Will Florida’s legislators prioritize the future of property taxes in the next session? The short answer is yes, because the current debate isn’t satisfying most Floridians who pay property taxes on their homes or businesses.
In June, Florida House leadership announced that a series of events would take place throughout the state over the summer to gather input from voters and groups on the pros and cons of eliminating or reducing local property taxes entirely.
However, that didn’t happen; in fact, the first hearing of the Select Committee on Property Taxes didn’t take place until later this past September.
“The state didn’t have any town halls over the summer. Property tax reform is probably the most important issue this state will address for some time and as a taxpayer, I think we’ve been robbed. I’m not sure if our elected officials are listening to homeowners and our ideas on how to deal with this problem,” said a caller who phoned in on Jacksonville’s Conservative talk radio station WBOB.
Despite the anger from some property owners, several proposals have been submitted for Florida lawmakers to consider.
Eliminate non-school property taxes for homesteads entirely.
Phases out those same taxes over ten years, with an additional $100,000 exemption added each year.
Exempt Florida residents 65 and older from paying non-school property taxes on homesteads.
Some add new exemptions for property owners.
One bill would create a new 25% homestead exemption on non-school taxes, aiding current and first-time homebuyers.
Providing homeowners with an additional $100,000 exemption for those who carry property insurance is intended to ease overall housing costs.
Eliminating the cap on “portability,” allowing homeowners to transfer their entire Save Our Homes benefit to a new property, even if it’s of lesser value.
Adjusting the caps on taxable value growth, which would limit increases to 3% over three years for homesteads (currently 3% annually) and 15% over three years for non-homesteads (currently 10% annually).
Requiring a two-thirds vote to raise the local millage rates.
Lawmakers in the Florida House point out that the current bills of property tax reform will not touch the school portion of local property taxes, and funding for first responders will be protected.
