Martin County’s tentative fiscal 2026 budget has a decrease in the millage rate of 0.71%.
That does not mean we will be collecting less in property taxes this year. Because of increases in valuation, all funds making up the budget, except for debt service, which remained the same, increased from $672,655,700 to $763,103,070.
The millage rate reduction would only be possible because of the overall increase of 12.88% in property values and new developments coming online.
This taxable value of the county’s properties increased from $34.9 billion to $39.3 billion. The Martin County Taxpayers Association is cognizant of this fact and so then questions where future needs will be met as property value increases slow down or if there is a recession such as occurred in 2008.
A Martin County resident in the unincorporated parts of the county will have a combined tax rate of 9.9185, or a very slight decrease over last year. It is expected future real estate values will not increase at the same rate as they have in the past. But there will be a continued increase in the number of high-end homes that will come online due to residential developments such as Newfield and Discovery, which will help.
Take closer look at largest budgets
The two largest components of the budget are Fire-Rescue at $73,941,220 and the Sheriff’s Office of $119,388,205. We have written repeatedly that this is not a sustainable number for public safety. What we hear from Martin County commissioners is that this level of services is what our residents demand.
There is no doubt we want to be protected to the greatest level we can afford. However, it is the commission’s duty to lead and make people aware that tax increases will be inevitable without looking at the budget for both and addressing the level of service that is driving increased expenditures.
We have been told by the county administrator that he intends to initiate a study to look at the level of service at Fire-Rescue. We applaud this much-needed step in determining what Martin County can afford and still maintain adequate protection of all residents and businesses.
The sheriff’s budget of $119,388,205 is comprised of three distinct parts. Law Enforcement is the largest share with Corrections and Judicial the smaller amounts. Sheriff John Budensiek is asking for 10 new deputies, all for the corrections system. That will bring his full-time employees to 640.
Vacancies abound at sheriff’s office
The budget for enforcement is $84,368,122. That is a $6 million increase over last year. It also includes a new helicopter. The Martin County Taxpayers Association is not going to critique his needs, but wishes that an expert be brought in to look where savings can be achieved.
However, at the budget presentation, the sheriff stated he had 66 vacancies. That is more than 10% of the number of full-time-equivalent personnel he said he needs. Budensiek did not break down in which of the three areas the vacancies occurred.
It seems to us that if you can operate with that many vacancies and still do a good job, then what are we looking to achieve? Instead of another helicopter, would more drones be an acceptable alternative? His budget is one that is opaque and not as transparent as departments directly under the auspices of the County Commission.
Only after years of prodding, Fire-Rescue is doing a level-of-service study; the sheriff’s office should also institute one. It is disingenuous to state for both Fire-Rescue and sheriff that this is what our residents demand. There needs to be accountability for what can be afforded by a county of our size.
The County Commission is tasked with explaining to taxpayers why budgets need to be so high. The slick answer of “this is what our residents demand” is not acceptable. It is each commissioner’s responsibility to dig deeper and not take the politically expedient way out.
It isn’t enough for commissioners to say tighten their belts, either. There needs to be a real partnership between all.
Ultimately it is our citizens’ duty to attend Martin County’s budget meetings at 5:05 p.m. Sept 10 and 25. It is important that they be there to make their voices heard. Change comes when an informed citizenry is involved.
The Martin County Taxpayers Association is the public’s advocate. Please go to our website (mctaxpayers.org/) and see what we do. We are your voice. Please join to be heard and see how you can be involved.
This column was emailed to TCPalm by Kevin Powers, association president. Darlene Vanriper is its executive director.
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Growing sheriff, fire-rescue budgets raise major questions in Martin County | Opinion
Reporting by Martin County Taxpayers Association / Treasure Coast Newspapers
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