Lee County considers tax increase to build new schools

LEE COUNTY, Fla.- Southwest Florida needs new schools. But, with a billion dollar budget, why is one school district saying– it doesn’t have the cash?

Turns out, schools are limited with what they can do with their budgets.

The Lee County School District says schools in the area are getting crowded. In the next five years, the district will need to build two high schools and an elementary school just to keep up.

They’ll cost about $130 million, but the problem is, the district doesn’t have money to put towards any of them.

“We cannot deliver the quality of the education that we have been delivering in this district, unless we get our hands on some more money,” said Lee County School Board Chair Cathleen Morgan.

State law requires the district have two accounts. One for daily operations, involving things like teachers, administrators and supplies.

The other account is for the buildings themselves, construction, maintenance and technology. The account is funded by taxes and fees residents pay, and many of those taxes have been cut in recent years.

“We are being put into the position of having to go directly to the taxpayers and saying, we need your help. We need to build, we are growing and we don’t have the money to support that growth,” said Morgan.

Lee County voters could be asked to approve a half cent sales tax that would raise as much as $500 million over 10  years.

In the short term, the board could get a loan so that construction on the first school can start this summer, and be ready in 2017.

“I truly believe that if we if we structure a proposal that is detailed, that meets the needs of most people in the community, most schools, that we can get community buy in,” said Morgan.

Alternatives to building the new schools could include year-round school sessions and larger class sizes. The school board is considering the possible tax referendum Tuesday.