Peyton email suggests city cuts
While the local press has snoozed throughout the ongoing discussions in Tallahassee, a move which will vitally impact and possibly cripple the City of Jacksonville, has been afoot since the inauguration of the new Governor.The Florida State Legislature has been debating cutting property tax, which is the basis of the City of Jacksonville's budget, and the source of most city services. In a year of chronic cash shortages, such a move would deliver a significant blow to the City's coffers and the Mayor and his staff have been increasingly distracted as this possibility has crystallized into near reality.This grim reality appears to have materialized, and the city is in a near panic.
Full Article
http://www.metrojacksonville.com/content/view/421
I am in complete agreement with the Mayor on his handling. You need to make plans for this as it seems likely to happen.
I do worry how this will affect the courthouse debacle, and really wish it were already underway. I fear this may sound the court houses death knell.
OMG...imagine that...what's more scared than a bunch of scurrying cockroaches when the lights go on?
answer: city employees who thought job security and the "gov't employee" attitude it cultivated could quickly be a thing of the past.
GO STATE LEGISLATORS!!!!
here is a link to the proposed cuts.
13 million in cuts for the police and fire.
http://mail.google.com/mail/?realattid=0.1&attid=0.1&disp=vah&view=att&th=11254137e156c4f0
I wouldn't be so quick to enjoy this situation....
As in most tax cuts governments at any level have to find another source of money. In other words a different tax. So you will surely be effected by the tax hike that will come.
And you have either never lost a job you thought was secure, or you're bitter because you did...
I feel for anyone who may lose their job over this situation...
IT NEVER BENEFITS ANYONE WHEN JOBS ARE ELIMINATED..
A lot of people would like to see Jacksonville maintain it's identity as South Georgia. (I'm not one of those people.) But if Stephen is correct and this cut is about the soaring cost of living in South Florida, we just may end up still being South Georgia, with lower property values, and higher taxes and maybe less basic services.....
And don't be surprised if our sales tax in Duval county hits the 10.5 to 11% mark.....
So EVERYONE will be effected by this, homeowner or not....
you said, "So EVERYONE will be effected by this, homeowner or not.... "
i like that. the novel idea that non-homeowners share in the tax burden equally is compelling to me.
Old discussions of separating north and south Florida into independent states is looking better now...
This is really scary stuff. Jacksonville is enjoying relatively low taxes and a low cost of living. This proposal will likely be the death blow. Almost every smaller municipality in the state is contesting this proposal because they are in the same boat, however, likely do not have the population base to survive. I really hope the governor thinks this one through....
Its a good thing we have another pocket park on the city budget though....would the city be willing to throw away its investment and sell of that land for development? Would it be willing to do the same with many other city owned lots in LaVilla and elsewhere? The core needs density and the suburbs need a good set of brakes.
this is going to suck. sure, it sounds like a great idea to have non-home owners paying, but think about those who are in college, just graduated from college, are just starting out in the workforce, or who don't have a job. i'm working in my first job after graduating with a liberal arts degree, and i can't really afford to pay extra sales tax. plus, i work for the city, so i won't be getting any raises any time soon. i rent because i can't afford a house. this certainly isn't going to help.
I can see your side of this, but the reality is most of us will still pay plenty of property taxes.
The difference will be we will have to pay the additional sales tax that will surely have to be raised to make up for the deficit.
Based on my property tax bill my savings will be small but if the sales tax is raised, it will be a pretty steep increase...
Some if not all of the changes proposed would have to be put on a ballot, right? I think that is the really scary part. Most of the state’s voters are going to quickly vote yes to lower property taxes, and not take the time to think about what else it will affect.
Typically, Government does not cut jobs...they simply find a new way to fund them. However, there have already been COJ job eliminations in recent years. When a position is vacated (via promotion or termination) it just will not be filled.
I have found that this city government is already understaffed in most areas, poorly run in others.
Quick facts:
49.4% of the COJ General Fund is funded by property taxes.
27.5% is made up of "Intergovernmental Revenue" (JEA, JEDC, Duval County Housing Finance Authority, etc.)
Only 11.9% is made up of "other state and local taxes (communications service tax, utility taxes)
With the remaining 11.2% made up of Charges for Services, Licenses/Permits, Fines, etc.
IF any of these 'plans' pass, expect a very LARGE shift in those percentages.
While I think the COJ could be more efficient, the $85 million dollar cut back would most definitely cripple the progress (as slow as it already is) in COJ. The first target, probably downtown. Revitalization seems to be seen as an expendable luxury by this administration.
By the way... Very funny photo.
Should be passed on to all who consume. Its a very simple tax system, and it will not apply to food, more than likely, only consumer durable goods. But really, how many yachts can you ski behind or how many Benz's can you drive at once?
We could easily shave off 1% from sales tax, if we eliminated or privatized the JTA, as they can never cover their budget year in or year out.