- February 6, 2025
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New Smyrna Beach is the final city the county is waiting on to pass or not pass a resolution that would allow for a referendum to be added to the November ballot giving residents a chance to vote on a half-cent sales tax that would be meant for infrastructure improvements.
All 16 cities in Volusia County have already been asked to pass a resolution to add the half-cent sales tax proposal to the ballot.
Oak Hill was the most recent city to pass the referendum with a unanimous vote made on Monday, March 12, the same day a roundtable meeting was held where city leaders met to discuss the potential sales tax.
For Oak Hill Mayor Douglas Gibson, the issue he sees with the tax is the funding distribution.
"The bigger cities deserve the lion's share, I have no problem with that, but I think with the attitude that it's already been passed, it's already been done, state statute gives the authority to the county to enter into inter-local agreements on funding from what's generated," Gibson said. "It doesn't have to go back to the managers. It all stops with the county. They are charged by statute to distribute the funds."
In Port Orange, City Council members are hoping to give voters the chance to decide whether or not they want a half-cent sales tax for the next 20 years.
During the Tuesday, Feb. 20, City Council meeting, council members voted 5-0 approving a resolution.
Roads are a major concern and county council members want funds from the tax to go toward projects such as lane expansion. According to Volusia County Councilwoman Joyce Cusack, the cost of a new two lane road is around $4.8 million per mile marker, which means expanding to four lanes would bump the number up to around $5 million per mile marker.
The surtax would also go toward projects to assist with water quality and stormwater management.
The tax increase is predicted to generate $45 million throughout the county with 40% of that revenue generated by tourists. Port Orange is estimated to receive $3,415,331 in one fiscal year —a little over 7% of the total.
Port Orange resident and President of the Lodging and Hospitality Association of Volusia County Bob Davis said he supports the tax. According to Davis, within the last 15 years, hospitality contributed $186 million of the half-penny sales tax.
"With the new hotels and all that's happened in Volusia County, you know that's going to be a lot more, Davis said.
Mayor Don Burnette said that while the tax's formula isn't perfect, his job is to make sure voters get to decide what will happen.
"We spend about $800,000 a year just maintaining and paving roads and really need to be spending about 1.2, but that's half a million dollars short because we don't get enough money from the gas tax," Burnette said. "We'll be able to start paving roads at the pace we're supposed to and start doing projects at the pace we're supposed to."
Volusia County Chairman Ed Kelley said that while Gibson questioned the formula for sharing the revenue, it's the same formula that's used right now by any sales tax that's collected.
"The 10 million people that we're expected to have this year to come into the Daytona Beach area will be paying a big part of the money that's collected," Kelley said. "With the half-cent I think that's very important."
