Volusia County School Board hopes to sell plan to put your tax dollars to work

By Al Everson BEACON STAFF WRITER

posted Mar 26, 2014 - 11:20:37am

The Volusia County School Board and its allies are going all out to build support for continuing the half-cent local-option sales tax for schools.

Just a little more than five months remain before Volusia County residents will vote on the tax in the Aug. 26 primary, and the campaign for the voters hearts and minds has already begun.

We want to provide a quality education system, Superintendent Margaret Smith said.

Smith said tourists can help area residents do that.

Generally, about 35 percent of that tax is paid by visitors, she said.

Smith and School Board members are trying to get out the word about the sales-tax referendum when they speak before business and civic organizations. The School Board gave its blessing but no money to the creation of a political-action committee to press for passage of the tax proposition.

That PAC, Citizens for Excellent Schools, bears the same name of the organization that worked for the 2001 school sales-tax referendum. Citizens for Excellent Schools may raise private funds for the campaign to get out the vote to continue the tax.

The politics of education

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Volusia County School Board hopes to sell plan to put your tax dollars to work