In an attempt to enforce more control and potential budget cuts on local administrations across Florida, the state’s Governor, Ron DeSantis, has prominently featured Manatee County. Leveraging his recently gained state authority to audit local government expenditures, DeSantis hosted a press conference in Bradenton to discuss his strategies to lower local property taxes for Florida’s residents.
The Governor was explicit that his approach would kick off by partnering with local governments, like Manatee County, who are willing to collaborate in the evaluation process. However, he clarified that his team is vigorously finding out legal provisions to mandate the inspections on local governments who tend to contest these efforts. This model, according to the Governor, will be mirrored by state agencies as well as Florida-based universities.
An executive order from Governor DeSantis established the Florida State Department of Government Efficiency, which was given the mission to optimize government spending through auditing local government bodies, educational institutions, and universities. He also sought backing from the legislative leaders to sanction the authority to the aforementioned department, allowing them to run scrutiny and oversight operations of local governments within this year’s financial plan.
Taking the lead in these efforts will be Blaise Ingoglia, the newly appointed acting state Chief Financial Officer. With this legislative power, his Office of Policy and Budget has been granted the ability to audit the financial accounts of any local governing body for the prior two fiscal years. This review focuses particularly on the spending associated with Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) schemes, excessive spending, fraudulent or wasteful activities, and any overlapping spending.
Local governments are now mandated to provide relevant government bodies with access to their staff, budget professionals, premises, and data systems within the span of seven working days upon request. Failure to comply with these stipulations by the local governments can lead to the state imposing fines of $1,000 every day for each distinct breach.
DeSantis acknowledged Manatee County’s commendable efforts in reducing its property taxes over recent years. However, he also indicated that issues regarding county spending have been raised from several quarters. According to him, the tax receipts of Manatee County rose by 86% in the past six fiscal years, which amounts to a considerable $213 million hike in collected property taxes. However, the population saw an increase of just about 14% during the same period.
Moreover, Governor DeSantis was critical of Manatee County for hoarding a substantial amount in reserves – an amount he approximates at $734 million. Across local governments, DeSantis cited the method of leveraging surging property values as a tool to amass additional taxes rather than reducing tax rates, as a critical cause of concern.
Manatee County Commissioner, Carol Felts, in her first year, expressed to the Herald-Tribune that the board is ready and receptive for making structural adjustments for a leaner budget. Along similar lines, the board recently passed a resolution to raise the impact fees on new structures, aiming to alleviate the tax load on local residents.
With regard to property tax collections in the previous fiscal year, figures suggest that counties, cities, school boards, and special districts of Florida gathered more than $55 billion – which is more than twice the amount collected in 2014. State records reveal that this is a striking 46% increase compared to what was collected across the state just four years ago.
Despite the criticism by state Republican leaders regarding the surge in local spending, local governments justified these expenditure increases citing indispensable services such as law enforcement, fire protection, and several others as the contributing factors for driving up costs.
In the larger scheme, Governor DeSantis’ plan is to bring more financial transparency, efficiency, and control over spending in local government bodies throughout Florida. He emphasized the significance of adapting a more frugal approach to the administrative functions, which is essential for achieving a balanced budget, while ensuring that the public funds are optimally utilized and not wasted.
Looking ahead, under DeSantis’ plan, local governments that are cooperative and produce measurable results in financial efficiency may set an example for other counties. The state-wide initiative aimed at reducing the excess spending in public sectors will hopefully lead to substantial budget cuts and a more efficient use of taxpayers’ money.
Overall, Governor DeSantis’ approach signals a new policy direction that seeks to strike a balance between the need for public services and the budget constraints faced by Florida’s local governments. While the plan has been met with enthusiasm by some, only time will tell if it’s able to reduce waste and achieve the desired outcomes without compromising on essential local services.
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