Overdue relief, or overly harmful?
Battle lines began forming along predictable political lines Tuesday afternoon on the first day of the 10-day special session on property tax reform, with Republican leaders saying taxpayers deserve relief and Democrats warning that public schools and local governments deserve more assurances.
House Speaker Marco Rubio pledged to hold an imminent vote on the Legislature's three-part plan to cut property taxes, cap their future growth, and overhaul the state's homestead exemption system. The Miami Republican said while he is open to revisions, a vote is long overdue even without ironclad specifics on how to replace the $1.5 billion to $2 billion that the new, expanded homestead exemption would cost Florida's school system.
Rubio dismissed claims that the plan would devastate local communities and schools, although he acknowledged that some counties such as Duval could be significantly impacted.
"That's a unique situation there, and we'll continue to explore their circumstances because it is something we have our eye on," Rubio said of Jacksonville. "But we're in a situation where we have to choose between having a government that people can afford and services that government wants to pay for... You can't have people pay more than what they have."
House Democratic Leader Dan Gelber, however, immediately noted that Republicans are offering only vague promises of replacing schools' lost revenue even though in recent years they have forced more and more education funding duties onto local governments. Republicans also ignored voters' wishes on the class-size and pre-kindergarten constitutional amendments and also presided over a system that diverted Florida Lottery proceeds away from education, Gelber said.
"The same people that are saying 'trust us' are the ones who put it on the backs of local governments in the first place," he said. "Simply saying 'trust us' isn't enough... There's got to be more of a commitment. This is very serious business."
The House convened briefly at 3 p.m. before adjourning until Wednesday. Much of Wednesday's work will be in committee meetings, with House and Senate floor debates possible on Thursday.
House Speaker Marco Rubio pledged to hold an imminent vote on the Legislature's three-part plan to cut property taxes, cap their future growth, and overhaul the state's homestead exemption system. The Miami Republican said while he is open to revisions, a vote is long overdue even without ironclad specifics on how to replace the $1.5 billion to $2 billion that the new, expanded homestead exemption would cost Florida's school system.
Rubio dismissed claims that the plan would devastate local communities and schools, although he acknowledged that some counties such as Duval could be significantly impacted.
"That's a unique situation there, and we'll continue to explore their circumstances because it is something we have our eye on," Rubio said of Jacksonville. "But we're in a situation where we have to choose between having a government that people can afford and services that government wants to pay for... You can't have people pay more than what they have."
House Democratic Leader Dan Gelber, however, immediately noted that Republicans are offering only vague promises of replacing schools' lost revenue even though in recent years they have forced more and more education funding duties onto local governments. Republicans also ignored voters' wishes on the class-size and pre-kindergarten constitutional amendments and also presided over a system that diverted Florida Lottery proceeds away from education, Gelber said.
"The same people that are saying 'trust us' are the ones who put it on the backs of local governments in the first place," he said. "Simply saying 'trust us' isn't enough... There's got to be more of a commitment. This is very serious business."
The House convened briefly at 3 p.m. before adjourning until Wednesday. Much of Wednesday's work will be in committee meetings, with House and Senate floor debates possible on Thursday.
posted by J.T. Rushing at
2:55 PM
3 Comments:
Duval county has been stuffing there pockets with tax property money for years now and its time to trim the fat. Its time for the sheriff to hire a cheaper assistant that doesnt get paid 90,000 a year. This could pay for some additional police officers that he complains he would have to cut if the tax property cut is passed. Its time for the mayor to stop overpaying his staff. Its time for the homeowners in this county (Duval) to get a tax break. The property tax every year either go up or stay the same. It has never since I've been in my home since 1998 went down. During this same time Duval county has added more and more homes on the tax books. Why hasnt there been any trimming of county waste? We need help in Duval county and if Charlie cant get it done, then in a few years we will elect someone that can.
Boo hoo hoo. Every local news outlet is crying about the loss of money to the poor, the fine arts and anyone else who feels they have a right to the money that the rest of us have worked hard for.
Taxes as they exist now are closer to a legalized theft from those who produce the most in this country, and reward those who have made themselves dependent on it!
Charlie Crist is on the right track with finding a way for citizens to start taking back a little more of what they have earned. It's healthy for all departments of government to cut the fat! Once past local/property taxes, the governor should go after his own state-run programs as well... Then Washington needs to pay close attention!
There are a lot of areas where we could cut without affecting necessities. Let's start with cutting administrative saleries, the money pit of a courthouse, and the corporate welfare the JDEC has been handing out.
South Florida has high taxes because the houses are worth more than they are in North Florida. Why? Because that is the winter home of the multimillionaires. A single home in Ft. Lauderdale could pay for a couple of subdivisions here. Yet, their tax percentage rate is lower than ours in Jacksonville due in large part to state funded subsidies.
Also state funded in S.F. are the artsey expressway concrete sides, the statuary, a couple of gardens and parks, all on a "private" island full of the ultra wealthy.
I would like to see my tax reduced as much as anyone else, but cutting education and social services is not the way to go about it. The first is a path to poverty and the second a path to crime.
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home