Town council proposes to keep existing milage rate

The Town of Miami Lakes is proposing to keep the same rate for property taxes for the 2019-2010 fiscal year as the town released preliminary figures for its operating budget last week.
Council members were expected to adopt a tentative rate for property taxes of 2.3127 mills for next year during their July 16 Town Council meeting.
The 2.3127 mills, which is $2.3127 per $1,000 of assessed property value, is the same rate the council chose for the current fiscal year.
The new rate is expected to generate $7.3 million in property tax revenues.
According to the budget, Miami Lakes enters a seventh year of economic growth attributed to increasing property values and new development along with the positive effects of prudent financial decisions over the last few years.
The town invested in new community facilities, stormwater infrastructure improvements, enhanced communication and transparency, police resources to accommodate a growing population, beautification projects and improved response times to requests for service though new technologies and process improvement.
Miami Lakes’ estimated general fund budget is estimated at $16.6 million, a $1.3 million decrease to prior year’s projection as a result of FPL franchise fee revenue loss.
The budget includes $342,500 in carry-over money from the current year, which represents the balance from the litigation reserve.
Other revenues the town is projected to receive include $4.4 million in intergovernmental revenues, $2.8 million utility service tax and $306,650 in miscellaneous revenues.
Police services, which constitutes about 52 percent of the town’s budget, is estimated at $8.5 million, which includes school crossing guards, for the next fiscal year.
The town has allocated about $2.2 million for parks and recreation services including maintenance and parks improvements.
For public works, the town is projecting to spend about $1 million of its budgeted funds for stormwater drainage projects and other public works projects. The town can also use federal and state funding to complete the remaining phases of several stormwater drainage projects.
The town’s committees are proposing slight increases to their budgets to organize town events.
The Cultural Affairs Committee is requesting $20,450, the Youth Activities Task Force is asking for $12,250, and the Education Advisory Board is seeking a $3,700 budget. The Neighborhood Improvement Committee is requesting a budget of $3,000, Public Safety Committee wants $1,600, and the Economic Development Committee would like a budget of $1,500.
For town staff, which works hard and diligently to help the town manager run the day-to-day operations and prepare ordinances and resolution for council members’ approval, the budget indicates no cost of living adjustments for the 2019-2020 fiscal year.
The first budget hearing is scheduled for Tuesday, September 10 at 7:30 p.m., and the second and final hearing his scheduled for Tuesday, September 25 at 7:30 at Miami Lakes Town Hall.