Voters may determine sales tax hike
Osceola County may OK special election; extra penny would hit state cap of 8.5 cents
In a move to repair and build new roads in one of Florida’s fastest-growing counties, Osceola County voters may be asked to assess themselves the highest sales tax in the state.
For that decision to reach the ballot box, county commissioners must sign off on the plan at a public hearing Monday.
County Manager Don Fisher said the potential windfall of money — about $68 million per year — would help bridge a $1.1 billion deficit in funding for roads.
"With our current revenue sources, we could afford to do about one road project every 10 years, and we have 24 roads that need to be widened,” Fisher told GrowthSpotter.
If commissioners opt to move forward at a public hearing 5:30 p.m. Monday, a special election would be scheduled for May 21, the ordinance reads.
In Osceola County, shoppers already pay a sales tax of 7.5 cents — higher than Lake, Orange and Seminole counties — and an extra penny would bring it up to the state cap of 8.5 cents. Hillsborough is the state’s only county to reach the threshold.
The sales tax is 7 cents in Lake, Orange and Seminole counties. In Florida, the state issues a 6-cent tax and counties have the option of implementing up to an additional 2.5 cents.
But in Osceola, the added money, likely totaling more than $2 billion over the 30-year life of the tax, could cover upgrades to roads and bridges, expand public transit, improve traffic signals to reduce rush-hour bottlenecks, improve intersections and make roads safer for pedestrians and bicyclists.
Recently, voters across the state have decided to tax themselves extra in order to improve infrastructure and commutes.
In November, voters in Hillsborough, Broward and Collier counties approved an additional penny to cover transportation counties.
Collier’s tax, approved by a 51-49 margin, also can be used on a mental-health facility and a technical training center.
Hillsborough County voters took their sales tax to the maximum 8.5 cents by adding a penny for transportation and a half-cent for schools.
Osceola voters could join those in Volusia County May 21 in deciding whether to boost transportation funding. The Volusia proposal would add a half penny.
If approved for the ballot by Osceola commissioners, voters will go to the polls to decide the tax in an unusual May election.
Daniel Smith, a University of Florida political science professor, said turnout would be lower in a special election but that historically conservative voters are more likely to turn out to vote on issues involving tax increases.
“We know that lower-income individuals are more likely to ride public transportation and they’re less likely to turn out to vote,” Smith said. “If they wanted to assure passage of this, they’d wait until the presidential primary in 2020.”
Fisher told GrowthSpotter the county would go to any Rotary club or homeowners associations to educate the electorate.
"I think three months is enough time to educate the public about the need," he said.
County officials said projects could include those on the MetroPlan Orlando’s long-range plan, including installing adaptive travel time and signal system technology and widening roads in the traffic-plagued county.
Also, pedestrian safety initiatives could be included in an area ranked the nation’s deadliest for walkers.
These improvements are typically covered by a combination of the county’s mobility fee, state and federal grants and another penny of the sales tax that is split among several entities.
In 2015, Osceola raised its fuel tax by a nickel to fund infrastructure and last year nearly doubled its mobility fee.