Is it worth $250 of savings a year to lose some emergency services?

[Qacer]

I don't know the entire details regarding Amendment 1. I saw this on Baynews9.com: http://www.baynews9.com/content/36/2008/1/8/315391.html .

I'm trying to find out some more info, but as of now, my question is: referring to the overall picture, will $250 of savings a year per homeowner justify the millions of dollars lost on tax revenues that could go to various county services that probably has benefits on everyone?

I'm waiting for the property appraiser to post his answers on Baynews9, so I can find out more.

What's your opinion on Amendment 1?

[jabtay]

eh..they will compensate by writing more tickets

[Joe]

I'm trying to find out some more info, but as of now, my question is: referring to the overall picture, will $250 of savings a year per homeowner justify the millions of dollars lost on tax revenues that could go to various county services that probably has benefits on everyone?


What did they do in 2004 to protect us when tax income was WAY less then it it now, even with the "reduction" (which personally I think is an insult) ???

[2MuchDuctTape]

eh..they will compensate by writing more ticketsDude that avatar is hilarious!:lol:

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

But Pinellas County's budget director projects a higher loss.

"We feel based on the preliminary estimates that we have right now, the impact's going to be more like $40 to $50 million," said budget director John Woodruff.



Boo hoo. Pinellas County collected $436,000,000 in property taxes for 2007 and had a budget of $1,927,158,030. Yes folks, that is correct. Pinellas County's budget for 2007 was nearly 2 billion dollars.

That 40 million Mr. Woodruff is whining about (most of which will be recouped in sales taxes when the homeowners spend the savings) comes to about 2% of the budget.

www.pinellascounty.org

This bill appears to be a step in the right direction. The government should not be allowed to assess value, they should only be allowed to base taxes on actual sale and purchase value.

[nipster]

The reason they are in this situation is because of Save our homes... it is fucking up the system. People pay tax on 1970's and 80's values and the rest of us have to pay for the difference.

If everyone was taxed at the same rate (actual VALUE), then the millage rate would be much much lower, resulting in real tax savings.

Its not rocket science here, the fucking rest of the country does it, why does Florida have this wacked out system of caps and homestead exemptions

the assholes who have owned their houses (and/or land) for 20 or more years are not paying their fair share. Fuck, I can blame my parents too, they bought their property (20 acres in pasco) in the 70's, built their house on it, and pay about HALF of what I pay for my 4br/2.5b in citrus park

what the fuck is that all about?

I pay about 4500 a year in taxes, this 250 derease due to doubling the HE is a fucking joke, plus (hidden in the fine print) they can re-asses your home, they dont tell you that. The system will be even MORE fucked up. And the fact that homestead would be portable, makes NO fucking sense, the assholes who have owned their house for 30 years will continue to fuck things up by not paying on the real value of their homes

[TampaDude]

Ask me again why I'm a renter??? :D

[Treysdad]

I don't have any issues whatsoever with how much I pay in property taxes nor do I take issue with someone trying to save me a few bucks. I love being a homeowner. Best decision I ever made in my life. Period!

[TampaDude]

I don't have any issues whatsoever with how much I pay in property taxes nor do I take issue with someone trying to save me a few bucks. I love being a homeowner. Best decision I ever made in my life. Period!

So...are you going to vote yes or no on 1?

[Treysdad]

So...are you going to vote yes or no on 1?

I don't...errrrrrrr can't vote.

[TampaDude]

I don't...errrrrrrr can't vote.

WTF??? You an ex-con or something???

[Treysdad]

WTF??? You an ex-con or something???


No. The voting booths are too confined. They make me jittery and nervous to the point that I puke. I'm clausterphobic.

[TampaDude]

No. The voting booths are too confined. They make me jittery and nervous to the point that I puke. I'm clausterphobic.

We don't use booths here in Florida. We use electronic terminals and they are not enclosed.

[redinjuns]

The reason they are in this situation is because of Save our homes... it is fucking up the system. People pay tax on 1970's and 80's values and the rest of us have to pay for the difference.

If everyone was taxed at the same rate (actual VALUE), then the millage rate would be much much lower, resulting in real tax savings.

Its not rocket science here, the fucking rest of the country does it, why does Florida have this wacked out system of caps and homestead exemptions

the assholes who have owned their houses (and/or land) for 20 or more years are not paying their fair share. Fuck, I can blame my parents too, they bought their property (20 acres in pasco) in the 70's, built their house on it, and pay about HALF of what I pay for my 4br/2.5b in citrus park

what the fuck is that all about?

I pay about 4500 a year in taxes, this 250 derease due to doubling the HE is a fucking joke, plus (hidden in the fine print) they can re-asses your home, they dont tell you that. The system will be even MORE fucked up. And the fact that homestead would be portable, makes NO fucking sense, the assholes who have owned their house for 30 years will continue to fuck things up by not paying on the real value of their homes


Hey douche bag, maybe us assholes that have owned our place for 30 years think you new fucks should pay "more than your fair share" for the privledge of moving into our nice place and fucking it all up! Only reason I moved was the influx of tools, and your shitty cookie cutter developments destroying all the shit that made this area a kickass place to live to begin with. Don't even get me started on the bullshit real estate speculation that has happened along with this influx...our place was 30,000 in 1976 so was our neighbor's ...he refinanced his couple years ago, got appraised at 525,000, and he hasn't done shit to it in 30 years.

[mittelschmerz]

Already voted NO on one.

Treysdad, sign up for an absentee ballot.

Oh yea.

Ron Paul would fix that.

[nipster]

Hey douche bag, maybe us assholes that have owned our place for 30 years think you new fucks should pay "more than your fair share" for the privledge of moving into our nice place and fucking it all up!

who's the douchebag?

This whole system is mega fucked up. There is a reason no other state in America does this shit.

Let me ask you something, when you get a payraise and you move up another tax bracket do you get to pay on your old wages? Should we make tax brackets "portable"??

The system is broke and this ammendment 1 is just a fucking joke.

You live in a 500 grand house, you should pay on a 500 grand house. Then they can lower the millage rate for everyone.

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

The fact that the Pinellas County budget director John Woodruff and all the other government employees are against it makes me think there is probably something good about it.

So far, I am voting yes on Amendment 1.

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

You live in a 500 grand house, you should pay on a 500 grand house. Then they can lower the millage rate for everyone.

:lol: :lol: :lol:
Yeah, the government has a great track record of lowering taxes.

[Poisoned Heart]

see how many people bitch when it takes the fire dept longer to get to there burning house cause they closed down stations because they lost funding.

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

Educate yourselves before voting. Here is a non-partisan document.

http://www.votesmartflorida.org/docs/Amendments_January2008/Jan2008_VoterGuidetoProposedConstitutionalAmendmen ts_011608.pdf

Page 4 list known opponents (Firemen, schoolteachers, government employees) and known proponents (private organizations).

Page 5 and 6 list arguments for and against. The against arguments sound like sour grapes but you folks go ahead and decide for yourselves.

For some reason an average annual savings of $240 for the taxpayer doesn't sound bad to me. For those of you against the amendment feel free to send your $240 to the government organization of your choice - firemen, education, etc.

[nipster]

I dont know what kind of shitholes you all live in, but for what we will be losing, what ammounts to a 5% discount means jack shit for me

The whole system is fucked up, I live in a house built in the mid 80's and in the subdivision there are 3 floor plans identical to mine, the people have been living in their homes for between 10 and 20 years, I pay between 3-5 times more in taxes for the same fucking piece of property. Whereas we recieve the same services. Actually I know one of them have little bastard children, so I am paying for their little demon spawns education.

the system is flawed and this bullshit bandaid isnt the answer

[nipster]

:lol: :lol: :lol:
Yeah, the government has a great track record of lowering taxes.

they cant make huge reductions because the deck is stacked against them because of douchebags paying on 1970's home values, but if you must know, hillsborough county has lowered millage rates over the past several years

Look at other states without homestead exemptions and caps, the millage rates are much lower

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

Whereas we recieve the same services. Actually I know one of them have little bastard children, so I am paying for their little demon spawns education.


Now the truth comes out. Like myself, you are upset with paying for the education of other people's children.

[Aharon]

I will almost always vote yes to any bill that makes the local government whine and complain.

They can find places to cut the fat.. If they choose to cut the fat from emergency police or fire resources, then they simply wont get voted back into office next time around..

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

I will almost always vote yes to any bill that makes the local government whine and complain.

:lol:


They can find places to cut the fat.. If they choose to cut the fat from emergency police or fire resources, then they simply wont get voted back into office next time around..
I dunno. I counted 15 emergency vehicles (no exaggeration, 15) on the Courtney Cambell a couple weeks ago. Later that night I see on the news some guy had fallen off a ski jet and as I recall wasn't even hurt enough to go to the hospital.

[EngineBuilder]

Ever notice that whenever there are proposed tax cuts, the local government ALWAYS threatens to cut spending on Police, Fire, and Education?

Believe me, it isn't because they have the most money, or can afford to have some trimmed off their budget. Its simply because those are the services that people rely on the most. They figure that the easiest way to get you to vote against a tax cut is to either convince you that it affects only the wealthy, or that it will reduce the services that you require from them.

There are services that are not 'required' per se, that could use some trimming. Parks and recreation for one- a new park isn't going to be so great if there aren't police officers to ensure that the riff-raff doesn't take it over.


Vote FOR amendment 1. It is a step in the right direction (though not the only one required), and may serve to help Florida's stagnant housing market.

I completely agree with the above statement; if the proposed amendment change makes the local government bitch and piss and moan, it must be on the right track.

[mittelschmerz]

Ever notice that whenever there are proposed tax cuts, the local government ALWAYS threatens to cut spending on Police, Fire, and Education?

Believe me, it isn't because they have the most money, or can afford to have some trimmed off their budget. Its simply because those are the services that people rely on the most. They figure that the easiest way to get you to vote against a tax cut is to either convince you that it affects only the wealthy, or that it will reduce the services that you require from them.

There are services that are not 'required' per se, that could use some trimming. Parks and recreation for one- a new park isn't going to be so great if there aren't police officers to ensure that the riff-raff doesn't take it over.


Vote FOR amendment 1. It is a step in the right direction (though not the only one required), and may serve to help Florida's stagnant housing market.

I completely agree with the above statement; if the proposed amendment change makes the local government bitch and piss and moan, it must be on the right track.

This is not a local government thing. If 2million hillsborough county homeowners save 250 bucks, that is 500 million dollars in revenue lost. Obviously they are going to have to make it up somewhere. That is Hillsborough alone. Now add the other 60 some florida counties, and the state is missing out on a TON of money. Hmmmmmmmm you think the greedy government is just going to be nice and give us a tax break and not make it up somewhere else? HAHA youre a douche if you think that is the case. There will be some other way to get the money from us.

And the city of tampa is in a serious budget problem. No new positions are being created in the fire department or police department, they are only hiring to fill open slots.

The fire department will not be getting any new trucks or equipment, with the exception of 2 trucks that were already purchased last year that they are waiting to take delivery on.

The police and fire department are very low on man-power as it is, which means they are hiring more overtime, which costs more money, which means the city will find some other way to get the money from you.

Hillsborough county was scheduled to build........ shoot i think it was 20 new fire stations over the next 10 years, and it isnt going to happen now. Rumor around hillsborough county fire department is that they will only be hiring about 10 new people per year. More people than that retire in 6 months in such a large department. So now they willalso have to hire more overtime, which costs more money, which the county will find some way to get it back.

You are a fool if you vote yes on this amendment. absolute fool.

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

This is not a local government thing. If 2million hillsborough county homeowners save 250 bucks, that is 500 million dollars in revenue lost.

Congrats on the math. Now go get the correct facts on the number of Hillsborough County homeowners and try again. I'll help you, it's about 160,000.

As for the rest of your post, we have a football stadium. That was supposed to solve all our financial problems.

[Treysdad]

Congrats on the math. Now go get the correct facts on the number of Hillsborough County homeowners and try again. I'll help you, it's about 160,000.

As for the rest of your post, we have a football stadium. That was supposed to solve all our financial problems.


Hahahaha Chuck does his homework :lol:

[BigBadBuick]

While I don't agree with the premise of the question, I will call the local government's bluff and answer with a YES.

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

Hahahaha Chuck does his homework :lol:

This board is a good example of why the voting age should be raised to 30.

[Zealot]

. Don't even get me started on the bullshit real estate speculation that has happened along with this influx...our place was 30,000 in 1976 so was our neighbor's ...he refinanced his couple years ago, got appraised at 525,000, and he hasn't done shit to it in 30 years.

So your complaining that your house was worth 17x what you paid for it 30yrs ago?

[mittelschmerz]

:lol:


I dunno. I counted 15 emergency vehicles (no exaggeration, 15) on the Courtney Cambell a couple weeks ago. Later that night I see on the news some guy had fallen off a ski jet and as I recall wasn't even hurt enough to go to the hospital.

oh, i forgot about this post. Actually, i was there too and they had put the guy on a backboard in the water and he was transported to the hospital. Tampa and clearwater fire rescue were there. That is what gets dispatched to a water rescue. The trucks that are there are for manpower in case they need to do a more technical rescue than just pull people out of the water. Oh, it was a jet ski accident btw, he didnt just "fall off".

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

oh, i forgot about this post. Actually, i was there too and they had put the guy on a backboard in the water and he was transported to the hospital. Tampa and clearwater fire rescue were there. That is what gets dispatched to a water rescue. The trucks that are there are for manpower in case they need to do a more technical rescue than just pull people out of the water. Oh, it was a jet ski accident btw, he didnt just "fall off".

Tell it to channel 9.

At any rate, what is the cutoff for the number of trucks, SUVs, Ambulances, etc. Is 15 enough or should we send out 30 just in case?

[PPGMD]

The reason they are in this situation is because of Save our homes... it is fucking up the system. People pay tax on 1970's and 80's values and the rest of us have to pay for the difference.

If everyone was taxed at the same rate (actual VALUE), then the millage rate would be much much lower, resulting in real tax savings.

Which would force most everyone to move to lower class housing every 5 years. Property values in Florida are insane, the person that bought his house in the 80's, probably paid much less then it's worth now, many can't afford the taxes from sky values that it's worth now.

[mittelschmerz]

Tell it to channel 9.

At any rate, what is the cutoff for the number of trucks, SUVs, Ambulances, etc. Is 15 enough or should we send out 30 just in case?

I dunno. You tell me. You seem to be so critical of local government and public safety, go to the communications center in tampa, hillsborough, or pinellas county and dispatch the equipment yourself.

You dont know what the person who called 911 said. Most people who call 911 are dumb illiterate moronic cell phone callers who arent even near the incident "OMG i was driving over the courtney campbell and i saw 2 boats wreck". Thats probably all the information they got, so they dispatch the equipment needed for a worse case scenario. Then they get there and it was what, half mile off shore? So without actually being there youhave no idea the number of people that are hurt/drowning.

If you had a bad accident and were in the same situation, would you feel better seeing 15 trucks there to help you, or would you be OK just seeing a basic ambulance roll up after you rolled your car 4 times down dale mabry and into the woods.

Its very easy to judge other people.

[redinjuns]

So your complaining that your house was worth 17x what you paid for it 30yrs ago?

Hell no, but I didn't do anything to make it go up, and I sure couldn't take that kind of payment on now, why should my taxes go up just because the neighborhood got desirable, it's the location not the houses, these are 1400 square foot 3 bed 2 bath 1 car garage kind of places...not exactly what you imagine to be worth 500k.

[Poisoned Heart]

Tell it to channel 9.

At any rate, what is the cutoff for the number of trucks, SUVs, Ambulances, etc. Is 15 enough or should we send out 30 just in case?

Maybe they should just bring 1 and an ambulance then get there and realized there fucked and the 10 mins it takes to respond to the middle of the causeway costs someone there life that could have been saved if the right crew and equipment was already there I guess better safe than sorry isnt a saying you go by.:dunno: And to answer your question they bring what they would most likely need in the event of what pre arrival is. So if someone says theres a boat overturned or a crash or whatever in the water it gets a typical water rescue response. With the CCC you get an automatic response for CFR SS and TFR. Its who ever gets there first kinda deal. Same thing if someone calls and says theres a traffic crash with entrapment/rollover they dispatch a typical response which in PC is An engine/rescue or squad depending on the city and a sunstar and usually a truck or heavy rescue to assist in extrication. Its better to cancel someone enroute then to have to wait for them to leave the station and take that much longer.

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

I dunno. You tell me. You seem to be so critical of local government and public safety, go to the communications center in tampa, hillsborough, or pinellas county and dispatch the equipment yourself.


You and p-heart. I guess problem solving isn't a part of your resume.

There has got to be a better way than to send out a bigass 3 MPG rig to treat somebody with a skinned knee. If that makes me a heartless bastard then so be it.

[corey r.]

There has got to be a better way than to send out a bigass 3 MPG rig to treat somebody with a skinned knee. If that makes me a heartless bastard then so be it.

Buck19 could have saved him.

[mittelschmerz]

You and p-heart. I guess problem solving isn't a part of your resume.

There has got to be a better way than to send out a bigass 3 MPG rig to treat somebody with a skinned knee. If that makes me a heartless bastard then so be it.

Problem solving is my life. Kthx.

The second part, i will agree with you.

There is not much they can do. We live in the 21st century. When people call 911 and say that they have a stuffy nose, they get an ambulance. Bottom line. Unfortunate, and true. If somebody drives down the road and sees some guy fall off a bike (which we all know is bullcrap) a fire engine and an ambulance get dispatched every time. There is no changing that. Welcome to reality. The system is flawed big time and there is nothing local government can do.

[BigBadBuick]

Why are ambulances even being mentioned? They are not owned by the government, they are not maintained by the government, and if you take a ride in one, you'll know that it sure as hell isn't covered by your property taxes.

[rainmkr]

Last I checked there are Fire Dept EMTs that show up from time to time.

[Poisoned Heart]

Why are ambulances even being mentioned? They are not owned by the government, they are not maintained by the government, and if you take a ride in one, you'll know that it sure as hell isn't covered by your property taxes.

In tampa if your an als patient you get transported by the fire dept, so im pretty sure some ambulances are owned by the govt.

[mittelschmerz]

If it is a fire rescue agency ambulance that shows up on scene, it is government funded.

Poisoned heart ftw.

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

There is no changing that. Welcome to reality. The system is flawed big time and there is nothing local government can do.

That's the attitude of a problem solver? Better scratch that off your resume.

[the anti-rice]

There has got to be a better way than to send out a bigass 3 MPG rig to treat somebody with a skinned knee. If that makes me a heartless bastard then so be it.
Guess Im a heartless bastard as well then. What you also have to understand is that 85+% of "emergency calls" are bullshit. Can I tell that to the patient? No. Would I like to? Most the time. People call 911 for a stubbed toe to be taken to the hospital. Why cant they go to a walk-in clinic? They have no car. Why not call a cab? They have no money. You think they pay for 911 services or hospital bills? :lol:

Something has got to be done about the whole tax issue. A fair tax for homeowners would be nice. Probably wont happen. Could the govt. have a flat tax for all sales? There is more than one issue that needs to be "fixed" to resolve taxes in general. Not just for property.

[mittelschmerz]

That's the attitude of a problem solver? Better scratch that off your resume.

Dude pull your head out of your ass. Its not as easy as saying "well dont respond to the calls". Do you remember when some stupid whore in pinellas county called 911 hundreds of times a year because she "thought she was raped" and the paramedics decided not to respond? They were hung out to dry. not sure if they ever got their job/license back either. You cannot deny somebody a public service. This is something that is far larger than local government. It is too much of a liability not to send a unit for something a stupid as a hang nail or stubbed toe. God forbid something be seriously wrong with the person, then the local government/agency would be hung out to dry because it is a HUGE lawsuit.

Is this going to be fixed? Nope. Probably never. Is this a problem? Yes. Do i wish it could be fixed? Hell yes. If I were the president and had enough power to do something to stop 911 abuse, i would. But im not. And im not going to be president, so it is useless.

Next.

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

Dude pull your head out of your ass. Its not as easy as saying "well dont respond to the calls". Do you remember when some stupid whore in pinellas county called 911 hundreds of times a year because she "thought she was raped" and the paramedics decided not to respond? They were hung out to dry. not sure if they ever got their job/license back either. You cannot deny somebody a public service. This is something that is far larger than local government. It is too much of a liability not to send a unit for something a stupid as a hang nail or stubbed toe. God forbid something be seriously wrong with the person, then the local government/agency would be hung out to dry because it is a HUGE lawsuit.

Is this going to be fixed? Nope. Probably never. Is this a problem? Yes. Do i wish it could be fixed? Hell yes. If I were the president and had enough power to do something to stop 911 abuse, i would. But im not. And im not going to be president, so it is useless.

Next.

You're right. Much better to stick our heads in the sand and not even discuss fixing something that we all agree is broken.

Next.

[mittelschmerz]

You're right. Much better to stick our heads in the sand and not even discuss fixing something that we all agree is broken.

Next.

There is not one thing that anybody can do about it!! things are not going to change!

We can discuss this all we want, we are in the 21st century, the way of political correctness. It doesnt matter if every firefighter, emt, and paramedic in the country rallied to get it changed, its all about liability and CYA. It wont happen.

[Poisoned Heart]

http://www.saveourservices.info/ That give some info on how it effects ems and fire. Dont now how great it is just saw it at work and thought i would share. And yes i do agree alot of the calls we get are bullshit and dont need an ambulance. But in some cases im glad they send alot of units cause i have had times where the pre arrival was minimal and we got onscene and it was a horrible accident but luckily we had the manpower to be able to effectively work it

[BigBadBuick]

If it is a fire rescue agency ambulance that shows up on scene, it is government funded.

Poisoned heart ftw.

Christ, now we're starting the FTW bullshit? Should I follow with FAIL!

Can any of you say with any honesty without making yourselves look like asses that one single person will not be transported if this whopping $250 per household tax cut goes through?

No. So drop the emotional bullshit with the ambulances.

I pwn3d you!!!

How gay.

[Poisoned Heart]

Theres no emotional bullshit going on here, but im sure there will be some "emotional bullshit" and im not saying they wont be transported but if your family member is dying and it takes that much longer for help to arrive cause they closed that station close to you. Or if someone breaks into your house and an officer cant come for 20-30 minutes cause they dont have enough on the road. And if you think that whopping 250 dollars adds up per house hold.

[Poisoned Heart]

Christ, now we're starting the FTW bullshit? Should I follow with FAIL!

Can any of you say with any honesty without making yourselves look like asses that one single person will not be transported if this whopping $250 per household tax cut goes through?

No. So drop the emotional bullshit with the ambulances.

I pwn3d you!!!

How gay.


you can say all you want and vote for your 250 dollar saving, and if it doesnt effect you negatively more power to you, but if something happens dont bitch that fire/ems/pd didn't get there in time or didnt have the manpower to ppl in the field cause all you wanted was a 250 dollar saving and i will say its what you voted for.

[BigBadBuick]

*Yawn*

Property values have soared in recent years, tax revenue has soared in recent years, how in the hell were they scraping by a few years ago? I understand this hits close to home for you, but it is just the government trying to scare the public into not voting for a tax cut. You, being in the business, are being fed a line of bullshit so that you will help spread the lie. There will not be mass hysteria in the streets and help will still take just as long as it does to arrive today if this goes through. What elected politician is going to cut fire and rescue to the point of it actually having an effect on service? That's career suicide. It's absolutely, positively not going to happen.

[nipster]

*Yawn*

Property values have soared in recent years, tax revenue has soared in recent years, how in the hell were they scraping by a few years ago? I understand this hits close to home for you, but it is just the government trying to scare the public into not voting for a tax cut. You, being in the business, are being fed a line of bullshit so that you will help spread the lie. There will not be mass hysteria in the streets and help will still take just as long as it does to arrive today if this goes through. What elected politician is going to cut fire and rescue to the point of it actually having an effect on service? That's career suicide. It's absolutely, positively not going to happen.

property values have soared, but taxable value has not because of the queer ass save our homes cap

meanwhile the population of hillsborough county has just about doubled over the last 10 years

all those fuckwads now living here demand services

fire
water
inspectors
sheriff
police
etc, etc

sure there is some waste in government, but you forget the little trick the state pulled last year and cut billions from the budgets of counties statewide? you fail to forget the HUNDREDS if not thousands of people layed off from hillsborough county and the city of tampa, they expanded to meet the needs based on population, and are getting fucked in the ass by these cuts

you may not see it because you may be a hermit who will never use a library, ambulance, may not drink any city water, may not drive on any road, etc.

if there was no save our homes, we would not be in this situation

it must work because the rest of the 50 states seem to be doing fine without it

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

sure there is some waste in government, but you forget the little trick the state pulled last year and cut billions from the budgets of counties statewide?

Gee, I forgot about that.

But somehow the poor financially strapped county found enough out of their $2 billion budget to pepper my neighborhood with $500K worth of speed humps.

FTW, Fail, Pw3d, teh gayness

Still need a new firetruck? Too bad, apparently a clump of asphalt is more important.

[nipster]

Gee, I forgot about that.

But somehow the poor financially strapped county found enough out of their $2 billion budget to pepper my neighborhood with $500K worth of speed humps.

where do you live? your HOA or some citizens group probabally lobbied for that shit heavily. trust me, they dont spend money for shit like that unless people ask for it, try agin

hell, your CDD fees if you live in one likely paid for it

[rainmkr]

personally i'm not voting for the amendment come election day. it doesn't help me out in the least and i refuse to contribute to any more govt bloat unless it comes with a handjob.

[BigBadBuick]

property values have soared, but taxable value has not because of the queer ass save our homes cap

meanwhile the population of hillsborough county has just about doubled over the last 10 years

all those fuckwads now living here demand services

fire
water
inspectors
sheriff
police
etc, etc

sure there is some waste in government, but you forget the little trick the state pulled last year and cut billions from the budgets of counties statewide? you fail to forget the HUNDREDS if not thousands of people layed off from hillsborough county and the city of tampa, they expanded to meet the needs based on population, and are getting fucked in the ass by these cuts

you may not see it because you may be a hermit who will never use a library, ambulance, may not drink any city water, may not drive on any road, etc.

if there was no save our homes, we would not be in this situation

it must work because the rest of the 50 states seem to be doing fine without itWe get it, you don't like save our homes. Get back to me in 30 years when your home is paid for and your property taxes keep you from retiring.

As for the rest of your post, are you delusional? You or your insurance pays for your ambulance ride (get over it), you pay for your city water every month, and you can't seriously think property taxes are the sole provider of roads to drive on (or even close).

[BigBadBuick]

i refuse to contribute to any more govt bloat unless it comes with a handjob.

That's why you should vote for the amendment

[Scott]

Vote no and send it back to them to get something better put together. If we give them a yes here then it will be the end of this for a long time or until the next crisis.

[BigBadBuick]

So Scott, when do you think they'll get around to coming up with something better?

[rainmkr]

Vote no and send it back to them to get something better put together. If we give them a yes here then it will be the end of this for a long time or until the next crisis.

that is what my wife and i will be doing.

[Chuck 98 RT/10]

Ultimately it is probably much ado about nothing. What the county loses in property tax revenue they will slide some hike under the radar somewhere else.

Like most elections and votes, a vote yes is more of a message to the government than anything else.

[Scott]

So Scott, when do you think they'll get around to coming up with something better?



A lot sooner than if we vote yes for it and take them off the hook. It is obvious Christ wants this over and done with. If it voted down he is going to go right back after it to get it behind him. If it is voted in now when do you think they will ever look at this again ?

[BigBadBuick]

I have a sneaking suspicion that this is the best that's going to get offered, that's why Crist is behind it. I'm sure they'll return to arguing, bickering, having special sessions, and getting in front of news cameras telling us about all the progress or who is responsible for the hold up as soon as this is voted down, but I don't think a damn thing will happen.

[98MODMTR]

Just voted Yes to #1, just for YOU TVC!