tells state government “Stop Passing the Buck”

  A new initiative by the Florida League of Mayors aims to protect local property taxpayers from backdoor Tallahassee taxes by telling the Florida Legislature to “Stop Passing the Buck” to local cities when it comes to paying for state programs, and diminishing citizens’ rights to local self government.

• Does the bill pass the cost of a state responsibility to local taxpayers?

• Does the bill limit local communities’ ability to govern themselves?

• Does the bill create new mandates that cost local taxpayers money?

• Does the bill respect the basic tenets of “home rule”?

• Is the negative impact of the bill especially onerous to local taxpayers?

By subjecting bills that are passed to these questions, the Florida League of Mayors will give each bill a “pass the buck” score judging how bad bills are for property taxpayers. The scoring system is as follows:

·         1 or 2 points indicates a bad bill that undermines home rule and passes a burden to local taxpayers.

·         3 or 4 points indicates a very bad bill that harms taxpayers, hurts local services and infringes on local citizens’ right to self-government.

·         5 points indicates a very dangerous bill that is sweeping in scope, forces millions of dollars in tax increases for local taxpayers and represents a dangerous and unjust seizure of local freedom by the state.

“For Florida state lawmakers, the choice is clear: Do they say, ‘the buck stops here,’ or do they ‘pass the buck?’” said Donald Slesnick, Mayor of Coral Gables and President of the Florida League of Mayors. “The idea is simple, it’s clear and it is important for the citizens of this state to know that local tax dollars are spent locally, rather than for state government programs.”

Over the years, lawmakers in Tallahassee have passed hundreds of rules, requirements and rigid regulations dictating how local tax dollars must be spent, steadily chipping away at principles of smaller government and citizens’ rights to local self-determination. Runaway state interference in local affairs, as well as unfunded mandates on issues ranging from pensions to public works, ties the hands of Florida cities and violates the key principle of home rule: that local cities should be free to govern themselves. Now, even as the tough economy has forced cities to make steep cuts for local services, infrastructure and public safety, it is critical to ensure that legislators do not again “pass the buck” for new state programs that will force local service cuts and tax increases.

“This state interference forces local property taxpayers to pay the cost of projects decided by politicians in Tallahassee – not by city councils who are accountable to their neighbors,” Slesnick said. “This disrupts the fundamental democratic relationship between the citizens and the leaders they elect to protect their community and quality of life.”

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