As part of the effort to right the ship with the special taxing districts
that were getting charged too much or too little, county commissioners will consider on Wednesday a move to put the control of those neighborhoods — and their special taxing monies — in the hands of municipalities.
Not only will cities and towns and villages get the special taxing districts that already exist into their own budgets and out of the county’s. the resolution, sponsored by Commissioner Esteban Bovo, also allows the municipal governments to create new taxing districts in the future.
Special taxing districts are neighborhoods
where mostly residential property owners take a vote to pay an additional tax which then provides for additional services — like guardhouse security, street lights or grounds maintenance.
In June, Mayor Carlos Gimenez acknowledged that the county had been overcharging 234 taxing districts and that those funds had been used inappropriately to cover the expenses in other taxing districts where residents were not paying enough.
Read related story: Carlos Gimenez admits overtaxing special districts: ‘So sorry’
Of the existing special taxing districts, 203 are in municipalities that can take control, according to the ordinance background info in Wednesday’s agenda. Most of those are in Miami, Miami Beach, 
Coral Gables and Miami Lakes, where Councilman Manny Cid — who is now running for mayor — will welcome them with open arms.
“It’s just more efficient for us to provide those services,” Cid told Ladra.
It’s also a way for the town to transfer costs like, oh, I don’t know, say lake maintenance, for example, off of the general budget and into special taxing districts. Just watch them sprout up. The reasoning: Why should people who don’t live on the lake pay for its maintenance?
And the potential proliferation of special taxing districts — an easy way to get around raising taxes, although you are raising them for some — is only part of the problem. Not that they aren’t piling up already, even in light of the mismanagement exposed months ago on this blog. In fact, there are seven new special taxing districts on Wednesday’s agenda.
On the one hand, Cid is probably right about the services. A municipal government might be able to provide them more efficiently than Miami-Dade, which was caught last year overcharging some districts to subsidize others in a budget mess that county spokespeople quickly characterized simply as sloppy accounting.
And it frees up county funds and personnel. “Revenue supporting the function, as well as the expense, would no longer be part of the county’s budget,” says a memo with Wednesday’s agenda from County Attorney Abigail Price-Williams. “The positions supporting this function would be eliminated from the county’s table of organization and staff currently supporting this function would be reassigned.”
Read related story: Miami-Dade special taxing districts = free-for-all shell game?
But this opens up a whole new avenue of abuse, perhaps a whole new cottage industry of consultants who build their practice off creating special taxing districts. Whether they are needed or not. 
That’s what we have publicists and consultants for — to convince the taxpayers in certain boundaries that they suddenly need street lights or a roving security guard to keep their homes safe.
And think about the political shenanigans that have gone on in the 305 even without introducing this new game. I mean, one thing is Miami Lakes. But who among us wants to trust cities like Sweetwater and Hialeah with this new power?
The resolution is set to pass anyway on Wednesday. This is second reading, so this makes it law.
Expect follow up story in a couple of months about the many new special taxing districts sprouting up.
County moves special taxing district funds to cities’ control added by Ladra on
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This county suffers due to the lack of ethics by members of the established media who fail or refuse to report the news properly to accommodate or provide a safe exit to Gimenez and his corrupt cronies.
The special taxing district fiasco was nothing short of a huge cover up and it is just one example of the ongoing shenanigans in Miami Dade County.
Reporters such as Michael Putney, Miriam Marquez, Bernadette Pardo, etc., sold their souls in 2012 to ensure Gimenez was elected. Even further back in 2011 the Miami Herald saw fit to run the “Felipito” stories on its front pages from leaked grand jury information, the paper only intended to smear Robaina and see to it that Gimenez won.
The reward for these “reporters” is promotions and salary raises. Take a look at Miriam Marquez, now editor of El Nuevo Herald. Nice reward! Try to get a negative Gimenez story past her and see if you can.
The same with law enforcement. Take a look at MDPD, once a well respected police department around the nation, and today reduced to a security guard company headed by two Gimenez yes men who will not investigate or present cases for prosecution of anyone remotely associated to Gimenez.
Corruption thrives in this environment and unless citizens expose these ills it will continue to spiral.
Just when we think it cannot get worse, Carlos Gimenez brings us back to Miami Dade’s sordid reality! Fortunately while the Miami Herald is at sleep on the job, Al Crespo and Political Cortadito expose the political baseness. Thanks!
http://www.crespogram.com/index_public_html/CARLOS_GIMENEZ_HAS_A_NEW_SCHEME_TO_SCREW_THE_TAXPAYERS.html
The whole point to this 3 card monty is when property owners got fed up with constant tax increases they forced save our homes amendment on the local government.. but instead of government adjusting to living within it’s means, it has just come up with more and creative ways to wriggle out of the voters’ mandate by moving traditional county services to line item service and creating special tax districts.
IMO, Carlos is actually taking a step in the right direction. UMSA should be the Government of Last Resort. Some people choose to live way out of town, have long response times for emergency services, drive on poorly maintained roads and take their garbage to the street. Anyone who has every lived in the “country” knows what I mean…if I want a Full service municipal neighborhood then I incorporate and pay higher taxes..
What I object to is the present model where virtually everybody in UMSA is paying high taxes but getting “country” service and with zero transparency.
Want proof? Look when neighborhoods do succeed in battling UMSA to incorporate, their services go up, AND taxes go down..
But bitching about it here is preaching to the choir.
“In June, Mayor Carlos Gimenez acknowledged that the county had been overcharging 234 taxing districts and that those funds had been used inappropriately to cover the expenses in other taxing districts where residents were not paying enough.” This admitted misfeasance — along — should be enough for County voters to fire Gimenez, no?
Sadly enough Iggy, that will not happen. You see, the charade that has been played with the special taxing districts goes back several years and Gimenez was well aware of that situation BEFORE the 2012 election. Problem was he could not reveal the issue nor increase taxes to fix the financial hole it created prior to his 2012 reelection due to the fact that such action who hinder his changes to be elected as mayor.
So, in answer to your question, Gimenez has committed misfeasance, malfeasance, criminal acts, ethical violations and along the way destroyed a once respected police department known as MDPD that you and many of us helped forge under difficult circumstances. Best of luck to you.
Thank you, John!
In June, Mayor Carlos Gimenez acknowledged that the county had been overcharging 234 taxing districts and that those funds had been used inappropriately to cover the expenses in other taxing districts where residents were not paying enough.” This admitted misfeasance — ALONE — should be enough for County voters to fire Gimenez, no?
can we safely assume that since fewer county personnel would be needed, we can see a reduction in staff, thereby, our taxes would lower?
simply frees up personnel to work on something else!