- July 22, 2026
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If 60% of voters pass the property tax referendum in November, Commissioner George Kruse said Manatee County won’t simply be “tightening its belt.”
“I think people are misinterpreting,” he said. “It’s not our belt. We’re providing stuff for everyone else.”
Kruse noted that the county is left with “very little" after the Sheriff’s Office, union contracts and bondholders are paid, so barring the state redistributing wealth, Manatee County won’t be able to bridge the gap of lost revenue.
By county estimates, staff would have to work with about $81 million less in 2027 and about $149 million less in 2028.
If the referendum passes, Kruse described the possible outcome as a “much more regressive tax system.”
Investopedia defines a regressive tax system as “a financial system where the tax rate remains the same for everyone, disproportionately affecting those with lower incomes by taking a larger share of their earnings.”
Kruse used Manatee County Area Transit as an example. Riding the bus in Manatee County is a free service. County residents take over 2 million trips every year.
Kruse said most residents who use MCAT are riding to and from work.
If the referendum is passed, he said bus riders will "have to come out of pocket on their minimum wage job (because the county will likely have to reinstate bus fares to maintain the service), so the guy with the house on the water can get a couple bucks off his property taxes to go out to a nicer meal."
“This isn’t like a blip in time because of COVID-19,” Kruse said. “This would be a reset of the new normal.”
What could the “new normal” look like in Manatee County?
Commissioners can’t predict the future, but they can opine as to what could be cut back, eliminated or renegotiated in Manatee County government if the property tax referendum passes in November.
Here’s a list of 10 possibilities:
Major projects that require design, planning and funding are compiled within a five-year capital improvement plan.
Proposed upgrades at Mixon Farms and the Emergency Operations Center at approximately $2 million each are on the smaller scale of capital improvement projects.
Projects like the proposed $200 million expansion of the Ft. Hamer bridge from two lanes to four are much larger scale projects.
But no matter the size, Kruse said nothing in the capital improvement plan can be built until the referendum is decided because anything that’s built will also require upkeep.
Kruse noted that road maintenance was already underfunded last year due to funding constraints.
Manatee County Area Transit and the Manatee County Public Library System are experiencing what cuts in funding look like in practice after County Administrator Charlie Bishop implemented a hiring freeze in February to prepare for the possibility of reduced revenues.
Residents are starting to feel the effects of the hiring freeze in less MCAT bus routes and longer wait times because of fewer bus drivers.
Starting Aug. 1, libraries across the county will open an hour later Monday through Saturday.
The Manatee County website reads, "Due to a countywide hiring freeze, the library is operating with nearly 20% fewer library staff than needed. Adjusting operating hours allows us to continue providing consistent, high-quality service with the staff currently available."
Kruse said libraries won’t shut down if the referendum passes, but the reduction in hours could far exceed one less hour a day.
Libraries could start using a rotating schedule. The Lakewood Ranch Library could be open three days a week and the Braden River Library could be open the remaining three days.
Library access might not be available on Sundays anymore, but these are just examples. The one-hour reduction is the only current plan in place.
Commissioner Bob McCann has repeatedly called the county government “top-heavy,” citing too many directors and deputy county administrators.
He said eliminating county commissioners isn't off-limits either. A standard board for the size of Manatee County is five commissioners — one for each of the five districts.
The two at-large commission seats are allowed under a special act; they’re not statutorily required.
Commissioner Mike Rahn said programs that aren’t considered a base service would likely be eliminated for a lack of funding if the referendum passes.
He used Manatee Moves as an example. It’s a free, on-demand ride service available to veterans living in Manatee County.
U.S. Marine Corps veteran Dale Cole used the service for six weeks straight in 2025. Treatment for an infected cut on his ankle required daily intravenous antibiotics.
Overall, the program helped over 335 veterans get to and from medical appointments in 2025.
Kruse used Suncoast Prosper as an example of a program that’s unlikely to get off the ground if the referendum is passed.
The “last-dollar financial assistance program” would cover the remaining tuition for State College of Florida students after federal aid, grants and scholarships are exhausted.
In May, SCF requested approximately $1.5 million from the county to help fund the program's first year and just under $3 million for the second and third years.
Kruse said it would be better not to fund the program at all than to fund one class of students and have to cut funding for future classes.
A dedicated .33 mills currently funds children’s services. In 2025, over $16.7 million of tax dollars supported 55 programs that served 35,292 residents.
Kruse named the Early Learning Coalition and the Boys and Girls Club as two nonprofits that stand to lose funding if the referendum is passed.
Another voter-approved, dedicated .15 mills funds land conservation.
“That’ll get cut in half,” Kruse said. “That’s 50% of the amount of money we’ll have to purchase (land and easements).
McCann pointed to the county fleet as an easy target of cuts with or without the referendum passing in November.
“We need to decide what’s necessary and what’s nice,” McCann said.
He noted too many county trucks that drive on “gallons to the mile instead of miles to the gallon.”
McCann wants the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office and Public Safety to remain fully funded regardless of November’s outcome, but he also wants to see the Sheriff’s Office pare down its fleet, as well.
MCSO receives 29 cents of every dollar Manatee County collects in property taxes.
The School Board of Manatee County receives 50 cents of every dollar the county collects.
With that in mind, McCann questioned why the county pays for Manatee County Sheriff's Office services on school campuses instead of the school board.
He said all county contracts and interlocal agreements will have to be examined for possible cost savings.
He pointed to a $292,450 contract with the Bradenton Area Economic Development Corporation that was approved in April as another expense the county "doesn't need to pay."
No matter what happens in November, utility services won’t suffer because the utilities department is made up of enterprise funds.
Residents pay for trash, sewer and water services.
Kruse said other departments, such as Sports and Leisure, could operate more like enterprise funds instead of cutting back on services.
MCAT can charge bus fare, and maintenance of county-owned boat ramps can be covered by launch fees.
Recreation center and tennis memberships at John H. Marble Park in East County and G.T. Bray Park in Bradenton currently cost between $25 and $90 a month.
Kruse said whatever the county is subsidizing now in memberships could be charged to residents to maintain the same hours and level of service.
The same could be accomplished with library programs, such as storytime. Patrons pay a fee to attend.
Memberships are at the top of McCann’s list of things to cut regardless of how people vote on the referendum.
He said if commissioners want to join different associations, they can pay for their own memberships.
In October 2025, when the Florida Department of Government Efficiency claimed Manatee County “overspent $112.4 million” in tax dollars, McCann noted memberships, such as Manatee County’s $12,500 annual presidential level membership to the Lakewood Ranch Business Alliance, as an example of unnecessary spending.
Memberships in organizations like the American Library Association provide staff members with professional development opportunities.
Kruse suggested a possible departure from the “park and amenity business.”
The county might need to explore more private-public partnerships, such as what’s being proposed at Premier Sports Campus North for the construction of an ice arena.
The county can offer a land lease, and a private business can build and operate the amenity with little to no cost to the county thereafter.
For anyone else who wants to weigh in on the future of property taxes, Election Day is Nov. 3.
