Volusia County Tax Rates Cut
Taxpayers won a small victory Sept. 17, when the Volusia County Council reduced its 2009-10 budget and shaved a few cents off key property-tax rates. The council voted 4-3 to set the tax rate for the county's general fund at 5.38 mills. That's about 7 cents per $1,000 of property value lower than the 5.45-mill levy recommended by County Manager James Dinneen. The new general-fund rate of $5.38 per $1,000 of taxable property value was set amid verbal volleying.
There were those who favored tax relief and those who opposed additional last-minute spending cuts and shifts in accounts within the budget. The new rate is about 19 percent higher than the levy it replaces, 4.5 mills. The county currently has about $8 million in its emergency reserve, and didn't deplete any of the money during the current fiscal year.
Earlier in the day, the council had unanimously opted not to give a 2-percent pay raise to county employees. That action saves more than $3 million in the next fiscal year, bringing the county's operating budget down from $617.7 million to $614.3 million. The county's 2009-10 fiscal year begins Oct. 1.