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Tax Proposal Studied

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By B.C. MANION, The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 23, 2008

Updated: 01/21/2008 07:55 pm

LUTZ - Nobody at a Lutz Civic Association meeting last week was talking up a proposed constitutional amendment on property taxes that voters will decide on Tuesday's ballot.

About a dozen members of the civic group met to learn more about the proposal - which would double the homestead exemption, allow homeowners to transfer up to $500,000 of their Save Our Homes exemption to their next homestead, establish a $25,000 exemption on tangible property and cap increases on non-homestead property's taxable value.

The amendment requires 60 percent voter approval to become law.

Some civic club members voiced skepticism about the proposed amendment.

"I think they can come up with a more equitable system than this one," said Alvin Wolfe, a civic association member.

Auralee Buckingham, another civic group member, said she has seen the effects of the state's recent tax cuts and doesn't want to see additional losses of government services.

"Nye Park lost two people in this budget go-round," she said, referring to state-imposed tax cuts that lowered Hillsborough County revenue by $70 million. Besides losing helpers who shelved books, the Lutz Branch Library lost two other positions, Buckingham said.

"I'm talking about services. This affects me," Buckingham said.
Civic association member Ron Stoy said it's hard to know what to do.

"I can see the value of both sides of the argument," Stoy said. "I just need to weigh the benefits of both sides and figure out what's more important."

On one hand, the amendment may provide short-term tax relief and put more jingle in people's pockets - an idea that appeals to Stoy, a small-business owner.

On the other hand, the short-term relief may have damaging long-term consequences, he said.
Civic association member Rod Gaudin doesn't want to reform property taxes - he wants to abolish them. He favors using a broad-base tax, such as sales taxes, instead.

Eric Johnson, Hillsborough County's budget director, came to the meeting to explain how the county's budget will be affected if the referendum passes. He explicitly avoided taking either side of the issue.

The state has estimated Hillsborough County's revenue would drop $62 million if the amendment passes, Johnson said.

He thinks that estimate is low. His calculations put the revenue loss at $67 million to $74 million.

There's no question that the Save Our Homes tax benefit - which caps property tax increases at 3 percent for homesteaded properties - has shifted the tax burden to businesses and owners of second homes, Johnson said.

He recalled one business owner complaining about a 35 percent increase in the value of his business from the prior year.

"We've had people that have these outrageous tax increases," Johnson said. "I don't think there's any question that tax reform is needed in Florida. The question is, "What works best? "People instinctively believe that government has a huge amount of waste and can cut budgets without cutting services," he said.

People rarely come to the Hillsborough County Commission recommending specific cuts to programs. Typically, they want the county to spend more money to expand services, Johnson said.

"We can balance the budget to any level that the public wants to fund us. The bottom line is to figure out what people want to pay for government," he said.

WHAT IT MEANS

To see the ballot language, go to TBO.com, Keyword: Property Tax; to see what the amendment would mean to you, go to TBO.com, Keyword: Tax Calculator Reporter B.C. Manion can be reached at (813) 865-1507 or bmanion@tampatrib.com. To see the ballot languag

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