Jim Ford

Jim Ford was first elected Brevard County Property Appraiser in November 1988 after having served in that capacity since January, 1988 when he was appointed to the office by Governor Martinez. His prior experience included high level administrative positions in Brevard County government, including Acting County Administrator, Assistant County Administrator, Development Coordinator and Planning and Zoning Director, during the previous 17-year period.

Mr. Ford is a native of Knoxville, Tennessee where he attended school. He received both a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration (1968) and a Master of Science degree in City Planning from the University of Tennessee (1970). He has earned the designation as a Certified Florida Appraiser from the State of Florida and holds an inactive Florida real estate license. He is a member of the International Association of Assessing Officers.

Mr. Ford has been involved in various public issues and has implemented several innovative programs. He was the Brevard County Coordinator for the Save Our Homes initiative which led to the passage of Constitutional Amendment #10 in 1992, limiting the annual increase in tax assessments on homesteaded property to 3% or the annual increase in the Consumer Price Index, whichever is less. This constituted the first important element of his Five Point Taxpayer Protection Plan. After passage of this amendment the Florida Department of Revenue adopted an Administrative Rule which partially thwarted the intent of the amendment. That rule requires the Property Appraiser to increase the assessed value every year as long as there is a difference between the assessed value and the market value. Mr. Ford disagreed with that rule and argued against its adoption before the State Cabinet, sitting as the Administrative Commission. To view Mr. Ford's presentation click here.

In 1995, he formed a Political Action Committee known as Citizens Against Property's Increasing Taxes (CAPIT) and served as its Chairman. He drafted a tax limitation amendment and his efforts led to the first amendment to the Brevard County Charter by petition initiative. That amendment, which passed overwhelmingly in 1996, lowered the limit on the annual property tax revenue increase by the County Commission from 10% to 3% or the annual increase in the Consumer Price Index, whichever is less. Consequently, when property is re-appraised, increasing the taxable value of the tax roll, this amendment forced the County Commission to adjust the tax millage rate so as not to generate more tax revenue than this "cap" allowed.

In 2004, after several years of success, this charter provision was struck down by the courts after the County Commission refused to defend it. The courts ruling, in essence, means that the Brevard County Charter should never have even had the original 10% tax cap.

In 1997, Mr. Ford proposed the final three elements of his Five Point Taxpayer Protection Plan as County Charter Amendments to the Charter Review Commission. These included no new County Municipal Service Taxing Units without voter approval, no new annual non-Ad Valorem Special Assessment programs without voter approval, and a limit on annual revenue increases for existing non-Ad Valorem Special Assessments of 3% or the annual change in the Consumer Price Index unless approved by the voters. Two of these were forwarded to the County Commission for placement on the November 1998 ballot and a local Political Action Committee sponsored the other Charter amendment as part of a petition initiative. That amendment, giving the people the right to vote on the establishment of any new Municipal Service Taxing Unit, was placed on the ballot by the County Commission for the November, 2000 election and passed. Two of the three proposals passed.

Also in 1997, Mr. Ford proposed an expanded Taxpayer's Bill of Rights to the State Constitution Revision Commission. The proposals contained therein include prohibiting new Municipal Service Taxing Units and Non-Ad Valorem Special Assessment Programs without voter approval and a special tax classification for federal, state or locally designated properties having environmental importance. The classification would allow such properties to be valued, for ad valorem tax purposes, based upon a nominal value until it is determined that permits can be obtained to use such properties.

He has worked to explain the assessment function and its part in the entire property tax process and has disseminated this information to the public. Mr. Ford has emphasized information technology and Geographic Information Systems in the office. In 1998, in national competition, the Property Appraiser's office was awarded the Distinguished Assessment Jurisdiction Award by the International Association of Assessing Officers for an enhanced assessment system which improved the accuracy of residential property assessments using market area data.

In 2003, Mr. Ford recommended an additional Truth In Taxation Charter Amendment to the Charter Review Commission which would require the County to disclose, in a prominent newspaper advertisement, the total annual increase in ad valorem tax revenue, including revenue from new construction, added to the assessment roll each year. This proposal received unanimous support from the Charter Review Commission and after approval by the electors of Brevard County, became effective January 1, 2005. The proposal can be found in section 5.4.2 of the Brevard County Charter.

In 2007, Mr. Ford served on the Board of Directors of Save Our Homes Portability, Inc. This group worked hard to encourage the Legislature to place the portability of your Save Our Homes assessment limitation on the ballot January 29, 2008. This passed, and will now allow homestead property to transfer a sizeable tax saving to another property.

Other programs and initiatives he has implemented include:

automatic annual renewal of homestead exemptions
establishing year-round filing of exemptions, and extended office hours, prior to the filing deadline, for the convenience of all residents
initiated internet access to public records of the office with records and map search features
initiated an enforcement program to find fraudulent exemptions
legal challenges have established landmark statewide case law applicable to ad valorem tax issues
application for homestead exemption by mail

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