Newsmax Media, which is based in South Florida, is strongly endorsing a candidate for an important position in the Sunshine State's Miami-Dade County.
Pedro J. Garcia is running for the county's property appraiser post, a position in which he has already served with distinction.
Garcia is a U.S. Army veteran who has been in the real estate business for nearly 40 years. He served as appraiser from 2009 to 2012, when he narrowly lost an election to veteran politician Carlos Lopez-Cantera, who vacated the post in January after being selected by Florida Gov. Rick Scott to become the state's lieutenant governor.
Garcia also served for 10 years as a member of the Value Adjustment Board, which adjudicates cases appealed to the property appraiser's office.
This year, Garcia is facing off against Eddy Gonzalez, who reached his term limit in the Florida legislature and has no appraisal experience but significant political clout.
Garcia has the backing of the South Florida AFL-CIO, the Miami Association of Realtors, the Miami Herald, and former Ronald Reagan close adviser Carlos Perez, a South Florida radio and television host, author, and a leading figure in the Cuban-American community.
"Pedro Garcia is a decent, honest man," Perez told Newsmax. "During his previous term he reduced his office's budget and cut bureaucracy."
He also launched initiatives to recover millions of dollars from delinquent taxpayers and brought transparency and accountability to the property's appraiser's office. In 2010, he was named Public Servant of the Year by the Minority Chamber of Commerce.
"My goal is to establish the right and fair value for all Miami-Dade properties," Garcia told Newsmax about his current campaign.
"I also intend to go put an end to fraudulent homestead exemption claims. I'm not a politician, and no one will be telling me what to do."
Florida's homestead exemption reduces real estate taxes for homeowners whose primary residence is in Florida.
During his first term in office, Garcia reportedly led an investigation of fraudulent Homestead exemption claims resulting in more than $50 million in liens.
Miami-Dade's property appraiser is responsible for setting the taxable value of more than 900,000 residential and commercial properties in the county. The office has an annual budget of nearly $34 million and more than 350 employees.
"There is no doubt Mr. Garcia is more knowledgeable about financial matters" than his opponent, the Miami Herald stated in an editorial.
"Given his deeper knowledge of the office, voters should give Mr. Garcia a second chance. The Herald recommends Pedro Garcia for Miami-Dade property appraiser.
Newsmax totally agrees.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.