Tom Lawrence, the ardent anti-tax tea party chairman, was the champion of the sales tax Palm Coast lobbied for 10 years ago. He urged the Flagler tea party membership to support the tax again at the polls this year, boosting county government’s arguments for the tax, which Palm Coast so far has not embraced enthusiastically.
taxes
Flagler County Government Faces Potential $3.3 Million Gap as Stresses and Needs Endure
The Flagler County Commission got its first budget overview of the year Monday, ahead of six months of discussions, debates and battles over budget priorities in the midst of an election year with its own unpredictable variables.
Scott Signs a Series of Tax Cut Bills, Including Expansion of Corporate Tax Exemption
While supporters insisted that the legislation signed Wednesday will help provide a better business climate, they were quick to say that a variety of factors were at work in the economy, and it would be difficult to accurately figure out how many jobs the measures might create.
Florida Corporations Get a Bigger Tax Break, Shoppers Get Another Sales Tax Holiday
Gov. Rick Scott called the corporate tax break “a huge victory” for Floridians that would help businesses create more jobs, though there is little evidence that such tax breaks spur job creation, and some evidence that the tax breaks are closer to corporate welfare.
Florida House Approves $69.2 Billion Budget Heavy on Cuts on 79-38, Party-Line Vote
The $69.2 billion budget plows an addition $1 billion to education, but slashes other services to plug a nearly $2 billion shortfall, such as lowering the age at which the state ends a subsidy for former foster children from 23 to 21.
Good News for Flagler Property Owners: Most Home Values Will Barely Fall; Some Will Rise
Flagler County Property Appraiser’s preliminary estimate sees a property value drop in “the low single-digits” at most, with taxable values rising in Grand Haven and Flagler Beach, among other spots, as the five-year collapse in values appears to draw to an end.
Don’t Ban Internet Cafés. Regulate Them.
Internet cafés may be a pest, and their proponents make laughable arguments when they claim they’re not about gambling. But it’s not government’s business to ban them while swinging from the lottery’s levers. Regulation is the key.
Scott Orders Review of Special Taxing Districts Like Grand Haven, Dunes and Every CRA
The review affects such “community redevelopment agencies” such as Palm Coast’s Town Center. Special taxing districts generate $15 billion in revenue annually. Oversight can be more lax than for more general government revenues.
Florida Legislator Wants $1 Cigarette Tax Increase In Exchange for Lower Driver Fees
South Florida’s Jim Waldman, a Democrat from Coconut Creek, wants to roll back unpopular driver’s license and registration fees, paying for it with a $1 increase in Florida’s cigarette tax, now at $1.34.
We Don’t Need Another Payroll Tax Cut
We can all afford less tax coddling and more fiscal responsibility. But don’t expect to hear that from allegedly conservative Republican and our blandly, irresponsibly centrist president, who’s bribing his way to a second term.
Obama’s Roosevelt Envy–And Ours
Obama’s version of Roosevelt Lite won’t cut it if he can’t back up his rhetoric with a more serious program of defending the middle class against corporate predators and rich-class irresponsibility.
Reversing Trend, Gov. Scott Will Ask for $1 Billion Education Boost Despite Shortfalls
Gov. Rick Scott on Wednesday will ask for a near-historic increase in per-student funding despite shortfalls in tax collection. The reversal of the past two year’s trend, if upheld by the Legislature, will relieve education administrators expecting tighter budgets ahead.
Don’t Restrict Our Ability to Levy Taxes, Wishful Cities Tell Florida Lawmakers
The Florida League of Cities is urging Florida senators to avoid the temptation to restrict the ability of local officials to levy taxes, and asking for more flexibility on how they spend insurance premium tax revenue and adjust pension benefits.
0.2% Stupor: Protecting 350,000 Millionaires At the Expense of 160 Million Workers
There’s a very simple way to ensure that this country goes the way of old, bankrupt empires, and it doesn’t take flying planes into building or suckering the world’s mightiest military into pointless wars halfway around the globe. All it takes is voting Republican.
My Fairest Tax Proposal: A Tax on Nonsense
Watching Republican candidates debate taxes and creationism on TV reminds me of original Star Trek episodes featuring those low-tech aliens that nevertheless managed to speak English every time.
What I Learned Occupying Wall Street and DC
The unemployed, the foreclosed, and the sick-of-it-all are coming together to discuss the world that we want to see and how to get there, says Lacy MacAuley, an activist, in an attempt to define the movement’s purpose.
Gov. Scott Proposes Corporate Tax Cuts Even As Florida Faces a Deficit of Up to $2 Billion
Gov. Rick Scott wants to double the corporate income tax exemption to $50,000 and eliminate the tangible tax for half of the state’s 300,000 businesses that now pay it. It’s part of his plan to eliminate all corporate taxes ins even years.
Florida Lawmakers Gloomily Expect $2 Billion Shortfall: The State Week in Review
As Florida Legislature budget committees met this week, gloom set in again. Medicaid costs are rising, schools need to find money, tax revenues are lagging. Gambling-industry lobbyists had a better week.
Of Course It’s Class Warfare. And the Rich Are Winning in a Rout.
Republicans are accusing President Obama of waging class warfare, which, Donald Kaul argues, is a little like the Japanese complaining about the time Pearl Harbor attacked them in 1941.
Much Slimmer Water Management District Approves Lower Tax Rate Imposed From Above
The St. Johns River Water Management District’s 26 percent tax reduction resulted in lay-offs of 95 people and the elimination of more jobs through buyouts and vacancies, affecting various parts of the district’s mission.
Check the Box Scoundrels: Corporations Lobby to Preserve a $10 Billion Loophole
The ‘check-the-box’ rule, meant to cut red tape for companies, has inadvertently allowed them to avoid billions of dollars in taxes each year, and the government keeps balking at closing the loophole.
Flagler’s Taxes 15th Lowest Even as Taxable Values See 2nd Worst Drop in Florida
The county commission adopts the 2012 budget for good Thursday evening, essentially cutting taxes modestly even as the tax rate will rise to a 12-year high, despite home values continuing to fall at nation-leading rates.
Flagler County Tentatively Adopts Highest Tax Rate in 12 Years at Subdued Hearing
Only one person, a tea party representative, addressed the Flagler County Commission as it adopted, in the first of two votes, a $65.3 million budget and a 12 percent increase in its tax rate, though most property owners will pay less in taxes.
Flagler Beach Touts Taut Budget With 14.6% Tax Rate Increase and 3% Employee Raise
Though Flagler Beach’s tax rate is again increasing, most property owners will see their tax bills decrease. For Acting City Manager Bruce Campbell, budget season closes a crucial part of his on-going job interview.
A 6% Tax on Bottled Water in Florida: Ormond Beach’s Sen. Lynn Revives Proposal
The bottled-water tax in Florida would pay for repairing environmental damage from trashed plastic. The water industry is opposing Ormond Beach Sen. Evelyn Lynn’s proposal.
Taxes, the Economy, the Stimulus: Separating Fiction from Fact
Answers to recurring questions of the day: what’s the state of the economy, are Americans really as overtaxed as they think they are, and what has the 2009 economic stimulus accomplished–or not?
The Down Side of Fuel Efficiency: Florida Governments Will Take a $5 Billion Hit
As the Obama administration seeks to double average fuel efficiency by 2025, State and local government revenue dependent on gas taxes will see big declines in revenue that pays for roads, bridges and other infrastructure.
When Income Was Taxed at 94%: How FDR Tackled Debt and Reckless Republicans
The last time the nation faced war debts Franklin Roosevelt didn’t hesitate to raise taxes and show up Republicans who stood in the way of fiscal responsibility, argues Sam Pizzigati.
Federal Individual Income Tax Rates By Year: 1913-2013
Federal income tax rates by year: the full history of marginal tax rates in the United States going back to 1913 in an easy-to-read format.
The Man Behind No New Taxes, Apple Beats Exxon, Obama’s Lack Of A Plan: The Live Wire
A new tower at Ground Zero, Apple tops the market, Murdoch the mob boss, Obama needs a plan, China gets an aircraft carrier, and more.
Reminder: Florida’s Sales Tax Holiday Is This Weekend: Here’s A Guide
Florida’s Tax Free Days, or sales tax holiday, is scheduled this year for August 12 through August 14. The sales tax exemption applies to clothing and school supplies. A complete guide.
Palm Coast Sets Intial Tax Rate 14% Higher With Goal of Whittling It Down By September
Palm Coast City Council members are trying desperately to hold the line on property tax increases, but will likely not succeed entirely. The final tax rate will still not translate into a tax increase for most.
Flagler County Tax Rates Will Go Up 12%, But Tax Bills Are More Likely to Go Down
Flagler County’s tax rate is going up for the fourth year in a row to make up for collapsing valuations, but the rise will still not translate into a tax increase for most. The contrary may be true.
Paying Tribute to Tea Party Faithfuls, City Council Candidates Hear Tax-Me-Not Earfuls
Opposition to tax increases in whatever form topped the list of concerns of several hundred people at a tea party-hosted encounter Palm Coast mayor and city council candidates.
Bunnell Commission Says Nyet To Reducing $1 Million Police Force, Whatever the Savings
Bunnell City Commissioner Elbert Tucker proposed reducing the police department’s ranks to cut back its $1 million burden on a $4 million general fund budget. The rest of the commission smacked him down.
To Save Tax Dollars, Consolidate Palm Coast and County Fire Departments Into One
In a year of cutbacks and falling revenue, the presidents of the Palm Coast and Flagler County firefighter unions are proposing to consolidate the two fire departments into one as a way to save taxpayer money and become more efficient.
Do Flagler School Administrators Making $97,000 a Year Need A Raise? They Say Yes.
Some 25 Flagler school administrators make between $80,000 and $105,000 a year. They’re saying they were disrespected when denied a 2 percent raise. The school board is reconsidering.
Flagler Property Tax Bills Set to Drop Markedly As School Board Keeps 2012 Levy Flat
Contrasting with public perceptions that taxes are going up, a typical house may see a $150 drop from school taxes alone next year, giving Palm Coast and the county more room to maneuver for higher tax rates.
Debt Ceiling Fallacies: How to Pay Down The Deficit Without Really Trying
The debt limit debate could have some catastrophic consequences for the economy, writes Kyle Russell, but politicians aren’t telling the whole story, and the fix isn’t nearly as bad as it may sound.
Water Management District Tax Rate Cut 26%, Reducing Revenue and Gutting Services
The tax bill on a $200,000 house will be $50, down from $62, but the district is laying off employees and reducing conservation, management and partnership projects in line with a new law approved by Gov. Rick Scott.
Bunnell’s Challenges: Lawsuits, Layoffs, Deficits, and That $900,000 Police Department
Bunnell entered this year’s budget season facing a $900,000 deficit (about the cost of its police department) and the potential loss of a $1.3 million state contract, among other steep challenges.
“You Smirked, Mr. Chairman”: Tea Party Puts County Commission On Notice
A tea party throng of close to 100 people jammed a county commission budget workshop Monday, cheering a promise that any tax increase would result in commissioners being voted out. The math on display was less reliable.
Flagler Beach Eyes Reserves and
More Taxes to Make Up Latest Revenue Loss
Flagler Beach has raised taxes for three successive years to make up for falling revenue from collapsing property values. It has a relatively large $3 million reserve, which it will likely use in combination with another tax hike to balance next year’s budget.
Facing $6 Million Hit, County Begins Long Budget Season as Tax Hike Appears Inevitable
County commissioners are unlikely to elicit sympathy from taxpayers—or from employees facing a 3 percent pay cut from new retirement-contribution requirements, and a third year without raises.
Gov. Rick Scott’s Ex HCA Suing Florida Over $757,000 in Unpaid Interest on Late Taxes
Hospital giant HCA is suing the Florida Department of Revenue in a tax dispute that stems from the turbulent era when Gov. Rick Scott ran the company.
Reserves and Stratagems All Spent, Palm Coast Faces Up to Higher Taxes and More Cuts
Palm Coast lost $3 million in revenue last year by refusing to raise taxes. It’s about to lose close to $2 million more. The administration and the council are preparing taxpayers for a tax increase–or crippling cuts.
County Property Values Fall Another 14%; Palm Coast: -12%; Tax Rates Heading Up
The declines, for the fourth year in a row, will define to what extent local governments must either raise taxes or cut services as they prepare next year’s budgets. Governments have little room to cut anymore, short of vitals services.
Property Tax Overhaul Passes House: Breaks For New Home Buyers, Business, Snowbirds
First-time home buyers would get a 50 percent property tax break on the value of their home. Voters would decide whether to cap property tax assessment increases for commercial properties at 5 percent.
Corporate Tax Cut Out, Privatizing Prisons and 3% Public Pension Contributions In
As the Legislature’s 2011 session veers uncertainly toward its final days, lawmakers struck deals Saturday on privatizing prisons and compromising over public employees’ pension contributions, but no deal yet on health care and education cuts.
Property Tax Reform: 50% Exemptions, Breaks for Investors, Losses for Local Governments
Supporters of the overhaul say it’ll fill up empty homes. Critics say it’ll also slash local government revenue and further shift the tax burden to current residents, exacerbating inequities.