Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Florida Keys voters soon may be asked whether to implement a 1-cent sales tax increase to raise about $25 million annually for wastewater upgrades.

The proposed increase to 8.5 percent would sunset after 20 years, but the rate would return to 7.5 percent earlier, in 2018, when a different 1-cent sales tax for wastewater and capital improvements expires, Monroe County Administrator Roman Gastesi said.

Paying for upgrades with sales tax revenue would split the burden between residents and tourists.

Gastesi and Monroe County Mayor George Neugent, who has lobbied for the referendum for more than a year, are on a campaign to shore up support for the idea. They have met with officials from Marathon, Key Colony Beach, Layton and Islamorada, and plan to meet with those in Key West, possibly later in the week, to persuade them to approve a supportive resolution.

Layton already has done so, Neugent said. If all the municipalities follow suit, the referendum request would go to the state Legislature for approval.

County officials hope that will be sooner than later. If legislators have a special session this fall -- they are considering it to address ongoing budget issues and a gaming pact with a Florida Indian tribe -- and if they approve the request, the referendum could appear on an Oct. 6 ballot.

That election is for the Key West City Commission, so it would cost the county about $121,900 to expand the election Keys-wide. It would require opening the 23 precincts outside Key West's 10, which costs about $5,300 per precinct, according to Elections Supervisor Harry Sawyer.

Otherwise, the county would have to wait for the Legislature to vote on it during its regular session in March 2010, which means Keys voters would decide the issue in the Nov. 2, 2010, election, Neugent said.

That would be beyond the July 2010 state-mandated deadline for the Keys to have all properties connected to advanced wastewater systems, but the county is lobbying the state for an extension.

The timing is what concerns Marathon city leaders, who expect to complete most of their wastewater work by December 2010. They want to know if the city could be reimbursed if the sales tax revenue came after that.

"We wouldn't support it if we couldn't use it," Mayor Mike Cinque said. "I have not made up my mind. I would probably support letting voters decide."

The extra 1 cent is estimated to generate $22 to $30 million a year, which would be divvied up based on a state formula, Neugent and Gastesi said. The county would receive about $13 million a year; Key West, which has completed almost all of its wastewater work but needs stormwater upgrades, would receive $5.2 million; Marathon would receive $2.2 million; Islamorada would receive $1.5 million a year; Layton would receive $50,000 a year; and Key Colony Beach would receive $200,000, Gastesi said.

tohara@keysnews.com