What Polk's proposed 1-mill school tax would cost Winter Haven property owners

Winter Haven property owners will find a school tax question on the Nov. 3 general election ballot. The Polk County School Board placed a countywide referendum titled Millage for School Safety, Teachers, and Career Education before voters, asking whether Polk County Public Schools should levy an additional 1.0 mill in property tax each year.

A mill works out to $1 for every $1,000 of taxable value after the homestead exemption. The district's example: a home with a taxable value of $259,419 would pay about $259.42 a year, or $21.62 a month. To estimate your own cost, take the taxable value on your property tax bill, not the market value, and divide by 1,000.

How long it would last

If approved, the tax is expected to raise about $65.6 million a year for four years. Voters would decide again in 2030 whether to extend it or let it expire.

Where the district says the money would go

According to the district, 80% of the money, about $52.5 million, would pay for additional compensation. The other 20%, about $13.1 million, would support school safety and security, fine and performing arts, career and technical education and early childhood education.

The pay money is meant for school-based and school-related workers. The district's list includes teachers, including Pre-K and technical college staff, along with paraprofessionals, bus drivers and transportation staff, custodial, cafeteria and clerical staff, and school administrators. LkldNow reporting published by WUSF said the referendum would not fund raises for district administrators or add district-level positions.

About $14.4 million would be shared with charter schools, as state law requires, according to the district as cited in that reporting. An independent citizens oversight committee would monitor how the money is spent.

What would still be negotiated

Passage would not set anyone's raise. The district notes that under Florida's Public Employees Relations Act, the school board must bargain with certified unions over any new revenue intended for pay. Those talks would settle whether all employees get the same amount or a tiered amount, whether the money goes into base salary or comes as a recurring supplement, and the timeline for payments.

The district's case

The district says it is losing staff to surrounding school districts and the private sector. According to PCPS figures reported by LkldNow and published by WUSF, Polk has the lowest starting teacher salary among its peer districts, and its teachers earn about $7,000 less on average. The Florida Education Association counted 437 instructional vacancies in Polk as of Aug. 10, the most of any Florida district.

Polk ranked 53rd of Florida's 67 counties in per-student funding in 2025-26 and is the only one of the state's seven largest districts without a voter-approved school millage. Six of the nine counties that border Polk have one, including Hillsborough, Highlands and Lake.

Superintendent Fred Heid, quoted in the LkldNow report, said the district has given raises averaging 3% or more, but "cost of living has far exceeded what we're able to keep pace with."

Before you vote

The full ballot resolution, the district's presentation and a list of frequently asked questions are posted on the Polk County Schools Ballot Initiative Portal. The arguments summarized here come from the district and its superintendent. For early voting sites and hours, check with the Polk County Supervisor of Elections.