LOUISVILLE, Ky. — An effort to recall the Jefferson County Public School property tax increase is gaining traction. 

A petition started by the Louisville Tea Party to put a referendum on the JCPS tax increase now has more than 8,000 signatures. The property tax increase would raise Jefferson County property owners' property tax by $0.07 increasing the tax rate to 80.6 cents per every $100 of assessed value on a home. 

Louisville Tea Party President Theresa Camoriano is optimistic they will get to the 40,000 signatures needed to get the question on the November ballot. 

“It’s a big task but we need 40,000 and we have over 8,000 already so we are on track to make it and I’m optimistic that we will I can’t believe the outpouring of support we have gotten,” she said. "I think people have been frustrated with their taxes going up and up and up and feeling they can’t do anything about it so this gives the people an opportunity to have a voice."

The petitions must be turned into the county clerk by July 10 but Camoriano says she hopes to collect the signatures sooner to help ensure every signature is counted. 

“The sooner we get all these petitions signed the better so we can make sure they are in good shape before we submit them,” Camoriano said. “If the precinct number is missing for example it won’t count.”

Camoriano says residents in Jefferson County cannot afford another tax. 

“People can’t afford this, especially during this the COVID struggle people are going through, anytime it would be bad but right now it’s horrible,” she said. "People are struggling to make ends meet, you hear all the time people are struggling to make ends meet, you hear all the time people can’t afford to make their mortgage payments well this makes it that much worse or would if we can’t roll it back” 

The tax would go to help pay for a $1.2 billion price tag to improve ailing facilities and improve education for children but Camoriano says a tax increase is not the way to fix the problems within the state’s largest school district. 

“We talk about wanting to have affordable housing and this just makes housing less affordable and I think JCPS needs to do some things to improve education that don’t cost money, they have been throwing more money and more money at this and their outcomes haven’t improved,” she said. “I think one of the most important things they need to do is to require everyone in the system to treat everyone with respect."

Anybody who is a registered voter in Jefferson County school district is eligible to sign the petition. 

JCPS said they had no comment on the petition.