Spring Hill May Reinstate Property Tax - John Dunn

FOX 17 News – By: John Dunn

The city of Spring Hill needs money, and they’re getting ready to ask property owners to hand it over.

For the past three years, Spring Hill hasn’t had a property tax, but a big budget crunch could change that.

Spring Hill officials say they have two choices…drastically cut city services and employees, or ask residents to start paying up.

It’s often said the grass is always greener on the other side.

That might be the case in suburban Spring Hill, where the property tax is zero.

But residents are finding out that could soon be changing.

"Not having a property tax forever, I don't think that is something that is realistic. Keeping it low I think is very realistic," says Spring Hill resident Darryl Brownlee.

Inside city hall they’ve been crunching numbers that don’t add up.

"If we did not have a property tax, the very real possibility/probability is that we would have to cut staff," says finance director Jim Smith.

The budget problem can be explained in one word…growth.

Spring Hill has been one of the fastest growing cities in the nation. The population exploded in just seven years, more than tripling in size.

"It just takes more to run a city that size, than a smaller city," says Smith.

It wasn’t always this way. Spring Hill eliminated is modes property tax back in 2005.

The city’s coffers were full of money from building permits and fees, but lately the growth has slowed down, and expenses are piling up.

"Our real only source of big ticket items is a property tax," says Smith.

So now, city aldermen are considering a 60-cent property tax.

"You know I think that's probably what is going to happen," says Alderman Eliot Mitchell.

If it passes, residents with a $100,000 house would pay about $150 a year.

Alderman Eliot Mitchell says without a property tax, Spring Hill will be forced to scale back fire service, and lay off employees.

"We don't want to reduce city services," says Mitchell.

For the most part, residents we spoke with understand the need for a property tax, but Darryl Brownlee added a word of caution. He just hopes his taxes stay low.

"I'm afraid they're going to reinstate it, and the next year it's going to go up, up, up, up, up. That's the only problem I would have with it," says Brownlee.

Spring Hill’s Board of Mayor and Aldermen will consider this property tax at their meeting on May 15th at 6pm.