BELLEAIR — Belleair Town Manager Gay Lancaster ended the town’s monthslong campaign on Amendment 3 with a simple message for voters: Read the fine print.
At the Oct. 20 Town Commission meeting, Lancaster warned that the proposed property tax cut could cost the town 11% of its budget in its first year and 22% in its second, and that the losses might not stop there.
The amendment needs 60% voter approval to pass Nov. 3.
It was the last of four town presentations on the measure. The first three detailed how cuts could hit the parks and recreation, public works and police departments. This time, Lancaster kept it short.
“We’ve been talking about it for months now, and we’re now at the decision point,” she said. “So, at this point, what we are encouraging is for everyone to read the fine print. Because it’s not just a simple question.”
Lancaster acknowledged that “yes, some people would get some relief.” The amendment would raise the homestead exemption from the current $50,000 to $150,000 in the first year and $250,000 in the second. It applies only to homesteaded properties.
But she said Belleair is especially exposed. Seventy-six percent of the town’s properties are homesteaded, and she said that means about 71% of the general fund is affected by property tax revenue.
The town collects roughly $10 million in property taxes a year, Lancaster said. By policy, 25% goes to the infrastructure fund, and the remaining $7.4 million covers everything else.
The tax break “is pretty attractive” for eligible homeowners, she said, but “it’s more important to look at what is the impact on the town.”
“We would lose 11.15% of our budget, and in the second (year), we would lose 22% of our budget,” she said.
Lancaster said the amendment also limits how local governments can spend the tax dollars they would still collect.
“They’re saying we can’t spend it on recreation. We can’t spend it on town events. We can’t spend it on parks. We can’t spend it on beautification,” she said. “And this is an example of the state telling us exactly how to spend our local tax dollars.”
The bigger concern, she said, is that the amendment “does not stop at the $250,000 exemption mark.” She pointed to language directing the Legislature to “prescribe a uniform procedure” for counties and municipalities to increase the exempt amount “up to all remaining assessed valuations.”
In other words, Lancaster said, the long-term intent is to exempt the entire assessed value of homesteaded properties, and those future increases would be set by state lawmakers, not voters.
“So, that means these future increases have nothing to do with voters,” she said.
A yes vote, she said, is “a decision that is far broader than just a little short-term relief. … And for us, it’s quite significant.”
Commissioner Tom Kelly agreed.
“This is serious stuff,” Kelly said. “Because it says, your tax dollars are being controlled by someone who’s never set foot on your street.
“So, please educate yourselves,” he added. “They say it takes a village to raise a person, and it’s going to take a village to save our town.”
Mayor Mike Wilkinson said he “agreed with everything” his colleagues said. He has previously called Amendment 3 another attempt by state lawmakers to erode home rule, the authority of local governments to run their own affairs, which was written into the Florida Constitution in 1968.
The town’s presentations on Amendment 3 are posted at townofbelleair.com.
Marathon permit, election date
The commission unanimously approved a special event permit for the 2027 Clearwater Marathon and Running Festival. The race starts in Clearwater and passes through Belleair.
“The town of Belleair has been amazing for allowing us to do this event since 2018,” said race founder John Mortimer, who credited Lancaster and the Police Department for their cooperation.
A second and final reading is set for next month.
Commissioners also voted 5-0 to set the 2027 municipal election for March 9. Three seats are on the ballot: mayor and two commission seats.
No candidates have announced. Qualifying begins in early November and runs two weeks.