State Legislature approves property tax relief bill
Voters will decide Gov. Ron DeSantis’ plan to cut property taxes by raising the tax exception for owner-occupied homes.
The Florida Legislature passed the plan on June 2, meaning a constitutional amendment that would raise the homestead property tax exemption from $50,000 to $150,000 in 2027 and then to $250,000 in 2028 will go to referendum in November. The amendment, which was introduced by DeSantis, would require approval from 60% of the voters to go into law.
The Senate voted 30-9 and the House voted 75-26 to pass the bill in a special legislative session.
The legislation was opposed by the Lee County Board of County Commissioners, which voted unanimously on June 2 to send a letter to the Legislature opposing the expanded exemption unless the revenue losses for local governments can be replaced with “stable, recurring replacement funding sources.”
The county projects that the bill could cause a property tax revenue loss of $129.7 million in next year’s budget and a $240.8 million loss in the 2028-29 budget.
Sen. Jonathan Martin (R-Fort Myers) said he has been in touch with county commissioners and heard their concerns. He said he shared their concerns and said he was trying to find out how the proposed changes will affect their budget. Martin said he had not seen their projections as of press time.
He questioned if the county’s numbers were taking into account potential growth.
“Are they assuming that no additional homes are going to be purchased down here or that economic activity is going to stop?” Martin asked.
He said that “economic activity increases with tax cuts.”
Martin said the bill will shield school districts from losing any tax revenue.
“I feel very strongly that the voters should decide,” he said.
Martin had championed a bill last year which would order a study to consider the elimination of property taxes.
In their letter of opposition to the proposal, county commissioners said “These proposals represent one of the most significant restructurings of local government finance in Florida’s history and warrant careful consideration of their long-term impacts on communities throughout the state.”
The letter notes that local communities are still recovering from Hurricane Ian, as well as subsequent hurricanes Helene and Milton.
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