Gov. Ron DeSantis Pushes to Kill Florida Property Taxes

Gov. Ron DeSantis’ campaign promise to wipe out property taxes is moving forward as a proposal that could significantly slash revenue across the state heads to lawmakers.

The Republican governor proposed a special legislative session for lawmakers to deliberate raising the homestead exemption on primary residences from $50,000 to $250,000, which would lower tax bills for 60 percent of Floridians, according to comments DeSantis made during a news conference reported by Bloomberg. The exemption would gradually increase to $500,000 and cover 92 percent of homeowners.

The measure would require approval from 60 percent of state lawmakers and 60 percent of Florida voters. DeSantis also said homeowners would need to reside in Florida for at least five years to qualify for the tax break.

DeSantis framed the proposal as a way to ease the tax burden on working Floridians while shifting it to wealthy seasonal residents with multimillion-dollar homes in enclaves like Palm Beach.

The initiative comes as more than a dozen states explore nixing or sharply curbing property taxes amid mounting frustration over rising housing costs and inflation.

Property taxes are among the largest funding sources for local governments, supporting schools, police, firefighters and other essential services. If eliminated, it is expected to leave a $55 billion funding gap for public services.

To offset potential revenue losses, DeSantis proposed using surplus state revenue to establish a trust fund to help rural counties continue paying for public safety and municipal services that are financed through property taxes.

The governor first floated the idea last year to abolish residential property taxes and revived it earlier this month after lawmakers failed to advance it during the regular legislative session.

DeSantis last year proposed issuing rebates averaging $1,000 to more than 5.1 million homesteaded properties statewide. The rebates were intended to offset state-mandated school property taxes while maintaining full funding for school districts, but the proposal failed in the legislature.

During this year’s regular session, the Florida House of Representatives passed a separate proposal that would eliminate non-school property taxes on homesteaded properties while requiring local governments to maintain funding levels for police, firefighters and first responders.

—Eman Elshahawy