At a June meeting, the Hillsborough County Charter Review Board voted to ask the county to make fuller financial-impact information for proposed ballot measures available in a single, easy-to-find place on the county website and to work with the county budget office on a standard template for such statements.

Board members said the request responds to an existing gap between the succinct financial-impact language currently in the county charter and the longer, term-based revenue estimates voters often need to evaluate long-duration taxes. Mary Helen Ferris of the county attorney’s office told the board, “There is a a court case and an attorney general's opinion that says the financial impact statement required in the election code only applies to state constitutional amendments and that they're preempted. So there's nothing we can do to have the language, the financial impact statement on the ballot.”

The board’s resolution, moved by Beth Latham, directs staff and the board’s attorney to meet with budget office personnel to draft a recommended template that would capture key items such as current rate, effective date, projected revenue over the full term of the measure and an estimate of average household impact. Latham moved the measure with the proviso that the draft template be reviewed by board counsel and county budget staff before the resolution is finalized. The motion passed on an affirmative voice vote with members saying “aye.”

Board members explained why they want a template and centralized web access. Members said current charter language limits the financial statement to a short, two-year estimate and a small word count if the text appears on a ballot; that limitation can leave out longer-term revenue projections and per-household estimates. Member Roche cited the 2018 transportation tax as an example: he said the number publicized then as roughly $9 billion reflected a shorter horizon, while extending to the full term yielded a larger total. Board members said state audits (OPPAGA) and the required audits of recipients do not provide long-term revenue projections and so do not substitute for a forward-looking fiscal summary for voters.

The resolution asks that fiscal impact statements, project lists and cost/benefit material be placed in one prominent location on hillsboroughcounty.org and that the budget office meet with the board next month to explain its process for preparing financial-impact statements and any existing templates.

The board agreed to return a draft resolution for formal consideration at a future meeting after staff and counsel meet with the budget office; members also agreed to revisit a charter amendment later if needed.