Submitted by Suanne Z. Thamm
Reporter – News Analyst
September 23, 2020
During a 45-minute Special Meeting called to hear from the public before voting to adopt a millage rate and budget for Fiscal Year 2020-2021, Fernandina Beach City Commissioners (FBCC) voted 3-2 to adopt the adjusted rollback rate of 5.4683 mills and the modified city budget of $160,861,005. Both Vice Mayor Kreger and Commissioner Mike Lednovich voted in opposition, maintaining their position that the City should adopt the rollback rate of 5.2977 mills.
Background
Asked to develop a Budget for the 2020-2021 Fiscal Year that incorporated FBCC goals and priorities, City Manager Dale Martin initially presented a budget based upon the millage levied in the current year minus the half mill that the FBCC had imposed on a one-time basis for the purpose of purchasing land for conservation. That proposed millage rate, called a flat rate, was 5.8533. Presented to the FBCC at their July 21, 2020 meeting, this proposal generated no pushback from commissioners.
The FBCC convened in a Special Meeting on July 28, 2020 to officially set the tentative millage rate for the new Fiscal Year. During that meeting, Commissioners expressed a reluctance to adopt the flat rate in light of known and unknown hardships associated with the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. The FBCC backed off the earlier proposed flat rate and voted 3-2 to adopt “the adjusted rollback rate” of 5.4683, which exceeded the rollback rate of 5.2977 by 3.22 percent. Kreger and Lednovich opposed this move, calling for adoption of the rollback rate.
Commissioners continued to hold to their positions as millage and budget discussions continued in later meetings.
Commission Discussion
Commissioner Chip Ross who moved approval of the adjusted rollback rate and budget (seconded by Commissioner Phil Chapman), explained his position to the other Commissioners and the few members of the public in attendance. He said, “I believe in doing what’s right, not just getting people to vote for me.” Ross is the only commissioner running for reelection this November. He reiterated many of the reasons he recently outlined to adopt the adjusted rollback rate in a rebuttal opinion piece published in the Fernandina Observer. He added that the rollback rate is not sustainable because external costs continue to rise. He also cited obligations under the City’s collective bargaining agreements that require cost of living increases for employees.
Ross, who is known for his deep dives into matters that come before the FBCC, said that he had thoroughly examined the proposed budget. He noted that no commissioner had publicly objected when the City Manager proposed his budget initially on July 21. He also noted that the City’s per capita spending has dropped from its 2017 level. Ross has consistently pointed to positive signs on the horizon indicating that the local economy, while not recovered from the pandemic, appears to be rebounding in some sectors, such as construction.
Vice Mayor Len Kreger said that he supports the rollback rate “to send a message to the community.” He said that the country is in crisis because of the pandemic and people are suffering. He claimed that he had proposed certain budget cuts as far back as June and he disagreed with Ross on the need to proceed now with certain projects, such as undergrounding utility lines along Front Street.
Commissioner Mike Lednovich, who agreed with Kreger, said, “This is not a normal budget year.” He said he hoped that he was “100 percent wrong” in predicting an economic downturn, but added, “Hope is not a strategy.” He harkened back to arguments he has made previously to delay or defer spending on what he termed “non-essentials” this year. He said, “If the economy fails, we must act to support people and businesses, which I hope my fellow commissioners agree are more important than projects and burying utility poles.”
Commissioner Phil Chapman, while not minimizing the pandemic’s effect on tourism, cited what appears to be a booming construction business on the island. He pointed to the number of new residential and commercial buildings being built, as well as the high number of building permits. He also added that certain businesses — specifically Amazon and Walmart — are heavily recruiting staff to keep up with their business growth and demand.
Both Chapman and Ross reported that they had received a handful or no emails or calls from citizens objecting to the adjusted rollback rate.
Public Discussion
Candidate for City Commission Group 2 Genece Minshew was the only member of the public to speak. While also supporting the rollback rate, Minshew lobbied for inclusion of funding for the Comprehensive Plan project manager in the Planning Department’s budget to assist the planners and the Planning Advisory Board in the planned rewrite of the Comprehensive Plan and the Land Development Code. She also asked that the planning money for the proposed columbarium in Bosque Bello be included as well as money for the cemetery tree plan. She also asked that money be returned to repair beach walkovers. She suggested using the next year to do a “deep dive” into City budgeting and services provided by the Parks and Recreation Department.
Final Decision
The final millage rate approved was the adjusted rollback rate plus an additional 0.1553 mills representing voter approved debt for purchase of Greenway land.
For the Fiscal Year beginning October 1, 2020, Fernandina taxpayers will see a reduction in assessed city taxes over the current year by almost one mill (0,9).
As a result of adopting the adjusted roll back rate as opposed to the flat rate, the City will not be able to adopt the measures recommended by Stantec to accelerate the pay down of debt associated with the marina and the golf course enterprise funds. However, other measures will be pursued to extend the length of the pay off period for marina debt, and it is anticipated that the introduction of TopTracer at the golf course will improve that revenue stream.
Commissioners also recently decided to permit operators of both the golf course and marina to determine their own rates and fees to allow greater flexibility to respond to market conditions.
Under the adopted millage rate, the city maintains its 20 percent emergency reserve fund, as required by previous FBCC action.
Additional information on previous FBCC meetings and workshops to discuss the proposed FY2021 millage rate and budget may be found by searching the Fernandina Observer from the Home Page. The complete budget may be found on the City’s website.
The proposed 2020 tax of $3,037.57 on my house in the city will reduce my tax by $0.20 per day from last year. As a retiree on a fixed income, I can afford an INCREASE of $0.20 cents per day. I agree with Dr Ross on his published analysis and justification of the Budget. I wish the Millage rate had not been reduced as it means I will get less for living here.