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Letter to the editor

Guest Column

Tax cuts bring relief, not crisis

By PETER NEHR
Published June 7, 2007

As a former Tarpon Springs city commissioner, I can understand why local governments are concerned about the possible cuts to their budgets. There are more than 30 other state legislators who have former local government experience, and to say that we in the state government do not understand local budgets is just not true.

What is true, however, is that our state is facing an economic crisis and Floridians need immediate tax relief. At the meetings I and other legislators have hosted recently, hardly anyone believed that trimming the fat at the local government level will have the safety impacts local governments are threatening.

When families have to trim their budgets at home, they do not start with baby formula, utilities and other necessities. They start with luxuries. I am asking local government to do the same. No responsible local government will put people in danger by cutting essential services like fire, police and ambulances first.

While it is true that some counties have reduced their tax millage rate slightly, they have also greatly increased their revenues based on the rising value of home and business properties. The net result has been massive property tax increases.

People need to know that in the last five years, local governments have increased their property tax revenues almost 84 percent. Since the year 2000, that increase was almost 100 percent. And if you go back to 1996, local government property tax revenue has increased by 148 percent.

Florida taxpayers are being taxed many billions of dollars more than they can afford to pay and if this continues, Florida will start to experience the stoppage of job creation and economic growth. Right now more people are leaving our state than moving to our state.

The Legislature gives Floridians a lot more credit than their local governments do. I believe that taxes for Florida property owners are too high, have grown too fast and are endangering families, businesses and our state's economic well being. I believe that property tax relief is not only possible but necessary.

The important question taxpayers should be asking themselves is what would the local governments have done if the real estate market had not boomed and given them all that extra money to increase their budgets? Could they have survived? The answer is of course they would have and they will again.

Here is what I and the Legislature propose as possible solutions:

- Cities and counties should be required to cut their property taxes and the level of these cuts should be based on a formula tied to their past taxing performance. This will be more fair to those local governments that have been good stewards of your tax dollars and have made significant cuts to their budgets in the past.

- There should be a statutory cap on future property taxes to ensure that governments cannot grow faster than your personal income.

- Every category of property taxpayers, including businesses, should benefit from the mandatory tax cut and statutory cap.

- Save Our Homes and the homestead exemption should be replaced with a new super homestead exemption based on the value of the homesteaded property. This plan will significantly cut property taxes for most.

I would value any suggestions you have that would yield meaningful results for all the people of Florida.

Peter Nehr of Tarpon Springs is a freshman member of the state House of Representatives. He can be reached at peter.nehr@myfloridahouse.gov.

[Last modified June 7, 2007, 00:03:33]