The Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) held a Town Hall meeting to discuss the One Cent for Hernando sales tax referendum. Only one resident commented during the meeting, who at the end said, “You haven’t changed my mind,” when it comes to her opposition to the tax, which will expire in 2054 if approved by voters on November 5th.
Although there wasn’t a huge turnout at the meeting, the majority of respondents on social media are largely against the tax, their comments ranging from a simple “no” to “No Government propaganda.”
Hernando County’s current sales tax rate is 6.5 percent, which is .5 percent higher than Citrus County. Other surrounding counties have higher tax rates of 7 percent. Hillsborough County is the highest at 7.5.
Chairwoman Beth Narverud began the discussion stating that all commissioners were in support of the pending sales tax. “We know it’s what we need to do to keep the burden off of the individual homeowners.”
Commissioner Steve Champion acknowledged that many people are currently tending to their homes and properties after two hurricanes caused damage throughout the county within two weeks of each other. “This tax … is a benefit to all citizens.” Some citizens commented on social media questioning the timing of the referendum being so close to the aftermath of the hurricanes, however, official ballots were printed before the storms had even formed.
County Administrator Jeff Rogers presented the facts about the new tax, which many residents oppose on social media. “The question for the citizens is really how are we going to fund necessary improvements in the future … Is it going to be on property taxes or is it going to be on this sales tax, which is basically a consumption tax?”
A rise in property taxes affects renters as well. Bob Esposito with the Hernando-Citrus Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO) is in agreement with the position of the Commissioners. Esposito also owns a rental property and said, “If my property taxes go up, I’m passing that along to the tenant. So at the end of the day, rents are going to go up.”
The revenue generated will be used for core government services, such as roadway and infrastructure improvements, Economic Development, public safety capital improvements and capital improvements for law enforcement.
Collection of the tax is limited to the first $5,000 of large purchases or tangible personal property, or a maximum of $50 on a single purchase. The tax will not be applied to some groceries, personal hygiene products, medical services, medication or fuel.
The whole-cent tax is expected to generate $38 million per year, amounting to roughly $1.5 to $2 million per year for the City of Brooksville.
If the referendum passes, a volunteer Citizens Oversight committee will be formed to oversee the County’s usage of the tax-generated funds. The committee will meet quarterly.
Commissioner Brian Hawkins emphasized that the one-cent tax does not increase individual cost of living. “If you look at it from that perspective, (citizens) have the ability to control spending with retail sales tax … one of the things I dislike about property taxes, whether they’re going up or down, is (the County) tells me what I have to pay.”
Sales tax is also paid by visitors to the county who make purchases where the sales tax is applicable. It’s estimated that 30 percent, or $10 million of the tax will be contributed by those living outside Hernando County.
Hawkins also mentioned that depending on who prevails in the upcoming general election, taxes on unrealized capital gains could be a consequence. “That’s exactly what property tax is now. With the inflated cost of real estate, especially people that moved here recently within the last year or two – are paying unrealized capital gains on that value of the home in the form of a tax.”
An unrealized gain occurs when the current price of the home increases above what a buyer pays.
Hawkins explained further that the whole-cent sales tax if approved, will keep millage rates down. “This allows us, in my opinion, to continue to strengthen and lower the millage while having Capital Improvement Projects (CIP) done … It diversifies revenues and allows multiple avenues outside of the 170,000 residential properties that are taxed now to pay (taxes) as well as visitors and tourists … 30-35 percent of those (tax) collections will come from non-Hernando County residents.”
For example, if a vehicle is purchased in Hernando County, only the first $5,000 is taxed, or an extra $50 in sales tax. Hawkins said, “It will be on TVs, it will be on sodas, it will be on stuff that are not necessity items for cost of living.”
Those who work in Hernando County but do not live here would also contribute.
This consumption tax remains stable as opposed to property taxes, which can fluctuate. Revenue generated cannot be used for operational expenses or salaries.
Replying to Hawkins, Champion added, “If I could change all the taxes and put them to a consumption tax, I would … because it’s a fair way to tax. If you make more money, you spend more money, you pay more tax. If you make less money, you spend less money, you pay less tax.”
Champion brought up another point – that property taxes are not allowed to be used for roadway maintenance and improvements. “I don’t think the public understands that. They think, ‘I’m paying $4,000 in property taxes, why don’t you pave my road?’”
Champion surmised that the limited response from the public could also be due to a lack of advertising. By law, taxpayer dollars cannot be used to promote a tax. This is the reason why the BOCC has had to be careful in its methods of educating the public. Rogers agreed and said, “We educate; we don’t advocate.”
The County has developed a website specifically for this matter, and has received responses from 312 citizens in a forum between August 30, 2024 and October 3rd. The forum is now closed.
The Citizens Oversight Committee will be chosen through an application process and ultimately approved by the BOCC. They will review accounts payable and all expenses and report to the BOCC at public meetings on a regular basis.
A common question that has a lot of residents opposed to the tax is the length of time it will be in place. The referendum asks voters to approve the institution of the tax for a period of 29 years – beginning in 2025 and ending in 2054. Allocco explained, “We’re talking about projects that are massive. A road – you’re talking tens of millions of dollars … If you only do one project at a time, you’re not going to see anything changing in the county. The goal is to start a project, bond it, and be able to pay it over time so you can get multiple projects going on, and the whole county can benefit from it.”
Such large projects will require bonds, which function much like loans. If the county applies for a bond based on tax revenue that will expire prior to the term of the bond, the bond would be denied.
The tax is also a signal to the State and Federal government when the County applies for grants.
According to Rogers, the recent Federal infrastructure plan requires at least a 20 percent match by local government. “These revenues will allow for a match to bring in Federal dollars.”
Roads are the most expensive projects Hernando County has planned, with a grand total of $236,390,000. The individual projects: County Line Road – $75,000,000, Barclay widening – $32,600,000, Sunshine Grove 4-laning north of Ken Austin Parkway – $17,340,00, Kettering Road, SR 50 to Power Line Road – $33,700,00, Ayers / Culbreath / Hyman intersection – $3,150,000, Airport roadway improvements – $20,000,000, SR 50 to Star Road – $5,000,000, Lockhard Road from SR 50 to Dashbach – $23,000,000, Anderson Snow widening – $20,600,000, and Improving pickup and dropoff lanes for schools – $6,000,000.
Rogers’ presentation preemptively answered the question of why the county needs additional funding and why it should not use gas taxes or impact fees. Gas tax is not inadequate to fund these projects. This tax is assessed by the gallon and not dollars spent. A rise in gas prices does not equal a rise in gallons purchased; therefore, this revenue does not increase.
Impact fees are limited by their Benefit District. Hernando currently has four Benefit Districts for Road Impact Improvements, and four Park Impact Districts. Funds collected from Impact fees are only allowed to be used in the districts from which they are collected.
For Economic Development, the tax attracts businesses to build on infrastructure owned by the county, such as access roads, water, and sewer.
Population growth will result in the need for more public services such as fire departments and law enforcement. The whole-cent sales tax will provide funding to build more fire stations to maintain adequate response times. Training for law enforcement and additions to the detention center are also responses to the increased population.
**Ballot Language**
Shall a One-Cent Sales Surtax be levied, beginning in 2025 and shared between Hernando County and the City of Brooksville, with the proceeds to be used to fund infrastructure and public facilities, as defined by law, and overseen by a citizen committee, including:
– Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice
– Public Safety
– Roads, traffic alleviation and other transportation.
