A.G. GancarskiMay 19, 2020Tag: Better Jacksonville Planphoto of voting booth in american election --ar 3:2 --stylize 50 --v 5.2 Job ID: d6b1741f-e583-47de-b6ef-5ba8b2e2a482
A.G. GancarskiMay 19, 2020
A.G. GancarskiAugust 2, 2019
5min695
Debt-free city? Sell the utility.
A.G. GancarskiJune 6, 2018
4min225
It’s rare that a Debt Affordabilty Study qualifies as a good-news story, but in the case of Jacksonville, most metrics are bullish. Debt service costs and debt per capita are below targets, while reserve funds are trending toward their targets. “Through recent strong financial management, as recognized by the ratings agencies, a strong economy, low […]
A.G. GancarskiOctober 3, 2016
3min346
The office of Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry issued a press release Monday afternoon noting positive trends between the city and bond ratings agencies. “In announcing numerous credit upgrades since Mayor Curry took office, Fitch and S&P acknowledged ‘prudent management,’ while Moody’s applauded the city’s ‘strong management with good financial policies and practices.’ However, even in the […]
A.G. GancarskiAugust 16, 2016
5min444
State Sen. Audrey Gibson voted to authorize Jacksonville to have a ballot referendum to extend the current half-cent tax devoted to infrastructure past its 2030 sunset date to address the unfunded liability. She even co-introduced the bill. But that’s the last vote she’ll cast for the measure. On Monday night, Gibson saw her name on the […]
A.G. GancarskiMay 24, 2016
1min420
Though Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry hasn’t said the Jacksonville beach communities would suffer from any aspect of the potential extension of the half-cent sales tax, at least one beach community mayor, Harriet Pruette of Neptune Beach, is in a “trust but verify” mode. A letter from Pruette to Curry wants to know Curry’s “plans to ensure that […]
A.G. GancarskiMarch 25, 2016
7min240
Good news: Rick Scott signed the “pension tax” bill, allowing a referendum on extending the 1/2 cent BJP tax until 2060 to deal with the unfunded pension liability. Now, the question: how to sell it to the people? Selling a sales tax referendum has been done in Jacksonville before. In fact, selling a ½ cent sales […]
A.G. GancarskiMarch 16, 20162min246
On Wednesday, Lenny Curry expressed optimism that Gov. Rick Scott will sign the bill allowing Jacksonville to have a pension tax referendum. “I feel good about where we are,” Curry said as he spoke to local media. He said the Governor’s decision to sign – or not – is the “last phase of the work in Tallahassee.” […]
A.G. GancarskiMarch 11, 2016
3min329
In the Sine Die edition of “As the Pension Tax Turns,” there is (potentially) great news for Jacksonville advocates of the Discretionary Sales Surtax bill that the Senate just passed. The bill goes to the Gov. Rick Scott on Friday, says a very reliable source. And Scott made what has been called a “solid commitment” […]
A.G. GancarskiJanuary 29, 2016
9min290
I knew something unpopular was about to happen Thursday night when I saw this Facebook post from Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry quoting Harry Truman. “Fame is a vapor, popularity is an accident, riches take wings, those who cheer today may curse tomorrow and only one thing endures. Character.” Truman’s motto: the buck stops here. The irony: that […]