The Jacksonville Civic Council, including Gate Petroleum CEO and former Republican Mayor John Peyton, say they are opposed to a property tax cut being pursued by City Council members.
The Civic Council, a nonpartisan group of 80 business leaders that offer input on city issues, wrote its opposition in a letter to the Council and Mayor Donna Deegan.
Deegan’s proposed $2.02 billion 2025-26 budget does not include a tax cut, but Republican council members have been laying groundwork to reduce the millage rate by one-eighth of a mill.
A Council vote on the cut is planned Sept. 9. The cut would reduce revenue by around $13 million in the next fiscal year, and Deegan said it would reduce revenue by a projected $76 million over the next five years.
One mill is equal to a $1 tax for every $1,000 of assessed property value. For the owner of a Jacksonville property with an assessed property value of $200,000 and a $50,000 homestead exemption, the annual tax savings would be $18.75.
Future commitments too high
The Civic Council letter said Jacksonville’s future financial commitments were too high, with city per capita revenue only slightly increasing, to make a cut to the city’s millage rate.
The Civic Council said Jacksonville’s future financial commitments were too high, with city per capita revenue only slightly increasing, to cut the millage rate. The group highlighted big-ticket items in the city’s future budgets, including expected spending on pensions for city employees and costs of up to $1 billion for a new jail.
“These commitments – along with critical investments in the [Jacksonville Jaguars] stadium, UF (University of Florida) campus, and other transformative projects – carry real and growing costs,” the Civic Council wrote. “A token millage rate rollback questions the sustainability of these projects over time.”
The Civic Council also echoed concerns from Deegan and her allies that budget cuts would negatively impact long-term.
“Reducing revenue at this time is inconsistent with maintaining public safety, ensuring quality of life, and managing growth,” the group wrote. “Jacksonville’s long-term fiscal health is at stake.”
The Civic Council letter was signed by Chair Gary Chartrand; CEO and President Dennis Whittle; and Municipal Finance Committee co-Chairs Russell Beard, Steve Halverson, Kevin Hyde and Peyton, who served as mayor from 2003 to 2011.
Tax cut support
Ten Council members, all Republicans and a majority of the 19-member body, have voiced support for the tax cut. They also say property owners deserve relief amid inflation and rising consumer goods and services.
In a text message response, Council President Kevin Carrico defended the proposed reduction, saying the city’s budget had “ballooned by hundreds of millions of dollars” in just the last few years. The approved budget for 2022-23 was $1.55 billion.
“When government is growing at that pace, it is both fair and necessary to give taxpayers relief,” Carrico said. “Those at the very top may not feel it, but working families do. Property tax cuts are not a luxury — they’re essential to keep Jacksonville affordable and help fight inflation. We can protect public safety, invest in our future, and still ensure homeowners get the relief they deserve.”
The Council members pushing for the cut proposed reducing spending on social programs, including health care and affordable housing.
They contend that the funding they’ve targeted was new spending in Deegan’s proposed budget, not reductions in existing funding levels.
Deegan, a Democrat, says the savings for taxpayers would be nominal while the reduction in revenue would inhibit the city’s ability to provide essential services to a growing population. She claims proponents of the cut are playing politics as the city approaches mayoral and Council elections in 2027.
Evan Power, chair of the Republican Party of Florida, joined with nine of the council members in a news conference Aug. 25 backing the cuts.
Deegan issued a statement thanking the Civil Council for voicing its stance on the millage rate reduction.
“Jacksonville’s business leaders understand that it takes investment to become a world class city. It’s time to move forward, not backward,” the statement read.
Civic Council follows police, fire opposition
The Civic Council’s statement came three days after leaders of the city’s police and firefighter unions made similar arguments that a millage rate cut would hurt public safety.
“Jacksonville has worked hard to shed its reputation as a ‘training ground’ for first responders who leave for better pay and benefits elsewhere. This rollback threatens to reverse that progress,” wrote Kelly Dobson, the president of the Jacksonville Association of Firefighters, and Randy Reaves, president of the local Fraternal Order of Police, in a joint statement.
“Reducing revenue without a sustainable plan will jeopardize our ability to recruit and retain the best and brightest for the Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Department and the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.”
Public safety represents the biggest chunk of the city’s proposed budget, taking up 51% of Deegan’s spending plan. The mayor says Jacksonville spends more per capita on public safety than other large Florida cities – Orlando, Tampa and Miami.
“Both police and fire are fully funded with the largest budgets in our city’s history,” Carrico responded in a statement. “Public safety remains my top priority, and I’m proud we delivered property tax relief while still fully funding essential services. Jacksonville families deserve safe neighborhoods and lower taxes — and the proposed budget achieves both.”