Broward Schools & Property Tax Edition: Capitol to Courthouse Headliners–July 20

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Tax panel gets school voucher, class size proposals

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Two hot-button education issues – class size limits and private school vouchers – were discussed Friday by the Florida Taxation and Budget Reform Commission, which has the power to put state constitutional amendments on the ballot.

 

Florida cities and counties raising fees to offset losses from property tax cuts

Some services cut but others will be costlier

TALLAHASSEE Cities and counties across Florida are tightening their belts as they face a state-ordered cut in property-tax collections ranging as high as 9 percent this year.

 

State representative gives up job at school

NEW PORT RICHEY – State Rep. John Legg, a New Port Richey Republican who sits on the House Schools and Learning Council, plans to give up his day job at the charter school he co-founded seven years ago.

 

Hollywood news liaison’s $92,000 salary draws criticism

Hollywood Hiring someone to help promote positive stories about the city got a negative spin from some who attended a budget meeting this week.

 

How Florida’s proposed homestead exemption would work

How the homestead exemption would work if at least 60 percent of voters approve on Jan. 29:  Homeowners would have to make a one-time choice between keeping existing tax benefits or taking the super exemption.

 

Will fervor for tax cuts slowly ebb?

Experts say time and critics can chip away at a poll’s high numbers.

TALLAHASSEE – The first statewide poll on a new tax plan shows clear support for the proposal to sharply increase homestead exemptions that will be put before voters in January.

 

Orange County teachers complain about flawed merit pay tests

ORLANDO, Fla. – Many Orange County teachers are appealing to get a $2,024 bonus they failed to receive because a student test was filled with so many errors that hundreds of questions had to be thrown out.

 

School Board’s Budget Faces Dip

LAND – O’ LAKES – The Pasco County School Board plans a $1.2 billion budget for the 2007-08 fiscal year, a decrease from last year when the budget was nearly $1.4 billion.

 

Voters back larger homestead exemptions

TALLAHASSEE — Florida voters overwhelmingly support larger homestead exemptions, although most say they don’t know much about the ballot proposal that would create the new tax break, according to a poll released Thursday by Quinnipiac University.

 

Community colleges won’t cap enrollment

The presidents of Florida’s 28 community colleges pledged Thursday not to cap enrollment as a way to deal with possible state-mandated budget cuts.

 

Poll: 57 percent support property-tax plan up for vote

Voters like a Republican-backed plan to cut property taxes by providing a massive new tax exemption to permanent residents, but just not quite enough.

 

Bus service, economic aid could take hit

A public hearing and final vote on Orange’s $3.3 billion budget are slated for Sept. 20.

Orange County leaders wrapped up three “gloomy” days of budget hearings Thursday by preliminarily agreeing to cut bus-service funding and economic-development aid and other projects, while increasing jail and sheriff funding.

 

Senate Approves Overhaul of Student Loan Program

The Senate overwhelmingly approved a wide-ranging overhaul of student loan programs early today that would pay for more than $17 billion in grants and other student aid by slashing subsidies to lending companies.

 

Feeling the Pinch Of D.C.’s Prosperity

Small Businesses Cry Out for Relief From Rapid Rise In Property Taxes

In a storefront that once housed his great-grandfather’s hardware store, Paul Ruppert and his mother, Molly, manage an art gallery, theater and music hall. Theirs is an unexpected pocket of bohemia in a District neighborhood defined by brick-faced walk-ups and the gray behemoth that is the Washington Convention Center.

 

The (Unaffordable) House We All Live In

Mayor Adrian Fenty began making good this week on one of his signature campaign promises, proposing to spend $117 million a year to create or preserve 10,000 units of affordable housing. To make it work, Fenty would provide city-owned land at a discount to developers who promise to set aside 30 percent of the units for households with incomes between $20,000 and $75,000. He’d also dedicate 10 cents of the commercial property tax rate for rental discounts and other subsidies.

 

Education, Health Cited for Budget Boost

WASHINGTON (AP) — A bill filled with money for job training, health and education faces a veto from President Bush, who complains that Democratic add-ons have made it too expensive.