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LARGO - City commissioners voted 4 to 3 Thursday night to approve a property tax rate increase of $1 for every $1,000 of taxable property value.
Officials also approved, 5 to 2, a $112-million budget for fiscal 2005 and a planned $102-million budget for 2006. Fiscal year 2005 begins Oct. 1.
Commissioners approved the tax hike in the second of two hearings, over the objections of residents and members of the commission who said the 1-mill hike was too high.
About 50 residents showed up at the hearing to oppose the increase, noting that the commissioners recently voted to give themselves a 3-percent raise.
"I've been living here since 1954 and I used to think this was the best little city. Now you're going to tax me right out of here," said Largo resident Robert Bailey. "It doesn't look good for you to raise taxes for everybody else and give yourselves a raise."
Commissioner Gay Gentry acknowledged the opposition. "It's difficult to justify raising your own salary if you're talking about raising taxes," she said. But she added that increasing the millage rate is necessary to keep pace with the costs of running a city.
Currently, homeowners pay the city $3.75 for every $1,000 of taxable value. That means an owner of a $100,000 home with a $25,000 homestead exemption pays the city about $281.28 a year in taxes.
Mayor Bob Jackson had opposed the rate hike, the second in as many years, saying it was excessive. He supported an increase of 75 cents for every $1,000 of taxable property value.
Jackson, Vice Mayor Pat Gerard and Commissioner Charlie Harper voted against the increase, with Harper calling the hike "exorbitant.""It's a whopping tax increase," he said. "We do legitimately have to raise taxes this year, but we don't have to raise them a full mill."
The Finance Advisory Board - a citizens group that reviewed the city's budget - had voted against the rate increase earlier. The Largo/Mid-Pinellas Chamber of Commerce had also sent out a fax to its members to let them know about the tax increase.
Officials said a tax hike was necessary in light of several big-ticket items, including the new $21-million Largo library and $4-million in new computers for police cars, as well as rising health care costs.
They also said the increase would help reduce the possibility of a projected tax rate hike in fiscal 2007.
The city's property tax rate stayed the same for 11 years before it was raised in 2003 by 35 cents for every $1,000 of taxable property value. Solid waste collection rates were unchanged for 11 years. Drainage and sewer rates had not increased since 2001.
New sewer, solid waste and drainage rates take effect Oct. 1.
The budget approved Thursday included cuts or deferments in general fund expenditures for the next several years to accommodate the high-cost items. Instead of borrowing $2.9-million for police computers in 2005, the revised budget calls for costs to be spread out over three years.
A deputy fire chief position was eliminated, as was $10,000 for city hall maintenance.