Category Archives: Taxes

Murphy Blocks Needed Funding For Fire and Emergency Services – Analysis

Posted on December 11, 2016 by M_Blank

Sadly, the Odious Sylvia Murphy was re-elected to the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) this past August.  Since then she’s wasted no time in seeing to it that her constituents in District 5 get the screwing they’ve come to expect. … Continue reading →

Posted in Fire and Ambulance, Monroe County, Taxes | Leave a comment

The Land Scarcity Chess Board – Part 3

Posted on November 5, 2016 by M_Blank

Affordable housing is one of the big issues in the Keys these days.  There’s no question that a lack of affordability is a problem when it comes to retaining the local work force.  Local politicians have attempted to frame this issue … Continue reading →

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Kolhage – Talking Sense on Canal Restoration?

Posted on September 28, 2016 by M_Blank

It’s been a strange couple of days.  First, I fact-checked an animal control matter, and statements made turned out to be truthful.  What the heck!??  Then I read this news story about those abominable canal restoration projects and Kolhage actually … Continue reading →

Posted in BOCC, Canal Restoration, Taxes | Leave a comment

Thoughtful Letter About the Sin Tax

Posted on August 12, 2016 by M_Blank

I saw a letter in the Citizen (keysnews.com) supporting the “sin tax” today.  It was written in response to an earlier editorial, which was skeptical about the “sin tax”. Let me start by saying it’s only right and proper to look … Continue reading →

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New Tax Rate

Posted on July 18, 2016 by M_Blank

I wrote here about Monroe County’s lack of back-up for their budget meetings.  It turns out you can find some of it over here.  I found it because of this news story on KeysNews.com. As usual, the county is making … Continue reading →

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HSAB and the “Sin” Tax

Posted on May 31, 2016 by M_Blank

Comm. Carruthers’s Emergency Services Surtax (ESS) has been well documented on this blog.  The county made a number of statements about this proposal that turned out to be false.  When asked to substantiate their claims, county staff largely failed to do … Continue reading →

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Emergency Services Surtax and Human Services

Posted on May 6, 2016 by M_Blank

Comm. Carruthers tried to cloak her self-serving Emergency Services Surtax (ESS) proposal in some appealing promises to get people to bite.  That proposal is supposedly dead for now.  But from Carruthers’s point of view, its too good to stay dead for long.  I have … Continue reading →

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Emergency Services Surtax – Tavernier

Posted on May 5, 2016 by M_Blank

Tavernier, like Stock Island, is one of those sub-areas that has special issues when it comes to Comm. Heather Carruthers’s Emergency Services Surtax (ESS) proposal.  Local residents in Stock Island will be especially hard hit by the ESS because of its high proportion … Continue reading →

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Emergency Services Surtax – Stock Island

Posted on May 4, 2016 by M_Blank

The Emergency Services Surtax (ESS) proposal is supposedly “in the freezer“.  But I don’t expect it to stay there for long.  County staff’s misleading analysis claims that this new tax will shift the cost of emergency services from locals to … Continue reading →

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Zombie Tax Won’t Die

Posted on May 1, 2016 by M_Blank

I saw this headline on KeysNet.com:  Dedicated property tax for emergency services is dead for now. Hmmm…dead for now?  As in, it’s going to come back to life at some later point in time?  Like a zombie?  Well, somebody please … Continue reading →

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