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Board decides against limiting county spending
By KATHRYN WEXLER © St. Petersburg Times, published February 9, 2001 TAMPA -- In their final meeting, members of the Hillsborough County Charter Review Board decided Thursday not to set limits on county spending. The 14-member board vetoed a proposed cap on the county's operating budget by a 11-3 vote, despite the urgings of several county residents who spoke in favor of the amendment. The proposal required at least 10 votes to be put on the 2002 ballot. The proposal would have forced the County Commission to limit the growth of its annual operating budget to either 3 percent or the rate of inflation, whichever was lower. A recent opinion by Florida Attorney General Bob Butterworth advised the board against the proposal, saying it violated Florida statutes on how county budget and millage rates must be established. Charter Review Board member Kevin Ambler, an attorney, tried to sway the members toward approving it by arguing that Butterworth hadn't written the letter himself, and that it didn't directly address the spending cap. "This opinion frankly is misleading," he said. Others, like board member Gerald White, worried that the proposal would end up in court at taxpayers' expense. Butterworth's opinion shouldn't be shrugged off, White said. "I know I don't want to go against the top man in Florida," he said. The meeting, held at the County Center, was the last in a yearlong series to review county government. The Charter Review Board won't be appointed again for another five years. The only measure approved by the board was to let voters decide in 2002 whether to create an internal auditor to investigate how the county spends millions in tax dollars. - Kathryn Wexler can be reached at (813) 226-3383 or wexler@sptimes.com.
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