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Pinellas approves tax increase
By EDIE GROSS © St. Petersburg Times, published August 30, 2000 CLEARWATER -- Living in Pinellas County got a little more expensive Tuesday night. After listening to about a half-dozen residents plead for lower taxes, county commissioners approved a $1.5-billion budget that includes slight tax increases for all property owners. "This is not a magic act. Those of you who came here tonight and said, "You're not listening to us,' will walk out of here thinking this was a waste of time," Commission Chairman Bob Stewart said. "But I want to tell you, this has been a long journey for this board. These decisions come after long deliberation." The countywide property tax, which applies to every Pinellas property owner, was set at $6.75 per $1,000 of taxable property value, a 25-cent increase over this year's tax. The owner of a $91,000 home -- the average value of a home in Pinellas -- with a $25,000 homestead exemption would pay $445.50 in county taxes, an increase of $16.50 over this year. Residents of unincorporated Pinellas will pay $1.61 per $1,000 of property value on top of that to cover municipal services the county provides. That's a 25-cent decrease from this year's level. Given the increase in the countywide tax rate, the owner of a $91,000 home with a homestead exemption in unincorporated Pinellas would pay$551.76 in county taxes, the same as this year. While the property tax rate seems to be a wash for unincorporated residents, they also face a 6 percent tax on their electric bills to pay for street lights on neighborhood and arterial roads. Commissioners received 14 letters, 17 e-mails and 131 phone calls against the surcharge. "Most people don't want more taxes," Palm Harbor resident Roger Gambert told commissioners Tuesday night. "That's what you're doing, slipping in more taxes with this budget. You're slowly eating us to death." Ray Neri of Lealman said the county had not done much to fix up his neighborhood. Instead of lighting the community, the county should spend money to improve it first, he said. "You want us to light up an area which is falling apart. You're our elected officials. If we can't appeal to you, we're powerless. We can't do anything," Neri said. "My mother, my aunts are on a fixed income, and you're going to hit us with a 6 percent charge." Commissioners will hold a separate hearing on the 6 percent electric tax on Sept. 19 at 6:30 p.m. They could kill the plan, which is expected to generate $13.4-million, at that hearing. But then they would have to find a way to make up that loss in revenue without raising the property tax, which is now set. Commissioner Barbara Sheen Todd said she did not support the tax on electric bills. But she voted for the budget because she did not see another way for the county to make up the lost revenue. Commissioner Sallie Parks said people in unincorporated Pinellas have asked for street lights. "I live in the unincorporated area and I hear from people all the time at crime watch meetings I go to where street lighting is a concern," Parks said. "We have a history of being a community that has a lot of accidents, and it may be because we don't have a lot of lighting." Commissioner Karen Seel was the only one to vote against the budget, but it had nothing to do with the 6 percent surcharge on electric bills. The budget includes plans to borrow $160-million so the county can speed up some capital projects. The county will repay the loan with future Penny for Pinellas money. Seel said she did not favor borrowing the money because the bond documents might lock future commissions into projects that could rise drastically in price. County Budget Director Mark Woodard said those documents could be amended by the County Commission and its bond insurer if commissioners wanted to change the list of projects. The 2000-01 budget includes $160-million for the Sheriff's Office, an increase of about $12-million from this year's budget. Sheriff Everett Rice has said he will use the additional money for raises for employees, who are underpaid according to a salary study completed this year; improve inmate health care; and pay salaries for 52 new corrections officers to staff the jail addition,as well as salaries of 58 new employees for traffic enforcement, community policing, criminal investigations and school safety. The budget also features $211.7-million in capital improvements, including building the Brooker Creek Preserve education center in East Lake, expanding the Florida Botanical Gardens in Largo, extending Bryan Dairy Road from 72nd Street to U.S. 19 and improving drainage countywide. "We have gone through this budget on a department-by-department basis, looking for areas where we could reallocate resources," said Stewart. "This is the best effort this board could give you." The county's tax rate for the 2000-01 budget year is $6.75 per $1,000 of taxable property value, plus another $1.61 per $1,000 of property value for residents in the unincorporated areas. To determine your county property taxes, take the assessed value of your home and subtract the $25,000 homestead exemption, if you qualify. Divide that number by 1,000 and multiply the result by $6.75 if you live in a city or $8.36 if you live in unincorporated Pinellas. The budget includes a 6 percent tax on electric bills for residents of unincorporated Pinellas. The money will pay for street lighting and allows for no property tax increase in unincorporated areas.
 © 2006 • All Rights Reserved • St. Petersburg Times
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