|
PRICE LEVEL INDEX AND BUYING POWER
<br />The price level index is based on the cost of 117 items and
<br />services, ranging from bread to prescription glasses, and men's
<br />business shirts to homeowner's insurance. The index measures
<br />relative price levels across counties from year to year. As
<br />indicated in Table II, Palm Beach County had the highest price
<br />level index in the region in 1993, followed by Martin, Indian
<br />River, St. Lucie, Brevard, Osceola, and Polk Counties.
<br />Also, a
<br />County
<br />state's
<br />s shown in Table II, Palm Beach County ranked 4th, Martin
<br />ranked 5th, and Indian River County ranked 11th among the
<br />67 counties,
<br />regarding the price level index.
<br />Another important consideration is buying power. A county's buying
<br />power is based on two factors. These are per capita income,
<br />including all sources, and the cost of living index. In the
<br />region, Palm Beach County has the highest buying power, followed by
<br />Martin, Indian River, Brevard, Polk, St.. Lucie, and Osceola
<br />counties. Among Florida's 67*counties, Palm Beach County ranked
<br />1st, Martin County ranked 2nd, Indian River County ranked 5th, and
<br />St. Lucie County ranked 38th in terms of buying power.
<br />MILLAGE RATE
<br />Millage rate is the rate at which ad valorem property, taxes are
<br />assessed. One mill equals one dollar of tax per. one thousand
<br />dollars of property value. On Table III, the millage' rate includes
<br />millage for county government, millage for school board district,
<br />and millage for special districts. Millage,.levied for debt service
<br />has been included to more accurately reflect the total millage
<br />levied for ad valorem taxes.
<br />As indicated on Table III, Indian River County had the lowest
<br />millage rate in the region in 1989 and 1991, followed by Brevard,
<br />Martin, Polk, Osceola, Palm Beach, and St. Lucie counties. Among
<br />the 67 counties in the state, Indian River County was the 11th
<br />lowest in terms of millage rate, while St. Lucie County was 60th on
<br />a lowest to highest ranking.
<br />In 1994, St. Lucie County had the highest millage rate in the
<br />region, followed by Palm Beach, Indian River, Polk, Osceola,
<br />Martin, and Brevard counties. The millage rate for Indian River
<br />County in 1994 was higher than the 1991 rate due to debt service
<br />for a school district construction bond as well as the added
<br />millage for the newly created county emergency management service
<br />district.
<br />According to state requirements, all property assessments must be
<br />uniform throughout the state, and assessment must be done at 100%
<br />of the property value. For this reason, it should be possible to
<br />compare millage rates among counties. To ensure consistency, the
<br />2
<br />25
<br />MAY 189 1995
<br />BOOK 95 P'AE 134
<br />
|