Venice committee reviews 1-cent surtax revenues, budgets and major projects including Fire Station 2

Venice Finance Director Linda Sending told the Citizens Tax Oversight Committee on April 29 that the countywide 1¢ sales surtax remains the primary revenue source for the city’s surtax fund and presented actual revenues and expenditures for fiscal 2023–25, as well as planned projects.

The surtax revenues returned to Venice were $5.7 million in fiscal 2023 and about $5.8 million in fiscal 2024, Sending said. She told the committee the city also expects grant revenue in fiscal 2025, including a FEMA grant request of about $1.1 million for a fire-station generator and a $50,000 grant received from the Gulf Coast Community Foundation for an “Old Betsy” display building near the library and Venice Heritage Museum.

The surtax money, Sending said, is collected by businesses across Sarasota County and sent to the state, which redistributes the funds to the county and then to municipalities based on population. “That money goes to the state, then the state distributes it to Sarasota County based on the population,” Sending said.

Why it matters: city leaders are balancing a long list of capital projects against limited surtax proceeds and established reserve targets while design and final pricing for major projects remain pending. The committee heard that reserves, projected grant receipts, and possible debt will shape whether and how projects proceed.

Sending summarized how projects are selected and funded: the surtax is restricted to capital projects (not operating…