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Economic Condition and Outlook
Pasco County is a 745 square mile area located centrally on the west coast of Florida, 200 miles south of the State capital of Tallahassee and 300 miles northwest of Miami. The County is approximately 30 miles northwest of the City of Tampa, and approximately 45 miles north of the City of St. Petersburg. It is part of a nine county region referred to as the “Nature Coast” and contains a mix of suburban and rural communities. The County was established in 1887. Within its borders there are six municipalities: the cities of San Antonio, St. Leo, Zephyrhills, Port Richey, Dade City, and New Port Richey. There are also several smaller unincorporated communities such as Darby, Holiday, Hudson, Land O' Lakes, Trinity, and Wesley Chapel. The County is primarily a retirement and tourist area but construction, retail trade, service industries, agriculture, and manufacturing play active parts in the community’s financial status.
Since calendar year 2011, the population of Pasco County increased 19.2 percent to an estimated 553,947 in calendar year 2020. For the calendar year 2020, the Florida Price Level Index for School Personnel, which is prepared by the Florida Polytechnic University under the direction of the Florida Department of Education, ranked Pasco County 26th of 67 counties in the State with a value of 98.10.
The Florida Price Level Index for School Personnel is used to represent the cost of hiring equally qualified personnel across Florida school districts and takes into account the cost of goods and services, access to lakes or sandy beaches, the range of available cultural and recreational opportunities, and the mix of public services and taxes that affect standards of living for a county. A value of 100 represents the weighted average cost to hire and retain qualified personnel. In essence, the District’s value of 98.10 implies that it cost the District less than the average school district to attract and retain equally qualified personnel. Surrounding counties such as, Hillsborough (100.73) and Pinellas (100.03), which had higher values will need to provide greater compensation to hire and retain equally qualified personnel.
The District recognizes that continued enhancement of the local economy is of mutual benefit to both the District and Pasco County. An excellent system of public education is a significant factor in improving the standard of living in Pasco County. As the area’s largest employer, employing 11,385 full and part-time employees, the District endeavors to improve its education system by focusing on the following major initiatives.