Palmetto lawyer vies for District 1 Republican nomination

With two attorneys already seated on the Manatee County Commission — Amanda Ballard and Bob McCann — another attorney has entered the race for District 1: Leland Taylor. 

Taylor said lawyers can make good county commissioners because they’re open-minded, know how to apply the Constitution, and are adept at reading statutes and ordinances.  

“There are so many different areas to learn, you can’t know it all,” Taylor said. “But you have an approach to learning those things, and then coupled with listening to folks and incorporating their values and their concerns, you apply that to make good policies. We want to preserve and protect this place.” 

Taylor, 49, was born and raised in Manatee County. He grew up in Ellenton and now lives and practices law in Palmetto. 

The reviews for his criminal defense practice are stellar. He’s described as knowledgeable, patient, attentive and respectful. 

Taylor said it’s always been important for him to give a voice to those who don’t have one. He tries to incorporate "everyone’s wisdom and input to come up with the best outcome." 

That would be his goal in District 1, a district that includes citizens facing rural, urban and aging issues. 

“Having a bridge between the very diverse interests in our community and trying to bring them together, I think is important,” Taylor said. 

If elected, his top priority would be “quality of life issues,” such as bridging infrastructure and public safety since the two are “intertwined.” Response times for law enforcement and emergency services increase with traffic congestion. 

Taylor is the chairperson for Manatee County’s Citizens Oversight Committee for Infrastructure Sales Tax. The half-cent tax was passed in 2016 and expires in 2031. 

Given that the county could lose a large chunk of its property tax revenues if the ballot referendum passes in November (the referendum would increase homestead exemptions to $250,000 for full-time residents by 2028), Taylor wants to put the Infrastructure Sales Tax back on the ballot to see if residents want to reauthorize it and possibly expand its uses.

“That’s a huge source of revenue,” he said. “IST funds 40% of the road construction in the county's capital improvement plan.” 

If the Infrastructure Sales Tax is put back on the ballot, residents can decide if that’s a revenue source they want to pursue, instead of the county “pushing another tax.” 

It’s also a revenue source that’s not solely paid by homeowners. Taylor noted that about 30% of the tax collected comes from tourists.

“Anthing to reduce that burden on our citizens, but still provide for our needs, I think is important,” he said. “On one hand, (the upcoming referendum) could provide much needed tax relief, but on the other hand, it could create a crisis as far as providing for the services that our county needs. You’re going to have to be able to think out of the box.”

Taylor earned his bachelor’s degree in political science from Florida State and his law degree from the Florida Coastal School of Law. 

He interned for Lee County as a student and quickly went to work for a law firm that represented government and nonprofit clients before the Florida Legislature. 

Taylor noted that governments were dealing with the same issue then as they are now — Growth management and home rule. 

There were attempts to “usurp local government authority” and Collier County was pushing for two-year transportation concurrency that “the development entry did not approve of or want to see.” 

Taylor’s job was to “kill bad things for local governments” and garner appropriations for projects, such as street lighting in Fort Myers and the Bob Janes Triage Center, another project in Fort Myers that was managed by the Salvation Army at the time.

In 2011, Taylor returned home to Manatee County because his grandfather, Harry Groce, had Alzheimer’s disease. 

Because of that experience, Taylor is especially aware of the challenges that come with aging and caretaking. 

“The law hasn’t caught up with understanding that there’s an explosion of not only growth but of an aging population,” Taylor said. “There are things we could do with respect to the land development code that would make it easier for folks to add an additional room onto their home so parents can be taken care of by their kids.” 

He said additional training for law enforcement to identify a senior who is dealing with Alzheimer’s or dementia could also be helpful. 

As the son of a single-mother, Laurel Taylor, Taylor said he was raised to be helpful. 

“It’s how I’m built,” he said. “Growing up in a situation where maybe folks would say others had more advantages made me have to work hard. It built in me an overpowering need to want to help others because I understand what these families are going through.” 

For more information on Taylor, visit LelandForManatee.com.