State: 'Highest and best use' delayed until next year

TALLAHASSEE -- House Speaker Marco Rubio had bad news for small businesses Wednesday, saying plans to limit a taxing practice that can give huge tax bills to modest businesses in prime locations would be put off until next year.

"I want to be frank with you guys," the Miami Republican said during a conference call with the Florida Association of Realtors. "I don't want to mislead you into thinking there's some kind of agreement on that right now. There just isn't."

News that the "highest and best use" issue wouldn't be addressed came as a surprise because there had been wide agreement on the matter during the regular session.

"Highest and best use" is one of several tools property appraisers have in determining taxable value. It is a market-based approach that sets land value based upon what a piece of property could potentially become -- its highest and best use -- not what it currently is used for.

Because of that, a small hotel on the beach can be taxed as though it were a high-rise condominium. Or a used-car lot can be taxed as though it were a retail center.

Katrena Hale-Claver, owner of Sand Glo Villas on Indian Shores, said her taxes went up $20,000 in November and now approach $60,000. She said a property appraiser told her she should knock down the villas and build condos.

"There's a lot of mom-and-pop hotels that might not be able to hold on for another year," she said.

There was widespread agreement during the regular session that the practice needs to be revamped, if not eliminated.

But Rubio said Wednesday that getting the details right has been difficult and there is no way, yet, to predict how much a change would save property owners, or how much it would cost local governments in tax revenue.

In talking with real estate agents, who are eager for the broader tax package to be approved because it will help business, Rubio said the financial impacts could be announced as early as today.

A growing chorus of critics say the lack of information has made it impossible to evaluate the plan announced Friday by Rubio and Senate President Ken Pruitt. The plan includes a rollback and cap of local government tax revenue and large homestead exemptions.

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Comments on this article

by Jim	06/07/07 06:30 PM
The goverment received inflated tax revenues from speculative land values and raised the assessment agressively with doubling land assessements from 2005 to 2006 . With values back down to 2004 values will they instruct they reduce the values to 2004

by Anthony	06/07/07 03:36 PM
This situation is disgraceful. Small businesses are being run off by exceedingly high property taxes. Taxes are limited only by the imagination of the property tax appraiser. The appraiser can imagine any use for the property and tax accordingly.

by Kathleen	06/07/07 01:32 PM
Planning to redevelop coastal property into high rise condos will cause increased future problems if the building is in the coastal high hazard areas. Property appraisers should consider this valid concern.

by Harold	06/07/07 01:32 PM
Are there any politicians that have any moral integrity at all. Small bussinesses cannot survive this outrageous taxation. How many more forclousers will there be. The wealthy and greedy wait as vultures to buy these properties at bottom rock cost.

by Douglas	06/07/07 12:59 PM
You left out the major group affected here - the renters. They pay for all these tax increases and you talk about beach front hotels and unpaved parking lots - not going to get much of a reaction there.....

by John	06/07/07 12:59 PM
CRG HOME PAGE - City of St. Pete Beach http://www.citizensforresponsiblegrowth.org/index.html and http://www.floridahometowndemocracy.com/ If there is no growth ( unless voted for )there is "no higher uses than current". Sign the petitions!

by Joshu Jones	06/07/07 12:19 PM
Sounds unfair to me. If the property use changes, then the higher taxes should kick in then. FYI Property appraisers don't work for the cities. St. Pete reduced it's millage rate in response to the revenue increase. Do it - problem solved, right?

by amy	06/07/07 12:17 PM
what is wrong with you people? I would like an answer to this question

by Gary	06/07/07 11:58 AM
Reporting on this issue should be more balanced...swithcing to present use will only make assessment more complicated because sales of properties (based on HABU) will no longer be good indicators of value.

by Gary	06/07/07 11:55 AM
For the record, chapter 193.011 state that property appraisers must consider "The highest and best use to which the property can be expected to be put in the immediate future and the present use of the property." This change won't have a huge impact.

by Jim	06/07/07 11:54 AM
There is one clear message; we have elected people who are not capable of managing the state government, and legislative "leadership" has too much power. How do we start impeachment action against Pruitt and Rubio?

by JR	06/07/07 11:25 AM
I thought a prior story in the Times had a quote from Pinellas County tax collector's office saying they don't assess on highest and best, just current use.

by Howard	06/07/07 09:54 AM
How in the world can anyone defend a process that extracts money from it's constituents based on one person's viewpoint of the future? If anyone was that smart,he or she would not be working for our goverment,or at least should be the next president

by Brittany	06/07/07 09:24 AM
Why were residents not whining about prop.taxes when realtors WERE making money? All of sudden, their business falters and then theres a problem? I'm sure that if they were still raping us in commission, people would not even notice high prop taxes.

by Brittany	06/07/07 09:21 AM
LOCAL govt doesn't have anything to do with how prop is valued-only the county prop. appraiser & Fl. Leg. does. Local Govt taxes the same no matter what method appraisers use. People should research b4 they blame LG for all the problems in FL (again)

by JT	06/07/07 08:58 AM
Too bad property owners like Ms. Claver could not get the Sales Tax plan approved. Then they could own their property without GOVT interference. I will not give up SOH in order to get an exemption of any kind. Property value does not increase income

by b	06/07/07 08:55 AM
I have little sympathy for a small business having to suck up 30% when I had to suck up 300% with Citizens.

by Pete	06/07/07 08:45 AM
Wake up Florida! This is done, so mom and pop owners will sell out to the business who want their land at a cheap price. Easy money to out tax land owners so developers can bait and switch to get your land. Wake up Folks and say good buy to property

by Paul	06/07/07 08:27 AM
There is logic behind the highest and best use taxing. Look at all the vacant lots close to Tropicana Field where the best thing the owners can think to do with them is have a parking lot. This tax practice encourages them to poop or get off the pot.

by Val	06/07/07 08:02 AM
No property should EVER be taxed on speculation:only on CURRENT use.Local governments are assinine for basing their spending on "best use" tax money...not to mention unrealistic.One good hurricane and "best use"will be vast parking lots anyway.

by Lawrence	06/07/07 06:51 AM
"a property appraiser told her she should knock down the villas and build condos". So, the city is advocating more condofication? That needs to be investigated.

by Bland	06/07/07 06:19 AM
There were no condos on the beaches when I grew up in the fifties. Now we have nothing but condos. The few remaining family owned properties will become concrete giants if no relief is provided. No business can handle a 30% tax increase each year.

Politics

'Highest and best use' delayed until next year

A plan to ease the tax bite on modest businesses in prime locations has been put off.