THE CASE AGAINST YOUR COMMISSIONERS

Commissioners Joe Neunder and Mark Smith voted yes on every record budget and bond that produced it.

Commissioner Smith seconded all three January 31, 2023 resolutions that authorized and financed it — each carried 5-0.

Approved 4–1 on February 10, 2026, Smith moving the motion, Neunder voting yes — Knight the lone no. Roughly $20.77 million of the authorization is to be borrowed.

The sale-leaseback closed in December 2021; the board approved and financed the new building in 5-0 votes beginning January 2023 — Smith seconding.

The county burden inside that number — $21,312 a year for a family of four — was set by budgets Neunder and Smith voted for.

Every budget that grew the county's share of that cost passed with Neunder and Smith voting yes.

Every bond behind that increase passed with Neunder and Smith voting yes.

That figure was $1,700 per person when Neunder and Smith began voting on budgets. Their votes took it to $2,838.

Every millage rate behind it was approved unanimously — Neunder and Smith voting yes each time, with the adopted aggregate rate 11.82% above the revenue-neutral rolled-back rate.

It accumulated vote by vote — with Neunder and Smith on the yes side every time.

The FY2026 budget that draws the $41.7 million passed with Neunder and Smith voting yes.

No efficiency program of that scale was proposed. Neunder and Smith voted for budgets that grew administrative spending instead.

Neunder and Smith campaigned on small government — and voted for every budget that kept Sarasota at #5.

Each issuance was approved by commission vote — Neunder and Smith voting yes — with no referendum required or held.

Knight — a former three-term Sheriff — voted no at both FY2026 hearings and proposed a 3% cut; Chairman Neunder shut him down. Smith said the spending was unsustainable — then voted yes.

From FY2022 through FY2025, neither Neunder nor Smith cast a single recorded vote against any budget or bond.

The board clawed the grant back 3–1 on April 22, 2025 — Neunder moving, Knight seconding. Mark Smith cast the lone vote to keep paying it.

Commissioner Tom Knight cast the only no votes on the FY2026 budget. Neunder and Smith voted yes at both hearings.

Neunder and Smith voted yes at both FY2026 hearings. Knight's was the only no in the room.

Neunder and Smith approved each of the budgets and bonds behind those increases.

Every record budget and bond in the window passed with Neunder and Smith voting yes — while the road funding backlog grew to $1.7 billion.

While North Port halved its debt, Neunder and Smith voted for every county bond that pushed county debt up 76%.

The budgets that set the county's administrative cost passed with Neunder and Smith voting yes, every time.

The budgets and bonds behind the boom passed with Neunder and Smith voting yes — while the cost of staying climbed past what work here pays.

The liability is state-administered, but it sits on the county's books — and ultimately on yours. In fairness: it is improving, down from a $449 million peak in FY2023.

The record is the commissioners' own: audited reports they certified and budgets they voted to adopt.

Smith used that 373-vote mandate to vote for every record budget and bond since.

Both incumbents — Neunder (District 4) and Smith (District 2) — are on that ballot, with this record.