Aaron Bosshardt

Florida passed Amendment 3. The governor and the Legislature own what comes next. They have the responsibility to manage the fallout. In Pinellas County, Sheriff Bob Gualtieri estimates a $180 million hit to the general fund in the first year, plus a separate $20 million hit to EMS. In Dunedin, the city’s contingency plan already lists fewer firefighters per shift as an option. Amendment 3 allows local property taxes to fund police, fire and EMS. It sets no minimum funding for any of them. If lawmakers say public safety is protected, show us the budget that protects it. Then look at Bowling Green. About 2,400 residents. Seven police officers. Once the $250,000 exemption kicks in, county estimates put the number of homesteads still paying city property tax at about 20. The mayor estimates the city could lose roughly a third of its property tax revenue. Some cities will struggle to stay on their own. The worst outcome is letting a city spend years draining reserves and raising fees, only to leave the county scrambling to keep basic services running. The Legislature should make this its first order of business in 2027. • Set a Minimum Viable City standard. Start with cities under 10,000 and ask which can pay for basic services year after year. • Require struggling cities to show residents what it would cost to share services, contract with the county, or merge. • Put funds into a one-time transition fund that steps down each year. Help counties pay for the services they take over. • Give residents the final vote on any merger or dissolution. -Cities will face difficult decisions on non ad valorem taxes, fees, and services they can afford to keep. The first phase starts January 1. Cities will be rewriting their next budgets over the next 2 months. If Tallahassee waits until a city commission is voting on how many firefighters it can afford to put on a shift, it’s already late. Floridians voted for lower taxes, and they count on their communities for the basics. Both are reasonable expectations. The governor and the Legislature can honor that vote by giving cities and counties a clear plan before they write their next budgets, so every community can decide how best to keep the services its residents depend on.