April Griffin says she wants to use the latest technologies to streamline services.

TAMPA – April Griffin officially filed paperwork Monday (Nov. 4) with the Supervisor of Elections Office to be the next Hillsborough County Tax Collector.

Griffin is launching her bid to succeed retiring Tax Collector Doug Belden.

“During my 12-year service on the Hillsborough County School Board, one of the largest in the nation, I was elected its chair twice. That invaluable leadership experience, combined with my administrative experience as the director of Human Resources for the Public Defender’s Office and experience in coordinating with other governments, makes me uniquely qualified to lead the Hillsborough County Tax Collector’s Office,” Griffin said.

“I want to focus on a first-class customer service experience. By using the latest technologies, we can streamline services and coordinate offices to give the best value to our citizens. In addition to tax collection and distribution, the Tax Collector’s Office is an agent of the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles and works with other state agencies in providing permits and licenses, including concealed weapons licenses and hunting and fishing licenses. These important services demand a convenient, efficient, and modern office that values the time and money of its customers.”

In 2015, to better serve her community, Griffin earned her degree in Organizational Studies with a Public Leadership track from Eckerd College. This degree, she said, has helped her to understand the complexities of people and systems that are the heart of any organization, whether private or government.

Griffin said her accomplishments were many during her 12 years on the school board. They included graduation rates increasing from 63.9 percent to 82.9 percent, closing the achievement gap with minorities, and strengthening career and technical programs.

Griffin said she did not shy away from the more difficult issues, and led the charge to uncover financial mismanagement, worked to rebalance the budget, changed the board’s evaluation tool of the superintendent, brought fiscal responsibility to the compensation package, and defended religious diversity in the school calendar and the district’s absentee policy. She also championed protection of all students and staff through policy changes to the district’s over-arching anti-discrimination policy, which earned recognition from Equality Florida.

In working with the county commission and the private business sector to create the Manufacturing Alliance and expanded student access to healthcare through innovative partnerships, she demonstrated her ability to work with other governments and across party lines, which is important to the success of the Tax Collector’s Office.

As a school board member, she said she led in bringing real-world business practices to the district’s IT, facilities, and financial offices, and wants to do the same as tax collector.

The general election is Nov. 3. Qualifying for the tax collector’s seat opens at noon on June 8 and closes at noon June 12. Thus far, Griffin and fellow Democrat Nancy Millan are the only two to file for the tax collector’s seat.

For information about Griffin, go to facebook.com.

April Griffin | Politics | Elections | Tampabay News | News Tampa

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