By Marvin G. Cortner
Editor

Voters Nov. 2 will decide whether to authorize Osceola County government to collect up to a 1 percent sales surtax beginning Jan. 1 to support transportation systems.

The County Commission Monday agreed to put the measure before voters in the form of a referendum; a simple majority would be needed for the measure to pass.

The county, by interlocal agreement, could share the revenue with the cities of Kissimmee and St. Cloud or even a county expressway authority. A 1 percent tax could generate more than $35 million annually.

Only two county governments in Florida – Miami-Dade and Duval – now collect this surtax, and the amount is 0.5 percent in both cases, according to county documents presented Monday.

The county already has a 1 percent local government infrastructure surtax, which is shared with the two cities and the Osceola County School District. Osceola County gets about 54 percent of the revenue from this tax, or about $19.1 million annually. A new surtax would not be shared with the School District.

The money could be used to fund a variety of transportation projects, from building new roads and funding SunRail to refinancing existing bond debt.

“It’s going to go down in flames,” Commissioner Chairman Fred Hawkins Jr. said when asked whether he thought voters might approve the surtax. “We wanted it on the ballot to let the voters decide.”

The additional revenue would help the county fund road and other projects at a time when transportation impact fees resulting from new development and property tax revenue have fallen dramatically due to the recession.

County officials earlier this year also discussed but took no action on whether to ask voters to approve an additional gas tax to fund transportation systems.

Second referendum headed to voters

Commissioners Monday also unanimously passed a resolution calling for a referendum on the Nov. 2 ballot asking voters for the authority to grant property tax exemptions for economic development purposes.

The tax exemptions would be used as incentives for businesses new to the county or to ones already in the county that are expanding and adding jobs.

Approval of the ballot measure also would require a simple majority.

New county manager

Commissioners Monday also unanimously approved a contract for Don Fisher as county manager. Fisher has been interim manager since the firing of Michael Freilinger April 4.

Commissioners said staff morale had improved since Fisher took over and that the relationship between the top three positions in the county – the manager, the auditor (Kathy Wall) and the attorney (Jo Thacker) – had improved.