PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — Florida’s chief financial officer said Thursday that an audit by his office revealed $344 million in overspending by Palm Beach County government. He said this dollar amount is a direct result of rising property tax collections.
“That is the biggest number we have seen in the state of Florida this year,” Florida CFO Blaise Ingoglia said during a Thursday news conference in West Palm Beach.
WATCH BELOW: Florida CFO accuses Palm Beach Co. of $344 million in overspending
Florida CFO accuses Palm Beach County of $344 million in overspending after audit
Ingoglia’s effort, named the Florida Agency on Fiscal Oversight, has so far examined the budgets of 11 cities and counties across Florida as his office looks to reel in property taxes.
Currently, Republicans in the State Capitol are working to rein in property taxes, which is a priority for 2026, with several bills filed.
Overall, he said the audits have uncovered $1.9 billion in overspending, describing it as “excessive” and “bloated.”
Ingoglia said the audits used budgets from 2019-20 as a baseline and then indexed for inflation and population growth to come up with the overspending figures.
“They’re going to try and refute our numbers,” Ingoglia said.
“Almost every jurisdiction we have gone into has tried to refute our numbers. They can’t. We have teams of auditors, teams of CPA’s going over these numbers, and I’m going to tell you these numbers are absolutely solid.”
The CFO acknowledged that Palm Beach County officials have been receptive to his investigation, and the county’s deputy administrator said they are working on ways to trim spending while also trying to maintain services that citizens need.
“Really looking at where we can tighten things up and create some efficiencies, we’re doing that today,” Palm Beach County Deputy Administrator Todd Bonlarron told WPTV on Wednesday.
Ingoglia said his numbers show that cutting the $344 million from the county’s spending would roughly save homeowners, on average, about $300 a year in property taxes.
“They should know I’m going to cheer them on,” he said when asked about Palm Beach County leaders. “On behalf of the taxpayers to hold government accountable, make it small and cost less.”
Matt Sczesny is determined every day to help you find solutions in Florida’s coverage collapse. If you have a question or comment on homeowners insurance, you can reach out to him any time.
