Property tax increase talk stalls at school board meeting

The School Board of Manatee County debated holding a referendum on raising property taxes Tuesday night and walked away without a clear consensus.

The idea of holding a referendum on raising taxes by one mill had gained momentum at recent meetings. If passed, a one mill increase would equate to an average of $200 per homeowner property tax increase and would net the district $33 million.

But on Tuesday, board Chairman Charlie Kennedy backed down from his support of a referendum, saying he feared the public would not support a tax increase.

Kennedy’s change of heart elicited strong words from board member Dave Miner, who urged board members to support a special election in November asking voters to approve the increase.

“How can they trust a board that will not lead?” Miner asked Kennedy. “Fear of failure cannot be the guiding light for leadership.”

“So if I feel certain we are headed into a ‘no,’ we should head into the no anyway?” Kennedy said. “Running ourselves off a cliff to a certain no, Mr. Miner, you may think that shows leadership, but I think it (leadership) is being pragmatic and having time to build our voter base and educate the people we need to vote.”

A mill is equivalent to one dollar for every $1,000 in the value of a home. The current school millage rate in the county is 6.92.

Even if Kennedy had agreed with Miner, the board would likely have been deadlocked. Vice Chairman John Colon strongly opposed raising the tax rate, and board member Gina Messenger said she wouldn’t support holding a referendum before August or November of 2018 because the board needed to develop a coherent message for why it needs the money and ensure it has the support of the community.

“It takes time to develop these things,” Messenger said.

The board asked board attorney Jim Dye to draft a resolution on holding a referendum that board members could vote on at its July 25 meeting. Since there was no clear consensus on when told hold the referendum, Dye will not put a date on the resolution, and board members can try to decide that on July 25.

At the board meeting, Dye also notified the board that the district had received a claim letter related to the W2 breach earlier this year. Dye said the claim letter was the likely precursor to a lawsuit, and that the attorney representing the client specialized in claims related to data breaches.

“Apparently this is a bit of a cottage industry,” Dye said. “The attorney we got the claim letter from you can find half a dozen other lawsuits and the language is identical.”

The attorney filing the claim is with the Florida law firm Morgan and Morgan but is based in North Carolina.

Dye said the claim letter named some district employees that were impacted by the W2 breach, and that the attorneys would likely be looking for other affected employees in an attempt to file a class action suit.

This story was originally published June 27, 2017 at 10:01 PM with the headline "Property tax increase talk stalls at school board meeting."