Senator Gaetz visits Gulf Breeze

Senator Don Gaetz (RNiceville) started his "Neighborhood Day' in Gulf Breeze last Tuesday at 6:45 a.m. at the Gulf Breeze Rotary breakfast meeting in the Andrews Institute Human Performance Center.

Gaetz schedules monthly "Neighborhood Days"throughout Northwest Florida to meet with residents.

Gaetz informed Rotarians that over 3,000 bills were introduced in the last session, some of which were passed or defeated by only a one-vote margin.

"A bill actually failed by one vote that would abolish grades for students," he said, "and another that would have funded a $60 million stadium for the Marlins was defeated by only two votes. I believe if the people of Miami want to build a stadium using tax dollars they can do it with their own money."

Gaetz fielded many questions from the crowd about property insurance and tax reform, and detailed legislation that passed dealing with bonuses for outstanding teachers. He praised city leaders for decreasing the millage rate to offset the impact of significant assessments hikes, and stated that the laws mandating taxation reductions will not affect them as much as other municipalities that significantly increased expenditures when collections skyrocketed.

"For twenty years in Florida, personal property taxes went up by the same percent every year as income did," Gaetz asserted. "Then in 2002 property taxes began to spike - increasing by nearly 100 percent. With inflated values came inflated assessments. We had to stop that."

Property tax reform includes a cap at 2006 levels, and a constitutional amendment to go before the electorate in January proposing the Super Homestead Exemption, increasing the exemption by 500 percent. Eliminating tangible personal property taxes for small business is also a part of the amendment, a move Gaetz says will help 85 percent of small businesses statewide.

After the Rotary meeting, he toured the Andrews Institute and met with physicians and staff of the orthopaedics and sports medicine facility. He also visited the Good Samaritan Clinic on Gulf Breeze Parkway. The majority of his day was spent at St. Ann Catholic Church where he met with citizens.

During a lunch meeting with Gulf Breeze Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, Gaetz said the upcoming special session in September will focus primarily on PIP, or Personal Injury Protection Insurance which is currently required on all automobile policies in the state, and making further cuts to the state budget.

"Here in Northwest Florida we like to look each other in the eye, talk open and straight about our concerns and get to know our public officials face to face on a firstname basis," Gaetz said. "This is the best part of my job."

Sen. Gaetz represents Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa, Walton, and Bay counties in the Florida Senate. He was elected in 2006. Gaetz chairs the Senate Education Committee and is a member of the Senate Judiciary, Environmental Preservation and Conservation, Health Care Appropriations, Banking and Insurance, and Joint Administrative Procedures committees.