Rep. Robert Wexler (D-Fla.) has not had a real residence in Florida for the past 11 years. His official residence was at his parents house. He was living in Maryland and representing Florida. After an uproar (which should have happened long ago), Wexler has finally rented a home in his district.
Below is an article from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel:
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U.S. Rep. Robert Wexler to rent home in his South Florida district
Uproar over residency prompts him to take action
By Brittany Wallman and Scott Wyman | South Florida Sun-Sentinel
July 30, 2008
Democratic U.S. Rep. Robert Wexler said Tuesday he will rent a home in Palm Beach County, after a week of criticism since his admission that he hadn't had a home in South Florida for 11 years.
Wexler sold his west of Boca Raton house in 1997, the year he was sworn in to Congress, and moved his wife and children to Maryland.
Meanwhile, a South Florida Sun-Sentinel investigation into Wexler's Maryland homeownership reveals that he claimed that house as his primary residence for four years and received tax breaks there because of that claim.
Wexler represents District 19, encompassing a large swath of Palm Beach County and part of Broward County. He faces an election challenge from Ben Graber, a former Broward County mayor who is running with no party affiliation and Republican Ed Lynch, of Royal Palm Beach, who brought the residency questions to light.
Wexler revealed in a national TV interview last week the home he uses to meet residency requirements in Florida belongs to his in-laws and is in a seniors' community. The 47-year-old representative has a wife and three children.
Friday, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported that Wexler was the only member of Florida's congressional delegation who doesn't own or rent a home in his district. Other members of Congress fly home on weekends to spend time with family; some share living quarters in Washingtonwith other members of Congress.
Wexler said Tuesday he would respond to constituent concerns by leasing a home in Palm Beach County. His schedule shows he visited South Florida 14 times over the nine-month period starting last November.
"Although I am confident that I have represented my district as well as anybody possibly could," Wexler said in a written statement Tuesday, "I ... do not want this issue to distract from my advocacy of the important issues facing our community and country."
However, he reaped the benefits of Maryland homeownership, records show. Maryland offers residents a tax break similar to Florida's Save Our Homes exemption. Maryland residents receive a tax credit that basically caps how much their property tax assessment can increase at a maximum 10 percent a year.
Tax records show Wexler listed his home in Potomac, Md., as his primary residence in 1999, 2000, 2001 and 2002. He changed his tax information in 2003 to state the house was not his primary residence.
Wexler's property tax bill ranged between $3,803 and $3,995 during the years he declared the home his primary residence, records show. The bill shot up to $5,147 in 2003 when he no longer received the tax break. This year's bill is $8,933.
Wexler spokesman and chief of staff Eric Johnson said Wexler made a mistake while signing documents at the closing on his Maryland house and corrected it once he realized it.
However, Maryland property records show that several times, and as recently as May 2005, Wexler signed home-loan documents declaring the Maryland home his "principal residence."
Johnson said it doesn't matter if Wexler got homestead benefits in Maryland; he's still a Florida resident. He said it's hypocritical of both opposing candidates to bring up tax issues because both ran into trouble with the Internal Revenue Service. Lynch still owes $1.4 million in taxes to IRS, while Graber said his business-related tax problem was short-lived and occurred some 10 years ago.
"We paid it off right away," Graber said of his 1995 and 1996 tax liens.
Lynch said he disagrees with the IRS on how much he owes in personal taxes; he was audited and said the matter is still in dispute.
Wexler's residency became an issue last week, when FOX News' Bill O'Reilly acted on a tip from Lynch.
Staff writer Mark Hollis contributed to this report.
Brittany Wallman can be reached at bwallman@sun-sentinel.com or 954-356-4541. Scott Wyman can be reached at swyman@sun-sentinel .com or 954-356-4511.
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1 comment:
The funny part of that is that he's not gonna have any problems come election time. He's a very popular congressman.
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