Boats for a new year-round ferry between St. Petersburg and Tampa are arriving in Tampa Bay this week. But before the service carries its first passenger, Pinellas transit officials are warning that a proposed overhaul of Florida’s property tax system could jeopardize the ferry, eliminate roughly 25 of the county’s 40 bus routes and cost as many as 120 agency jobs.
Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority officials laid out those potential consequences Tuesday during a meeting of the agency’s Transit Riders Advisory Committee. The preliminary scenario assumes voters approve Amendment 3, a November constitutional amendment that would substantially increase homestead property tax exemptions.
Chief of Planning and Community Affairs Darden Rice said the result would leave Pinellas County with transit service “dramatically insufficient for a county … with a population our size.”
The warning comes as PSTA prepares to roll out some of its most ambitious services in years. Along with the Tampa Bay ferry, the agency is preparing to launch the 727 Airport Express, a direct bus between downtown St. Petersburg and Tampa International Airport.
“The new 727 service from downtown St. Pete to the Tampa International Airport, a long requested service, would basically have to end before it even started,” Rice said.
The Tampa Bay ferry would also be in “serious jeopardy,” she said. Its operating budget is funded by St. Petersburg and Tampa, with Tampa’s contribution coming from property taxes. The Clearwater ferry could face the same problem, along with Jolly Trolley services supported by Clearwater, Dunedin and Tarpon Springs.
“We would have no choice but to end 33 years of Jolly Trolley services,” Rice said.
The reason comes down to how much local government relies on property taxes. The proposed amendment would increase the homestead exemption from most non-school property taxes to as much as $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028. It would also reduce the annual assessment-growth limit for non-homestead properties, including rentals, commercial properties and second homes, from 10% to 5%. School taxes would not be subject to those changes.
For homeowners, that could mean substantial savings. Using the countywide average non-school tax rate, the Pinellas County Property Appraiser’s Office estimates a qualifying homeowner receiving the full exemption could save about $1,200 in 2027 and $2,400 in 2028. Those are estimates, not guaranteed savings. Actual tax bills would depend on property values, exemption eligibility and future tax rates.
The same reduction in taxable property values would mean less revenue for counties, cities and special taxing districts such as PSTA. Chief Financial Officer Debbie Leous said estimates from Property Appraiser Mike Twitty’s office show the transit agency losing about $15 million in property tax revenue in fiscal 2028, with the loss growing to $22 million the following year.
That figure reflects only PSTA’s direct property tax loss. Leous said the agency could also lose much of the nearly $3 million it receives through agreements with local governments, which would face their own revenue losses.
Leous said the agency could also lose much of the nearly $3 million it receives through agreements with local governments, which would face their own revenue losses. Service cuts would mean fewer fares and could reduce grants tied to ridership. Federal pandemic relief funding that has helped support PSTA’s budget will also be exhausted in fiscal 2027.
Taken together, Leous said those pressures could leave PSTA with roughly $34 million in funding to make up. To illustrate the scale of the shortfall, she said even eliminating the administrative departments outlined during her presentation would cover only about half the projected gap.
“There would still need to be significant cuts in our transit service,” Leous said. “That would be unavoidable.”
PSTA employs roughly 670 people. Leous said the agency could have to eliminate between 117 and 120 positions, not including workers at companies that contract with PSTA.
On the street, PSTA officials said they would likely try to preserve the busiest routes rather than spread cuts evenly across the system. Under the preliminary scenario, roughly 25 of PSTA’s 40 routes could disappear, leaving about a dozen core routes.
Safety Harbor, Treasure Island and Gulfport could lose PSTA service altogether, while large portions of St. Petersburg and Clearwater could also lose coverage.
Rice cautioned against viewing those losses simply as routes disappearing from a transit map.
“It’s not a thumbtack on a map. It’s not a line on a map. It’s not just numbers on a spreadsheet,” Rice said. “Transit service is about people. It’s about whether people can still get to their jobs, their dialysis appointment, or the grocery store.”
The service cuts could also affect transportation for people with disabilities and seniors who no longer drive. PSTA Access currently provides transportation throughout Pinellas County for eligible riders with disabilities. Under the preliminary scenario, that coverage could shrink to the minimum required under the Americans with Disabilities Act, within three-quarters of a mile of remaining fixed bus routes.
That could remove Access service from areas including Shore Acres, East Lake, Tierra Verde and parts of St. Pete Beach. Rice said seniors who depend on affordable transportation could also lose coverage.
None of the potential reductions presented Tuesday have been approved. They are part of a preliminary scenario for how PSTA could respond if Amendment 3 passes and revenues fall as projected.
Florida voters will decide Amendment 3 Nov. 3. The measure needs at least 60% support to pass and would take effect Jan. 1, 2027. The amendment would reduce taxable property values, not local tax rates; cities, counties and other taxing authorities would continue setting their millage rates annually.
PSTA officials said the agency is developing an outreach plan to explain its projections before the election.
“This paints a pretty grave picture,” Rice said. “I’m not sure if as many people really understand what the specific impacts are to PSTA and public transit and how serious it is.”
“We can’t tell people how to vote,” she added. “But it is important to tell people what the impacts are on public transit.”
This content provided in partnership with StPeteCatalyst.com
