(Editor’s note: This story has been updated with new information.)
FLAGLER COUNTY — Because of the unusual devaluation of property values in the county this year, the Board of County Commissioners adopted a tentative property tax rate of 7.99 for FY 2026-27, the same rate adopted in 2025-26.
If approved, homeowners will continue to pay approximately $7.99 for every $1,000 of their home’s assessed value.
A combination of increased new construction (between 4 and 5%) and a slight devaluation of property values created what officials described as an “anomalous” budget year. Because of this, the proposed rate will generate $141 million in revenue in 2026-27 — a nearly 4% increase, according to county staff.
Commissioners could still choose to adopt a lower tax rate when the final decision comes before the board in September, following the upcoming weeks of budget workshops. However, the tax rate cannot increase from 7.99.
What is Flagler County’s proposed budget for FY 2026-27?
The tentative tax rate is set for a general budget of approximately $333 million.
Revenue sources include:
The $333 million expected for the next budget would represent a 0.8% decrease from the approximately $335.7 million adopted for the 2025-26 Fiscal Year.
How does Flagler plan to use $333M in the 2026-27 budget?
Of the total budget, 33.5% will be put in overall reserves for the county — approximately $112 million. Another $7.2 million will be used for debt services.
The total projected general fund expenditure for the next year is $216.7 million, which accounts for 64.9% of the budget.
The largest expenditure is the Board of County Commissioners departments — approximately $87.3 million. The amount represents a 5.56% decrease ($5.1 million) from last year.
The county’s constitutional officers’ budget (including the property appraiser, tax collector, county clerk, and supervisor of elections) have a combined total expense budget total of $16.89 million — a 4.45% increase over 2025-26.
With the prospect of possible tighter constraints in the future if Florida voters approve the proposed homestead exemption in November, the Commissioners asked staff to meet with constitutional offices to negotiate further reductions in their budgets.
“This is just me, and I’m just one, but you’re going to have a more painful year next year, I just have a feeling,” said County Chair Leann Pennington. “Unless we have some enormous amount of growth again, or (property) values miraculously go up.”
General fund reserves will be around $60.4 million. Two-thirds of that money is meant for financial stability, 25% for contingency and the rest for restricted funds.
Flagler County Sheriff’s Office makes up 24% of county budget
The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office will see a significant increase from last year – 8.17% – if the budget passes as-is, staff said. The agency’s total proposed expense budget is $51.97 million, and includes four new deputies. Nine additional new deputies will be covered through the department’s contract with Palm Coast for 2026-27.
Within the general fund, the agency’s two main budget items are law enforcement expenses, which account for $34.6 million, and detention/inmate services, which total $15.8 million.The department consumes about 24% of the entire general fund budget.
— Brenno Carillo is a local government reporter covering Flagler County, including Palm Coast and Flagler Beach, for The Daytona Beach News-Journal.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Flagler BOCC sets tentative $333M budget. What about property taxes?
Reporting by Brenno Carillo, Daytona Beach News-Journal / The Daytona Beach News-Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Brenno Carillo, Daytona Beach News-Journal | USA TODAY Network
