Democrat, Nancy Millan, has the relevant experience to advance her goals of improving accessibility for taxpayers—through improvements to online self-service options—exerting fiscal responsibility in working collaboratively with private sectors, and ensuring cybersecurity to protect the personal information of taxpayers. Currently serving as a top administrator in the Tax Collector’s Office, Millan has worked within the office for over 30 years alongside retiring tax collector David Belden, overseeing community relations since 2001. Her Republican opponent, TK Matthews, has worked in the Tax Collector’s Office for four years, but Millan’s superior experience and innovative, inclusive ideas make her the natural choice to replace Belden. We recommend voting for Nancy Millan for Tax Collector.
Tax Collector (Pinellas) Joe Saportas
If you’ve ever worked for a bad boss, then your ears probably perked up when Joyell Bobala decided to run against her old boss in the primary for this election. Bobala said incumbent Charles W. Thomas created “a demoralizing internal culture” that negatively impacted the office as hurt taxpayers. Former tax collectors Diane Nelson and Fred Petty even backed Joyell Bobala for their old job, with Petty—who served as Pinellas County Tax Collector from 1993-2000—saying that Thomas was “misleading the public.” Thomas rejected all allegations of decline in customer service or employee morale, and Bobala lost in the primary, but Joe Saportas, a 72-year-old businessman provides a chance for a fresh start for the office and its workers.
See all of Creative Loafing Tampa Bay’s 2020 recommendations here.
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This article appears in Oct 15-21, 2020.