TAMPA, Fla. — The Hillsborough County school district is facing a shortage of as much as $9 million should the state stick to its plan to penalize school districts that defied a mask optional order by Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran last fall.

Hillsborough County is one of a dozen state-wide districts that forced students to wear masks, despite the state telling districts they could face financial penalties for not allowing choice.

“We were trying to keep our schools open, we were trying to keep our children safe,” school board member Nadia Combs said. “And we did something short term to ensure every child receives a safe and adequate education."

As Combs defended the school board’s decision on masks last fall, she said she is working on a plan to secure lost funding from the federal government. That’s something President Joe Biden promised when Florida and other states threatened funding cuts to local school districts.

The funding at risk, according to Combs, would cut into teacher bonuses the district awarded during the current school year.

However, Combs remains optimistic that either the state, or federal government will cover the money.

“We feel if that does occur that we will reach out to the federal government," Combs said. "We are optimistic that we will get those funds, but we are hoping we don't have to go to that route."

Hillsborough Schools narrowly missed a state takeover last school year, after the state was running a deficit of $100 million.

It was able to avoid the takeover after using COVID relief funds to shore up its budget shortfall.