MIAMI.- The Miami-Dade property appraiser’s chair has two suitors, Democrat Marisol Zenteno and Republican Tomás Regalado, both aspiring to replace Pedro García, the person who, for more than a decade, has led the office which establishes the taxable value of homes in Miami-Dade County.
The attraction of this race is that for the first time the election of the appraiser will have a partisan nature, and as this agency becomes a constitutional office, which starting in 2025 will begin to respond to the state legislature and the state governorship.
DIARIO LAS AMÉRICAS spoke with the two candidates who have so far registered for the race for the position of appraiser to find out what motivated them to apply.
The transformation that the office will undergo is what encouraged the former mayor of Miami to launch his campaign to be the next appraiser.
“Both Pedro García and I, and many other people, agree that, due to the changes in the operation of the office, in order to ensure that county residents pay less taxes and ensure that they have safe homes, it is necessary someone with political experience and relationships with all governments, both the county, the 35 municipalities and the state legislature,” explained Regalado, 76 years old.
A technician
For her part, Zenteno, who already ran in 2020 and was defeated by García, said that everything she is is concentrated in that office. “I’ve been there for almost nine years, I know how everything works, I have evaluated properties, apartments, houses, condos, hotels and land. Furthermore, while there, I have carried out great civic work in which I managed to preside over important organizations such as the League of Women Voters Miami-Dade and the county’s Human Rights Commission.”
Zenteno believes that the office can be more proactive and efficient in its operations. “Inefficiency costs the taxpayer money.” The 57-year-old Democratic candidate believes that the office should interact more with the community so that residents know the details of the taxes they pay.
Zenteno, who has a master’s degree in Public Administration from Florida International University, wants to open four offices “in the four cardinal points of the county, which could be located in public libraries, in order to bring the assessor’s office closer to the taxpayer. Currently, it is a problem to come here to Downtown Miami to solve any problem or doubt with taxes.”
a referendum
Meanwhile, the former mayor wants to expand the property tax exemption. “Today’s $25,000 property tax exemption does nothing to help taxpayers’ pockets, because home values have skyrocketed.”
Regalado advocates for an update of this tax, through a state referendum, and remembers that the current exemption was established more than 50 years ago “when the houses that are now worth 500,000 dollars were worth 80,000.”
The former mayor thinks it is excessive that commercial properties have an annual cap of 10%. “It is extremely unfair, because this annual increase, together with demand, is causing rents to skyrocket in an extraordinary way, as has happened in the last three years.”
Regalado has other objectives. “My mission will be to ensure that the valuation of buildings is fair, in accordance with comparables, and the statutes. But if the statutes allow appraisals to be made that take the burden off the owners of commercial apartment properties, we must give them that relief,” the former mayor stressed.
Change the statutes
In this context, the politician and journalist promised to fight with the legislature “to change the statutes so that apartment building owners are not burdened with enormous taxes.”
“I think a lot of people need a tax exemption of $75,000, instead of $25,000,” said Regalado, who acknowledged that he hopes to work with Danny Pérez, the new speaker of the Florida House of Representatives. “I informed him of my aspiration and he is committed to trying to pass laws that are of direct benefit to residents.”
Housing crisis
Both candidates agree in pointing out the difficulties that county residents have. “We are all seeing that Miami-Dade is changing before our eyes. People cannot afford the value of the properties,” Zenteno said and promised to stand by residents so that they pay less taxes. “I’m going to be involved with the (state) Department of Revenue to prevent those big spikes in property values.”
In June 2024, the deadline for aspiring property appraisers to register expires. If there is more than one candidate per party, primary elections will be held in August, the winner of which will go to the general elections in November against the rival of the opposite party.
The property appraiser’s office is responsible for maintaining records of all properties and administering exemptions attached to them, and notifies county property owners of the assessed value of their property. The financial health of government services depends on the work of this office.
Asked if someone without experience can head the appraiser’s office, Zenteno responded:
“A person without experience will have to go through a learning process whose duration will depend on their power of assimilation. The difference with me is that I am prepared to take the reins from day one.”
While Regalado brought out his experience leading the city of Miami and at Radio and Television Martí, “with more than 200 employees and a huge budget.”
“What we need is an administrator who knows how to find the key people within the department to move the machinery. This is the same as a municipal government, only it does not have police or firefighters. I believe that what this office requires is a politician and a communicator because the fulfillment of its mission will depend on the will of the other elected leaders and the way in which it knows how to urge the people to make the necessary changes through the referendum”.
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