Brevard County Tax Referendum 2026: Three Renewals, Scored Against Growth

Brevard County tax referendum 2026: three tax renewals are on your Nov. 3 ballot. What each one does, how long it runs, and how it scores against growth.

As the Republican State Committeeman for Brevard County, Florida, I read every tax question on our ballot the same way: what does it fund, how long does it run, and is the ask in line with how fast our county and our prices have grown? Early voting starts Monday, October 19, and runs through Saturday, October 31. Every Brevard voter will see these three questions, so here is what they actually say.

What’s on the ballot

The ballot text for all three is posted by the Brevard County Supervisor of Elections. In plain English:

• Save Our Indian River Lagoon half-cent sales tax (Brevard County). Renews the existing half-cent for ten years, January 1, 2027, through December 31, 2036 (ordinance), with all revenue deposited to a trust fund for lagoon projects, citizen committee oversight and annual independent audits. The County Commission’s agenda item estimates the ten-year renewal will raise about $800 million (Legistar File 8851, May 19, 2026). The same item says the current tax expires December 31, 2026.
• School capital half-cent sales surtax (School Board). Renews the half-cent for school facilities, security and technology for ten years, January 1, 2027, through December 31, 2036 (Resolution 2026-01, adopted Sept. 23, 2025). Voters approved it in 2014 with 57.99% of the vote and renewed it in 2020 for six years with 68.56%, and it expires December 31, 2026 (Legistar File 8428).
• School 1-mill operating property tax (School Board). Renews one mill for four years, January 1, 2027, through December 31, 2030, mainly for teacher and staff pay, with a share going to charter schools (Resolution 2026-02). Voters first approved it in November 2022. Florida law caps a voted school operating levy at four years (s. 1011.71(9), F.S.), which is why it comes back so often.

A mill is one-tenth of a cent (s. 192.001, F.S.), so one mill costs $1 for every $1,000 of taxable value. On the sales side, Florida’s state rate is 6% (s. 212.05, F.S.). The state Department of Revenue lists Brevard’s two half-cent surtaxes, for 1% in total, and shows both set to expire December 31, 2026 (Form DR-15DSS).

How the Brevard County tax referendum 2026 scores against growth

I judge any tax against one yardstick: how much has the county grown, and how much have prices gone up, since voters last said yes? A sales tax or a millage at the same rate brings in more money every year on its own, because there are more people buying things at higher prices and more property at higher values. So “it’s just a renewal” doesn’t mean “it’s the same money.”

Here’s the yardstick, using Brevard’s Census population estimates (2010–2020, 2020–2025) and the national consumer price index (BLS CPI-U), through the latest numbers available (July 2025 population, September 2026 prices):

Measure	First approved	Population growth	Price growth	Combined
School half-cent	Nov. 2014	+19.5%	+42.7%	+70.4%
Lagoon half-cent	Nov. 2016	+15.0%	+39.6%	+60.5%
School 1 mill	Nov. 2022	+5.1%	+13.2%	+18.9%

Now apply it to the one measure where the government published a ten-year dollar estimate. In its 2026 plan update, the county estimated the current lagoon half-cent will collect $583.43 million over its ten-year life (Legistar File 8632, Feb. 10, 2026). The renewal is estimated at about $800 million. That’s roughly $217 million more, or about 37%, from the same half-cent.

I’ll be straight about what that shows. A 37% increase is below the 61% growth-and-inflation yardstick. It’s a rough comparison: the 37% compares two ten-year totals, while the yardstick measures growth since 2016. Still, on size alone, the lagoon renewal isn’t an outsized ask. My concerns are elsewhere.

For the two school questions, neither School Board resolution states a dollar estimate in its text, so I can’t score them in dollars here. If the district wants voters to judge the ask, the expected collections should sit right next to the ballot language.

My view: these taxes were written to expire

In my personal view, all three of these taxes have something good built in: an end date. Under current law, the two half-cents stop on December 31, 2026, unless voters renew them. That’s the default, and it’s the most taxpayer-friendly provision in any tax. A yes vote is a decision to keep collecting money the law would otherwise stop taking.

That’s why the length of each renewal matters to me as much as the rate. In 2020, voters gave the school half-cent six years. This time the School Board is asking for ten. The lagoon tax is also asking for another ten. The proper role of government is to make its case to the people paying the bill, and a shorter term makes it come back and make that case more often.

The 1-mill property tax is a different situation. State law already limits it to four years, which is good design. But look at the ballot wording: “to sustain increased teacher and staff pay, fund technical training for students, and for other similar purposes.” That last phrase is broad. One more thing worth knowing: Amendment 3’s larger homestead exemption applies only to non-school taxes, per its ballot summary, so it would not reduce this levy.

My position of record is No on all three. That’s my personal vote and reasoning, not a party or club position.

The strongest case for voting yes

You deserve the other side on the page, too:

• These are renewals, not new taxes. A No vote cuts taxes, but it also ends funding streams that teacher pay, school security and lagoon projects are planned around.
• The lagoon money brings in outside money. The county says lagoon sales tax revenue has been used as local match to secure over $127 million in state and federal grants, and it reports lagoon nitrogen levels down from 1.6 mg/L to 1.15 mg/L (Legistar File 8851). The county also says voters approved the 2016 tax in every voting precinct.
• The lagoon ask is smaller in real terms, as the yardstick above shows.
• Each comes with oversight. All three ballot questions promise a citizens’ oversight committee, and the lagoon tax adds annual independent audits.

Those are fair points, and reasonable Brevard Republicans will weigh them differently. I land on No because a tax that expires on its own is the best leverage taxpayers ever get, and I’d rather see each of these come back with a shorter term.

Before you vote

Read the full ballot text at votebrevard.gov, and check early voting sites and hours there too. My take on every item on the ballot, including these three, is in my Voter Guide. Questions? Start with my FAQs, and catch up on recent posts on the blog.

Opinions in this post are my personal view as Josiah Gattle, Republican State Committeeman for Brevard County, Florida. They are not a statement by any party organization.

LET’S WIN TOGETHER!

Sources: Brevard County Supervisor of Elections, 2026 Amendments and Referenda and Early Voting pages (votebrevard.gov); Brevard County Commission Legistar Files 8851 (May 19, 2026), 8632 (Feb. 10, 2026) and 8428 (Oct. 28, 2025); School Board of Brevard County Resolutions 2026-01 and 2026-02 (adopted Sept. 23, 2025); Fla. Stat. 1011.71, 192.001 and 212.05 (flsenate.gov, 2026); Florida Department of Revenue Form DR-15DSS (Calendar Year 2025); U.S. Census Bureau county population estimates (Vintage 2020 and Vintage 2025); U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U, series CUUR0000SA0.

Political advertisement paid for and approved by Josiah Gattle for Brevard Republican State Committeeman.