St. Johns County will hold the first of two public hearings on the proposed FY 2026 budget on Sept. 3 in the county auditorium, 500 San Sebastian View. Meeting time is 5:01 p.m.
The $1,272,806,142 recommended budget includes $25 million for emergency response reserves; a $169 million capital improvement plan for new parks, fire stations and roads; and 64 new full-time employees. In addition, the budget accommodates 29 replacement vehicles and 26 new vehicles, more than $169 million in new funding for capital improvement projects, funding for the new West City community redevelopment area, a proposed 15% increase in FPL rates and a 65% increase in mandated payments to the state Department of Juvenile Justice.
The taxable value of homes in the county grew by 9.8% over last year, with 4.3% of that due to new construction. Homeowners won’t experience a tax impact from the full increase, however; homesteaded properties are capped at 3%.
The total budget figure will change before the Sept. 3 hearing because the county will add any carry-forward expenses, such as those for multi-year projects.
By a vote of 3-2, The Board of County Commissioners also approved proposed millage rates for the coming year at its regular meeting on Tuesday, July 22. For each $1,000 of taxable property value, the proposed rates are $4.57 for the general fund, 84 cents for the transportation trust fund, 2 cents for the health unit trust fund and $1.47 for the fire district, which applies to all homeowners except those in the city of St. Augustine.
The general fund tax rate is higher than the rolled-back rate of $4.42 but lower than the FY 2025 rate of $4.65. The rolled-back rate is the rate that would generate the same dollar figure as that collected the previous year, but this would not take inflation into account.
The proposed rate would generate about $271.5 million. Had the county gone with the rolled-back rate, it would have resulted in a structural deficit of about $3 million.
With a homestead exemption, a home with an assessed value of $200,000 would see a $50 increase in property tax over the rolled-back rate. A $500,000 home would see an increase of $126. And a property with an assessed value of $1,250,000 would see an increase of $315.
County Commissioner Christian Whitehurst proposed the board vote for the highest allowable rate to keep options open. That rate is not fixed and represents a ceiling over which it cannot be increased; it can, however, be reduced before final approval.
County Commissioner Krista Joseph disagreed with Whitehurst, citing the rising cost of living among the commission’s constituents.
Joseph and County Commissioner Ann Taylor voted against the higher rate.
The recommended budget can be viewed at sjcfl.us/2026budget.
