Lawmakers can plan on returning to Tallahassee this Summer to vote on a measure that could repeal homestead property taxes, Gov. Ron DeSantis told the National Mining Association.
“We’ll be working with the Legislature, not this week, not probably May, but probably after that, to do a Special Session on putting this on the ballot,” he said in Palm Beach.
The proposal would require 60% of members in both the House and Senate to vote to put it on the ballot, and the same proportion of voters would need to approve it to put it in the constitution. DeSantis said the language would provide graduated relief from homestead property taxes.
“Our goal would be: Homestead properties would be exempt from property tax,” DeSantis said. “You still get a lot of revenue, probably have to phase it in, do some other things, make it work. I’ve even said we’ll give some of our surplus to help with the transition.”
Of course, “our surplus” won’t be DeSantis’ to worry about starting in January. The issue will be another Governor’s problem. And the very existence of a surplus is debatable, given that the Long-Range Financial Outlook included projected budget deficits starting in Fiscal Year 2027-28 when it was presented last year.
While lawmakers certainly can rectify that with leaner budgets, government will do less because it has less to work with if this goes into effect. And local governments likewise will be starved, raising questions about social services, infrastructure, public safety and other recurrent expenditures, particularly for fast-growing areas struggling with a population influx.
But these aren’t the Governor’s concerns. His main goal is getting this “revolutionary” proposal on the ballot, which has involved months of refining expectations and pushing back targets.
DeSantis said last week he was “working with legislators” to find language that meets muster, even as it’s unclear what kind of dialogue he has with the House, which rejected Special Session calls for “medical freedom” legislation and an “AI Bill of Rights” around the same time DeSantis gave this speech Tuesday.
DeSantis has used his national bully pulpit to sell the idea, saying the “timing” of the prospective relief was an issue to softball interviewer Sean Hannity.
DeSantis has floated the idea of the state subsidizing the mere “budget dust” of what would have been property tax collections for 32 of the state’s 67 counties, an idea that incoming Speaker Sam Garrison said he opposes, suggesting that whatever Special Session is called for this concept will have some give-and-take and drama in the final product.
If DeSantis can land the plane, at least one new poll suggests voters would be on board.
A survey from Stetson University’s Center for Public Opinion Research shows that if DeSantis actually introduces his plan and the Legislature votes to put it on the ballot, it would get 77% support, and would easily clear the 60% threshold to ratify it as a constitutional amendment.
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