Lid Bill amendment fails in Jefferson County

Homewood's multi-year effort to gain an exemption from the statewide lid on property tax rates failed at the ballot on Nov. 6.

Nearly 66 percent of Homewood voters — or 6,095 people — voted in support of the amendment, and 3,163 Homewood residents voted against it. However, 52 percent of voters in the rest of Jefferson County — 83,978 voters — did not support the amendment.

The "yes" votes of 78,500 Jefferson County voters and the Homewood supporters were not enough to pass the amendment.

The amendment, named Local Amendment One on Jefferson County ballots and Local Amendment Two on Homewood ballots, would have allowed Homewood to hold a citywide referendum on any future increases in property tax rates. Currently, Homewood is at the maximum property tax rate — or millage — allowed by the lid bill.

Property tax revenue is the largest source of funding for Homewood City Schools. City and school system officials began working on getting an exemption to the lid bill in late 2017, having gained approval from the state Legislature.

The city and school system advocated the exemption to the community as a way to take control of future budget needs for Homewood City Schools. The city passed a sales tax increase in 2016 to pay for construction at the schools and for the city, partly because the property tax rate is at its max.

Ward 4 City Councilor Alex Wyatt, who was one of the leaders of the campaign for the lid bill exemption, said the city was "obviously disappointed" by the results, though he was happy to see Homewood residents favored the exemption.

“We’ll now move forward. Homewood is still in a very strong position,” Wyatt said.

Wyatt said that since there wasn't a plan to hold a referendum on property tax rates in the near future,  “at present, this doesn’t necessarily change much" about funding for the school system. He said the school system and city will work within the constraints of the lid bill to fund the school system budget and will evaluate its needs in the future.

He said there are not plans to pursue the exemption again at this time.

From growing up in Homewood to raising my children here, I have always experienced the same thing — the citizens of Homewood have always supported our students, schools and teachers. That was evident in the overwhelmingly positive results from the Homewood citizens, and I am thankful for our community’s continued support," Superintendent Bill Cleveland said in an emailed statement.

"Although this amendment did not pass in the county, Homewood City Schools will remain dedicated to educating and empowering all students to maximize their unique potential. In Homewood, we are very fortunate to have city leaders and community members who value education."