It's time for the tomorrow talk

Happy Monday! Let’s chat.

Three words: Sales tax referendum. Yeah, we’re going there.

Just to show how crazy I am, I predict by the time we’ve thoroughly vetted this idea over the next several months, after we’ve had the public come up with something for county commissioners (and not the other way around), after we have a specific plan from the county that details how it will be spent, after we’ve asked and answered ALL the questions, here’s what I see:

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A community in 2026 eager to vote yes. That’s how confident I am that we’re ready for this conversation.

Strapped in? Let’s take a ride.

Here’s a number to put in your mind: $24 million. That’s what 1 penny of sales tax brings into Citrus County annually. Two years ago, when I first proposed the “one for all” sales tax concept, it was $15 million. Expect the upward trend to continue.

For practical planning we should take that number over 10 years: $240 million. Keep THAT number in mind.

One penny equals a ton of cash.

Before I get into suggestions about how to spend it, a word or two on the process of getting this to the ballot. As someone who has seen tax referendums fail time and again, I cannot emphasize enough that this be done in an orderly fashion. Someone tries to play the hero, and it could ruin the whole thing. We lose this vote; it's not coming back.

So, some parameters:

— It absolutely cannot originate from either the County Commission as a whole or any of the five in office today. Any sales-tax process that starts with the government telling us instead of us telling the government is doomed before the first vote is cast. That's not to say commissioners can't try to make a case. But they're on equal footing with the rest of us at this point.

— Who brings it forward? The community, that’s who. My initial thought is the Chamber of Commerce, for that’s a well-organized group of community-minded Citrus Countians. If it’s another group, so be it. 

— That group, before coming to the County Commission, finds out from citizens where we’d like to spend $240 million over 10 years. We’re looking for trends, specific needs/wants, and long-term thinking. The county’s role at this point is simply to tell us what we can legally spend it on. Not to tell us how to spend it. We want and expect commissioners to weigh in, but they need to keep their mitts off the details until invited in.

— There should be multiple opportunities for community discussion. Over the top. It’s vital that everyone have a say. I’ve had a dozen Cattle Dog chats with folks on this subject the last two weeks and heard a variety of ideas I hadn’t even considered. Just think what'll happen when we open up the conversation to 160,000 people.

— I haven’t forgotten our Citrus County neighbors who can’t afford a meal, let alone another tax. We’ll address it, thoroughly.

— Finally, as our logo suggests, the tax has to improve the lives of all Citrus County citizens. Got that? One for ALL. That lofty criterion eliminates a slew of ideas.

So…one penny…$24 million/year…$240 million over 10 years:

— One-half, or $120 million, goes to build a transportation network in Citrus County that makes sense. What do we notice most about growth? Traffic. Citrus County, including the cities, sorely needs a transportation plan. 

I’m not suggesting new roads, but we wake up even today with traffic issues requiring tens of millions of dollars to repair. Widening C.R. 491 between Pine Ridge Boulevard and U.S. 41, easily our most pressing transportation concern, may be a good start.

— One quarter, about $60 million, buys and creates small parks. Strategically located 10-, 20-, 30-acre parks, something like that, scattered throughout the county where people can escape. 

— Now. That last quarter. One of the big selling points that we’ve heard from commissioners who crave this revenue is that tourists would pay a quarter of the tax. While I’ve always thought that was a selling point, it wasn’t THE selling point.

How about this: We take that portion paid by tourists, about $6 million/year, and apply it to reduce the property tax. Whatever millage that tourist percentage equals would automatically be eliminated from property taxes. So, yeah, we’re taxing ourselves but also reducing property taxes at the same time.

We’re ready for this conversation. Sheriff Dave Vincent’s inspiring win and his entry into office has set this county on a new and exciting course. We don’t have to accept things as they are. We have the ability, within ourselves, to make it better.

Coincidentally, the County Commission will hear a report Tuesday about this very subject. Good timing. It’s my hope that deliberation results in a process similar to one I’ve outlined here.

One for All. What do you think? Let’s chat, friends.

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