Page 18 - Abacoa Community News November '23

Page 18, Abacoa
Commissioner’s Update

Budgeting To Reduce Your and natural areas. We must use precision to create efficiencies funds. The county’s conservative approach to keeping significant
This reduction allows us to keep a hefty level of reserve
and eliminate any waste in our budget in the interest of lessening
Tax Burden the tax burden on the property owners in this community and reserves helps us maintain a AAA rating, which is the highest
helping households make ends meet. credit designation assigned to bond issuers by rating agencies
By Commissioner Property taxes make up roughly 25 percent of the operating such as Standard & Poor’s and Fitch. Reserves enable us to
Maria Marino budget and public safety takes up the largest portion. Departments respond to emergencies and unanticipated expenditures without
Preparing a balanced covering airports and water utilities are enterprise funds, not chipping away at services residents rely on.
county budget takes more than funded primarily by property taxes. Per Florida Statutes, the Of the total gross budget of $7.9 billion, projected
covering expenditures with other funds on the balance sheet include the general fund, special total property tax revenue is $1.9 billion. Approximately
revenues. It requires a focus revenue funds restricted or committed to a specific purpose, debt 72 percent of the property tax revenue is for the general
on providing essential services service funds, capital projects, and internal services. fund to provide the budget for the sheriff and other
to our residents, from garbage With a population of just over 1.5 million, nearly half of our constitutional officers, judicial facilities and technology,
pickup and disposal, to striping residents live in the unincorporated area. county departments, capital projects, agency partners who
roads, to assisting low-income After 11 years with a millage rate of 4.7815, the commission assist the public, and to community development agencies
elderly folks keep their utilities last year approved a reduction to 4.715, the rate applied to that reinvest in their infrastructure. The remaining 28 percent
on, to preserving our beaches each $1,000 of taxable property value. As new residents have pays for fire rescue, libraries and debt service.
Feedback from the District 1 communities has made it
continued to make Palm Beach County their home, tax revenue

Freedom has increased at a rate of more than 13 percent over the past year. clear that reducing the county tax rate is a trend we need
to follow.
With more money coming into the county coffers, I proposed
Thank you all for your continued input and please
Coast Ride and achieved unanimous consent from the Board to approve a feel free to contact me at (561) 355-2201 or by email at
further reduction in the millage rate this year to 4.50 mils, so that
mmarino@pbcgov.org.
taxpayers can realize more savings.
Northern Notes from page 17 gorgeous plumage used to decorate hats and fans.
Thankfully, they received legal protection in the 1940s,
and yellows. Invertebrates compile these pigments by and their population has recovered.
eating aquatic vegetation, which uses beta-carotenoids Roseate spoonbills are the only spoonbill species
to conduct photosynthesis. Then, as spoonbills eat these native to the United States. Other species are found in
crustaceans, they ingest their stockpiled carotenoids. As Africa, Asia, Australia and Europe. However, no other
the birds digest their prey, these pigments are transferred spoonbill species has the distinctive pink coloring as the
into fat stores under the skin. These reserves feed into the roseate spoonbill.
feathers, primarily along the bird’s back, wings and rump. Take advantage of the cooler weather and explore the
As to their distinctive beak, spoonbills develop a outdoors again! Find a park or preserve and see if you can
flat, spoon-shaped bill shortly after hatching. Spoonbill spot a bowl of roseate spoonbills. Enjoy!
hatchlings have a straight beak for the first few days of NPDES tip: Storms occur all year round. Make sure
their life. The spoon shape grows as the chick develops. your yards and trees are trimmed neatly to avoid flying
Spoonbills forage by sweeping their open bills back and debris during a storm. Dispose of your trimmings and
forth under the water (think of a metal detector). Their clippings properly. Do not put them into storm drains or
bills have nerves that can feel when prey enters their bill lakes!
and triggers it to shut when it comes in contact with food.
It’s a very efficient way to forage.
Up close, roseate spoonbills have unique coloring on
their heads. While young, they have light-colored feathers
covering their heads and light pink plumage. As they age,
the feathers on their head thin out, with only the blue-
green to yellow-green head showing, and their plumage
gets darker. Their reddish eyes are in stark contrast to their
head coloring, making them quite a unique specimen.
You can estimate the age of a roseate spoonbill then by
determining if they have feathers on their head and by
how vibrant their feathers are.
We are fortunate to see them still since they were
hunted almost to extinction in the late 1800s for their

DR. RYAN CHIZNER

HAS JOINED PALM

BEACH CARDIOLOGY

CENTER

P.B.C.C. is pleased to welcome Dr. Ryan Chizner. Dr. Chizner
completed fellowships in cardiology and interventional
cardiology for which he is board certified.

In addition he holds board certification in Internal Medicine,
Echocardiography, Nuclear Cardiology and Vascular
Interpretation.

He has a Bachelor’s of Science degree from the Honors
Program at the University of Florida. He went on to complete
dual degrees with a Doctorate of Osteopathic Medicine and
Master of Public Health from Nova Southeastern University.

Previously, Dr. Chizner practiced Interventional Cardiology in
Central Florida and Georgia.
He is the Co-Author of a Bestselling textbook on Cardiac Drugs
for healthcare providers, which is now in its second edition.
He is thrilled to move closer to family in South Florida.

561-775-1061

3365 Burns Rd., Suite 101, Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33410