City Council Sets Tentative Tax Rate

Rising expenses and declining revenues prompted the Bradenton City Council to propose an increase in the tax rate for the 2011-12 budget year.

The City Council voted to increase the millage rate from 4.9542 to 5.2002 after realizing in the proposed budget. That rate is the maximum amount the City Council will consider as it works through the budget in the coming weeks.

The millage rate of $5.2002 on $1,000 of assessed value on a home, is considered the roll-up rate. The amount that will leave revenues flat after the taxable value of homes in Bradenton fell by 6.5 percent, according to Carl Callahan, the city clerk and treasurer.

The new rate would cost taxpayers about $20 for every $100,000 of taxable value on their homes, although not everyone will be impacted the same way because of the state's Save Our Homes tax program.

Currently the city brings in about $14.9 million in property tax revenue. Without the proposed increase, Callahan said, tax revenues will fall to $11.9 million in the coming year.

The city does bring in other revenues from things like telecommunications taxes, utility fees and federal grants, but even those are down, Callahan told the council.

The biggest chunk of the city's budget goes to public safety services, such as and . Under the budget proposal, city spending for public safety will remain at $20 million.

While the budget has remained the same, costs have gone up, and that has meant that the city has had to reduce the number of police officers and firefighters over the past couple years, said Mayor Wayne Poston.

That led to the city's decision to eliminate its heavy rescue truck because it does not have enough firefighters to keep the truck on the road and can not afford the overtime to make up the staffing.

"It was a very, very difficult decision," Callahan said. "But we already exceeded the overtime limits for the year."

Even if the city council approves the "roll-up tax rate" of 5.2002, other city services will still need to be cut, Callahan said.

Over the past four years, Callahan said, the city has cut other services by nearly $4 million, reducing expenses from $16.8 million to $12.9 million. The city has eliminated more than 100 positions in that time, bring staffing levels from 600 employees to 498.

"There's not a whole lot of room to reduce further," he said.

He said city employees have been cross-trained to do myriad jobs so that they can fill in while others are on vacation, out sick or just need a hand. But the cuts have left little room for further staffing reductions because city employees are already stretched.

"We have to take into account first and foremost the citizens of Bradenton," Callahan said. "We have to be efficient and effective."

Still the City Council isn't ready to embrace a tax increase. Several council members reiterated that the rollback rate is the cap on any tax increase in the city.

"Before I am willing to support this increase, I want to see more effort to solve our long-term spending problems," said Councilman Bemis Smith.

Vice Mayor Patrick Roff said that there is hope for the future because the city has positioned itself well for an economic recovery, and he believes that the recovery will begin soon in Bradenton.

The City Council set the dates for two public hearings on the proposed budget. The first public hearing will take place on Sept. 12 at 5:01 p.m. The second is scheduled for Sept. 21, also at 5:01 p.m.

The budget can be viewed online on the City of Bradenton's website.