OKEECHOBEE — The Okeechobee County School Board approved a total millage rate of $5.920 for the 2020-21 budget year at their Aug. 3 meeting.

The total millage consists of a required local effort of $3.672, discretionary local effort of $0.748, and capital outlay of $1.500. Those dollar figures are the tax rate charged per $1,000 of assessed property valuation, after exemptions.

It is a decrease of $0.167 from last year’s total millage of $6.087.

School board members approved a tentative budget of $88,445,672 for the 2020-21 fiscal year, an increase over last year’s budget of $77,800,660. Seventy-two percent of the revenue is coming from state sources while 28 percent is from local sources.

A temporary suspension of the district’s random drug and alcohol testing was approved at the Aug. 3 meeting. Previously students participating in athletics, extracurricular activities or using on-campus parking were subject to random drug tests. The district asked for a temporary suspension of the policy due to the lack of equity of the randomness in selection with a portion of the students choosing to continue distance learning this year. The issue of students not being on campus could cause logistical hurdles for the policy as well.

Three project agreements were approved by the board with Remnant Construction LLC for door replacements. Remnant Construction will replace doors at Yearling Middle School, Central Elementary and the Okeechobee County School Board Maintenance Building. Door replacement at YMS will cost $47,330.17, while Central’s will be $28,322.57 and the cost for the maintenance building will be $24,663.57.