Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava defends her proposed budget, answers commission critics
By Jimena Romero
July 18, 2025 at 4:08 PM EDT
Facing a staggering $402 million deficit, Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava is defending her proposed 2025 budget, calling it a “fair and balanced” plan that protects essential services.
In an interview Friday on WLRN’s South Florida Roundup, Levine Cava outlined the key factors behind the shortfall, including the creation of five new state-mandated constitutional offices and a sharp drop in state and federal funding.
“It was very painful,” the mayor said. “We had to look at what were the core services that people rely upon every single day. They want their trash picked up. They want to be able to ride the public transit."
Among the proposed changes: a 50-cent increase to public transit fares, a new $5 park entrance fee, cuts to some road maintenance crews, and the closure of two tax-funded senior centers. The county will also raise its local gas tax from 3 to 5 cents per gallon — matching what 63 of Florida’s 67 counties already charge.
The mayor acknowledged the burden these moves may place on low-income and vulnerable residents, but stressed that Miami-Dade’s most critical systems — like Metrobus, Metrorail, and Metromover — remain untouched.
READ MORE: Miami-Dade Mayor Levine Cava seeks to close $402 million revenue gap with her proposed budget
“The fares have not gone up in 10 years,” Levine Cava said.
The budget calls for eliminating some 360 county positions, with 140 currently filled. Some departments — especially parks and community programming — will see reduced staffing or services unless outside nonprofits can help fill the gap, she said.
Commissioners will vote on a final budget in September. The new fiscal year starts Oct. 1.
Mayor pushes back at critics
The mayor has also come under fire from county commissioners.
Commissioner Natalie Milian Orbis publicly criticized the proposed budget, accusing the administration of cutting essential services instead of eliminating inefficiencies.
Levine Cava pushed back, pointing to departmental consolidations, executive pay reductions, and a team looking at inefficiencies as examples of the county’s efforts to reduce waste.
A major driver of the deficit is the implementation of Amendment 10, a 2018 voter-approved measure that created five independent constitutional offices in Miami-Dade, including a new sheriff, elections supervisor, and tax collector. The county now must fund those agencies independently — an expense that accounts for nearly 44% of the budget gap.
One office alone, the Tax Collector, is expected to withhold more than $100 million from the general fund due to the new structure.
The sheriff’s office, led by Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz, has asked for up to $40 million more than the mayor proposed — warning that anything less would amount to “defunding the police.” Levine Cava disputes that characterization.
She told WLRN that she had increased the police budget since her first term as mayor and was boosting it 9% in her proposed budget for the coming fiscal year.
The budget does not propose raising the county’s property tax rate, which remains at its lowest level since 1982. Commissioners this week voted to keep the millage flat.
Commission has ‘final word’ on budget
Levine Cava emphasized that the ultimate authority to approve or change the budget rests with the 13-member commission.
“I propose a budget, but the commission finally approves a budget,” she said.
You can listen to the full conversation with Mayor Daniella Levine Cava or wherever you get your podcasts by searching: The South Florida Roundup.
In an interview Friday on WLRN’s South Florida Roundup, Levine Cava outlined the key factors behind the shortfall, including the creation of five new state-mandated constitutional offices and a sharp drop in state and federal funding.
“It was very painful,” the mayor said. “We had to look at what were the core services that people rely upon every single day. They want their trash picked up. They want to be able to ride the public transit."
Among the proposed changes: a 50-cent increase to public transit fares, a new $5 park entrance fee, cuts to some road maintenance crews, and the closure of two tax-funded senior centers. The county will also raise its local gas tax from 3 to 5 cents per gallon — matching what 63 of Florida’s 67 counties already charge.
The mayor acknowledged the burden these moves may place on low-income and vulnerable residents, but stressed that Miami-Dade’s most critical systems — like Metrobus, Metrorail, and Metromover — remain untouched.
READ MORE: Miami-Dade Mayor Levine Cava seeks to close $402 million revenue gap with her proposed budget
“The fares have not gone up in 10 years,” Levine Cava said.
The budget calls for eliminating some 360 county positions, with 140 currently filled. Some departments — especially parks and community programming — will see reduced staffing or services unless outside nonprofits can help fill the gap, she said.
Commissioners will vote on a final budget in September. The new fiscal year starts Oct. 1.
Mayor pushes back at critics
The mayor has also come under fire from county commissioners.
Commissioner Natalie Milian Orbis publicly criticized the proposed budget, accusing the administration of cutting essential services instead of eliminating inefficiencies.
Levine Cava pushed back, pointing to departmental consolidations, executive pay reductions, and a team looking at inefficiencies as examples of the county’s efforts to reduce waste.
A major driver of the deficit is the implementation of Amendment 10, a 2018 voter-approved measure that created five independent constitutional offices in Miami-Dade, including a new sheriff, elections supervisor, and tax collector. The county now must fund those agencies independently — an expense that accounts for nearly 44% of the budget gap.
One office alone, the Tax Collector, is expected to withhold more than $100 million from the general fund due to the new structure.
The sheriff’s office, led by Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz, has asked for up to $40 million more than the mayor proposed — warning that anything less would amount to “defunding the police.” Levine Cava disputes that characterization.
She told WLRN that she had increased the police budget since her first term as mayor and was boosting it 9% in her proposed budget for the coming fiscal year.
The budget does not propose raising the county’s property tax rate, which remains at its lowest level since 1982. Commissioners this week voted to keep the millage flat.
Commission has ‘final word’ on budget
Levine Cava emphasized that the ultimate authority to approve or change the budget rests with the 13-member commission.
“I propose a budget, but the commission finally approves a budget,” she said.
You can listen to the full conversation with Mayor Daniella Levine Cava or wherever you get your podcasts by searching: The South Florida Roundup.