Details On Orange Beach School District Emerge

ORANGE BEACH, Ala. — After announcing a break from the Baldwin County School system to form its own (Gulf Shores Approves $1.6 Million For Schools), Orange Beach city officials are pushing a 3-percentage-point increase in the city’s lodging tax to raise enough revenue to support it, AL.com reported. In addition, a newly formed school board will examine whether Orange Beach schools can operate on a four-day school week, a popular schedule in states like Colorado and New Mexico but one that does not exist among public school systems in Alabama. The city also plans to have the system assembled by July 1, before the school year starts in August. Mayor Tony Kennon said the city opted to avoid another referendum, as it did in 2014, when higher property taxes were put to a vote. “It will come off the beach,” Kennon said, referring to the lodging tax increasing from 7% to 10%. While how the tax increase will roll out is still undecided, it is expected to bring in $10 million-$12 million annually, which will go entirely toward the school’s operations. Orange Beach’s lodging tax rate would be 16% overall, matching that of Gulf Shores once the latter city’s tax increase is fully phased in. “We have five school board members who live in Orange Beach with only three Orange Beach schools on their minds,” Kennon added.