HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity of Tamarac Resolution R-93-0953
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Temp. Reso. # 6519
CITY OF TAMARAC, FLORIDA
RESOLUTION NO. R-93- 9.-'>
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY OF TAMARAC,
FLORIDA, URGING THE FLORIDA LEGISLATURE
TO TAKE THE NECESSARY ACTION TO ELIMINATE
THE INEQUITABLE PRACTICE OF "DOUBLE
TAXATION"; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE
DATE.
WHEREAS, over most of the past 100 years in Florida,
citizens living close --by to each other have incorporated
their community into a city to provide services conditioned
by such closeness; and
WHEREAS, the Legislature has in the past two decades
made it quite difficult for such citizens to so incorporate
through a very restrictive statute; and
WHEREAS, we feel it important and desirable that
citizens plan and control their own community destiny; that
they, from time to time, determine the level of services they
desire; that they secure the powers and authorities to
install and manage such services along with the most
equitable procedures to acquire sufficient tax revenues to
pay for such services; and
WHEREAS, the state has occasionally defined a service to
be "county -wide" and when similar services are performed or
enhanced by the city government, the city resident is
required to pay a "double tax" for such service. Accordingly,
state laws and policies should be amended to authorize
municipalities to provide desired services to their citizens,
on a preferential basis, and to further require that
procedures be established to fairly allocate the cost of such
services between the city and county governments; and
WHEREAS, existing cities have been further limited, or
restricted in their ability to include adjacent citizens in
their governmental services and, for the most part, have
found few acceptable or workable procedures to reasonably
extend such services in a normal and practical manner; and
WHEREAS, the resultant substantial population growth in
the unincorporated areas of the state have encouraged county
governments to provide increasing levels of municipal -type
services to the citizens of such unincorporated areas; and
Temp. Reso. i 6519
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WHEREAS, burdensome tax inequities have been imposed
upon citizens of many municipalities by the payment of
general taxes to county governments for municipal -type
services performed primarily in such unincorporated area; and
WHEREAS, the citizens of Florida, in adopting their
constitution, spoke to prohibiting the practice of imposing
county taxes on the residents of Florida's municipalities for
the provision of municipal -type services which primarily
benefit residents within the unincorporated area; and
WHEREAS, legislation is necessary to establish
procedures for the identification and resolution of such
discriminatory practices; and
WHEREAS, the courts of Florida, by recent decisions,
have reversed long held understandings of statutes that
assure municipal residents of equitable treatment and created
the inequity of double taxation; and
WHEREAS, the municipal citizens of our state must not.be
unduly taxed because of their willingness to carry such
municipal tax burdens to secure higher levels of local
service; and
WHEREAS, it is oppressive to have municipal taxpayers
provide additional tax revenues to county governments for
municipal --type services to citizens outside city boundaries;
and
WHEREAS, citizens in unincorporated areas often receive
higher levels of municipal -type service without the
commensurate requirement of providing the taxes necessary to
fully support services; and
WHEREAS, those actions and procedures, in effect,
provide a significant level of municipal -type services for
some citizens at the expense of other citizens; and
WHEREAS, such practices run contrary to all principles
of democratic and representative society as well as create
inappropriate and unequal tax burdens amongst our citizens.
Temp. Reso. # 6519
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NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
TAMARAC, FLORIDA:
SECTION 1: That the City of Tamarac hereby affirms that
the taxing of property owners from within Florida's
municipalities for services rendered in the unincorporated
areas cannot continue to exist.
SECTION 2: That the City of Tamarac requests the
Florida Legislature to amend and clarify the law to eliminate
such inequities.
SECTION 3: That the City of Tamarac urges the
Legislature to act quickly on this matter to provide explicit
legislation to assure fairness and tax equity for all of
Florida's citizens.
SECTION 4: That a copy of this resolution be sent to
all members of our legislative delegation, the Governor, and
the Florida League of Cities.
PASSED, ADOPTED AND APPROVED this // day of 1993.
ATTEST:
CAROL A. EVANS
CITY CLERK
I HEREBY CERTIFY ha I have
p oved this R o ion as
to otm. .A
CITY A
MAYOR
DIST 1:
DIST. 2:
DIST. 3:
DIST. 4:
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H.A. BENDER
MAYOR