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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2001 07 24 Letter Re: Local Option Gas Tax (LOGT) DEPARTMENT OF FISCAl. SERVICES July 24, 2001 Cindy Gennell, Chairman CALNO City of Winter Springs 1126 E. State Road 434 Winter Springs, Florida 32708 Dear Ms. Gennell, At the CALNO meeting of June 6, 2001, Seminole County Fiscal Services presented for review the distribution formulas for the calendar year 2002 related to shanng the six cents of iocal option gas tax (LOGT) icvicd \vlthm the County. CALNO requested information in .WTiting as to how to amend the distribution formula. As you know, the tax was levied by Seminole County ordinance, and the distributIOn formula was approved through an inter-local agreement signed in 1986 by Seminole County and five of the seven cities within the County. The agreement specifies that the percent distributed to the County is to be 63.6% of the total taxes distributed, and that the remaining portion of the taxes (36.4%) will be divided among the cities based on a five year rolling formula. The rolling fomlUla considers transportation related expenditures made by the cities from funds other than the LOGT for the preceding five years. The inter-local agreement states that the formula is to be effective "for the lives of the taxes." Our department's files do not reflect the basis for the formula contained within the agreement among the pattie:";. ! suspect that it combines the formula provided by Florida Statutes for use in the absence of an agreement (\vhich includes five years of transportation related expenditures) with the then-applicable percentage of the State's haif- cent sales tax distribution that the County received. In any case. the agreed upon t01l11Ula has been in place for almost fifteen years. Our County Attorney's Office has advised us that there is no legal impediment to amending the interlocal agreement, assuming an agreement could be reached by all parties as to a new formula and that there is no bond debt service to account for. The County does have outstanding bonds pledged against our portion of the LOGT which mature in October 2003. Staff expresses no opinion as to the desirability of making any changes to the agreement. That policy issue is up to the Board of County Commissioners and the various City Councils and Commissions. However, because it is a County inter-local agreement tied to a County-levied tax, the amendment would need to be initiated by the Board of County Commissioners. CALNO or the various cities could make that request of them. Please let me know if I can provide any additional information. S;n/;~: ff' '~ ci~a~7 Director, Fiscal Services c: Board of County Commissioners County Manager 11 01 East First Street Sanford Fl 32771-1468 Telephone (407) 321-1130 Extension 7176 Fax (407) 328-3248