Quote:
Originally Posted by golfing eagles
Now I'm really confused. You stated I was wrong when I posted that I might be paying more for the same service as my neighbor, essentially a Robin Hood progressive tax, but then made the highlighted statement in response. Is it that a "small" difference IS fair????? How "small"???? If you go to Publix and the person ahead of you on line gets charged $1 for a can of soup, and then you get charged $2 for exactly the same can, is that "fair"?? After all, it's only "a small amount". And finally, would you vote for Publix to charge you the extra dollar???
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You and I may disagree on how much "vastly different" is.
A house with a $450,000 market value and homestead exemption that protected from the recent assessment increase will pay about $300 for the "simplified" tier and at most $300 for the ad-valorem tier for about $725 max.
A house with a $350,000 market value and no homestead exemption might pay something like $250 for the "simplified" tier and at most $270 for the ad-valorem for about $650 max.
To me, about $75 total, as a maximum, is not a "vastly different" amount for houses with a $100,000 difference in market value.
I'm sure you realize that property taxes are based on assessed value today. Is it "fair" that a more expensive home pays higher property taxes than a less expensive home? Is it "fair" that an expensive home with year-round residents might pay less property tax than the home of a snowbird due to the homestead exemptions even though the year-round resident uses more county resources?
More expensive homes pay more in property taxes, that's the way it works. The IFD does not alter this, it just moves the taxes to separate lines. EXCEPT, when you calculate the amount of your property tax that is used for fire protection today, the amount the VPSD would collect from you under the IFD is less.
As for Publix: I believe I *do* pay more at Publix than I pay at Winn-Dixie. I happily accept that because I like the service I get at Publix and I want Publix to stay around. There is no threat of a buyout at the moment, but I'm happy to do my part to ensure the threat doesn't arise in the future.
That statement is not necessarily true for the VPSD. The independence of the VPSD *was* threatened during the ad-hoc committee discussions about ambulance service. The independence of the VPSD *was* questioned during the candidate forums for primary election of the BoCC. Inflation is affecting everyone, including the county, and the fire service is a large part of the county budget. If funds become tight in 2024 I would like to know that consolidating the VPSD and SCFD for cost savings is off the table. The IFD ensures the threat of consolidation cannot arise in the future.
As for the numbers not yet being finalized... of course not. The numbers will be based on assessments and market values as calculated in June or July of next year. The numbers will also be based on the needs of the budget built by the yet-to-be-appointed Supervisors of the yet-to-be-approved IFD. I am basing my decision on the assumption that neither assessments nor the budget will change much. If I'm wrong about assessments I'm protected by the homestead exemptions; if I'm wrong about the budget I'm protected by the caps in the referendum.