Herald recommends: Vanessa Baugh for Manatee County Commission District 5

Vanessa Baugh’s first term as a Manatee County commissioner serving District 5 showed various achievements on her stated goals during the 2012 campaign. The county’s job creation incentive program and fast-track review of county services related to economic development — among a catalog of pro-business policies — has seen success in attracting well paid positions.

Of course, she did not accomplish that on her own, but her background as a small business owner with some 16 years balancing budgets, meeting payroll and navigating government regulations gives Baugh a valuable perspective on the commission.

No friend of taxes as a conservative Republican — the county has held steady on the millage rate for property taxes during her tenure — she nonetheless supports the county’s November referendum asking voters to approve a half-cent sales tax increase to pay for pressing and vital infrastructure needs. In an era when the wholesale rejection of taxes regardless of the benefits, Baugh’s position is one of foresight instead of politics.

She’s on target by expressing the harsh reality that the county simply does not have the revenue to make improvements to our quality of life, and thus boost economic development. If the referendum fails, she notes, the county will be forced to re-prioritize needs. She does not want to burden property owners with an ad valorem increase, likely political suicide for anyone in favor of that. The appeal of a slight sales tax increase is the fact that visitors will contribute roughtly a third of the county revenue from that half cent, thus lessening the load on county residents.

Baugh’s Republican opponent, Kathleen Grant, opposes the referendum, suggesting the commission needs to establish spending priorities — which is indeed an annual practice as commissioners and county staff sift through all the details in each department budget and flag items for deeper discussions. Grant’s contention that commissioners routinely approve budgets without rigorous review is not convincing.

Neither is her argument that the county increased employee pay by 4 percent for every department and office without “hard market-based evidence.” The fact is the county’s 4 percent wage increase has been based on the “Pay for Performance” policy adopted three years ago and there have been no across-the-board hikes. And the county administration has contracted with a consultant to conduct salary studies several times in the past few years, including last year. Grant should know all this.

Baugh spent two years regularly attending county commission meetings before winning her seat, learning the ins and outs of not only the process but the policies. Grant misunderstands the county budget proceedings and the pay policy.

The incumbent also holds the only reasonable position on development approvals. Commissioners must follow state law and county policy, adhereing to the Comprehensive Plan and Land Development Code. Violating those policies invites a potentially disastrous lawsuit whereby taxpayers get stuck with a multimillion judgment, as happened recently in Pinellas County when the government was slapped with a $16.5 million assessment for failing to approve a zoning change simply because it was unpopular with the public. Commissioners cannot just say no to development without just cause and public opinion is not one.

“We do not have the pleasure of just doing whatever we want; we have laws we must follow,” Baugh wrote in a responsible response to a Herald query.

On medical care for the working poor now that the county’s trust fund is spent, Baugh has the inside track being a part of the intelligent, collaborative effort in the medical community and county to compose a comprehensive plan. As it stands now, Florida refuses to accept federal aid to extend Medicaid to the working poor who do not quality for Affordable Care Act health insurance or Medicaid, being stuck in what amounts to the middle dead zone. That leaves the county footing the bill for the poor, as has been the case for decades. Baugh is encouraged about the developments here, though, as we are.

Grant tends to think Obamacare could rescue Manatee County from this multimillion dollar expense, but that would only occur if Florida accepts Medicaid expansion — and that political poison is not about to happen in a Legislature dominated by fierce conservative opposition.

Since there is no opposition in this contest in the November election, every registered voter in District 5 can cast a ballot.

Over the past four years, Baugh has served the county well. Given her experience in the political trenches and her understanding and knowledge of all the issues at hand, she is the best candidate in this contest. For Manatee County Commission District 5, the Bradenton Herald Editorial Board recommends Vanessa Baugh.

Candidate replies

Candidates who do not receive the Herald Editorial Board’s endorsement are invited to submit a response of up to 300 words by 5 p.m. the day after the endorsement appears in print. Those can be sent to letters@bradenton.com or faxed to 745-7097.

View candidate forums

The Herald, in partnership with Manatee Educational Television, has videotaped candidate forums in these contested races. These forums can be viewed on www.youtube.com/manateeeducationaltv (click on Videos). METV is also regularly airing all the forums, and the station can be viewed on Brighthouse channel 614, Verizon FIOS 31 and Comcast 19. For METV air times, visit www.metvweb.com.

This story was originally published August 16, 2016 at 4:35 PM with the headline "Herald recommends: Vanessa Baugh for Manatee County Commission District 5."