Editor's Note: The photo attached to this story is from previous coverage of a Union County High School business class.
The Union County School District’s proposed half-cent sales tax will not appear on the November 2026 ballot.
On Oct. 6, Superintendent Mike Ripplinger announced in a letter to voters that the change is because a required resolution approving the measure was missing.
Ripplinger said he learned Sept. 30 from the Supervisor of Elections Office that the half-cent sales tax measure was missing from the ballot. After discussions with election officials and the Clerk of Courts, school district leaders considered reprinting the ballots. However, the Florida Division of Elections legal department determined Oct. 1 that ballots could not be reprinted because they had already been mailed.
“It is with deep disappointment that I share with you that the half-cent sales tax will not appear on the ballot for voters to consider during this election cycle,” Ripplinger wrote in the letter.
According to Ripplinger, the half-cent sales tax would have brought over $600,000 to the county’s school district. He said the money would have been used to make school improvements such as replacing air conditioners, heater units and other renovations to the schools’ athletic facilities.
“The district was seeking a half cent sales tax in order just to raise additional revenues for capital projects,” Ripplingler said. “It was not to be used for salaries or raises or anything along those lines.”
In April 2026, Florida Education Commissioner Anastasios Kamoutsas determined that the Union County school district was in a state of financial emergency, facing a $1.4 million budget deficit due to declining enrollment by 103 students, according to the Florida Education Finance Program.
Because state funding is tied to student enrollment, declining enrollment means less money for the district, according to FEFP.
But in Florida, Union County is part of a larger trend of counties facing declining enrollment and funding loss, according to a Sept. 2026 report by The Florida Trib. Orange County Public Schools, Broward, Miami-Dade and Duval, all lost thousands of students among the counties’ public schools districts.
According to the report, enrollment declines are driven in part by Florida’s expanded school voucher program, declining birth rates and changing migration patterns. Districts statewide have adapted by cutting administrative positions, consolidating schools and adjusting staffing.
Duval County’s traditional public schools have seen their lowest enrollment in more than 50 years, despite the city’s population having nearly doubled to about 1 million residents, according to Florida Trib.
A separate Oct. 2025 report by Central Florida Public Media found that public school enrollment had declined in eight of nine Central Florida districts, with most districts attributing the losses partly to Florida’s universal school voucher program.
In a Sept. 2025 press conference on the expansion of Success Academy charter schools to Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis defended Florida’s school-choice policy, saying public schools that lose students to charter schools with stronger programs should work to regain parents’ trust. He cited improvements in school grades, progress monitoring scores and graduation rates statewide as evidence of progress.
In a February letter addressed to Union County parents and guardians, Ripplinger said he wanted to share a clear picture of the Union County School District’s financial situation. He addressed concerns about declining enrollment and the impact it has on public education funding.
“I'm always concerned because that's how our budget is established,” he said. “So naturally, we want to attract more students, you know, each and every year.”
He said these funding shifts threaten the stability of traditional public schools, which he added, serve most students.
Florida uses full-time equivalent (FTE) counts to determine how much state funding public schools receive based on student enrollment, attendance and individual needs. The state counts students four times a year, and that funding helps pay for teachers, transportation, school safety and mental health services.
Ripplinger said when students use state-funded scholarships or vouchers to attend private schools or other educational programs, the money goes with them instead of to their public school district. However, public schools still have to pay for buildings, buses and services for the students who remain.
“Our people are trying to do the very best that we can and give our students the best possible education,” he said. ”And that's what our main goal is here in Union County.”
In Union County, 69 students receive FED-UA funds, 159 receive FTC/FES-EO funds and 123 receive PEP funds. Ripplinger said that represents over half a million dollars in funding which has been redirected through these programs, reducing the money available for services in public schools.
“Plainly stated, fewer students mean less funding; however, schools must still operate by providing required services, making financial stability even harder to maintain,” Ripplinger wrote in the Feb. 11 letter.
Ripplinger explained that the loss of students enrolled in the county’s public schools resulted in $620,000 funding cuts in 2024, followed by nearly $1 million in budget reductions the next year. Last year, the loss of 73 FTE students led to another $670,000 reduction and placed the district in financial recovery. The 2025-26 budget was nearly $2.8 million lower than the previous year.
Actions taken to reach these savings included 38 positions eliminated, Reduced contract days and salary for the several classifications of employees, district-paid benefits were reduced, reduction of Summer Hours, closure of Tigers Den Daycare and more.
“We have reduced the number of positions over the last couple of years,” he said. “It’s been an ongoing, you know, exercise.”
Ripplinger said the half-cent sales tax was not intended to address this year’s budget deficit because the district would not have received the full amount of revenue until the 2027-28 school year.
Ripplinger said the district’s financial situation has improved this year following school system restructuring, leaving positions vacant, closely monitoring spending and receiving additional guidance from the state. However, declining enrollment remains a challenge.
“In fact, with this year's budget, we are actually tracking much more positively,” he said. “The enrollment continues to be something that is an issue and something that is monitored very closely.”
During a workshop meeting on April 28, held by the School Board of Union County, school district leaders focused on financial planning for the 2026-27 fiscal year and projected an $18.2 million budget for 2026-27. The district also planned staff and school restructuring pending state budget finalization and emergency board approval.
Ripplinger said the district plans to pursue the half-cent sales tax initiative again in the November 2028 election.
“I hope that you will support our efforts to bring this initiative to the ballot in 2028, vote for it at that time, and provide the additional resources our school district needs,” Ripplinger wrote in the letter.
Michael Wlodarczyk, a 41-year-old talent acquisition specialist, Union County resident and parent of Union County High School ninth grader, said if the half-cent sales tax was put back in the 2027-2028 ballot, he would support it.
Wlodarczyk said although his family has had a relatively positive experience with the county’s public school system, he wishes that money could be used to give students more opportunities outside of their general interests, like in performing arts.
“So extra money put in the school to provide things like subsidies to get people instruments to learn how to play an art,” Wlodarczyk said. “Giving some extra money to provide for those types of things would be great.”
Wlodarczyk said one area where he would like to see improvement is communication between schools and parents about students’ academic performance.
“My kid struggles a little bit and doesn't give us the full picture because you know, kids,” he said. “I just wish that they were a little bit more proactive in reaching out to us about academic stuff, like you know, kids' grades and things like that.”
Although he wouldn’t be making the decisions as to where any additional funding goes, Wlodarczyk said he sees few drawbacks to additional investment in education.
“I see very little downside to putting extra money into education in general, regardless of where it goes,” he said.