Posted on 04/11/2017 5:59:38 AM PDT by GIdget2004
Commissioners in a Florida county are so tired of spending money on President Donald Trump's frequent visits to his Mar-a-Lago resort that some are suggesting a special tax be levied against the property if the federal government doesn't reimburse its costs.
Palm Beach County spends more than $60,000 a day when the president visits, mostly for law enforcement overtime -- almost $2 million since January. Sheriff Ric Bradshaw says the county was expected to spend $250,000 during Trump's recent meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, the president's sixth trip to his Winter White House in the 12 weeks since his inauguration.
County Commissioner Dave Kerner has suggested turning Mar-a-Lago into a special taxing district and imposing a levy on the resort to pay the president's security costs. Because Mar-a-Lago is incorporated as a club, it pays lower property taxes than hotels. It also gets a tax break because Trump surrendered development rights after he purchased the property from the estate of cereal heiress Marjorie Merriweather Post for $10 million in 1985.
The 500 members pay $14,000 annually in dues. The initiation fee was recently doubled to $200,000. Forbes Magazine estimates the club is now worth $150 million.
"We're very honored to have the president here, but at the same time, his travel here is such high frequency he's not visiting Palm Beach County -- he's governing from it," Kerner told Money magazine recently. "Whatever our priorities are, the taxpayers didn't pay this money to us to protect the president."
Kerner did not return numerous calls from The Associated Press to his office.
The sheriff believes the federal government will eventually reimburse the county, but can't be certain.
(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...
Let’s see what the influx of visitors is to the area....and the money the county taxpayers are scarfing up because of it.
Seems to me all that overtime pay is a direct stimulus to the local economy
Are the cops complaining?
Hmmmm ... they didn’t say diddly squat when O’Bammy was down there playing golf.
Watched a northbound Obamacade on the Florida Turnpike one night - had a motorcycle cop blocking every LE turnaround. I lost count at 63 vehicles (most of ‘em LE).
PC budget is 4.5 billion.
I think the concern the County has is the frequency of the visits by the President.
I never heard any other municipality complain about costs and demand reimbursement when a chief executive visited.
“I never heard any other municipality complain about costs and demand reimbursement when a chief executive visited.”
Has there ever been one who has visited the same municipality with this sort of frequency?
Again ... it’s not that the President “visits” ... it’s the frequency. Remember .. he’s had this added security since he was a candidate and President-elect.
I’m not agreeing, necessarily, but I can see their concern.
Presidential visits cause road shutdown and other major delays for the common man. The police etc., are paid overtime and it costs the local taxpayer. I can certainly understand the frustration and the cost. The people living in Podunk never experience that frustration. It is not fair and those of you who criticize wanting reimbursement are butt holes. A visit once in a while is totally OK but every freekin’ weekend? How would you like permanent guests in your house drinking your beer and cleaning out your refrigerator and giving you nothing? I don’t give a crap who the president is, why should I be the only one that has to pay?
This should NOT be a “tax”. It should be straightforward reimbursement (in a timely fashion - as timely as the feds can handle) of the expenses incurred due to the heightened security.
That is, if the claims have historical merit.
I can see that concern. The taxpayers paid the money for the police to protect them.
One visit to a local business or charity is one thing, but housing the "Florida White House" is something different.
At least Truman had his on a navy base. I don't think the locals in Key Biscayne complained about Nixon's 50 visits during his presidency, but then many of those people were mobbed up.
-PJ
I don’t remember anyone taxing bammy’s golf outings.
Agreed. Some are letting loyalty get in the way of seeing the cost.
That’s right......too bad!!!!!
Obama usually played on a military base, where there are already higher security in place, and it lessened ‘outside’ pressure to a point. But, there will always be concerns.
How much money did cities pay over the last 8 years? Heck, Biden charged the taxpayers rent for his Secret Service staying on his property.
I suppose local agencies could decline to help with traffic etc absent a prior agreement with the Feds for reimbursement. It is not as if they are conscripted into it. But I imagine the cops collecting overtime would object.
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