School-tax fee reversal slated to come before county commissioners next week

Sarasota County on Monday delivered to the Sarasota County Tax Collector’s office a pathway through which a contested $2 million in tax-collection commission should be returned to Sarasota County Schools from excess funds, and county commissioners could adopt it next week.

A formal vote on the proposed solution could take place as early as May 19, when Sarasota County commissioners meet next. The agreement, according to a proposed resolution put forth by County Administrator Jonathan Lewis, would expire when the current voter-approved millage expires in 2030. 

Still in question, though, is whether charging up to a 2% fee on the school district's voter-approved 1-mill property tax is a mandate or a matter of discretion.

The May 11 email from County Attorney Joshua Moye recommends to Tax Collector Mike Moran’s office to “please utilize a portion of the anticipated excess funds from the commissions presently held by the Tax Collector from the collection of the general county millage in place of the commissions collected from voted school board millage for Fiscal Year 2026 (Tax Year 2025).

“This would allow the tax collector to return the commissions collected from the voted school board millage to the School Board. The county will need an accounting of the commissions collected from both the general county millage as well as the voted school board millage. Additionally, when the tax collector closes out the expenses for the current fiscal year, the county’s coverage of the commission for the voted school board millage will be included as a county-paid commission when determining the proportional return of the excess funds to be distributed."

An email from Lewis to Superintendent Terry Connor refers to the unique situation in which the three government agencies find themselves. “To the best of our knowledge not only has the county never had this situation, but we could also not find anyone else who had this situation. Figuring out the details of how to unwind was not straight forward, there was no rewind button."

In the past seven days, the appropriateness of the tax collector’s 2% fee on the school tax and who is responsible for paying it has taken center stage after more than two decades of the county paying the tab without complaints.

• Last August, at Moran’s urging, the Sarasota County Commission unanimously authorized shifting the financial responsibility to the school district from the county’s budget, upending 23 years of practice.
• In mid-April, Superintendent Terry Connor delved into the issue at a luncheon hosted by the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce, telling area business leaders the tax fee would cost the district $2.2 million in one year and around $10 million over four years. At the time, he said the school district’s legal team was considering options.
• In late April, the school board filed a lawsuit, claiming that common practice, one that had been supported by Moran as a County Commissioner, was to deliver the full amount of the tax revenue to the school district. “Each voted millage election was preceded by a campaign in which the voters were specifically told on numerous occasions that every penny of the voted millage would go to specifically enumerated purposes to improve Sarasota County schools," the lawsuit contends. “Furthermore, this fact was supported by two decades of settled law and practice of every penny of the voted millage going to Sarasota County schools.’’ The lawsuit also claims collection of the fee is not a legal obligation but rather a discretionary one. A pair of Sarasota residents also joined the school district in the lawsuit.
• In early May, Moran issued an op-ed piece to several Sarasota County publications, writing, “This is not a matter of opinion or preference; it is a matter of legal obligation. I fully recognize that there is a difference of opinion on this issue. The Sarasota County School Board believes the county should continue absorbing this cost. I respect their position, even as I disagree with it.”
• Last week, following a statement from Commissioner Tom Knight on the topic, county commissioners voted 3-2 to reverse their August vote and re-assume the responsibility of paying the fee, though details remained on exactly how that would work in the short term and beyond. Knight also wondered aloud if commissioners in August had assumed too much in agreeing to Moran's accounting of the tax-collection costs. “It’s never too late to change a mistake,” Commissioner Mark Smith said May 5.
• A day later, in a flurry of emails between the tax collector’s office and Sarasota County Schools attorney Dan DeLeo, DeLeo accused the tax collector’s office of “playing games” and “gaslighting the taxpayers" while Moran connected with County Administrator Jonathan Lewis saying “Please note, that we will continue to collect commissions, calculate interest and return excess funds according to state statute until we receive a formal agreement and clear direction from both parties.’’ DeLeo also requested immediate payment of about $2 million in fees. On Tuesday, the school district and tax collector's office confirmed the receipt of $2,149,558.86

DeLeo told the Observer this week he plans to tell the School Board that the district was successful in not only recovering the contested $2.1 million, but also shifting the cost of future fees to the county.

“But you need to negotiate some clarity about how long the county commission is going to pay it so we have certainty," he said. “Hopefully we can all get together and get a legislative solution."