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Sarasota County keeps millage assumption flat as state legislative changes threaten local revenues
Summary
County officials presented FY‑24 results and a preliminary fiscal‑year‑26 outlook, asking the Board to hold its millage‑rate assumption steady while staff watches multiple state proposals — including a proposed sales‑tax cut and study of property‑tax elimination — that could change county revenue projections.
Sarasota County Administrator Rob Lewis told the Board of County Commissioners on March 27 that staff is building the FY‑26 budget on the assumption that the county will keep its millage rate flat and not add new broad‑based taxes, while continuing to plan for operating costs from planned capital projects.
That assumption, Lewis and Office of Financial Management Director Kim Radke said, is important because the county must advertise a not‑to‑exceed millage rate under the state Truth in Millage process; once advertised, the board can set a lower rate but generally cannot adopt a higher one without restarting the process.
The county’s budgeting framework also includes five‑year planning for operating costs tied to capital projects, Radke said. Staff is estimating operating costs for projects such as the Seventeenth Street Regional Park, the Longboat Key library opening and the Regional…
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