By Benjamin Alexander-Bloch, St. Tammany bureau
Times-Picayune
NEW ORLEANS — Citing the need to expand its facility, the Florida Parishes’ regional juvenile detention center on Tuesday rolled up its millage to reap the maximum windfall from rising property values.
The decision came a year after voters overwhelmingly struck down a new millage sought by the center’s governing commission to expand the center.
The seven-member commission on Tuesday night voted 5-2 to roll the five-parish facility’s millage back up to its maximum 3 mills, and in doing so it will garner another $810,000 annually, $460,000 of which will come from St. Tammany Parish taxpayers’ pockets.
The Florida Parishes consist of St. Tammany, Washington, Tangipahoa, Livingston and St. Helena, and the juvenile center has operated on a 3-mill tax that generated about $5.76 million annually. Voters in the five parishes renewed the current 3-mill tax for 10 years in 2004.
From 2007 to 2008, the taxable value of property in St. Tammany increased dramatically, so taxes now will collect more revenue with their existing millage rates because taxpayers will be assessed the same millage rate on property that has now increased in value.
In St. Tammany, one mill costs the owner of a $200,000 home $12.50 annually. The owner of a $300,000 home pays $22.50 per mill.
After mandated quadrennial reassessments, state law requires the millage rates to be lowered or adjusted to a rate that generates the same amount of revenue as the previous year. However, government agencies can conduct public hearings and, by a two-thirds majority vote, reinstate millage rates to the previous level.
The Louisiana legislative auditor’s office estimated that to continue receiving the $5.67 million annually, the Florida Parishes Juvenile Detention Center would have to lower its millage rate to 2.63 mills.
So on Tuesday, the commission first voted to roll the tax back to 2.63 mills, and then restored the 3-mill maximum.
Because of the 2008 property value reassessments, the 3 mills will now fetch the center about $6.57 million annually.
St. Tammany is by far the biggest contributor of revenue for center operations. Fifty-six percent of the center’s property tax dollars come from St. Tammany, while 21 percent comes from Tangipahoa, 14 percent from Livingston, 7 percent from Washington and 2 percent from St. Helena.
Under the previous property assessments, St. Tammany taxpayers paid about $3.28 million of the $5.67 million tab. Now, St. Tammany will contribute about $3.74 million of the $6.57 million.
St. Tammany’s two representatives on the commission, Joseph Harvin of Slidell and Dan Cox of Covington, voted against the millage increase.
St. Tammany’s state legislative delegates have loudly expressed their opposition to any taxing body rolling up millages.
“You can roll over us like we’ve been rolled over in the past,” State Rep. Tim Burns, R-Mandeville, told the commissioners. “But given the poor economy we have now, this will have enormous repercussions on our parishes.”
At the commission’s regular monthly meeting on Oct. 8, members discussed expanding the center by building a $13 million facility to house juvenile inmates from other parts of the state.
While most agreed that the center requires expansion to meet detention needs for local youths, the dispute focused on whether the center should also expand to house long-term convicted juveniles from within the region and beyond.
The center now mainly houses local youths who have been arrested for crimes but who have not yet been convicted. After juveniles are convicted, they are generally sent to state juvenile facilities.
The commission is expected to revisit its expansion proposal at its next meeting, scheduled for Nov. 12 at 5 p.m. at the center, 28528 U.S. 190, near Robert.
Copyright 2008 The Times-Picayune Publishing Company