Once a year citizens of Alachua County receive their TRIM notice, which details their property taxes and the many entities that make up their tax bill.
During Session 5 of the Alachua County Citizens Academy, locals were given a broader understanding of that process.
Attendees met at the library headquarters office in downtown Gainesville, where they heard from employees from the county’s tax collector, property appraiser’s office and learned about the range of available tools available at local libraries.
Citizens Academy is an eight-week educational course, run by Alachua County Strategic Performance Manager Donna Bradbrook, that partners with local constitutional officers, judicial officers, library district, school board and health department to give residents a unique opportunity to learn about various aspects of local government and the daily activities performed by some of the county’s top officials.
Here's a recap of Session 5:
Property Appraiser
When property owners receive their TRIM notices (Truth in Millage) by August, they learn the latest value of their home and are given an idea of what to expect to pay in property taxes.
Sometimes, those estimations are off due to a range of factors that may be unknown to appraisers. Director of Valuation Christian Cao said that’s when he welcomes residents to reach out and help the local property appraiser’s office understand issues inside the home that they can’t see.
Every five years, the Alachua County Property Appraiser’s Office visits each property in the county to ensure projected values are accurate. Values are factored by location, improvement size, quality grades, what the structure is made of and its depreciation or age.
TRIM notices include proposed tax rates set by local governments and include factors, such as homestead or agricultural exemptions.
The property appraiser’s office handles about 2,000 exemption claims annually, many of which are homesteads to save taxpayers up to $50,000 of the taxable value. Other exemptions are available for senior citizens, widows, people with disabilities, first responders and veterans.
Since appraisers can only go around the outside of homes, Cao said they rely on residents to inform them of other issues to ensure the proposed values are accurate.
If someone disagrees with proposed values, residents have three options to mitigate the problem:
Simply ask for an informal review from his office.
Taking the issue before the Value Adjustment Board (VAB). The request can be made at the county courthouse.
If those options are unsuccessful, property owners can take the issue to Circuit Court.
Learn more about the property appraiser’s office.
Tax Collector
Tax Collector John Power told the room Thursday that he takes pride in his office running effectively and helping customers. It’s that effectiveness that helped his team earn a 2022 Governor’s Sterling Award for performance excellence in management and operations. The award follows a rigorous assessment process based on criteria from seven categories: leadership; strategic planning; customer focus; measurement analysis, and knowledge management; workforce focus; operations; and results.
The tax collector is an elected constitutional officer who serves in an administrative role overseen by the Department of Revenue.
As such, Power’s office works closely with the Department of Revenue, Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles (DHSMV), Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FFWCC), the Department of Health, Department of Agriculture and the Alachua County Board of County Commissioners.
His office then sends out the official annual bill to let property owners know the breakdown and cost for each taxing authority. That will include costs for the rural collection center, stormwater, millage rates for the school district, as well as the city and county millage rates. It also includes the library district, water management district and assessments.
Ensuring the transactions are handled smoothly is essential, Power, as municipalities and other governmental agencies are relying on those funds to run their operations.
In 2022, Power’s office collected about $506 million. Being off by a fraction could mean a multi-million-dollar mistake.
“Accuracy is paramount in our office,” he said.
The office handles more than just property taxes. It also is the location where residents update their vehicle registrations, titles, and driver licenses. People can even get registrations for their boats and birth certificates.
The office handles about 240,000 vehicle-related transactions annually, which breaks down to about 900 customers per day. For driver licenses, the office handles about 61,000 transactions or about 235 visitors per day.
Those large customer influxes are why Power says it is vital for his team to run smoothly and to ensure residents are educated about what they need to be helped. He stressed the importance of scheduling appointments with his office or doing transactions online.
On average, customers who visit his office have an average wait time of 10 minutes. Survey results show that about 80% of visitors waited under 15 minutes.
Learn more about the Florida Sterling Council.
Learn more about the Tax Collector’s Office.
Library District
The Alachua County Library District offers locals far more than just opportunities to check out books. It is rich with resources and tools to make learning in all forms accessible for residents that many may be unaware of.
In 1918, Gainesville’s first public library was formed, thanks in part to the GFWC Gainesville Women’s Club and GFWC High Springs New Century Women’s Club, though it was exclusive to white residents. By 1953, the Carver branch opened as the first library for the county’s Black citizens. Following desegregation, the Carver branch closed in 1969 and opened local libraries to all residents.
However, it wasn’t until 1985 that citizens approved a special referendum to create what we now know as the Alachua County Library District, an independent taxing district.
Today, the district has grown to more than 175 employees, 12 branches, two mobile libraries, and a location at the county jail. It holds conferences, workshops, webinar training, programs and much more for residents of all ages.
The library estimates it saved residents about $68.9 million through checkouts and online resources from 2022-2023.
Oversight of the district has two boards: the governing board and the board of trustees.
The governing board is composed of elected officials of three county commissioners, two Gainesville city commissioners and one school board member. Its board of trustees is formed by three Gainesville representatives, three county representatives and one for the League of Cities.
The district’s largest community supporter is the Friends of the Library, which helps provide programming and education for branch visitors. The group also hosts bi-annual -- and widely popular – book sales. Last year, the organization donated $140,000 back to the library district.
The library’s Public Relations and Marketing Director Brad McClenny informed Citizen Academy attendees that by signing up for a free digital or physical library card, they can access local programs, events, eBooks, movies, music, streaming services, tutoring opportunities, kits for book clubs, bird watching and hiking, sensory toys, plant seeds and more. Residents can access up-to-date copies of the New York Times and Gainesville Sun and check out mobile Wi-Fi devices for up to two weeks.
A cardholder can even check out or hold up to 100 items at one time. Digital downloads are capped at 10 per month but will soon be 20 due to their rising popularity, McClenny said.
Even more enticing, he added, the library district since 1978 hasn’t charged for late fees.
Anyone looking to volunteer at the library must be at least 12 years old and can help with a range of tasks, such as computer technology, music, filmmaking, book repair, reshelving or checking out materials.
Learn more about the Summer at the Library reading program.
