JAX Chamber is endorsing a November half-cent sales tax referendum to fund a $1.9 billion facilities improvement plan for Duval County Public Schools.
The JAX Chamber board of directors voted to support the referendum May 28, according to a news release.
The organization said it supports the tax to bolster the quality of local schools and help develop “top talent” for local companies and attract investment to Northeast Florida.
“This is an important investment in our public school system and in our community,” JAX Chamber Chair Henry Brown said in the news release. “The referendum would pay for needed upgrades and comes at a time where the influx of construction jobs will be critical for our local economy.”
The Duval County School Board released a plan last year to fix aging school buildings and address safety and security needs across the district.
The Jacksonville City Council voted 18-1 to place the referendum on the Nov. 3 ballot after withdrawing the legislation in August 2019. Council member Rory Diamond voted against it.
The Council could not reach an agreement with the School Board to include per-pupil funding for public charter schools which kept it off the November 2019 ballot.
Since then, the Florida Legislature ended the debate for Council, approving a bill requiring public charter schools to receive the per-pupil dollars.
Mayor Lenny Curry signed Ordinance 2020-0161-E on April 16 in a televised virtual news conference finalizing the referendum with Duval County Public Schools Superintendent Diana Greene in attendance.
The School Board settled a lawsuit in February challenging the city’s ability to stop the tax question from reaching voters.
The settlement came after a judge ruled in January that the School Board had the authority to hire private attorneys outside the city’s Office of General Counsel, Daily Record news partner News4Jax.com reported Feb. 24.
Council President Scott Wilson introduced the ordinance to set the half-cent sales tax referendum at the request of the Office of General Counsel on Feb. 27.