If ever a headline screamed for yours (and the governor’s attention), this would be it. Whether the Commissioners like it or not, the record number of Manatee County surpluses stretching back to 2017 are demanding some type of substantive action to bring County revenues in line with expenses. The cumulative surplus from 2017 to the present equals $2.1 Billion – money extracted from Manatee County property taxpayers, which has been parked in a money market fund providing no benefit to Manatee County or its hurricane and inflation-ridden citizens.
Over the last eight years, I have written about the large and growing surpluses and have been met with laughable, minuscule millage cuts that have done nothing to address the excess property tax issue. Maybe the time has come for our Commissioners to spend some time during the current budget year seriously addressing this topic.
Some of the ideas suggested in past columns include: larger millage cuts applicable to all property taxpayers, surplus-funded rebates in the form of a credit against upcoming property tax bills, blended property tax relief from State of Florida and Manatee County surpluses( most recent two year surpluses are $17.7 Billion and $818.5 Million respectively) and regular homestead and over 65 homestead property tax relief by increasing the property tax exemption levels. Any of these concepts are financially valid and can be operationally implemented. What is needed is for the Governor to start banging heads at the upcoming Special Session to get some real progress on this issue. As voting, hard-working citizens, we demand ACTION !
Mike Meehan, CFA, MBA
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san.gander
That there exists a tax surplus is an illusion! No such thing as a tax surplus! As long as ther is one hungry, ill-housed family, one collapsing sewer in the infrastructure, zero sidewalks on city streets for kids walking to schools, no traffic lights where there ought to be some, and under paid public workers. Look around the city, the county... the need is there! We are not in need of tax cuts... we need better planning... better people in government!
A good purpose exists for every tax dollar we've taken in... upkeep on the old... preparing for the new growth sensibly. Some of that surplus tax money could be a set aside reserve fund for emergencies - storms, fires, acts of God, whatever, not to be touched for routine government purposes.
Good planning and budgeting is expected of "good" governing at all levels! Tax level should balance need level! Let's work on that!
Sunday, April 19 Report this