CITRUS CRUSADER

By John Labriola - After five and a half hours of discussion on the county budget, Citrus County Commissioners last week voted to set the maximum tax millages for 2025-26 at the current year's rates for each of the county’s various departments.  That means tax rates can be lowered at either of the commission’s two September budget hearings, but they can’t be increased. However, because property values rose this year, keeping millage rates the same will mean raising residents’ taxes.  The commission directed staff to increase road resurfacing funding, which was cut by several million dollars in the proposed budget from the current year despite being many years behind schedule, and to fund the county’s $1.3 million match for a federal COPS grant requested by Sheriff David Vincent to add 20 more deputies. Commissioners asked county department heads to reduce their budgets across the board so the savings can be reinvested in road resurfacing and new deputies rather than in a tax r...

By John Labriola - After months of controversy over a nearly 5,000-unit mega development that involved allegations of illegal lobbying by a former county commissioner, the Citrus County Commission last week voted 3-2 to approve the Tuscany Ranch project on more than 1,000 acres along Forest Ridge Boulevard and County Road 491 (Lecanto Highway). Commission Chairwoman Rebecca Bays and Commissioners Holly Davis and Jeff Kinnard voted yes, with Commissioners Diana Finegan and Janet Barek remaining opposed.  The timeline for buildout is 25 years, with 300 units expected to be built per year.  The developer will widen 1.4 miles of County Road 491 at a cost of about $8 million. Commissioner Finegan said that amounts to a pittance compared to the $192 million taxpayers will pay for the entire widening project. "To get $8 million from them is a drop in the bucket," added Commissioner Barek.  The widening of 491 became a major flashpoint of the project after former...

By John Labriola - This June marked the fourth year in a row that Citrus County libraries have not celebrated "LGBT Pride Month." The obnoxious propaganda displays of rainbow flags and degenerate books are now a fading memory, thanks to the active involvement of so many residents who spoke out against having their tax dollars used to subsidize perversion.  In the last four years, the Citrus County Library System also has terminated its membership in the LGBT-promoting American Library Association, removed a pornographic "LGBT teen novel" from its shelves, and is now working on giving parents more control over what their minor children read through the creation of a restricted access library card . Citrus County's experience has been a harbinger of the changing national mood. In 2024, President Donald J. Trump scored a historic comeback victory to retake the White House and immediately set about dismantling Biden's demented LGBT-promoting policies. Through ...

By John Labriola - This past Saturday was the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army, an important date that coincided with Flag Day and President Donald Trump's birthday. It was a day to celebrate America, and President Trump did so in style with a patriotic military parade in Washington D.C. that honored all the heroes who have put their lives on the line to keep our nation safe. The Democrat Party chose to spend the same day attacking President Trump's popular agenda and defending criminal illegal aliens in what they called "No Kings Day," with angry demonstrations across the country. Here in Citrus County, the angry minority of Kamala Harris voters, who represented 26 percent of the vote last year compared with the 72.41 percent who voted for Trump, took over the intersection in front of the Old Courthouse in downtown Inverness with obnoxious signs calling President Trump a tyrant and "king." Local crossdresser "Rhonda Santis," who has been identif...

By John Labriola - Citrus County Commissioner Jeff Kinnard backed off his proposal for a development moratorium last week as the commission adopted new rules to prevent former commissioners from lobbying the board in light of a recent controversy over a development project.  Instead of an 11-month pause on development, Kinnard said he would bring back a proposal incorporating several ideas to mitigate the effects of new development in fast-growing Citrus County. He said the legislation will include having developers set aside more land for recreation, drainage and utilities, requiring them to build roads to support increased traffic, and instituting mobility fees. "Where I hope to land on this is somewhere forward of the status quo but short of a planning pause or a stop or a moratorium," he said. "We can do better and I hope that we will do better." Commissioner Diana Finegan withdrew her motion to prohibit county commissioners and staff from lobbying the state on...

By John Labriola - The Citrus County Commission will be tackling a number of development and lobbying issues on Tuesday as a hearing on the controversial Tuscany Ranch project has been postponed.  Commissioners were scheduled to vote this week on the 5,000-unit project, which would be built along Lecanto Road (C.R. 491) near Forest Ridge Boulevard, but the developer requested a delay. Instead, commissioners will discuss a proposal by Commissioner Jeff Kinnard to enact an 11-month moratorium on new large-scale residential developments in the county, as well as new applications that would increase housing density.  His proposal comes after the failure this legislative session of state legislation that would have required roads to be built or upgraded before new neighborhoods or commercial projects could move forward. Citrus County is experiencing significant development and population growth, which it lacks the infrastructure to deal with. Also on Tuesday, the commission w...

By John Labriola - The Citrus County Library System will be introducing a new restricted access library card for minors by the end of 2025 that will give parents more control over what their children read. Library Director Adam Chang announced the initiative at last week's Library Advisory Board (LAB) meeting. He said parents will have the option to obtain a new card for their minor children that will allow them to check out only items in the library's juvenile section and bar access to adult computers.  The county will announce the new cards on social media, in a press release, and with signs at the libraries. The new application form also will make it clear that there are two choices. Parents will have the option to select either the restricted card or the all-access card for their children, and parents of children with a regular library card could switch to the new restricted access version. Chang said the Hillsborough and Marion county libraries have similar systems. LAB ...