As our state’s economy continues to buckle under the strain of the Great Recession, Floridians have been forced to tighten their belts. However, even as many working families and small businesses struggle to make ends meet, a handful of well-funded lawyers and special interest groups are trying to pass an irresponsible amendment to our state constitution that would lead to painful property tax increases. The authors and proponents of Amendment 4 have spent several years and millions of dollars placing their reckless measure on the ballot. However, its spot in this November’s election is particularly alarming given Florida’s struggling economy and depressed fiscal environment.
Even as city budgets decline and local government services are cut to accommodate drastic reductions in revenue, Amendment 4 would require Florida’s taxpayers to fund hundreds of costly referenda each year. In the last four years alone, this amendment would have required an average of over 10,599 additional local votes per year in Florida. In larger counties, special elections can cost millions of dollars each and even if amendments were rolled onto existing ballots, the costs would quickly spiral out of control. According to the Orlando Sentinel, “The cost to local governments of including the land-use amendments on ballots would soar into the millions.”
The result, according to a Washington Economics Group study released in January, would be to “force local and state governments to either raise taxes or cut services.” Ultimately, the study notes, “Public schools, public safety and local health care services would suffer from both the direct impact of Amendment 4 (delay construction until the next election) and the indirect impact of fewer tax revenues from which to fund needed operations and capital investments.”
And that is what already happened in one small, Florida town. St. Pete Beach was forced to raise property tax rates after adopting a local version of Amendment 4 in 2006. Their economy, hindered by an impossible growth management process, has suffered greatly. What’s more, when St. Pete Beach voters approved four pro-growth changes to their comprehensive land use plan in 2008, Amendment 4 lawyers sued to overturn the results of the election. To date, the taxpayers of St. Pete Beach have shouldered over half-a-million dollars in legal fees tied to their local version of Amendment 4; they are still defending their vote in court. However, the costs to St. Pete Beach—a small town of only 10,000 residents—would pale in comparison to the cost of imposing this measure upon every community in Florida.
Now, more than ever, we need to avoid the kind of short-sighted, anti-jobs thinking that is exemplified by Amendment 4. When our economy is struggling to regain its vitality, the last thing we need is an amendment that will impede, rather than promote, progress. We must not let Amendment 4 and its supporters erect a roadblock to economic recovery. For more information on Amendment 4 or Citizens for Lower Taxes and A Stronger Economy, please visit www.florida2010.org.
RYAN HOUCK is the Executive Director of Citizens for Lower Taxes and A Stronger Economy.
