By Staff
Brewton City School Board members are going back to the drawing board to try to get a renewal of a tax that has supported area schools for more than eight decades.
School board members voted Monday to ask the Escambia County Commission to put the 1-mill countywide tax back on the ballot in June.
The tax failed last September, although a 3-mill district tax to help city schools passed. A 3-mill district tax for county schools failed as well.
County school officials have said they hope to see the issue back on a ballot in the future as well, although they have not yet gone on record seeking the June 5 ballot addition.
We hope that county commissioners will put this tax renewal back on the ballot - and we hope that county voters will make the right decision this time around.
The issue won't cost the county any money, because an election is already set for June 5 when voters will go to the polls to decide whether to support a statewide measure to increase the amount of money Alabama can borrow for industrial projects.
Our city and county schools need the support from these two taxes. It's not as if the city and county schools are seeking new money - these taxes have been on the books for more than 80 years.
If county schools were to lose the taxes for good, they could see a decrease in funding of $600,000, just in the first year alone. City schools stand to lose about $70,000.
Our county has proved in the past that it cares about education. We hope that, if given the opportunity again, voters will show they care about our county's future by supporting these two taxes.