• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
MENUMENU
MENUMENU
  • Home
  • About
    • Contact Us
    • FlaglerLive Board of Directors
    • Comment Policy
    • Mission Statement
    • Our Values
  • Live Calendar
  • Submit Obituary
  • Submit an Event
  • Support FlaglerLive
  • Advertise on FlaglerLive (386) 503-3808
  • Search Results

FlaglerLive

No Bull, no Fluff, No Smudges

MENUMENU
  • Flagler
    • Flagler County Commission
    • Beverly Beach
    • Economic Development Council
    • Flagler History
    • Mondex/Daytona North
    • The Hammock
    • Tourist Development Council
  • Palm Coast
    • Palm Coast City Council
    • Palm Coast Crime
  • Bunnell
    • Bunnell City Commission
    • Bunnell Crime
  • Flagler Beach
    • Flagler Beach City Commission
    • Flagler Beach Crime
  • Cops/Courts
    • Circuit & County Court
    • Florida Supreme Court
    • Federal Courts
    • Flagler 911
    • Fire House
    • Flagler County Sheriff
    • Flagler Jail Bookings
    • Traffic Accidents
  • Rights & Liberties
    • Fourth Amendment
    • First Amendment
    • Privacy
    • Second Amendment
    • Seventh Amendment
    • Sixth Amendment
    • Sunshine Law
    • Third Amendment
    • Religion & Beliefs
    • Human Rights
    • Immigration
    • Labor Rights
    • 14th Amendment
    • Civil Rights
  • Schools
    • Adult Education
    • Belle Terre Elementary
    • Buddy Taylor Middle
    • Bunnell Elementary
    • Charter Schools
    • Daytona State College
    • Flagler County School Board
    • Flagler Palm Coast High School
    • Higher Education
    • Imagine School
    • Indian Trails Middle
    • Matanzas High School
    • Old Kings Elementary
    • Rymfire Elementary
    • Stetson University
    • Wadsworth Elementary
    • University of Florida/Florida State
  • Economy
    • Jobs & Unemployment
    • Business & Economy
    • Development & Sprawl
    • Leisure & Tourism
    • Local Business
    • Local Media
    • Real Estate & Development
    • Taxes
  • Commentary
    • The Conversation
    • Pierre Tristam
    • Diane Roberts
    • Guest Columns
    • Byblos
    • Editor's Blog
  • Culture
    • African American Cultural Society
    • Arts in Palm Coast & Flagler
    • Books
    • City Repertory Theatre
    • Flagler Auditorium
    • Flagler Playhouse
    • Flagler Youth Orchestra
    • Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra
    • Palm Coast Arts Foundation
    • Special Events
  • Elections 2022
    • Amendments and Referendums
    • Presidential Election
    • Campaign Finance
    • City Elections
    • Congressional
    • Constitutionals
    • Courts
    • Governor
    • Polls
    • Voting Rights
  • Florida
    • Federal Politics
    • Florida History
    • Florida Legislature
    • Florida Legislature
    • Ron DeSantis
  • Health & Society
    • Flagler County Health Department
    • Ask the Doctor Column
    • Health Care
    • Health Care Business
    • Covid-19
    • Children and Families
    • Medicaid and Medicare
    • Mental Health
    • Poverty
    • Violence
  • All Else
    • Daily Briefing
    • Americana
    • Obituaries
    • News Briefs
    • Weather and Climate
    • Wildlife

Much Slimmer Water Management District Approves Lower Tax Rate Imposed From Above

September 28, 2011 | FlaglerLive | Leave a Comment

(SJRWMD)

The St. Johns River Water Management District’s Governing Board gave final approval today to a budget that reduces its property tax revenue by 26 percent for the next fiscal year and lowers taxes for property owners while funding the agency’s highest priorities. Among the casualties: funding for Palm Coast’s desalination project, which Palm Coast has shelved for now.

Gov. Rick Scott and the Legislature pressured management districts across the state to reduce their tax rates and revenue and lay off personnel. The St. Johns district saw the following 95 lay-offs, by department:

Environmental Resource Permitting: 21
Executive: 8
Finance/Admin: 7
Information Resources: 1
Operations/Land: 15
Resource Management: 23
Water Resources: 20

In addition, 24 staff members took a buy-out before June 30, and 20 vacant positions were eliminated.

Palm Coast City Council member Frank meeker, an ombudsman with the district, was among those laid off. He lobbied to get his job back, and did.


Click On:

  • How Slashing Water Management Districts’ Budget 25% Endangers Our Way of Life
  • Hurricane Tallahassee: Environmentalists Survey Wreckage of 2011 Legislative Session
  • Water Management District Tax Rate Cut 26%, Reducing Revenue and Gutting Services
  • The District’s 2010-11 Taxes
  • A Wake for Palm Coast Desalination: Consultants Talk “Hiatus” Rather Than Demise


At a public meeting Tuesday, the Board approved a 0.3313 millage rate that will generate $85.3 million in revenue for a $204.7 million budget. The budget also will be funded with prior years’ state and carryover funds, timber sales, cattle leases, interest earnings and permit fees.

The approved budget is 16.4 percent less than the current fiscal year 2010–2011 budget. The new budget year begins Oct. 1 and ends Sept. 30, 2012.

The budget reduces the property tax rate by 20 percent over the current year’s millage rate. Under a 0.3313 millage rate — 33.13 cents for every $1,000 of assessed property value — the owner of a $200,000 house with a $50,000 homestead exemption will pay $49.70 per year in property taxes to the District.

“The District has met the challenge of developing a budget that funds our highest priorities, maintains a strong commitment to water resource protection and provides some financial relief to taxpayers,” said Governing Board Chairman Leonard Wood of Fernandina Beach.

The adopted budget funds priority restoration projects at Fellsmere Water Management Area, Lake Apopka North Shore Restoration Area and C-1/C-10 rediversion to improve water quality and develop alternative water supplies. Nearly 38 percent of the budget will provide funding to local cooperators to implement projects in support of water resource and water supply projects and surface water restoration projects.


In addition, the budget provides funds for continued water supply planning, including water conservation, and minimum flows and levels prevention and recovery strategy development. To increase efficiencies and save tax dollars, the District will restructure and consolidate several programs to improve water data collection and analysis.

The District says it will also continue its commitment to science-based data collection by funding water quality and quantity trend monitoring to ensure that appropriate data continues to exist on which to make sound scientific decisions.

Other highlights of the new budget include a streamlined and enhanced permitting process and a continued responsibility to District land management activities, such as prescribed burns, control of invasive exotic plants, and maintenance and improvements of levees, locks and other structures.

Budget reductions were made in contractual services, salaries and benefits, cooperative funding and operating expenses.

The complete work plan and budget is available here or below.

Print Friendly, PDF & Email
You and your neighbors collectively read our articles about 25,000 times each day (that's not a typo) with up to 65,000 daily reads during emergencies like hurricanes. Flagler County residents rely on FlaglerLive for essential, bold and analytical journalism that cannot be found anywhere else. But we depend on your support. Please join our December fund drive! If you donate the cost of a scoop of ice cream, you will be helping us continue to provide comprehensive local news and honest, serious journalism for our community. If you can donate more or become a monthly donor, even better. Donations are tax deductible since FlaglerLive is a 501(c)(3) non-profit news organization. Donate by clicking anywhere in this box. Think of it as buying a scoop, in every sense of the term!  
All donors' identities are kept confidential and anonymous.
   

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Advertisers

  • grand living realty
  • politis matovina attorneys for justice personal injury law auto truck accidents
  • WNZF Creekside Festival

Recent Comments

  • JimboXYZ on DeSantis Will Debate Gavin Newsom in Georgia in November
  • Atwp on Court Rules Unanimous Jury Not Necessary in Death Penalty Re-Sentencing of 2 in ‘X-Box Murders’
  • Pogo on Clarence Thomas Secretly Participated in Koch Network Donor Events
  • Doubtful on Montessori School Owner Kerri Huckabee, 54, Arrested on 3 Felonies in Dispute with Flagler Beach Neighbors
  • Marc on Montessori School Owner Kerri Huckabee, 54, Arrested on 3 Felonies in Dispute with Flagler Beach Neighbors
  • jeffery c. seib on Don’t Blame Us Seniors for the Affordability Crisis. Blame Developers.
  • Angela on Don’t Blame Us Seniors for the Affordability Crisis. Blame Developers.
  • Laurel on At Root of Palm Coast’s Affordable Housing Crisis: We Got Our Own. Screw the Rest. 
  • Laurel on At Root of Palm Coast’s Affordable Housing Crisis: We Got Our Own. Screw the Rest. 
  • Chris Conklin on Montessori School Owner Kerri Huckabee, 54, Arrested on 3 Felonies in Dispute with Flagler Beach Neighbors
  • Laurel on At Root of Palm Coast’s Affordable Housing Crisis: We Got Our Own. Screw the Rest. 
  • Sherry on Rupert Murdoch’s Legacy of Lies and Little Accountability: A Round-Up
  • Laurel on At Root of Palm Coast’s Affordable Housing Crisis: We Got Our Own. Screw the Rest. 
  • BLINDSPOTTING on Montessori School Owner Kerri Huckabee, 54, Arrested on 3 Felonies in Dispute with Flagler Beach Neighbors
  • Laurel on At Root of Palm Coast’s Affordable Housing Crisis: We Got Our Own. Screw the Rest. 
  • Laurel on At Root of Palm Coast’s Affordable Housing Crisis: We Got Our Own. Screw the Rest. 

Log in