Complex Amendment One issues to be explored during public forum at USF Sarasota-Manatee

 

SARASOTA, FL (January 8, 2008) – The complex issues related to Amendment One will be explored in depth at a free upcoming public forum sponsored by The Institute for Public Policy and Leadership at the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee.

 

The forum will take place from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. on Jan. 17 in Selby Auditorium on the USF Sarasota-Manatee campus.  It will feature five speakers offering differing points of view on the proposed amendment, whose fate Floridians will decide when they vote in the presidential primary on Jan. 29.

 

The amendment, put on the ballot by the Florida Legislature at one of several special sessions held in 2007, is intended to provide tax relief for Florida property owners and to help kick-start the state’s stagnant economy. If approved, the amendment would:

 

·        Double the homestead exemption to $50,000

·        Make the Save Our Homes annual tax cap of 3 percent “portable” when a homeowner wishes to sell and move elsewhere in the state

·        Exempt $25,000 worth of tangible personal property from being taxed

·        Limit to 10 percent the annual amount of increase in assessed value for non-homestead property

 

Sixty percent of Florida voters must approve the amendment for it to become part of the state’s Constitution.

 

On the forum panel will be:

 

• John M. Sebree, Vice President/Public Policy, Florida Association of Realtors

• John Wayne Smith, Legislative Affairs Director, Association of Florida Counties

• State Senator Lisa Carlton, District 23, Sarasota

• Sarasota County Commission Chair Nora Patterson

• Ed Chiles, Manatee County restaurateur

 

The forum, which is open to the public, will be moderated by David Klement, director of The Institute for Public Policy and Leadership. Seating is limited, so reservations are recommended. To reserve a seat, call 359-4774 or e-mail dfconard@sar.usf.edu.