SEBRING — Whether Floridians will vote for a tax cut won't be known until Jan. 29, but four local government officials are against it. "The tax reform doesn't fix the problem," said Guy Maxcy, a Highlands County commissioner. It doesn't correctly modify the taxing system, Maxcy said. The county would lose $5.5 million, according to an estimate provided by Highlands County Property Appraiser Raymond McIntyre. That doesn't count the effect of portability, which would allow homeowners to move the Save Our Homes cap. Save Our Homes is a constitutional mandate that a taxing entity cannot raise the taxable value of the home by more than 3 percent each year. He estimated the average homeowner could save $230 annually in property taxes. But taxing authorities could raise the millage to offset any tax cut created by the Jan. 29 vote, McIntyre said. ...more

January 18, 2008

Suggests several potential remedies. ...more

January 16, 2008

On paper, it looks like Hillsborough County is willing to pay nearly 20 times the official value of about 7 acres of swamp to add it to a 2,000-acre preservation parcel known as the Alafia South Prong. ...more

January 16, 2008

The county property appraiser's office recorded 1,928 foreclosures in 2007, more than a 250 percent increase from 2006. ...more

January 15, 2008

Suggests several potential remedies. ...more

January 15, 2008

On paper, it looks like Hillsborough County is willing to pay nearly 20 times the official value of about 7 acres of swamp to add it to a 2,000-acre preservation parcel known as the Alafia South Prong. ...more

January 12, 2008

On paper, it looks like Hillsborough County is willing to pay nearly 20 times the official value of about 7 acres of swamp to add it to a 2,000-acre preservation parcel known as the Alafia South Prong. ...more

January 12, 2008

Voting this month for a plan to cut property taxes may spark a rise in your local property tax rate, eroding savings for homeowners and increasing tax bills for other property owners. ...more

January 10, 2008

When firefighters were called to a fire at 1502 S. Alexander St. on the night of Jan. 2, they determined the blaze was sparked by faulty wiring to a dining room light fixture, officials said. ...more

January 9, 2008

The University of South Florida's refusal to investigate allegations that football star Ben Moffitt cheated in his classes shows an appalling disregard for academic integrity. ...more

January 9, 2008