READ ALONGSIDE THE SOURCE
Okaloosa County BOCC — February 4, 2014 — Action Item Printout — reading text
Part 1 of 1. These parts divide the reading text for browsing; they are not the source document's page numbers.
Machine-extracted text — 49-Action Item Printout.pdf
Machine-extracted OCR text · Review label: Machine produced / unreviewed
Compare this copy with the preserved source. Review labels describe the recorded status of this file; they do not guarantee that the text is error-free. Spacing and line breaks are retained, with long lines wrapped to fit the screen.
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
AGENDA REQUEST
DATE: February 4, 2014
TO: Honorable Chairman and Members of the Board
FROM: Rick Owen
SUBJECT: Resolution calling for Referendum for Tax Exemption Program
DEPARTMENT: County Administrator
BCC DISTRICT: All
STATEMENT OF ISSUE: The Board needs to adopt resolution calling for a referendum to be
placed on the August 26, 2014 ballot for the Ad Valorem Tax Exemption Program renewal.
BACKGROUND: On October 15, 2013, the Board of County Commissioners approved a
referendum option in conjunction with August 2014 primary election pertaining to the Ad
Valorem Tax Exemption Program renewal.
The Economic Development Ad Valorem Tax Exemption is an incentive program in which
Okaloosa County voters authorized the board to grant qualifying businesses an exemption in
their county property taxes of up to 100 percent for up to 10 years. This program was initially
approved by voters in 1981 and renewed in 1992. In September 2002, voters rejected the
program. In March 9, 2004 voters approved the revival of the program.
Per Section 3, Article VII of the State Constitution: (c)Any county or municipality may, for the
purpose of its respective tax levy and subject to the provisions of this subsection and general law,
grant community and economic development ad valorem tax exemptions to new businesses and
expansions of existing businesses, as defined by general law. Such an exemption may be granted
only by ordinance of the county or municipality, and only after the electors of the county or
municipality which is voting on such question in a referendum authorize the county or
municipality to adopt such ordinances. An exemption so granted shall apply to improvements to
real property made by or for the use of a new business and improvements to real property related
to the expansion of an existing business and shall also apply to tangible personal property of such
new business and tangible personal property related to the expansion of an existing business.
The amount or limits of the amount of such exemption shall be specified by general law. The
period of time for which such exemption may be granted to a new business or expansion of an
existing business shall be determined by general law. The authority to grant such exemption
shall expire ten years from the date of approval by the electors of the county or municipality, and
may be renewable by referendum as provided by general law.
The authority to grant exemptions is set to expire in March 2014. The authority may be renewed
for subsequent 10-year periods if each 10-year renewal is approved in a referendum. Florida
Statute 196.1995 has been provided as Exhibit A.
Cost analysis for a referendum by the Okaloosa County Supervisor of Elections is provided in
Exhibit B.
OPTIONS: Approve/Disapprove
RECOMMENDATIONS: Staff recommends adopting resolution calling for a referendum in
conjunction with August 2014 primary election pertaining to the Ad Valorem Tax Exemption
Program renewal.
RECOMMENDED BY:
APPROVED BY:
Ernie Padgett, County Administrator