LARGO — The city’s town hall on the property tax amendment going before voters Nov. 3 was contentious before it started, and it stayed that way for 90 minutes.
State Rep. Berny Jacques, R-Seminole, seated on the panel only after he complained that Largo had stacked it against the amendment, opened by accusing the city of using “scare tactics” on residents.
“Unfortunately, I have to start my remarks by saying how disappointed I was in the city attempting to campaign against Amendment 3 by using your taxpayer dollars,” Jacques said at the Sept. 9 meeting, pointing to the presence of the city’s police and fire chiefs and of former state Sen. Jeff Brandes, whom Jacques described, citing the Miami Herald, as “a man who rails almost daily against Amendment 3.”
The panel’s makeup, Jacques said, showed “the evidence is clear that the city was prepared to use taxpayer dollars to tell you, the taxpayer, that a tax cut is bad. And they would’ve gotten away with it if not for a meddling state representative.”
The line drew cheers and jeers from a packed house at Largo City Hall, with audience members calling out on both sides until Mayor Woody Brown asked for no more “outbursts from the audience.”
Largo had announced the town hall as a chance to walk residents through what the amendment would mean for the city. The plan drew immediate blowback from Jacques, who wrote to city officials “to remind them of the law that prevents them from using your taxpayer dollars to tell you that a property tax cut is bad,” according to a Sept. 1 Facebook post.
“Florida law prohibits cities from engaging in electioneering with the use of ... public funds for a political advertisement or any other communications sent to electors concerning an issue, referendum or amendment,” the letter said. Jacques “respectfully requested” that the city adopt “a more balanced panel where both viewpoints are represented,” a reference to Brandes, whom the letter called “a known and vocal critic of Amendment 3.”
The city responded by inviting Jacques to join the panel, which also included Brandes, Police Chief Mike Loux, Fire Chief Matt Carpenter and City Manager John Curp. Bay News 9 anchor Dalia Dangerfield moderated the session at the new city hall in the downtown Horizon West Bay complex.
Amendment 3 would raise the homestead exemption on non-school property taxes from $50,000 to $150,000 in 2027 and to $250,000 in 2028 if 60% of voters approve. Curp and the chiefs opened the meeting with summaries of what the resulting loss of ad valorem revenue would mean for Largo.
“To give the community a sense of the scale of the impact on the city, we’re looking at $15.7 million reduction” over the next two years, Curp said. He said 53% of the city’s properties are homesteaded — the owner’s primary, permanent residence — and 47% are not.
Passage would require officials “to work a new budget, evaluate all of our revenues and expenses ... and look at fees and partnerships in all the programming that we provide,” Curp said. Property taxes supply 50% of the general fund, which he called the city’s “biggest fund providing day to day services.”
Cuts would likely reach parks and recreation programs, the library and the performing arts center, Curp said, and “it’s important to note that police and fire services are not protected or exempt from reductions.”
“Public safety is our top priority,” he said. “But we will have to look at everything in order to make the budget balanced.”
Brandes, who was elected to the Florida House in 2010 and to the Senate in 2012, where he served until he was term-limited in 2022, said “nothing in Amendment 3 assures funding for core services.” Cities are “not going to defund” police departments, he said; they just won’t hire new officers.
Brandes said he favors tax reform but faulted the amendment for benefiting a narrow group — longtime homesteaded homeowners — while doing nothing for renters and new arrivals. He predicted cities would turn to fees to keep services running.
“Largo will survive this,” he said. “But plenty of communities in Pinellas that will not survive. And we need to have a conversation about what a minimally viable city is.”
Jacques countered that “there are a lot of wasteful things that can be looked at.” Local leaders will “have to look at their priorities and make a decision,” he said. “The sky will not be falling. The city will be just fine.”
“Just don’t expect your kids to be able to find an affordable place to live,” Brandes shot back.
During the Q&A, Brandes said that when state legislators “pay the bills, Tallahassee takes control and communities become dependents.” Jacques said cities like Largo “would still have plenty of money,” and that if they choose to take the reductions out of police and fire, “that’s their choice.”
“You can save the police department and fire department and close libraries and parks, the things you love Largo for,” Brandes replied.
Pam Ajitomi walked out of the auditorium undecided, and happy about it.
“I thought it was fabulous,” said Ajitomi, who lives in unincorporated Largo. “I thought both sides did a great job, and it confused me, because both sides did such a great job!”
She said she appreciated the city hosting the event and thanked Jacques for speaking up and accepting the invitation to join the panel.
“The purpose was to get both sides, and I think they did that,” she said, adding that she will likely vote yes in November because “they’re not going to cut police and fire departments, and there’s probably other places (in the budget) that we don’t know about that they could cut. I think the general fund pays for a lot of other things they don’t want to tell us they’re paying for. Foolish things.”
A video of the town hall is available at largo.com.