On election day, Lee County voters overwhelmingly voted for Amendment 3; property tax reform.The final tally was 199,877 yes votes and 90,186 no votes. The Lee County Board of Commissioners is the first to announce a workshop on the issue.
The details of what voters approved:
- In 2027, the homestead exemption will go from $50,000 to $150,000.
- In 2028, the homestead exemption goes from $150,000 to $250,000.
Most elected officials said the amendment was not well thought out. Voters disagreed.
77% of the voters on Fort Myers Beach voted YES for Amendment 3. Fort Myers Beach Town Manager Will McKannay and Mayor Dan Allers have said the impact to island residents will not be as bad as in other municipalities, like Cape Coral for example, where 91% of the properties are residential and a large chunk are homesteaded.
Lee County officials have said in 2027 they will face about a $100 million shortfall. That money can be made up through budget cuts including the elimination of jobs, higher fees, an increase in the millage rate, a cut in services, or a combination of all of them.
On Saturday, November 21st at 10AM, Lee County Commissioner David Mulicka will be our guest live at Margaritaville. We’ve also invited new Commissioner Amanda Cochrane on a future show and we’re hoping to have Commissioner Brian Hamman on tomorrow.
Lee County Commissioner Kevin Ruane was on Fox News Radio Wednesday. He said he’s going to push for zero-based budgeting and will announce more details of his plan Tuesday at the workshop. Here’s what Ruane told Trey Radel. “Everything and anything is on the table. We need to consolidate. We need to look at everything. We need to be more efficient. I want everyone to understand that there’s going to be a new day on Tuesday. We need to surgically go through this process item by item, one by one, and I’m confident the taxpayers will be happy with the outcome. I believe we have a plan. It will be radical. There will be many parts to it. And some people aren’t going to like some of my suggestions. But I have to do what the citizens of Lee County have asked me to do. Right now people are hiring, and I’ll do the best I can, and I’m looking forward to Tuesday.”
We will be at the Lee County workshop meeting and carry it live.
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