Pasco School Tax Renewal Heads to Nov. 3 Ballot, With Teacher Pay and Security Funding at Stake

Pasco County voters will decide on Nov. 3 whether to renew a property tax that supplements pay for teachers and other school employees, a measure that directly affects how much every homeowner in Zephyrhills sends to the school district each year and how competitive local schools can be in hiring and keeping staff.

The referendum would renew, not add to, the up-to-one-mill tax first approved by voters in 2022. It generates roughly $60 million to $68 million a year, money the district says goes toward supplementing salaries for eligible employees and, for the first time this cycle, would send 5% of new revenue toward school security, including personnel who respond to safety threats on campus.

For homeowners, the math is straightforward. One mill equals $1 for every $1,000 of assessed property value. A home assessed at $200,000 would pay about $200 a year. A $350,000 home would pay about $350. If a home's assessed value doesn't change, the bill doesn't change either. Renters don't pay it directly, since it's a property tax.

West Zephyrhills Elementary and other schools serving Zephyrhills families are already flagging the vote for parents on their websites, pointing them to the district's referendum information page ahead of Election Day.

What happens if it fails

The district has been blunt about the stakes. Without the renewal, it says eligible employees would see an approximate 12% cut in salary, money it says cannot be replaced through any other funding source. State-set millage rates for school districts have been declining for a decade, and Pasco says it would be left trying to recruit teachers while competing against neighboring counties, including Hillsborough, Pinellas and Hernando, that have their own salary referendums in place. Polk County will ask its voters for a similar tax for the first time this November.

The renewal comes just months after the district cut nearly 500 positions districtwide in June, a reduction tied to declining enrollment, school mergers and expected cuts to grant funding. District officials said at the time that no current employees were being laid off outright, since retirements, resignations and transfers to other openings absorbed most of the reductions. Still, the cuts underscore how tight the district's budget has become even before voters weigh in on the tax renewal.

Why it matters locally

Pasco Schools serves about 86,000 students countywide, and the district says the money has helped it move vacancy rates down since 2022 while student achievement has climbed. The district earned an A rating from the state for the first time since 2008 and, for the first time since 2004, had no schools graded D or F. Officials attribute part of that turnaround to being able to hire and keep more experienced teachers.

The district has also created a Salary Referendum Oversight Committee, a group of community volunteers that reviews spending and reports annually to the school board, a structure officials say would continue if voters renew the tax.

None of that changes the basic choice in front of Pasco voters this fall: keep paying roughly the same property tax bill to keep current pay levels and add security funding, or let the levy expire and let salaries drop. The district has not yet said when it will hold public information sessions ahead of the vote, but its referendum FAQ page is already live with financial details for anyone who wants to dig in before Election Day.

Stay with the Zephyrhills Community Website for continuing coverage of the referendum vote and what it means for local schools. Share your take in our Community Forum, and check out more education stories and government and politics coverage as the November election approaches.