A Florida Senate committee bill introduced last month would make it easier for counties to raise taxes to pay for schools and other costs of growth.
The Senate Committee on Community Affairs bill would eliminate the requirement that local voters approve a 1-cent sales tax for growth or a half-cent sales tax for schools. County commissions would be able to impose the taxes by majority votes.
“We are able to make growth decisions today by a majority vote. We are asking to be able to pay for it by a majority vote,” Bob McKee, governmental liaison for the Florida Association of Counties, said.
The bill is the first legislation for the upcoming session to deal with larger growth management issues.
Senate President Tom Lee, R-Brandon, has focused on paying for growth. Sen. Mike Bennett, R-Bradenton, said the Committee on Community Affairs was introducing the bill to help start discussion on planning for growth.
Senators know that lack of funding is a key growth issue, but Bennett believes it’s unclear how much more money is needed.
Counties are passing up $1 billion in revenue by not having levied the infrastructure sales tax, McKee said.
The Association of Counties also pointed out that only 13 counties have implemented all available gasoline taxes. That’s an additional $249 million in untapped revenue.
The bill also would allow local governments to impose a fee of 5 cents per $100 of property value on deed transactions. The tax on the sale of a $200,000 home would be $100.
Douglas Buck, Governmental Affairs Director for the Florida Home Builders Association, said the bill may not go far enough in identifying significant new sources of revenue.
“I think in order to really solve these problems people have to be a lot bolder than they are,” Buck said.