- October 13, 2024
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The Flagler County Commission wants to lower the tax burden on local homeowners, and options range from levying additional sales tax to reducing the county government’s legacy expenses.
In a meeting Jan. 17, County Administrator Heidi Petito presented a list of possibilities for the board to consider ahead of the 2023-2024 fiscal year.
The options are ways to reduce the General Fund millage rate, Petito said. The commission can choose one, some or none of the options over the next few months.
State law restricts how much the county can levy in taxes, but in most cases, the county’s current tax levies are at or below the permitted amounts.
For example, Flagler County can levy up to 2% in discretionary sales tax; it currently levies half of one percent. Fifty-one of Florida’s 67 counties levy 1% to 1.5%, according to Petito’s presentation.
Increasing the sales tax would take some of the tax burden off residents, since sales taxes are also paid by visitors.
“I think we really ought to look hard at the half-cent sales tax, because I think it’s a fairer tax overall,” Commissioner David Sullivan said.
Flagler County levies 0.5% in additional small county surtax — for operational expenses — and 0.5% in local government infrastructure surtax. The revenue is also divided among the municipalities.
The county can also levy up to a 1% Emergency Fire Rescue Services and Facilities surtax, but doing so would require voter approval through a referendum. The revenue would be shared with Palm Coast and Flagler Beach.
“It makes sense that we need something,” Sullivan said. “But what’s the fairest way to do [it]?”
The Flagler County Health Department also gave an update to the commission, asking for funding to repair facilities and expand services.
The county can levy up to 0.5 mills to support the Health Department, Petito said. Doing so would raise the millage rate, but would also provide dedicated funding for the upkeep of the Health Department’s facilities, she said.
Currently, the county provides the Health Department with 0.04 mills of revenue, totaling $500,000. If the county raises the amount to 0.1 mills, the department could receive more than twice as much property tax revenue.
