At its June 11 meeting, the Southwest Florida Water Management District’s Manasota Basin Board adopted a proposed fiscal year 2009 (FY2009) millage rate of 0.1484 mill, which is the same as the current fiscal year. The Manasota Basin Board area includes Manatee and Sarasota counties.
This millage rate, combined with a reduction in taxable property values as estimated by the county property appraisers, will result in an estimated 14 percent decrease in ad valorem property tax revenue. These estimates will be updated when the property appraisers release their certified taxable property values in July.
The proposed budget for FY2009 is $23,138,716, which is a decrease of $2,158,793 from the approved FY2009 budget. FY2009 will run from Oct. 1, 2008, through Sept. 30, 2009.
For the owner of a $125,000 home with a $50,000 homestead exemption, the FY2009 Basin Board tax would be $11.13, or about 93 cents per month.
The Manasota Basin Board’s proposed FY2009 budget includes $1.2 million for projects in the District’s Surface Water Improvement and Management (SWIM) Program. The SWIM program was established by the Florida Legislature in 1987 and requires the state’s five water management districts to maintain a priority list of water bodies of regional or statewide significance. The districts develop plans and programs to improve these water bodies.
The Sarasota Bay Spoil Island Restoration project is a SWIM project included in the proposed budget that will restore wetlands habitat on several islands in Sarasota Bay, including the Bird Colony Islands and Palmer Point Park. These islands were used for spoil deposition from the dredging of the Intracoastal Waterway and are overgrown with invasive species like Australian pines and Brazilian peppers.
The project involves removing the invasive vegetation, excavating tidal channels and excess spoil, planting native vegetation, and stabilizing the shoreline.
This multi-year project is expected to cost $2.68 million. Funding will be divided between the county and the District, with District funding being shared by the Manasota Basin Board and the SWIM program. In FY2009, the Manasota Basin Board and the SWIM program both tentatively budgeted $214,365 for the project.
The county has also received additional grants and funds from other sources. Funding from the District in future fiscal years is contingent upon Basin Board approval. This project is expected to be complete by the end of 2011.
The Basin Board’s proposed budget also includes $11.2 million for the Water Supply and Resource Development program, which provides matching funds for the development of additional new sustainable water supplies.
One of the Water Supply and Resource Development projects is the Peace River/Manasota Regional Water Supply Authority’s (PR/MRWSA) Regional Integrated Loop System, which will transport reclaimed water between the Authority’s member governments.
The Regional Integrated Loop System project consists of several projects being completed in phases. Phase 1A involves the construction of a 10-mile pipeline to connect the water supply systems of the PR/MRWSA, Charlotte County and the City of Punta Gorda. The pipeline includes a 6,800-foot section that crosses the Peace River.
When complete, water provided by Punta Gorda to Charlotte County will offset the county’s demand for water from the Peace River. This offset can then be made available to other members of the Authority or placed into storage to create additional reliability for the regional system.
This phase of the Regional Integrated Loop System project is expected to cost $19 million, which will be divided between the District and the PR/MRWSA and will be funded over multiple years. District funding will be shared by the Governing Board, and the Peace River and Manasota Basin Boards. In FY2009, the Manasota River Basin Board is tentatively budgeting $1.8 million, which includes funding from the state legislature for the West-Central Florida Water Restoration Action Plan projects.
The District has eight regional Basin Boards that provide guidance for local programs that are specific to the watershed basins they protect. The District’s ninth basin, the Green Swamp, is administered by the Governing Board. Basin Boards work with local governments and other entities on water resource projects that have an impact in local communities. Basin Boards often provide partial funding for these projects in partnership with a local government or local cooperator.
Basin Board members are unpaid citizen volunteers appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate. They serve three-year staggered terms. Each of the Basin Boards includes a minimum of one person from each county within the basin, and there must be at least three members on each Board. Each Basin Board has at least one of the 13 members of the District’s Governing Board that serves as the Board’s chair ex officio.
The District’s Governing Board will adopt proposed millage rates for the District’s General Fund and the eight Basin Boards at its monthly meeting in July at the District’s Brooksville headquarters. These millage rates will be used by county property appraisers when mailing out Truth in Millage (TRIM) notices to residents. The Basin Boards will meet again in August to adopt their final millage rates and budgets.
Two statutorily required public TRIM hearings on the District’s total budget will be held in September. The first will be Sept. 16 at 5:01 p.m. at the District’s Tampa Service Office.
The Governor’s office will review and approve the budgets of all five water management districts before the second and final public hearing.
The District’s second and final TRIM hearing will be Sept. 30 at 5:01 p.m. at the District’s Brooksville headquarters. At the conclusion of the hearing, the Governing Board will formally adopt the final millage rates and budgets. The public is welcome to attend any Governing Board or Basin Board meetings to provide comment on the proposed budgets.