Audubon to water management district: raise taxes

The St. Johns River Water Management District voted to adopt its rolled-back millage rate of 0.1974 and a budget of $163.7 million for the 2022-2023 fiscal year during the first of two public hearings on the tax rate and millage. A second public hearing is scheduled later.

The district’s Director of Financial Services: Victoria Kroger, proposed that the district adopt the rolled-back rate, dropping the millage from 0.2189 mils in the current year to 0.1974 for 2022-2023. Kroger said taxable property values within the district’s 18-county area increased by $13.2 billion this year.

The rolled-back rate is the millage at which the district would collect the same amount in property taxes as the prior year, considering increases in assessed values. Over the past several years, the district has adopted the rolled-back rate, reducing its millage rate as property values have increased.

Chris Farrell of Florida Audubon asked the board to keep its current rate at 0.2189 mils rather than rolling it back to 0.1974.

He told board members that although the district does good work, it could do more with a bigger budget.

“This tradition that started over many years now of rolling back rates,” he said, “Audubon advocates that we let that end and just keeping the tax rate the same, not an increase but keeping the millage rate the same, would allow you to accommodate and have the budget grow to meet not only the challenges that we face but the inflationary and economic pressures that the district faces.”