Gov. Ron DeSantis is calling a Special Session starting Monday, June 1, that could lead to meaningful changes in Florida’s homestead property tax structure.
Speaking in Tampa behind a placard calling to “save our homes,” DeSantis unveiled a formal plan that he has been previewing for months for the “historic” plan to “make your homestead property tax free.”
“I want to get something done,” he said. “And the way to do this is to focus on homestead property owners.”
He provided a path forward for voters to decide in November, as work on the state budget is finally complete except for the ultimate vote on Friday.
DeSantis had initially suggested that relief would be instantaneous, but as revealed in recent months, a more “phased-in” approach will be introduced to the Legislature to allow local governments to prepare for the revenue decline with a “smooth transition.”
Property taxes would be required to be used for “core services” like schools and first responders, he said, under his proposal.
DeSantis anticipates that foreigners and “snowbirds” would be taxation targets for local governments, but the proposal would limit small business value appreciation to 5% year over year.
He doubts the Legislature or voters would be willing to go “cold turkey” in eliminating homestead property taxes, so he is moving forward with a “bottom-up approach” to give them more comfort.
The initial break for taxpayers would be a raising of the homestead limit to $250,000 under this plan, he said. That would benefit 60% of Florida homeowners, including “middle-class folks.”
From there, the Legislature would be “commanded” to create a schedule to eliminate homestead property taxes already, allowing 92% of those with values up to $500,000 a tax break.
“These are the people I really want to help,” he said.
People who move to Florida after the amendment passes would have to pay homestead taxes for five years, DeSantis said, which is intended to “mitigate” undue benefits for newcomers.
At least 3/5 of members of the Senate and the House will have to approve the proposal.
The Special Session, which is expected to run until June 3, will not include a call for new taxes to offset the decrease in collections local governments can count on.
“We think there’s too much revenue going from taxpayers to local governments,” he said.
DeSantis had also promised that the state would subsidize fiscally-constrained counties from its budget surplus. A version of that proposal emerged Wednesday.
While prominent Republicans such as House Speaker-designate Sam Garrison frown on that redistributionist wrinkle, the plan unveiled Wednesday includes a “trust fund” to help local governments pay for core services.
An implementing session after the General Election would firm up the mechanics of the trust fund and the schedule of expanding the homestead exemption, should the amendment make the ballot and pass.
DeSantis, who previously worried that “entrenched interests” would attempt to sandbag his capstone policy proposal, appears to have voters on his side according to a poll conducted this Spring by Stetson University. That survey showed 77% support for the concept, with 85% of Republicans and 68% of Democrats on board.
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