Frequently Asked Questions

The Half Cent Surtax Supports:

  • Increased neighborhood safety and pedestrian paths
  • Construction of sidewalks near schools
  • Reduction of flooding
  • Reduction of traffic congestion
  • Improvement of local roads and bridges

Bridge Repair

Many of the bridges across our county are structurally deficient, too narrow or weak to support heavy traffic, or prone to flooding during heavy rainfall. These projects allow for needed repairs to narrow or weak bridges to make them safer and more useful.

Capacity Improvement

In order to reduce traffic congestion and increase traffic flow through the county, many roadways need to be widened or expanded to include connection roads. Additionally, certain areas of the community are subject to water outages and pressure loss due to outdated cast-iron pipes, hindering fire protection and economic development.

Intersection Improvement

Many intersections throughout Bay County are not sufficiently equipped to handle the heavy traffic flow they endure. These projects add additional turning lanes for some of the most trafficked intersections in the county to help traffic flow.

Resurfacing

More than 43 miles of road in Bay County are considered to be in ”poor“ or ”very poor“ condition. Projects will include repaving stretches of road that are cracked, have potholes, or are severely rutted. Repairs will also include adding or fixing paved shoulders along heavily trafficked county roads to increase vehicular and bicycle safety.

Roadway Safety

Improvements will include adding sidewalks to increase pedestrian safety and encourage non-motorized transportation in heavy pedestrian areas, especially near schools. These additions will also increase pedestrian access to many community amenities.

Stormwater Improvement

Due to Bay County’s proximity to sea level, much of our county is prone to flooding. To help prevent and reduce some of this flooding, the county has identified portions of existing drainage systems that need to be updated to better alleviate flooding—including expanding culverts and replacing old and outdated drainage pipes.

Thanks to the passage of the Half-Cent Surtax, Bay County has made significant headway in our efforts to build better roads, reduce traffic congestion, improve bridges and reduce neighborhood flooding, but we still have a long way to go. The renewal of this surtax will ensure that the cost of the improvements are borne by all who use these resources, rather than only property owners.

Anyone who buys goods in Bay County will pay the half-cent sales tax. This means that visitors and tourists to the county will also help pay for the roads and bridges that they use.

Every dollar generated will stay right here in Bay County. The revenues will be evenly distributed across the county on projects that will:

  • Resurface roads
  • Repair bridges
  • Pave county dirt roads prone to flooding
  • Reduce neighborhood flooding

A Citizens Oversight Committee, comprised of local business and community leaders, serves as an additional layer of protection to ensure added transparency and accountability to taxpayers.

Yes. This measure will make our sales tax equal to our neighbors in the panhandle in Gulf, Walton, and Okaloosa counties and still less than the rates in Franklin, Calhoun, Washington, Wakulla, Liberty, Jackson, and Holmes counties. Source:  https://floridarevenue.com/Forms_library/current/dr15dss.pdf

Voters first approved the surtax on Nov. 8, 2016 by a margin of greater than 10 percent. Renewal of the surtax will appear on the ballot in the general election on November 5, 2024. Early voting will take place from October 21st through November 2nd. You can find your polling place at www.bayvotes.org/Election-Info/Election-History-Sample-Ballots

“Bay County’s one half cent local government infrastructure sales surtax”

➡ “Shall the half-cent sales surtax be levied for ten years in Bay County to provide for the repair of local roads, reduce traffic congestion, increase neighborhood safety with pedestrian paths, build sidewalks near schools, reduce local flooding and other similar uses authorized under Florida law and to seek matching state and federal funds for these purposes, subject to a citizen’s oversight committee and, to ensure that all dollars are spent in Bay County?

_____ YES = FOR THE ONE HALF CENT (1/2%) SALES TAX
_____ NO = AGAINST THE ONE HALF CENT (1/2%) SALES TAX”