Two of Miami-Dade’s newly-elected officials – the county tax collector and the sheriff – are publicly supporting a proposed statewide tax cut, saying local governments should spend less, while seeking more public money for their own budgets.
Politics
Tension and relations between policies and their advocates.
Elections, Referendums. Campaigns and Candidates.
Miami Approves $3.7 Billion Budget After Last-Minute Changes
Commissioners adopted the city’s record spending plan after last-minute changes shifted millions for festivals, personnel and other expenses. The amendment detailing those changes wasn’t publicly available before the final hearing.
Miami’s New Accountability Dashboard Could Use Some Accountability
The city’s new dashboard promises to let residents track if and when City Hall follows through on a commission directive. But a Spotlight review found just two of 13 measures requiring action by the city administration had appeared two weeks later.
How Does Miami’s $1 Billion Personnel Tab Stack Up? We Did the Math
As they prepare for a final vote on Miami’s budget for the coming fiscal year, commissioners wanted to know how the city’s employee costs stack up against other big Florida cities. And the winner is…
Miami’s $3.7 Billion Budget: 5 Numbers That Aren’t What They Seem
Firefighter overtime that looks like it’s falling but isn’t. Eighteen festival grants replaced by an unidentified $2 million pot. And a capital funding gap that’s much larger than it first appears. Here are a few numbers buried in Miami’s proposed budget ahead of Thursday’s final vote.
Where Miami’s Extra Millions Would Go: The Budget’s Biggest Winners
Police and Fire-Rescue would claim almost two-thirds of the nearly $73 million increase in Miami’s General Fund, while several other corners of City Hall are in line for sizable boosts.
Miami’s Budget Debate Takes Shape
Commissioners questioned the City of Miami’s spending habits and its chronically underfunded Solid Waste budget last week during the first of two public hearings on the city’s proposed $3.6 billion budget.
Miami’s Billion-Dollar Boom, Part 3: City Hall’s Growing Payroll
Miami’s annual bill for salaries and employee benefits has grown by nearly $500 million in a decade, while the number of budgeted positions increased only about 12%. Meanwhile, the city’s capital plan still carries a roughly $1.8 billion funding gap.
Miami’s Billion-Dollar Boom, Part 2: The Rising Cost of Public Safety
Over the past decade, Miami’s real estate boom brought City Hall hundreds of millions in new spending power. Much of it went to police and fire, which more than doubled their annual budgets to nearly three-quarters of a billion dollars.
Inside City Hall: The Hidden Pay Fueling Miami’s Six-Figure Firefighter Pensions
Newly obtained pension records show Miami firefighters are credited with an average of $31,500 more in annual compensation than their published base salaries — and for some, the difference approaches $100,000.
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