Sarasota County property appraiser's view on roof repairs doesn't hold water

Property appraiser offers excuses on repairs

In an Oct. 8 guest column, Sarasota County Property Appraiser Bill Furst attempted to justify his position that repairs to or replacements of worn-out roofs, not due to a calamity or misfortune, constitute “changes, additions or improvements.”

More: Let's clear up the confusion about Sarasota County property appraisals

Furst also wrote that such maintenance activity increases the assessed value of a home, irrespective of the homestead exemption – and he boldly declared that state laws "don’t give a property appraiser discretion in doing the job.”

More: Herald-Tribune: How to send a letter to the editor

What Furst failed to acknowledge, however, is that he is apparently the only county property appraiser in the state to assert that repairing or replacing a leaking roof is “an addition or change to land or buildings which increases their value and is more than a repair or replacement” under Chapter 193, Section 1555(1)(b), 2023 Fla. Stats.

Furst’s position is contrary to the plain language of the law, and it is an outlier among his peers in other counties in the state. Sarasota County homeowners deserve to have their property assessor follow the law as applied by every other county appraiser in Florida.

James Murray, Nokomis

US must push for two-state solution

If Israel defeats Hamas by applying the Powell doctrine of "overwhelming force," it will lead to depriving millions of young Palestinians of hope for the future.

It will also keep alive the cycle of violence in the Middle East.

Killing thousands of innocent civilians in an act of revenge does not end extremism; it feeds it.

The key to the resolution of the seemingly intractable Israeli-Palestinian conflict is held in Washington. A U.S. president can break the historical logjam almost overnight by officially declaring: America recognizes Palestine as an independent state.

This would be an instantaneous game-changer. It would also be fully consistent with the stated objective of U.S. foreign policy across multiple administrations, including the current one.

Unfortunately, for too long Washington has been a one-sided broker in this conflict. It has also turned a blind eye to repeated breaking of the Oslo accords, including illegal settlement expansions.

It is long overdue for Washington to focus seriously on the two-state solution, which is the only viable long-term option.

Istvan Dobozi, Sarasota

No link between HB1, hiring freeze

An Oct. 17 letter writer stated that “HB1 is largely responsible” for the Sarasota County Public Schools’ hiring freeze. The writer added that her theory would be "confirmed soon by school choice data."

Actually, it can be debunked right now.

According to Step Up For Students’ data, of the students in Sarasota County who are new this year to the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship and Family Empowerment Scholarship for Educational Options – the two programs affected by HB 1 – only 105 were enrolled in public schools in 2022-23.

That’s 105 students out of the 46,000-plus students that the Sarasota County school district reported at the end of last year – and from a $1.5 billion budget for this year.

Scott Kent, director for media and strategic communications, Step Up For Students, St. Petersburg

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota County property appraiser's view on leaky roofs is all wet