Seminole County’s proposed budget: Keep property taxes flat, while picking up SunRail’s tab 

The Seminole County Commission is getting a first look at its proposed $1.05 billion 2024-25 budget, which comes with the one-two punch of the loss of federal Covid-19 funding and the county picking up its share of SunRail funding. While the overall budget is increasing, the county manager is not expected to raise the combined property taxes, currently a rate of 7.7507 mills.

“The general fund, which is generated by property taxes, we’re projecting an 8 percent increase for fiscal year ’25, which will generate an additional $17.9 million,” said Timothy Jecks, Seminole County’s budget manager. “This 8% increase is made up of 6.5% from existing valuation increases and 1.5% from new construction.”

One mill is equal to one dollar of tax per thousand dollars of taxable property value. That means a homeowner in Seminole County with a house valued at $269,000 (the average taxable value in Seminole County, with exemptions) would pay an estimated property tax bill of $3,047. That includes Seminole County’s share, as well as the amount for schools and the water management district. 

Seminole County is only budgeting to get $15 million in penny sales tax funding, because the penny sales tax expires at the end of 2024. There are an additional $44 million in planned projects for the next year that are on hold in case the penny sales tax isn’t renewed by voters.

The county manager’s proposed budget does not anticipate adding any new county employees funded with the general fund, although eight employees would be added in the fire department, the landfill and grant-funded programs. 

It also includes $10 million toward design and construction of three fire station projects, including the renovation of Fire Station 42 in Geneva and Fire Station 28 in Winter Springs. There are also renovations planned for the Oviedo library branch in the budget. 

You can view the proposed budget here.

Commissioners talk of leaving Lynx after budget increases

One issue that generated debate was a proposed $1.7 million budget increase for Lynx bus service in Seminole County. 

Lynx got $11.8 million in the current budget, and in the next year is asking Seminole County for $13.5 million – a 14.4 percent increase. The biggest increases come from salary and wage increases from employees’ union contracts, and increased insurance costs.

Commissioner Amy Lockhart said she’s seen buses with just one or two riders on them in Seminole County. Lockhart, who serves on the Lynx board as well, said she had a “heart attack” when she saw the projected funding per county out over the next five years. 

She said she wants to see the funding agreement, where the counties split the deficit costs to run Lynx, have caps (which is how the SunRail agreement is set up). She said there are between 3,500 and 4,000 unique riders in Seminole County for Lynx.

“I’m trying to figure out how we rein this in. Those projections aren’t sustainable for us,” Lockhart said. “I’m nervous about the future. This is not personal, this is me. This is very much a numbers, holy [expletive], how are we going to afford this.”

Commissioner Bob Dallari said that if the county’s budget is increasing 8 percent, he would want Lynx to limit its budget increase to 8 percent. Dallari said he currently would not vote to support the increase in funding for Lynx, which he called “ludicrous.”

“If there’s only one person riding on the bus, we shouldn’t have a commissioner pointing that out. I’m sorry. That should be someone else pointing that out,” Dallari said. “Buy the person an Uber ticket. It would be a lot cheaper than having a bus.”

Seminole County’s budget also includes $10.3 million for the Central Florida Commuter Rail Commission to fund SunRail’s operating costs starting Jan. 1, 2025. 

Supervisor of Elections, Comptroller budgets questioned

Commissioners seemed to take aim at two constitutional officers’ proposed budgets for the next year. 

The Seminole County Supervisor of Elections had a $5.4 million budget this year, and is asking for $4.7 million in 2025 – a 12.6 percent drop. Seminole County Supervisor of Elections Chris Anderson didn’t show up to the Seminole County Commission board meeting June 18 when he was scheduled to discuss the budget.

Seminole County Commissioner Jay Zembower said that last year the supervisor said he wasn’t getting a big enough budget.

“And yet we spent money on things that arguably – I would argue all day long – were not necessary of taxpayer dollars being spent, for new signage, new logos, and those types of things, troubles me immensely,” Zembower said. “So I would propose an additional cut beyond the 12%.”

Anderson was missing from the county meeting Tuesday, but he did make a presentation to Seminole County Public Schools in the evening. In an interview with Oviedo Community News, he said he planned to present his budget to the county Wednesday; ultimately, Anderson didn’t present to the board. 

In the interview, Anderson said his budget is decreasing because there won’t be any major elections in 2025. 

“The board are the policy makers. We’re administrators. There’s always going to be that positive tension, which is productive in government work,” Anderson said. “But it’s incumbent on them to understand as the supervisor of elections, having done it at an award-winning level, that I have the expertise to say that our budget is exactly where it needs to be. If we reduce it any further, there could be some massive implications that could affect the elections here in Seminole County.”

Constitutional officers, like the Seminole County sheriff, the Seminole County supervisor of elections, and the Seminole County comptroller are all independently elected by voters. However, their budgets are controlled by the Seminole County Commission. 

Anderson has previously sparred with commissioners over budget issues. 

Additionally, county commissioners questioned Seminole County Clerk of Court and Comptroller Grant Maloy. Maloy’s office is requesting a budget increase from $5.3 million to $5.7 million, an 8 percent increase. 

“I think we’ve got a lot more discussion to have between our staff and your staff,” Zembower said. “I have no problem funding things that we’re required to fund. But I need to know what I have to fund versus what I can optionally fund.”

Maloy has been a vocal critic of the penny sales tax, going as far as to do an audit of the City of Winter Springs’ penny sales tax expenditures. Commissioner Lee Constantine told Maloy that with his budget presentation focusing on unfunded mandates, he would have to assume that Maloy was now in support of renewing the penny sales tax. 

“I haven’t taken a public position on it,” Maloy said. Another commissioner asked if he had taken a private position. Constantine continued. 

“Although I have seen that you have suggested to some groups that the county may not need that sales tax and therefore compelled them to vote against it,” Constantine said. 

“I fail to see what that has to do with the budget request in front of you today,” Maloy replied. 

“I think it has everything to do with the budget, quite frankly, because I keep seeing increases in your budget while at the same time I see people that are saying that potentially we don’t need the sales tax,” Constantine said.  

Commissioner Lockhart raised the idea of using proceeds from the penny sales tax, if approved by voters in November, to pay for software at the Clerk of Courts. 

“I think there is potential for the infrastructure tax to pay for capital software,” Jecks said. “We would have to look very closely, but I think there is potential to fund capital software.”