HOLMES BEACH – Commissioners passed the final reading and public hearing for the 2022-23 fiscal year budget with only days to spare and a major hurricane close to making landfall just to the city’s south.
City leaders had set Sept. 27 as the date of the second and final vote and public hearing for the new budget ahead of the Oct. 1 start of the fiscal year, however, the arrival of Hurricane Ian and a mandatory evacuation notice for Anna Maria Island upset those plans. To keep the meeting plans on track, commissioners met at city hall but the public was allowed to participate and speak through Zoom.
Commissioners voted 4-1, with Commissioner Jayne Christenson dissenting, to pass both the proposed 2.07 millage rate and the $25,336,242 proposed break-even budget.
The 2.07 millage rate is less than the previous 2.25 millage rate, however, it still creates a 6.1% increase for taxpayers over last year’s numbers due to increases in property values over the past year.
The new budget accounts for $260,605 in mayor and commission spending, $1,725,857 in general government expenses, $793,646 to fund the city’s code compliance department, $5,105,342 in funding for the Holmes Beach Police Department, $3,794,994 in public works expenses and $1,358,154 to fund the building department. Other expenditures include $2,919,647 from the collected stormwater utility fees, $11,000 from the fifth-cent gas tax, $725,925 from the half-cent tax and $6,375,912 in carryover and reserve funds.
Revenue sources include $888,163 in state resources, $11,852,380 from local sources, including taxes paid by property owners, and $12,595,699 in carryover and reserves.
Christenson said she was voting against the millage rate and budget because she feels that the city could “do better” and reduce taxes for city property owners further than the .18 cut in the millage rate.
Commissioner Kim Rash, who is not running for re-election in November, said he hopes that future commissions can do more to reduce the financial burden on taxpayers.
Mayor Judy Titsworth said there’s only so much that city leaders can do considering infrastructure and other city-wide repairs and replacements that need to be made as quickly as possible to combat the rising demand on roads, sewers, storm drains, water and other resources, along with increases in tourist populations that require more police officers to keep city streets safe. However, she added that city staff members are constantly seeking out other funding sources, including grant opportunities, to reduce the monies needed from taxpayers.
