Why I'm Voting Yes on August 4th - And Why You Should Too

Campaign Blog  ·  August 4th Millage

Why I'm Voting Yes on August 4th — And Why You Should Too

By Beau Taylor Troy School Board Candidate

Troy is one of the best places in America to raise a family. Our schools are a big reason why. But that reputation doesn't maintain itself — it requires investment, and right now, that investment is at risk.

The Oakland County Regional Enhancement Millage on the August 4th ballot isn't a new idea. It's a correction. For years, our schools have operated with revenues that haven't kept pace with rising costs. Inflation doesn't pause for school budgets. Union contracts — rightfully — include cost-of-living adjustments. But the dollars coming in don't automatically follow. The result is a structural deficit that we've been papering over with reserves. That money won't last forever.

"Many of those students were underserved before the pandemic. The emergency funding didn't create a new standard — it revealed the old one wasn't good enough."

Then came COVID. Federal and state pandemic funding arrived and, to their credit, our schools used it well — especially for our most vulnerable students. Paraprofessionals were hired. Support services were expanded. Children with the greatest needs finally got the resources they deserved. But here's the truth: many of those students were underserved before the pandemic. The emergency funding didn't create a new standard — it revealed the old one wasn't good enough.

Those kids are still in our schools. Those needs didn't go away when the emergency funding did.

If this millage fails, the math is brutal and simple. The only place meaningful cuts can be made in a school budget is labor — teachers, support staff, the people who show up every day for our children. Class sizes grow. Individual attention shrinks. The programs that make Troy schools exceptional become harder to justify when we're cutting the foundation out from under our most vulnerable students.

And here's what I want every Troy parent to understand: this isn't a choice between our highest-achieving students and our students with the greatest needs. It's not either/or.

When we properly fund our schools, every child benefits. When we cut, every child loses — but the most vulnerable lose first and lose most.

Passing this millage stabilizes our budget. It protects what we have. And it gives us the platform to build toward what we want — smaller class sizes, more individualized attention, programs that prepare every child for the world they're actually going to inherit.

Troy's greatness isn't an accident. It's a choice we make together, year after year. On August 4th, we get to make that choice again.

Vote yes. Tell your neighbors. And if you know anyone in Oakland County outside of Troy — talk to them too. This millage covers the entire county, and every yes vote counts. We can do the most in Troy by turning out strong — but the campaign is bigger than our city limits.

Our kids are worth it.

Vote YES on the Oakland County Enhancement Millage

Election Day — Michigan Partisan Primary

August 4, 2026

Beau Taylor is a candidate for Troy School District School Board, CEO of the Public Lighting Authority of Detroit, and a Troy parent.