Legislature expected to vote on special schools tax

As facilities of Mountain Brook Schools age and technology advances, the schools are looking for ways to take care of maintenance while providing students with the best learning environment possible. 

This all takes funds, and to help with the cost of the upkeep and new equipment, the Mountain Brook Board of Education has supported a bill that would allow city residents to vote on a 10-mill ad valorem property tax increase.

The idea for the tax increase was proposed by a Financial Task Force, created in August 2018. The main finding of the task force was that MBS should find ways to generate additional funding for maintenance projects.

Both the Mountain Brook Board of Education and Mountain Brook City Council supported the proposed tax increase when it was discussed during their Feb. 11 meetings. Members of the council unanimously voted to ask the state Legislature to call for a community-wide referendum.

During the City Council meeting, Superintendent Dicky Barlow said the 10-mill increase would bring in an additional $6 million each year for MBS, and the majority of the funds would be used for capital projects. The last ad valorem tax increase was in 1991.

The bill, Senate Bill 170, was introduced by Sen. Jabo Waggoner and was still pending as of mid-April. 

The 2019 legislative session will end in June, and if the bill is passed, the matter will be scheduled for a vote in the city of Mountain Brook.