From finances to civic engagement, dark clouds are gathering over Florida cities. Wilton Manors could find itself at the center of the storm through no fault of its own.
A new, broadly written law preventing any type of “DEI” driven recognition will soon take effect. Exactly how wide-ranging the prohibitions will be enforced is anybody’s guess. But given the debate and vitriol towards LGBTQ, women, people of color and just about any non-white Christian male, it seems everything is on the table.
Also looming large is the specter of property tax reform. Several proposals are being debated and refined. While an exact policy hasn’t been approved by the legislature, something is expected to go on the November ballot. If a proposal gets 60% of voter approval, municipal budgets will likely be gutted.
During their March 10 meeting, Wilton Manors city commissioners addressed both issues.
The anti-DEI bill could hinder how the city works with Stonewall Pride, the city’s signature summer event, as well as PrideFête. Both are proudly LGBTQ-centric. It could also affect things like proclamations and recognition of everything from Women’s History Month to St. Patrick’s Day. If the city is deemed to have violated the law, the governor could remove all elected officials associated.
The governor would replace them not due to a state law but because of the city’s own charter. That said, the city is looking to put a charter amendment on the ballot that would change the procedure. Details are being worked out and will likely be brought up at the next commission meeting.
The city would need to pass legally-approved language by June 8, and while that sounds like plenty of time, it’s not. The measure would need to pass legal review and be approved at two commission meetings.
There are only five meetings until the deadline.
Commissioners are also bracing for impact from property tax reform. One plan that seems to be gaining steam in the legislature would effectively gut municipal budgets leaving barely enough money to pay for emergency services (police/fire/EMS).
While the city hasn’t issued a hiring freeze, changes wouldn’t start until the 2028 budget year, it is requiring commissioners to approve filling all vacancies. During the meeting they approved replacing a library aide and the vacancy on the IT team, both part-time positions.
The library job was described as a safety measure. The size of the library requires three people be scheduled so if someone is sick there are still at least two people there.
The IT job is pretty self-explanatory. The city uses computers (programs/applications/etc.) for nearly every aspect of operation.
If there is a major outage or technical problem in any system, something could quickly go off the rails and having trained staff at the ready is crucial.
