Coalition mulls tax to mend Lake Okeechobee

By SUZANNE WENTLEY

In a quest to find recurring funding for Lake Okeechobee restoration, a panel made up of commissioners from the nine counties surrounding the lake on Thursday considered a proposal to increase property taxes throughout South Florida.

Instead of relying on the extra $60 million to $90 million the South Florida Water Management District received from increased property values last year, members of the Nine County Coalition agreed to look for another way to secure a guaranteed pot of money to pay for new environmental projects.

Glades County Commissioner Alvin Ward proposed increasing the district's property tax rate 10 cents for every $1,000 of taxable value — an amount he said could raise $63 million a year throughout the 16-county district, which includes Martin and St. Lucie counties.
While district officials on Thursday said the governor might not approve the tax increase, coalition members said the request would prove the region is serious about restoring the health of the lake and the downstream estuaries.

"We need to reach into our pockets first," Martin County Commissioner Sarah Heard said. "We will name the projects. We decide the projects that get done. We need to find a way to keep Lake Okeechobee clean."

Although Osceola County Commissioner Ken Smith said he would not support the tax increase, Palm Beach County Commissioner Warren Newell suggested the proposal be put to the voters.
Ward, Heard and Newell — along with St. Lucie County Commissioner Joe Smith and Lee County Commissioner Ray Judah — formed a subcommittee to create a list of projects and determine the best funding source next month.

Instead of raising taxes, Ernie Barnett, the water management district's director of policy and legislation, said he would be willing to work with the committee to create a legislative funding request similar to the one that funds Everglades restoration.

"I think the Lake Okeechobee situation has been elevated to the critical nature where the Everglades were years ago," he said. "If it's not the single most important waterbody in the state of Florida, I don't know what is.

"But we cannot discount and make recommendations in a vacuum."
Gov. Jeb Bush hasn't approved a tax increase for any of the state's five water districts during his tenure, he said.

Still, Ward and other commissioners said they were uncomfortable relying on the district's windfall from recent increases in property values, in part because the housing market already has begun to cool.

"They've pledged all their future money to the north and to the south," Ward said. "We've got a hell of a mess, and nobody is stepping up to the plate. I'm getting to my wit's end on this."