JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Eight new proposals were filed to limit, phase out, or immediately eliminate property taxes just on Thursday alone.
It’s going to be a top-priority issue for Florida lawmakers in the upcoming session, but it’s unclear which one will win out in the end.
The first bill out of the gate, looking to tackle property tax relief, was filed earlier in the week.
It takes a somewhat novel approach, and it wouldn’t require voters to approve it like the majority of the proposals filed Thursday.
State Representative Ryan Chamberlin (R-Ocala) is sponsoring what he’s dubbed “Freedom1”, which amounts to a forced rollback of millage rates.
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The bill would require school districts and counties to revert back to the property tax revenues they generated in the 22/23 fiscal year.
“That drops $8 billion, $8 billion of instant relief on the homeowners here in the State of Florida,” said Chamberlin.
Action News Jax dug into the numbers and found that under Chamberlin’s proposal, which would impact property taxes for businesses and homeowners alike, the City of Jacksonville and Duval County School District would have to reduce revenues by hundreds of millions of dollars within the next year or two.
According to council auditors, for the city alone, that figure would likely top $400 million.
“$400 million is a lot to carve out of this budget,” said Councilmember Ron Salem (R-Group 2 At-Large).
Salem was among those who fought for the recent $13 million property tax cut, which passed on a narrow vote after countless hours of debate.
Dropping the city’s $2 billion budget by nearly 25 percent, however, would be a whole other story.
“Once it gets in the budget, it’s very, very difficult to get it out,” said Salem.
In a statement, the mayor’s office indicated the proposal would force the city to cut its workforce by more than 2,400 employees and “would be catastrophic for public safety and the services that citizens rely on”.
But Chamberlin noted this bill is just one part of a multi-phased plan he envisions to eliminate property taxes altogether and replace revenues with alternatives like increased sales taxes.
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The push for property tax cuts comes as property values across the state have skyrocketed in recent years, leaving homeowners with larger tax bills and local governments with an influx of cash.
Chamberlin argued local governments were able to get by just a few years ago with hundreds of millions of dollars less, and should be able to do so again.
“We’re talking quadruple inflation. This is not normal. This is not a normal increase, and if we’re going to fix the property tax system, we’ve got to get it under control and rein it back a little bit,” said Chamberlin.
Chamberlin said his bill wouldn’t impact special property taxes that were specifically approved by voters.
So, the $100 million-plus generated annually by DCPS as a result of the 2022 referendum for teacher pay, arts, and athletics would be safe.
Still, the school district would likely have to reduce revenues by at least $150 million under the plan.
The eight bills filed today:
- HB 201: Exempts homesteaded property from non-school property taxes and prohibits municipalities from lowering public safety funding)
- HB 203: Increases homestead exemption by $100,000-a-year for 10 years, until full elimination takes effect in 2037. Applies only to non-school property taxes and also prohibits municipalities from lowering public safety funding.
- HB 205: Ends all non-school property taxes for Floridians 65 and older. Prohibits municipalities from reducing public safety funding.
- HB 207: Creates new 25% homestead exemption to be applied on top of existing exemptions. Prohibits public safety cuts.
- HB 209: Creates new $100,000 homestead exemption for properties covered by comprehensive multi-peril insurance policies. Prohibits public safety cuts.
- HB 211: Removes the $500,000 cap on the transferrable Save-Our-Homes benefit for county and municipal levies, allowing the full accrued benefit to apply upon establishing a new homestead. Also prohibits public safety cuts.
- HB 213: Only allows for homestead properties to be reassessed for property tax increases every three years, rather than every year. Allows non-homesteaded properties to be assessed up to a 15% increase in property taxes every three years, rather than the current 10% annually. Prohibits public safety cuts.
- HB 215: Allows married couples to combine their homestead exemptions up to a combined $500,000 limit. Requires a 2/3rds vote by local governments to raise property taxes.
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