The 0.25% hike in the tax — which affects salaries and wages for work done in the county along with net profits — generated heated debate Tuesday night.
Public comment was divided, with many speakers charging the board with wasteful spending and some arguing the increase is a necessary investment.
"What I see here is failure of leadership, failure of oversight," one speaker began.
Another described the discussion as a "blatant attempt to slide a tax increase past the public over a holiday weekend" and a "lame attempt to make up for a budget shortfall that should never exist."
Board member Dr. Monica Mundy pressed for a full public hearing.
"This is all moving very quickly. I found out about this possibility on Friday," she said. "I don't feel that there's been enough time to have community input."
Efforts to table the proposal until June failed, with school officials saying the district is required to submit a preliminary budget to the state by Friday.
Board member Amy Green said the move to bump up taxes is not an easy one.
"It is not fun. I don't want to ask of anybody else," she said. "But as board members, we are charged to make our number one decision about what is very best for our students."
Now the board's request must be okayed by the fiscal court.
If implemented as written, the tax would translate to roughly $13 a month for the average salary earner in Fayette County making around $62,000, according to school officials.
The tax would go into effect January of 2025and generate up to $16 million in the first year and more than $30 million once fully implemented.