LAND O' LAKES, Fla. — Leaders in Pasco County are pushing back on special tax breaks for housing developers and urging two companies to withdraw their pursuit of tax exemptions or face a legal battle.
This week, Pasco County officials sent letters to Passco Co. and The Richman Group, who own apartment complexes in Land O’ Lakes and Odessa, respectively.
The county said if granted tax breaks, it would strip $38 million from general fund revenue over the next 35 years and impact their ability to provide crucial funding for schools, firefighters and law enforcement.
“We're already very low funded in that arena and this is very scary for us,” said Pasco County Commissioner Kathryn Starkey.
The county said losses could be tens of millions higher based on their growth and incentives being available for units built within five years of the Live Local Act taking effect.
”Pasco has already approved a significant number of new apartment complexes that could be eligible for the tax exemption, this projected loss is just the beginning,” officials said in a news release.
"Some counties may or may not have approved many apartment complexes in the last five years, but we're very different and we've been on a major growth spurt and so we are we are very concerned obviously," Starkey explained.
Signed into law last year, the Live Local Act championed by Senate President Kathleen Passidomo (R-Naples) aimed to expand the number of affordable housing units statewide and offering among other things, tax breaks to developers.
Pasco argues the act is unconstitutional and “the Live Local Act, as presently drafted, does not focus on the development of new housing affordable to Pasco County sheriff's deputies, firefighters and schoolteachers.”
“It is unconstitutional to give a private company a tax break, if they're not providing a charitable purpose,” Starkey added saying units in the complexes are right around 120% of the area's average median income.
10 Tampa Bay reached out to both companies, only one, The Richman Group got back. A spokesperson said the company has received the letter and is reviewing it.
Lawmakers right now are considering reforms to the Live Local Act, but Pasco County officials are urging they take further steps to keep local interests in mind.
"There's a lot of reasons why maybe it's not so good to preempt local government so heavily like this,” said Starkey. “What works in Miami, may not work in Pasco,” she added.