According to the Hillsborough County website, the Community Investment Tax (CIT) is a half-cent per dollar sales tax passed by Hillsborough County voters in 1996. The approved period of the tax was 30 years, so it is set to expire November 30, 2026. A referendum to continue this tax will be presented to voters on the November 2024 ballot.
The CIT was established to fund capital projects and equipment in Hillsborough County. Capital improvements are infrastructure projects like construction, renovation, and expansion of existing facilities or assets. The CIT also applied to large equipment such as police cars and fire trucks.
The county used a population-based formula to determine funds allocated to the three cities in Hillsborough County. Plant City has gotten 2.2 percent—$39,470,265 to date, while Tampa receives 21.9 percent, and Temple Terrace, 1.5 percent. The County School Board has gotten 25 percent. The Board of County Commissioners allocated the rest of the money to infrastructure for the rest of the County. In sum, since the tax was activated, it has provided approximately $2.3 billion to completely or partially fund 750 capital improvement projects. Among these are:
17 fire stations
27 law enforcement and courts projects
115 road projects
68 intersection projects
32 bridge projects
126 storm water projects
42 public utilities projects
13 sidewalk projects
6 new or expanded libraries
41 government facilities
258 parks and recreation projects
12 arts and culture projects
The CIT also supported the construction of Raymond James Stadium, which is owned by Hillsborough County, not the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as is commonly believed. Nearly $10 million per year is spent to pay off the facility.
After vigorous debate among the Board of Commissioners about extending the CIT, they voted to include the referendum on the November ballot. The referendum proposes continuing the tax for 15 more years. “Both sides were mad at me when I got out of there,” said Vice Chair Michael Owen, whose motion won the day. “I would never vote for a new tax. I am one of those who believe only fools vote to increase taxes on themselves. This is not a tax increase. This is a renewal of an existing tax—a lot of it paid for by people that come from out of town. It’s not paid for by property tax. It’s important we educate the public on this. So, whether they agree with it or not, they have the information so that when they go into the voting booth, they can make a decision.”
Hillsborough County Schools requested 6.5 percent instead of the 25 percent allocated in the prior CIT. The Board of Commissioners arrived at earmarking five percent for schools. No one got everything they wanted, but Hillsborough County Schools “….got most of what they wanted,” said Owen. He continued with his reasoning, “The CIT is for capital expenditures only, and can never be used for operating expenses. What the schools need is operating expenses.” Operating expenses are allocated to schools through millage for property taxes. The projection is the schools will get $180 million for capital projects from the CIT.
At the Monday, May 13 City Commission meeting, Commissioner Owen and Greg Horwedel, former City Manager of Plant City, and current Deputy Administrator, gave an educational presentation about the upcoming November referendum on the CIT.
Among the projects underwritten by the $39 million received by Plant City have been the construction of City Hall, and $11 million spent for a complete gutting and renovation of the Plant City Police Department’s three buildings and a purchase of additional land. The bulk of the money to resurface Plant City roads for the last 28 years came from these CIT funds, as well as many smaller projects. These prior uses of CIT allocations helped maintain and increase capital infrastructure of Plant City to correspond with local growth.
The estimated revenue going to Plant City over the proposed 15 year CIT term is estimated to be $78 million. The CIT does not pay for personnel. It is strictly a capital program. “As this city continues to grow, the demands on our infrastructure are going to be increasing,” commented City of Plant City Manager Bill McDaniel. “This is a dedicated source of revenue that allows us to make capital expenditures that are necessary to keep up with demands that are put on the city organization. We are going to need additional recreational amenities, we are going to need additional safety facilities and equipment, and we are going to have to expand building spaces and create buildings that allow us to deliver services.”
“The demands will still be there,” McDaniel continued. “Without the CIT renewal we will be looking toward the General Fund or the Enterprise Fund to find the resources to be able to meet those new demands. CIT gives Plant City a dedicated revenue stream that allows us to address those needs.”
The downside is this sales tax is, well, it is a tax. The upside it is projected approximately 20 percent would be generated through purchases made by visitors to Hillsborough County.
“One of the positives about the CIT is that it is paid by tourists and visitors to the area when they make purchases because it is a sales tax,” added McDaniel. “It isn’t a property tax. So other people that are visiting the area and using our roads and our services are contributing funding the expansion of those services.”
Additional information about the Community Investment Tax is available at https://hcfl.gov/government/budget/budget-information/community-investment-tax.