by the Citizens' Financial Oversight Committee, to increase student achievement through more instructional time and support; recruit and retain teachers and staff with competitive salaries; expand Career and Technical Education, STEM and Visual/Performing Arts programs; and to distribute proportional funds to Charter Schools pursuant to Florida Statute 1011.71?

YES, for continuation
NO, against continuation

The money will continue to be spent in the following ways: 
1) Extend learning time 30 minutes per day.
2) Keep teacher and staff pay competitive.
3) Expand career, technical, STEM and art programs.
4) Support charter schools, as required by law.

Two ways.
First - all spending is transparent. All financial reports are posted on the district's website. For the millage funds, there is a separate tracking report for public review.
Second, the school board has appointed a Citizens Financial Oversight Committee, consisting of qualified volunteers, who scrutinize the budget and submit periodic reports to the board and community.

Since this is a renewal and not a tax increase, the 1 mill rate remains the same. Each mill cost property owners $1 for every $1,000 of assessed value. That means residents will continue to pay about $23 a month for a home worth $300,000 (less homestead exemption).

Yes, the additional money is working. Manatee's student performance continues to climb in state rankings. The district has seen a dramatic decrease in teacher vacancies and the number of teachers and staff leaving for other districts. Samples of expanded program benefits are available by watching the Millage Minute videos.

The school board must know if voters approve the renewal in November in order to secure the dollars for the 2022-23 school year. If they waited until the 2022 general election, they would not be able to budget for or receive dollars until 2023. Since this renewal is only for three years instead of four, the school board is committed to putting the renewal on the same cycle as future general elections, starting in 2024.

No. All of the money raised from this referendum renewal stays in Manatee County.

Yes, the governor signed a bill to increase starting teacher salaries and minimum wages, which were very much needed. But it did not include raises for our veteran
teachers, who are most valuable to student learning and vulnerable to leaving for higher pay in other districts if the referendum doesn't pass. The district combines these two resources to both recruit new teachers and retain veteran teachers.

Yes, the district is required by state statute to provide charter schools with their "fair share" of the funds, which is distributed based upon their student enrollment. Charter school governing boards will determine how to spend it.

With a national teacher shortage looming over all schools, neighboring districts, such as Sarasota and Pinellas counties, were offering higher pay to Manatee's best teachers and administrators. With the referendum passage in 2018, Manatee can now match or in some cases exceed those offerings.

Teachers received 51% of referendum dollars for pay increases. If the referendum fails, they would lose more than $5,000 each annually. STEM and Career and Technical programs would be cut back, the arts wouldn’t get a boost and local charter schools would lose funding. Virtually every employee in the school district, Manatee County’s largest employer, would take a significant pay cut. That would put our schools at a competitive disadvantage compared to Sarasota and Pinellas counties, who have each had the additional mill since 2002 and 2004 respectively.

The fund balance is there for emergencies, and is placed in interest-bearing accounts. It is not used for recurring expenses because that would eventually deplete the state-mandated requirement for reserves.

Yes, the district has adequate reserves and "A" ratings from global credit rating agencies. The district recently received an Outstanding rating for financial reporting.

It's true that the district is going in the right direction. But state dollars, which were cut during the recession in 2008 and never restored, do not cover additional needs. Passage of the referendum allows the district to accelerate progress with additional instructional time and the expansion of proven programs, such as career and technical programs, to prepare students to fulfill local workforce needs. In addition, existing dollars do not keep up with competing districts, which have passed similar referendums.

Yes, it would be better. But the district has no choice. The available recurring dollars would not be nearly enough to fund the pay increase to keep our best teachers, or to expand instructional time for students.

Public education impacts everyone. Quality education equates to quality of life issues, such as community safety, pride, and economic development. It results in higher incomes, better jobs, rising property values and visitor attractions. Today's students are Manatee's future pharmacists, construction workers, nurses, electricians and engineers. Investing in the next generation is a time-honored American tradition and a community-wide responsibility.

It's true that lottery proceeds go to education. Most of it goes to Bright Future Scholarships. Lottery dollars make up less than 1% of the district's budget. All of the lottery dollars that the school district receives could barely keep schools open for one day. It does not come close to fulfilling the needs.

Yes. In fact, Sarasota has passed and renewed it five times, resulting in a bigger budget than Manatee despite having fewer students. St. Johns, Orange, Clay, Pinellas, Miami-Dade, Charlotte, Hernando, Marion, Lake, Palm Beach and others have passed similar measures.

It's true, the half-cent sales tax passed in 2016. That money is helping the district repair, renovate and build new schools. But it can only be used for capital improvements to facilities and technology. It cannot be used for teacher salaries, increased instructional time or expanded programs. This 1 mill referendum is for operational dollars, not school facilities, and the district must keep them separate by law.