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Florida State Rep. Anthony Sabatini announced on Thursday that he filed a lawsuit against Osceola County in the Sunshine State for “violating” a Florida statute that requires the “language of tax increase ballot questions to be ‘clear & unambiguous.’”
Sabatini continued, “Osceola is trying to deceive voters into approving a 1% PERcent sales tax hike by presenting it as a ‘cent.’ [sic]”
He went on to explain the situation, pointing out, “It’s government chicanery because: 1st, many voters get false impression that a ‘cent’ tax increase is a cent per transaction[.] 2nd, by increasing the sales tax rate by 1%, each family pays $500 more in taxes a year[.] 3rd, it’s actually a 16% increase of the tax rate (6% to 7%).”
Sabatini’s lawsuit is requesting “declaratory and injunctive relief” on behalf of the plaintiff, Ruth Coberley, who is suing Osceola County.
Sabatini is no stranger to fighting legal battles in the state of Florida. In 2020, he went to bat for Floridians by filing a lawsuit against Pinellas County over their face mask mandates related to the Covid pandemic, per CBS.
The outlet reported that Sabatini stated in a press conference at the time, “Pinellas County is threatening the livelihood of every single working Floridian in this county, and anybody who enters this county in the middle of the biggest economic recession in a decade. Stupidest thing I’ve ever heard in my entire life. A lot of people want to talk about safety. Let me tell you something. If you believe in safety, stay home!”
