Hillsborough commissioners approve plan for transportation tax money to send to Tallahassee
HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. - Hillsborough County commissioners approved a wishlist of transportation projects to send to Tallahassee as local and state lawmakers try to determine how to use funds from the county's defunct transportation sales tax.
As part of this recent state budget proposal, Gov. Ron DeSantis is directing the Florida Department of Revenue to determine how to refund as much of the money as possible. Commissioners believe residents will need to provide the department with receipts to be eligible for a refund. The remainder of the revenue would be used for projects in Hillsborough County.
"We know from what the governor has said there will be a refund process," said Commissioner Harry Cohen. "Once that's complete, there really is no other alternative, in my view, but to use what's left for a good public purpose and I don't want to see the money not come back to Hillsborough County."
The county collected revenue from the one cent tax, which voters approved in 2018, for two years before the Florida Supreme Court determined it was illegal and struck it down.
The Department of Revenue requested funds that aren't refunded to taxpayers. In a 4-2 margin, with one commissioner abstaining, the board approved sending the state a list of projects, including road-widening and resurfacing work, along with sidewalk and bridge repairs.
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"We have major challenges related to growth, congestion and safety and in all of those areas, we have projects that are really shovel ready," Cohen said.
The majority of commissioners supported the governor's plan to try to refund money, although no one seemed to know how that process would work.
The Department of Revenue is being ordered to find a third-party administrator to handle it.
Commissioner Michael Owen, meanwhile, voiced concerns the commission may be getting ahead of itself by sending a project list to state leaders.
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"It's kind of like me taking money out of your pocket and a law enforcement officer saying that's his money, but go ahead and spend it anyways," Owen told FOX 13. "We kind of have a lot of nerve submitting this to the Department of Revenue. But I don't think it will carry any weight whatsoever with Tallahassee."
Owen put faith in the legislature determining how best to use the leftover funds.
"I want to caution us for signing up any type of proposal that works outside of that governor's spending plan," Owen said. "Let's put our faith behind our governor and behind our leadership in Tallahassee and let's just send correspondence to the Department of Revenue, because they're the ones that requested it, stating that we fully support the governor's position on how to spend this, our tax funds."