Questions & Answers

Q. Many residents are complaining about property taxes. Are they really that high?

Yes and no. People with homesteaded property – about 60 percent of the property in Broward County – have not seen a dramatic increase in their taxes because they are protected by the Save Our Homes amendment to the Florida Constitution. This amendment puts a three percent cap on any increase in the value of property that can be taxed each year.

Q. What has happened to non-homesteaded property owners?

Non-homesteaded property (which includes rental, seasonal and commercial/business property) has increased dramatically in value. Without the Save Our Homes tax cap, these property owners have experienced property tax increases. Others who have high tax bills include people who have recently purchased property, because the property is taxed at close to the selling price of the property.

Q. How can you address the equity issue?

It's not something that a municipality or county can change. While state legislators and the governor are looking at a variety of proposals, the final solution to close the equity gap in property taxes could rest with the voters, who have the ability to amend the Constitution.

Q. Even with millage rate reductions, rising property values should have brought a windfall of taxes.  Where has all the money gone?

Broward County utilized some of the tax roll growth to meet growing expenses and demands. Overall growth in countywide taxes levied over the past five years was approximately $365 million. About half of that growth fell into six major categories: (1) enhancements in service levels in key areas such as mass transit, regional fire services and human services; (2) unavoidable, unusual cost increases in items such as property insurance, health insurance, fuel, and utilities; (3) investments made to enhance future tax roll growth such as community redevelopment area payments to cities and a new redevelopment capital program; (4) federal and state mandates, such as required payments to the state for juvenile detention costs and Medicaid match. Also, new election related costs (early voting) and operating costs to expand the jail system to avoid overcrowding which is prohibited by a federal court order; (5) voter-approved bond issue impacts related to the libraries and parks bond issues; and, (6) an increase in the funding of pay-as-you-go capital improvements — maintenance of aging facilities (e.g., roof and air conditioning replacements), and information technology improvements. The remaining growth in taxes funded normal increases in salaries and operating expenses.

Q. Are other counties in Florida facing challenges similar to Broward County?

Yes. In past years, some have planned better than others. During the past five years, the County Commission levied $210 million less than what could have been levied if the same millage rate had been maintained.

Q. In addition to Broward County, who else taxes my property?

Look closely at your tax bill and you will see that your property is taxed by a number of entities. In addition to Broward County, your property is taxed by municipalities, the Broward County School Board, hospital districts, water districts, etc. In fact, more than 80 taxing authorities exist in Broward County with the authority to impose a tax on your property.  Because tax bills are sent out and collected by the County's Revenue Collection Division, many residents assume all of their taxes go to the County.

Q. How is Broward County preparing for reductions in property tax revenues?

During the 2008 budget cycle, a new process will be used to evaluate programs and services that are funded through the County's General Fund revenues. The new process is called Zero-Based Program Performance Outcome budgeting. It is a budget process that combines the features of a zero-based and a program performance outcome-based process to evaluate, justify and prioritize programs for funding. This type of budget process is being used by Broward County in formulating the 2008 budget, to ensure wise use of taxpayer dollars on programs and services. more...

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Q. What are the top state and federal mandated expenditures, and how do they impact the County's budget?

Many state and federal directives require local governments to provide services or programs without providing the appropriate monies or funding sources. These directives, which are known as “unfunded mandates,” can compromise a county or local government's ability to provide essential services that have been deemed appropriate by the local community. The Broward County Board of County Commissioners opposes any federal or state legislative actions that create an additional financial burden on local governments, as these “unfunded mandates” require resources that would otherwise be used to fund local needs and community services.

The top state mandated expenditures impact the County budget annually by approximately $63.6 million, or over .4 mills. The most costly mandates are:

The question of federal mandate impacts is a more difficult issue to quantify. In addition to the impacts of post 9/11 security costs, driven by federal and state mandates which Port Everglades and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport are addressing, there are these significant issues:

Detention costs – Approximately 25 percent of every tax dollar raised by Broward County goes to pay detention costs. These costs, $222 million, are driven by many factors including federal and state mandates. The County is under a federal consent decree which mandates that we operate under a jail population cap. This contributes to the County's need to expand the jail system, However, there are many other factors, including state sentencing guidelines, the requirement to house sentenced inmates up to a year instead of the prior six month period and a pre-trial system bogged down by state rules and regulations that contribute to increased costs in this area.

Federal Fair Labor Standards Act – In the 1980s the courts determined that the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) applied to government entities. This is the law that governs what positions receive overtime and the requirement that it is usually paid at 1.5 times the regular hourly rate. If it was permissible to pay overtime at the regular hourly rate, the County could save approximately $8 million in tax dollars primarily related to law enforcement services.

Americans with Disability Act – The ADA mandates that public entities provide paratransit services when the entity provides fixed route services. The current paratransit budget is approximately $24 million. In addition, the County has expended tens of millions of dollars on ADA-related physical improvements to buildings and other infrastructure to comply with the federal law. Unfortunately, the County cannot provide a precise number as these improvements have been made over many years. However, they are significant.

In addition to the state and federal mandates listed above, there were significant, unavoidable, escalating costs that impacted Broward County 's Fiscal Year 2007 budget. The most significant of these were $11 million in increased state-mandated retirement costs, $11 million in mandated tax increment payments to cities, $7 million in increased health care costs, $5.7 million in worker's compensation, $3.5 million in fuel costs, $3.3 million in utilities and $2.8 million in property insurance.

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