Tampa Bay tax rates hold or decrease, but homeowners may still pay more
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Tampa Bay's largest cities and counties either lowered or maintained property tax rates, but homeowners could still see higher tax bills due to rising property values.
Why it matters: Between Florida's rising cost of living, state and local inquiries into city and county spending, and a potential property tax overhaul on the horizon due to Amendment 3, all eyes are on local coffers and the elected officials who control them.
Pinellas County: After eliminating dozens of county jobs, reducing nonprofit grant funding and other programs and raising beach parking rates, commissioners landed at the county's lowest property tax rate since 1989.
- County residents will pay about $4.50 for every $1,000 of assessed taxable value for the fiscal year that began Thursday.
- The Republican-majority board was eager to push the rate down further and hinted at tougher budget scrutiny to come.
Case in point: If his colleagues elect him chair, vice chair Chris Latvala told Axios that he plans to form a citizen advisory committee to examine the budget and make recommendations to the commission.
- It would be modeled after a similar committee in Hillsborough, he said.
St. Petersburg: City Council members maintained last year's property tax rate of about $6.45 for every $1,000 of assessed taxable value.
- Due to rising property values, that will bring in $14.8 million more in revenue than last year, the St. Pete Catalyst reported.
- City administrators previously said the extra revenue was needed for hurricane recovery, among other financial pressures.
What's next: St. Pete voters in November will cast their ballots for mayor and to approve or deny the city levying an additional property tax to expedite infrastructure upgrades — both issues that could impact next year's tax bills.
Hillsborough County: Commissioners approved a property tax rate of about $5.36 for every $1,000 of taxable value, down 10 cents from about $5.46 last year.
- For homeowners in unincorporated Hillsborough County, those savings are offset by a 10-cent increase in a separate tax that pays for services in those areas, leaving the combined rate unchanged.
- The shift is expected to net the unincorporated fund about $11 million to help meet growing demand for services there.
City of Tampa: City Council members kept the city's property tax rate at $6.21 for every $1,000 of taxable value, the same as last year.
- Even though it did not change, many homeowners could still wind up paying more because property values rose. The city's adopted tax rate is 2.3% above the rate needed to keep revenue flat.