Pasco School Board's Final Vote Tuesday Sets $17 Million Tax Hike Affecting Wesley Chapel Homes

Pasco County homeowners get their last chance to speak before the school board raises property taxes by $17 million for the 2026-27 budget year. The board's final public hearing and vote is set for Tuesday, Sept. 8, at 6 p.m. at the District Office boardroom, 7205 Land O' Lakes Blvd. For Wesley Chapel and Wiregrass Ranch families, the vote lands in one of the only parts of the county still adding students while the district cuts hundreds of jobs elsewhere.

The board adopted tentative millage rates in July setting the district's property tax levy at $436,627,342, up from $419,589,837 the year before. Operating millage is set at 4.684 mills, with capital outlay millage at 1.5 mills. The capital rate alone is expected to generate roughly $101.7 million for construction, technology, buses and maintenance across the district.

A homeowner with a $350,000 house, after the standard $25,000 homestead exemption, would pay about $2,010 in school property taxes under the plan.

Fewer jobs, more students near Wesley Chapel

The tax levy is going up, but the district's overall operating budget is going down. Districtwide operating expenditures are projected to drop 0.9% for the coming year, and the board is eliminating 476 full-time-equivalent positions.

Those cuts are landing in a district that isn't shrinking everywhere. Enrollment growth remains concentrated in central and eastern Pasco, particularly around Wesley Chapel and Wiregrass Ranch, even as traditional public school enrollment is projected to decline by roughly 2,001 students countywide. Charter school enrollment, meanwhile, is projected to grow by about 1,383 students.

What else is on the agenda

Two schools serving the Wesley Chapel area, Wesley Chapel High School and Wiregrass Ranch High School, each received approval for $750 in petty cash funds for the coming school year as part of a $12,500 districtwide allocation, alongside Cypress Creek High School.

The board also approved a federal COPS Technology and Equipment Program grant aimed at funding technology and communication systems to help prevent and respond to crime at schools. Separate IDEA Part B grants covering K-12 and pre-kindergarten students with disabilities were also approved, along with Title I, Title II and Title III grants that support high-poverty schools, teacher quality and English Language Learner programs. The district's meeting agenda did not list dollar figures for those grants.

The board separately adopted the Five-Year District Facilities Work Program, a state-required plan covering enrollment projections, facility capacity and capital projects developed with local governments, a document that carries particular weight for a fast-growing area like Wesley Chapel where school boundaries and capacity questions keep coming up.

What happens Tuesday

Residents can speak during the public comment period before the board takes its final vote on the millage rates and the full 2026-27 budget. The July hearing drew no registered public speakers, and individual vote tallies from that session had not yet been posted in official meeting minutes. Tuesday's vote is expected to finalize the rates that will appear on this fall's property tax notices from the Pasco County Property Appraiser.

Stay with Wesley Chapel Community Website for coverage of Tuesday's vote, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and X for updates. Share your thoughts on the tax increase in our Community Forum, and check out more education stories and government and politics coverage affecting Wesley Chapel.