- August 3, 2026
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Voters will decide in November whether they want to pay extra tax dollars to fund the purchase and maintenance of environmentally sensitive lands in Manatee County, but the option to earmark funds for animal services will not be on the ballot.
Both proposals were presented to Manatee County commissioners during the July 28 meeting.
While feedback on additional dedicated millage for environmental lands was mostly well-received, Commissioner Amanda Ballard didn’t garner enough support from citizens or fellow commissioners to push a ballot measure forward to fund a brick-and-mortar animal shelter.
Both proposals were set at the same millage rate of an added .16 mills with the ability for the county to bond up to $75 million.
On a $300,000 home, .16 mills (16 cents on every $1,000 of assessed property value) equates to $48 a year.
Ballard added the proposal for an animal services millage to the agenda as a possible solution to the call from some residents to tear out the prefab kennels at the Bishop Animal Shelter and build the brick-and-mortar shelter that was included in the five-year capital improvement plan at the time Bishop was donated to the county in 2021.
“If we’re going to make a change, we need to have funding for that change because the funding we had for a shelter, we spent on (Bishop),” Ballard said. “I’ve gotten a little blowback on the idea of a millage specifically for animal services, but I think that, very much like the environmental millage, this is a chance to put it before voters and let people decide whether or not they would like to spend the money for a top-of-the-line shelter.”
Commissioner Bob McCann likened the proposal to asking residents to pay twice for something they were already promised.
Even Julie Madison, one of the most vocal advocates for a brick-and-mortar shelter, didn’t support a dedicated millage.
“A low sales tax on non-essential items might be a better way,” Madison said. “That way we have a designated fund for animal welfare, but it is not hurting our lower income people, which the property tax would.”
Due to the lack of support, Ballard withdrew her motion.
Florida residents will be given the option to vote to reduce property taxes in November, but Commission Chair Tal Siddique noted that “two things can be true” when it comes to Manatee County residents opting to pay an additional tax to fund land conservation.
Siddique said he believes many residents who support Amendment 3, the increase of homestead exemptions, will also support the environmental lands millage because of its narrow focus.
The funds can only be spent to protect land.
Over 70% of Manatee County residents agreed to tax themselves for the same purpose in 2020. The first referendum dedicated .15 mills to land preservation and allowed the county to bond up to $50 million.
Collection didn’t begin until 2023 when $7,634,694 was collected. Over $8.9 million was collected in 2024 and over $10 million was collected in 2025.
In November, voters will decide if they want to more than double that collection.
If approved, the owner of a $300,000 home, who is currently paying $45 a year to protect land in Manatee County, will pay $93 a year instead.
In addition to the increased millage, the referendum would also allow the county to bond up to $75 million.
Commissioner Mike Rahn noted that additional funds will be needed for maintenance of the purchased properties.
