Broward Commission passes first reading of budget

The Broward County Commission passed on first reading the proposed fiscal year 2020 budget. The recommended total budget including tax supported and non-tax supported funds is $5.8 billion.

The total milllage or property tax rate will remain the same as fiscal year 2019. The combined millage rate for fiscal year 2020 is 5.6690 per thousand dollars of taxable value. The property tax rate remains unchanged, however some property owners may see a tax increase as their property values increase.

The County budget includes funding to deal with the growing population and to help improve life for all residents.

There are additional resources for affordable housing, increased public safety and training, emergency operations and preparedness including recovery from hurricanes, youth and apprenticeship programs, homelessness programs and more programs to help the elderly.

There will be more money to expand Broward County’s parks programs and more funding for cultural programs and libraries. There will be more money for maintenance and improvements for public buildings.

Broward County is implementing the transportation surtax program plan to relieve traffic congestion, improve transit services, expand multimodal transportation and have improved transportation connectivity throughout the county.

The budge provides funding to support environmental programs and electric vehicle infrastructure. There are plans for a county Innovation Unit to address a wide range of issues and to recommend improvements.

The increase in assessed property value for homesteaded taxpayers is capped at 1.9 percent for fiscal year 2020 and homesteaded property owners will see a slight increase in county taxes. For other properties, a change in property value will determine how much the property taxes will change.

Picture of Author: Amanda Jones
Author: Amanda Jones

Amanda Jones specializes in content marketing. She holds a Master's degree in Marketing Management from the University of Florida and a Content Manager Professional Certificate from the University of Miami.

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