Steube tax bill may cost Longboat thousands

State Sen. Greg Steube isn’t making any friends in the ManaSota League of Cities thanks to two bills he’s filed for the 2017 legislative session.

Although Longboat Key isn’t affected by legislation that would bar municipalities from regulating vacation rentals, a bill capping local business-tax receipts at $25 may cost the island more than $95,000.

“It’s going to be a big hit to Longboat, and I’m unsure of what it will be for other municipalities,” said Town Clerk Trish Granger, who keeps records for the board.

In fiscal year 2016, the town charged about $168,000 in the specified taxes, which are levied on businesses within the Key’s boundaries, from 2,917 receipts. With an average charge of $57.60, Steube’s bill would more than halve collections.

“I don’t think anyone had an inkling that something like that would be generated by someone like him,” said Town Commissioner Irwin Pastor, who serves as the town’s representative with the ManaSota League of Cities. “It sort of caught everybody by surprise.”

S.B. 330, which Steube filed Jan. 10, bars any county or municipality from collecting the business tax if it hasn’t had such an ordinance in place before Jan. 1, and sets the $25 cap on each payment. 

Steube, who was elected to the District 23 seat in the state Senate after serving six years in the state  House of Representatives, did not return multiple calls seeking comment.

Sarasota County and multiple municipalities in the two-county area use proceeds from the taxes for economic development, but on Longboat, that revenue stream is included in the general fund to offset town operating expenses. It accounted for a little more than a half-percent of those costs in the previous fiscal year, a total of $16,241,000.

Pastor said the bill is especially concerning for the Key because it is a donor community. It sends more tax revenue to surrounding counties than it receives in services. The local business tax comes from Longboat businesses directly to the towns coffers.

“It is significant because we only get 14 cents on the dollar,” Pastor said. “As I always say, we are the ATM machine for the county — not that we aren’t proud to be that.”