Good News in Homestead: Reduced Property Tax Rate for 2014

According to the Miami Herald, on July 31st The Homestead City Council unanimously voted to advertise via the state-mandated letter known as a "TRIM Notice" a reduce the city tax millage rate to $5.9215 from last year’s rate of $6.2435 per $1,000 of taxable property for the 2013-2014 budget starting on Oct. 1.  The advertised rate sets the ceiling millage rate and they can only further reduce it.

If the advertised rate becomes final, the owner of a $170,000 home would pay about $728, down from $749 this year. These figures assume the owner qualifies for the standard $50,000 homestead exemption, and that the home’s taxable value increased by 1.7 percent, the maximum allowed this year for an owner-occupied home.

The council will hold two public hearings on the budget: 5:30 p.m. on Sept. 11 and 5 p.m. on Sept. 25 at the William F. Dickinson Community Center.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/08/02/3539223/homestead-looking-at-lower-property.html#storylink=cpy

Homestead looking at lower property-tax rate - Homestead / South Dade - MiamiHerald.com

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Humbled Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez Makes 180 Degree Turn on Proposed Tax Hike!

A contrite and humbled County Mayor, Carlos Gimenez, admits to making a misstep with a 930-page budget proposal to hike county taxes this coming Fall.  We at Homestead is Home (HIH) called him out as a flip-flopper which appears he got wind of it since he mentioned it during his recent speech.  Mind you we did Tweet it directly @MayorGimenez so it appears to have resonated with him.  However, that's what he would've been had he stuck to his tax hike.  You see we at HIH did not forget his pledge to reduce county government.  The bloated government behemoth that usurps the citizens hard earned dollars to fund the lavish salaries of the well connected and their families in this county.  The reorganization effort the Mayor undertook was noteworthy but fell short of reducing the actual numbers of staff in county government.  It's not enough to rearrange the chairs and shuffle staff from one office to the other, the Mayor must get rid of obsolete departments and continue to consolidate others.  He must accelerate the implementation of technological advances to make county government more of a self-service approach for the citizens. Only by reducing actual positions can county government maintain let alone reduce taxes. Attrition also works yet very slowly since it appears every county worker is holding on the sweet deal they've grown accustomed to at the county taxpayers' expense.  Fact is if there was a better deal out in the private sector they would've taken it already.  Don't believe the hype when they cry out for higher pay and benefits since someone else just as qualified is waiting to take the job for so much less if given a chance.

County Mayor Carlos Gimenez Flip-Flops on Tax Rate Hike! @miamidadecounty @MayorGimenez @MiamiDadeFire City of... http://t.co/xnzIHDM1Sb
— Homestead is Home (@HomesteadisHome) July 16, 2013

Reference Articles:
Miami-Dade mayor calls his proposal to hike tax rate a political ‘misstep’ - Miami-Dade - MiamiHerald.com

County Mayor Carlos Gimenez Flip-Flops on Tax Rate Hike!

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Homestead Schools' Grades are IN!

Excerpt from Miami Herald article:  Florida school grades drop under new formula.

Even though student test scores have held steady — and are in some cases rising — Florida has a record-high 107 F-rated schools this year, state education leaders announced on Friday.

That has put supporters of Florida’s A-to-F grading system on the defensive. And the total number of failing schools only stands to get larger, as letter grades for high schools and some combination schools haven’t been tabulated yet.

The drop in school grades is a result of dozens of changes to the school-grading formula in recent years, at least some of which made it more difficult for schools to perform well. The state says it is “raising the bar” to make sure students are fully prepared for college or a career, but the constantly shifting standards have left school districts and school administrators crying foul.

“If you look at the key indicators, we did go up,” said Kathleen John-Louissaint, principal of Morningside K-8 Academy in Miami. “We are doing well … the grade doesn’t really reflect what we’re really doing as a school.”

Miami-Dade Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said, “There is no validity necessarily attached to this year’s A, B, C, D or F.”

School Grades Reference:  Miami Hearld
Source:  Florida Department of Education

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County Mayor Carlos Gimenez Flip-Flops on Tax Rate Hike!

Six days and six nights have passed and it's hard to keep track of County Mayor Carlos Gimenez' tax rate fumble.  One day he wants to raise the taxes to ensure firefighters and librarians keep their jobs and turning Miami-Dade county into a domestic pet sanctuary.  The next he wants to forgo county services and layoff some folks.  So which is it?
 I mean was he so out of touch with the taxpayer that he actually proposed a tax increase in one of the poorest counties in the country.  Lets not forget that our median income is $44,000 for a family of four.  I tend to repeat this over and over because people forget often due to the massive fraud perpetrated by the people in South Florida where "Fake It 'til You Make It" is a continuous running theme.
We shouldn't hold our breath though, Mayor Gimenez may have genuinely had an epiphany and back tracked his tax increase proposal, but given that it has only been six days we at HIH figure we'd give him until the end of the month to know for certain where he stands on the tax rate issue. Remember your pledge Mayor Gimenez we surely wont let you forget!

Miami-Dade mayor flips on property-tax rate hike, will cut services instead - Miami-Dade - MiamiHerald.com

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2013 City Council Election: Show me the Money!

In support of transparency in the political process HIH is providing insight into the campaign finances of the candidates for the City Council next November.  If the cash on hand is an indicator of who will be in office you will readily discern who will win.  While money by itself wont sweep candidates into office it surely helps to get them there.   Click on the names of the candidates to see the Campaign Treasurer's Report Summary for Quarter 2.
We figure there is more money yet to be doled out by the campaign contributors but may be waiting on the sidelines until after the Primary that will be necessary for the Mayor and Council Seat 4 (Southwest).  We're also still waiting for Jeff Porter's and James Wyatt's to file their respective reports.




Mayor:
Steven Bateman
Mark Bell 
Jeff Porter (not available)
Dr. Joseph G. Sewell

Council Seat 1 (Northwest)
Stephen Shelley
James Wyatt (not available)

Council Seat 4 (Southwest)

Jimmy L. Williams III 

Rochenel Marc

Ezzard C. Horn

Norman L. Hodge Jr.

Council Seat 5 (Malibu Bay/Waterstone)

Elvis R. Maldonado

Nazaria (Nazy) Ramallo Sierra

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FPL’s Transmission Lines on US1 or Bust?

The largest purveyor of electricity and political contributions, Florida Power and Light (FPL), is adamant  about getting its way when it comes to laying out new transmission lines along US1 and Everglades National Park. So much so they now influence the Public Service Commission (PSC) to the point where all commissioners have a utilities background.   Never mind a Governor that is a large recipient  of FPL's campaign contributions.  When former PSC chairwoman Nancy Argenziano resigned in the fall of 2010, she delivered a stinging criticism of the panel: "The PSC is a revolving door with the utilities it regulates" as reported by the Herald Tribune.
 Now the inevitable is happening for FPL has strategically placed itself as a mover and shaker in politics whereby only friendly to utilities PSC commissioners are appointed so it's no wonder they feel embolden to discount and literally ignore the local municipalities and their elected leaders with their plan to install new transmission lines.   It's up to the citizens of the affected cities and Kendall to rise up and be heard.  2014 is an election year and Governor Rick Scott wants to get elected badly even if he's not the most likable politician.  If our local leaders play their cards right they might just get their way to this electrifying affair.

Reference Links:
Herald Tribune - Analysis of Florida PSC

FPL’s plan to place transmission lines along U.S. 1 and the Everglades jolts several communities - Coral Gables - MiamiHerald.com

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Too Many Chiefs & Not Enough Subordinates at Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Dept.

I reported a few days ago that County Mayor Carlos Gimenez was welching on his promise to cut the fat at County Hall.  By cutting the fat we mean getting rid of duplicate and unnecessary positions that have a meaningful impact on the county budget.  We didn't mean performing a reorganization tantamount to moving the chairs around, eliminating empty positions and calling it a day.

Only one day has passed and Commissioner Xavier Suarez has revealed to the County Mayor, an ex-Fire Chief for the City of Miami, I might add, that the Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Department has 75 Chiefs.  He goes on to detail an analysis whereby there are more supervisors in the department than necessary for the amount of subordinates they oversee.  To add insult to injury these supervisors make between $100K-$200K per year.  For a county where the median income is $44K for a family of four, that is some serious money.

HIH calls on the County Mayor to do more than pay lip service to the taxpayers of this county and cut the fat at the Fire Department.  We understand the "brotherhood" of Fire Fighters and all that jazz but it's time to honor the pledge made to the citizens he made to get elected.  Below is the letter from Xavier Suarez courtesy of the Eye on Miami blog.

Reference Links:
CBS4
EoM

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