The TaxWatch Research Blog

The TaxWatch Research Blog is a forum where our research staff can address topics and issues in a short format. Keep an eye on this space during Legislative Session for frequent posts making sense of the activity at the Capitol. 

Budget Watch - New GR Estimates Reduced Slightly

HURRICANE MICHAEL BUDGET AMENDMENTS NOW TOTAL $443 MILLION; MORE THAN $200 MILLION IN CORPORATE INCOME TAXES COULD BE REFUNDED

/ Categories: Research, Budget/Approps

The eagerly awaited final General Revenue (GR) estimates to be used for the next state budget are out. Legislators and appropriations lobbyists were hoping for an infusion of cash to ease a tight budget year, made even tighter by hurricane-related costs and the competing costly priorities of the Governor and legislative leaders. Well, that did not happen. The estimates did not change much, decreasing by a total of $7.4 million.

Budget Watch - General Revenue Estimates Inject $842 Million Into The Next Budget Process

/ Categories: Research, Budget/Approps

Less than a week after the Senate Appropriations Committee heard a gloomy presentation on the outlook for the upcoming budget, the General Revenue Estimating Conference met on December 18 and increased the revenue projections by $461.5 million in FY2018-19 and another $380.5 million in FY2019-20. This means the 2019 Legislature will have an estimated $842 million more in General Revenue (GR) collections for the next state budget than was previously expected.

Budget Watch - Outlook Assumes Legislature Will Sweep Trust Funds

/ Categories: Research, Budget/Approps

Florida’s state forecasters estimate that the 2019 Legislature will have a $223.4 million budget surplus when it puts together the state’s new spending plan for FY 2019-20. However, this assumes the Legislature will transfer nearly $400 million from trust funds—money earmarked by law for specific uses—into the General Revenue (GR) Fund.

Budget Watch - GR Estimates Down $32.6 Million

/ Categories: Research, Budget/Approps

Florida’s General Revenue (GR) Estimating Conference met on August 16 and forecast that the state would collect $13.1 million less than expected in FY2018-19 and $19.5 million less in FY2019-20. This reduces the estimated GR that the Legislature will have for the next state budget by $32.6 million, a change of less than one-tenth of 1 percent.

Budget Watch - Actual GR Collections in 2017-18 Exceed Estimates

/ Categories: Research, Budget/Approps

Actual net GR collections for the fiscal year that that just ended exceeded the last estimate (February 2018, adjusted for legislative changes) by $205.2 million (0.66 percent). This will be added to the unobligated FY2018-19 GR (cash reserve) balance of $1.026 billion to be carried forward to the next budget year (FY2019-20). These numbers, along with the current cycle of the state’s Estimating Conferences, can begin to define the fiscal outlook for the next state budget that will be developed by the 2019 Legislature.

Budget Watch - The Whole Story of State Spending

/ Categories: Research, Budget/Approps
The 2018 Legislature passed a $88.727 billion state budget—the General Appropriations Act (GAA)—which recently took effect on July 1. But that doesn’t tell the whole story of what was spent by lawmakers last session. While the GAA price tag gets all the publicity, other appropriations can go largely unnoticed.

2018 Budget Turkey Watch

/ Categories: Research, Budget Turkeys, Budget/Approps, Taxpayer Guide
The $88.7 billion budget passed by the Florida House and Senate for FY2018-19 contains 87 appropriations items qualifying as Budget Turkeys worth $147.5 million. Since projects were not added to the budget during conference this year, most of these were flagged because they circumvented established selection processes. This includes 56 local transportation projects worth nearly $120 million. These member projects, for which there is no formal evaluation and selection process, bypass the transportation planning process, potentially diverting funds from projects that are in the DOT work program.

Comparing the 2018 House and Senate Tax Packages

/ Categories: Research, Taxes, Budget/Approps, Taxpayer Guide
The House unveiled its 2018 tax cut package (HB 7087) almost a month ago, while the Senate’s did not appear until week 8 of the session when it was amended onto SB 620 in the Appropriations Committee. The bills have a lot of similarities, but there are big differences that will have to be negotiated before a final tax cut package is approved.

Budget Watch - More Revenue for the Next Budget

/ Categories: Research, Budget Turkeys, Taxes, Budget/Approps, Cost Savings, Taxpayer Guide
As the Florida Legislature prepares to go into conference budget negotiations to finalize the FY2018-19 budget, state estimators gave lawmakers a bit of good news. Florida’s General Revenue (GR) Estimating Conference met on February 9 and forecast that the state would collect an additional $461.8 million in FY2017-18 and FY2018-19.

2018 How Florida Counties Compare

/ Categories: Research, Taxes, Budget/Approps, Local Government, Taxpayer Guide

This publication compares the revenue and expenditure profiles of Florida’s 67 counties to give taxpayers an overview of how their local government stacks up with the rest of the state. The report presents the most recently available data regarding: property taxes, other taxes and fees, county and municipal revenues, county and municipal expenditures, and other related measures.

2017 Final Tax Package Analysis

/ Categories: Research, Taxes, Budget/Approps, Taxpayer Guide
This Session Spotlight is a look at the provisions in HB 7109, comparing the Senate amendment to the original House bill, and an examination of other bills and proposed constitutional amend- ments dealing with property taxes that have passed or are expected to pass and that could also reduce the taxes Floridians pay.

The Show May Not Go On: An analysis of the cost of severe cuts to Florida's tourism marketing

/ Categories: Research, Budget/Approps, Economic Development, Taxpayer Guide, Tourism
Florida tourism is an absolutely critical industry to the state, employing millions of people and contributing millions of dollars to state coffers. Despite its importance to the Sunshine State, tourism is in the crosshairs of the Florida House, a costly decision according to this report.
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