Cape Coral Property Taxes
Many people have complained that Cape Coral taxes are too high. While it does cost more to live in Cape Coral than in unincorporated Lee County it is also a fact that the biggest bite of your total tax bill is for Lee County schools.Here's an actual tax bill. The total tax for this property with SOH (Save Our Homes) is $2,497. In reviewing the trim notice there are 13 categories listed. Only two categories have to do with Cape Coral: General Fund $657.53 and Debt Service $26.74 or about 28% of the total bill.
On the same tax bill here are the totals for schools, county $298.85 and state $634.37 or about 39% of the total bill. (Note: School impact fees are a relatively new revenue source for Lee County schools. Had school impact fees been in effect during all of our unprecedented growth it's conceivable that our schools taxes would be much lower.)
Back to the tax bill. Approximately 31% goes to Lee County for General Fund, $493.02, Capitol Improvements $117.03, Library Fund $111.42, Mosquito Control $39.24, Solid Waste MSTU $22.89, Lee County All Hazards $8.48, Hyacinth Control $4.15. The remaining 2% or so goes to SFL Water management.
So you can save about 28% on your taxes, but in order to do so you’ll have to move from Cape Coral to unincorporated Lee County.
posted by Civic at 7/30/2005 02:24:00 PM
3 Comments:
The city manager is once again pushing his agenda for a Pubilc Service Tax as a means to lower the millage rate.
Past city councils have rejected the PST route. Is the CM overstepping his authority since it is the city council that sets policy and not the city manager? Doesn't the CM understand that his marching orders come from council?
The CM responds
Mayor and Council Members,
If you read the Saturday Breeze article especially the headline, about my presentation on the proposed budget to the Council For Progress, you would likely be left with the impression that I was trying to push for adoption of the Public Service Tax. The headline and story are not correct.
Finance Director Mason and I attend the meeting on Friday to present information on the proposed budget and to answer questions. The budget message was used as a guide for the presentation. When I came to page eleven, I called the audience's attention to the section in bold print, which acknowledged that City Council was clear in the past that it was not prepared to impose the tax and further, that I was not asking them to reconsider. As was done in the budget message, I encouraged the audience to use the information about the Public Service Tax (PST) to draw fair comparisons about our proposed millage rate when weighed against the millage rates of cities that do have the PST and full use of the electrical franchise fee. Questions were answered about the PST, what it is, how it works etc. For it to be characterized as touting the benefits of the PST is at best a manipulation of the facts.
Terry
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Terry Stewart
Cape Coral City Manager
Mr. Stewart is up to his old very old word games!
A PST can not be allowed to happen!
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