TABOR-like revenue cap dies

A revenue cap is not headed to the November ballot.

The Taxation and Budget Reform Commission has just killed a weaker version of the cap which would have required two-thirds approval by local and state officials for any fee or tax. Proponents wanted a stronger cap, which tied revenue growth to population and inflation, but clung to hope today that the compromise plan would muster 17 votes.

It got 14.

"If you vote no today, you don't think government has a problem with spending," said commissioner Mike Hogan, the Duval County tax collector who sponsored the original proposal. "This is as good as we could get." His closing argument drew applause from the packed audience. But the vote also drew cheers.

Comments

Maybe Haridopoulos can get another college to pay him ANOTHER $150,000 to write another book that will not get published to detail his efforts on the tax issue. He cares about our taxes unless they go into his pocket.

[Donald Lance]

Under all these sales tax proposals, how are we going to get teachers, police, firemen, EMS, trash collectors, sewer workers, street cleaners, et al, to work for free? There won't be any money left once it goes to Tally. Property taxes are supposed to fall as the values do. If they aren't then pound your local assessor and tell your neighbor to reduce his selling price. All I see here are people who don't want higher property tax but want higher property values. You can't have it both ways guys & dolls.

6:57 -- So you believe property taxes should be tied to property values and so the answer is to lower property values so taxes will lower as well?? A better answer would be to repeal SOH and everyone is taxed equally on the value of their home, instead of new and recent homeowners brunting the burden.

[John Donson]

No. I don't believe that but they are! That won't change anytime soon, so where does the answer of equity lie? The real answer is reduced govt spending. That won't change anytime soon either!

Under SOH every homeowner is taxed equally on their home. The rate is initial assessed value + 3% per year.

Why repeal SOH? It is a great tax-savings benefit to homowners???

[John Donson]

How is paying an additional 3% a year a good idea? It's called compound interest. You know how that works right?

Dear 6:54 p.m.

I do want a state income tax, but it will never happen here. I also am quite sure that I make more money than you do.

Floridian's are in the top half of states in TOTAL tax burden, but this is largely because of our federal taxes where we are a HUGE donar state to the federal budget even with one of the largest groups of elderly collecting SS and other programs. Our total combined local and state tax burdens are among the lowest in the country. The biggest reason for this is because of relying on sales taxes instead of an income tax for most of our general revenue which is normally not deductable.

Review this link and get back to me.

http://www.taxfoundation.org/taxdata/show/447.html

wrong 1:17 -- longtime homeowners have thousands of dollars sheltered from tax, while new and recent buyers have zero with no hope of every accumulating any value sheltered from tax for sometime to come due to the declining market. Thus we have longtime homeowners paying at a rate of 1/2% or less on the value of their home, while new and recent buyers pay 2%. Same home, same value, different taxes.

If longtime homeowners paid a little more, new and recent buyers (including our children buying their first home) could pay considerably less. Then we'd have a fair system.

I would come up with a Crist/Rubio method of pandering to the lowest common denominator on this issue, but the reality is that state and local governments provide services that I use while my federal taxes go into a black hole.

Changing our tax structure with the goal of lowering our overall burden while maximizing (increasing) the services available in my city, county, school district and state would seem to be a good goal to me.

continuation to 1:31

Of course the reality is that unless SOH is ruled unconstitutional, it will never be repealed. This takes us back to the beginning....how do we give relief to those burdened the most? Our legislature couldn't figure that out and now they are trying to prevent the TBRC from resolving the problem as well. Bottom line, A1 was a smoke screen to minimize the impact on budgets as much as possible and pacify only those enjoying low taxes already that want to move. All others, grin and bear it because someone has to pay and it might as well be you....that man behind the tree! When Crist promised to cut property taxes, he didn't mean you!

Vote out all democrats for blocking relief.

[John Donson]

Vote to end votes because they already took away your freedoms. The only thing you have left are t.v. and internet posts.