ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. – Commissioners at St. Augustine Beach will hold a financial budget hearing Thursday night. One of the main topics of discussion will be property taxes.
Some want to keep the city's current millage rate, while others want it to be lower.
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Several homeowners said they were OK with their current property taxes. At the last budget meeting, the commission opted to keep the millage rate at the current figure, 2.3992 mills, but that could change at the meeting.
St. Augustine Beach Commissioner Maggie Kostka, who plans to attend the hearing, knows local politics, but as a small business owner, she also gets property taxes. She said she wants to see the millage rate rolled back to what it used to be -- 2.2357 mills.
"Before you ask our citizens to put more money into the pockets of our city, we need to find ways to cut expenses so we don't have to constantly do that," Kostka said.
News4Jax checked with the city and found many reasons for keeping property taxes the same. A big part of it has to do with putting more money into the city's reserves, which the city said took a hit after Hurricanes Matthew and Irma.
Another reason is to make sure the city of St. Augustine Beach is in a stronger financial position moving forward.
Another reason is to pay for repairs to a retention pond on Mizell Road that partially collapsed during Hurricane Irma. A preliminary estimate puts that cost at about $250,000.
So, what exactly does that mean for the homeowner in terms of dollars?
For example, if your home is appraised at $200,000, homeowners would save about $30 per year, according to the city. This is if the millage rate rolled back to 2.2357.
In a report posted online, the city manager told the commission that rolling back the millage rate would reduce the General Fund budget by more than $135,000. The administration doesn't see how this can be done without affecting services, such as law enforcement and the Public Works Department.
For Kostka, keeping a higher property tax isn't the answer to the city's issues.
"Learn how to work with what you have in the best way that you can," said Kostka.
Kostka said money from FEMA will also help St. Augustine Beach build up its reserves. For now, she says FEMA money has not come in yet with Hurricane Matthew.
The budget hearing was scheduled to start at 5 p.m. Thursday in St. Augustine Beach.