JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Duval County parents are urged to fill out the Federal Impact Aid Survey by Dec. 17, so their child’s school can become eligible for federal funding reimbursement that can pay for textbooks, additional staff and capital improvements.
One of the ways school districts receive revenue is through local property taxes, but there are certain properties that are exempt, like federal properties.
The Federal Impact Aid Program is designed to help school districts that have lost property tax revenue due to the presence of this tax-exempt federal property or have experienced increased expenditures because of the enrollment of federally connected children.
With more than 9,000 federally associated families, the Duval County school district is one of the top 10 most populated school districts in the country for federally connected students.
Parents and caregivers are often confused about whether their job or where they live makes the district eligible for these funds. Here’s what you should know about myths associated with the program:
- Myth 1: FIA only applies to active duty military personnel. That is incorrect.
- Fact 1: While FIA does apply to active duty military, it also applies to adults who work on federal property or adults who live on federal property (including government housing) with school-age children.
- Myth 2: The only federal property we have in Duval County are the two major Navy bases. That is incorrect.
- Fact 2: Duval County has several military installations PLUS federal buildings (i.e., FBI, Department of Treasury, Homeland Security, Labor, Justice, etc.) and government housing developments which would apply to the survey.
- Myth 3: I work on one of the military installations or in a federal building, but I am not a member of the military so FIA does not apply to me or my child. This is incorrect.
- Fact 3: If you are a parent with school-age children between the age of 5-18 and you work on military property or in a federal building, the federal government allows us to count your child for the survey because the property you work on is not taxable. Submission of your form allows the school district to retrieve a portion of the property tax dollars lost to federal property which, again, is not taxable.
- Myth 4: I am NOT going to fill out the form because the school system will send all of the information to Washington, D.C. and I do not want them knowing, losing or using my information. This is incorrect.
- Fact 4: The FIA survey information is only used for tabulation purposes. The survey responses go NOWHERE.
The survey is short. It asks five questions and can be completed in less than a minute. Click here to complete the survey.
If you do not have access to the internet, you can pick up a Federal Impact Aid Survey form at your child’s school office.