Experience
My current position is to look out for the best interests of the citizens. This has included monitoring how funds are expended and asserting his position to the County Commission. As Property Appraiser, I will include all appropriate properties on the tax roll with the goal of reducing the rates paid by all property owners. I will work diligently towards ensuring fair practices while listening to the concerns of all Brevardians.
A recent example I experienced as County Finance Director involved the extra $12.8 million of funds within the County Fire Rescue operations, which were not brought to the County Commissions attention by the department. The first attachment is the actual letter addressed on August 9, 2007. The second attachment represents an excerpt of the County Commission minutes on September 4, 2007. The very last paragraph of the minutes represents the action by the County Commission to return $5.4 million of unused funds from Fire Rescue rather than leave it in the department. Commissioner Voltz voted against returning these funds.
Attachment: Fire Surplus
Attachment: Minutes
In 2005, the County Commission discussed building a public marina on Merritt Island. Although potentially beneficial to preserving access to waterways, staffing the operation and ensuring the facility is utilized poses financial risks that would be better managed in private industry. Taxes don’t need to be increased again, as in the case of golf courses, to financially accommodate these types of ventures.
Attachment: Marina
The taxes and assessments paid annually to Brevard County government have grown from $157 million in 2001 to over $300 million this year. One method of potentially reducing citizen’s annual tax bills is by actively managing County personnel and public services. In 2006, a fire medic with a base pay of just over $40,000 received total compensation for the year of $107,000. This doesn’t even include employee benefits. The compensation for the same individual for 2007 was $112,000.
Attachment: Overtime
