How much of Florida's local and state budgets rely on property tax revenue annually?

1. Property taxes are primarily a local revenue source — and a big one

Florida does not have a statewide property tax; property taxes are levied by counties, cities, school districts and special districts and are the dominant revenue source for many local governments. The Department of Revenue notes oversight of property tax administration across roughly 10.9 million parcels and trillions in assessed value, underscoring the scale of the base from which local levies are drawn ^[6]. Analysts and advocacy groups repeatedly call property taxes “the fiscal backbone” of local government because they fund core services with limited alternative local tax authority ^{[3] [5]}.

2. Dollar totals: tens of billions collected annually

Multiple organizations cite annual property tax collections in excess of $55 billion statewide — a figure used to show the magnitude of local reliance on ad valorem revenue ^[1]. Local reporting and advocacy pieces frame the policy debate around a roughly $40–43 billion “hole” if property taxes were eliminated statewide, reflecting different counting methods but the same order of magnitude ^[2].

3. Share of local revenues: big variation by function and place

Estimates show property taxes account for roughly 18% of county revenue and 17% of municipal revenue on average, but they provide a much larger share for school districts — often 50% or more, with some reporting as high as 60% of school district revenue coming from property taxes ^{[2] [3]}. County-level studies and reporting surface wide variation: Palm Beach, Volusia and Leon counties reportedly draw more than one-third of revenue from property taxes, while Miami‑Dade, Okaloosa and Sarasota collect less than 20% from them ^{[4] [5]}.

4. What property-tax dollars pay for locally

Unlike state-level sales or corporate taxes, property-tax revenue typically flows into local general funds and dedicated accounts for schools, public safety, infrastructure, and other services that lack offsetting user fees — police, fire, local roads, and K–12 education are repeatedly cited as heavily dependent on ad valorem revenues ^{[7] [3]}. Local budgeting rules and balanced-budget requirements mean reductions in property revenue usually translate quickly into service cuts, tax swaps, or fee increases, per local analysts ^{[8] [5]}.

5. Policy context: proposals to reduce or replace property taxes

Recent political proposals to shrink or eliminate property taxes have prompted studies about replacement revenue and budget impacts. Analysts warn that removing property taxes would force either deep cuts in local services, increases in sales or other taxes, or a combination — with estimates that a full phase‑out could cost local governments tens of billions ^{[8] [5] [2]}. The Florida Policy Institute and others model scenarios showing large fiscal gaps and equity concerns if states attempted to substitute sales taxes for local property levies ^{[8] [3]}.

6. Limitations, disagreements, and data gaps

Available sources provide consistent broad ranges but differ on precise totals and on methodology: some figures refer to total property-tax collections (>$55 billion), others to the fiscal “hole” estimated at ~$40–43 billion if all property taxes were eliminated ^{[1] [2]}. Sources also vary in whether they report averages across all localities or highlight county-specific reliance; the Florida Department of Revenue offers parcel and valuation scale but not a single consolidated percentage of total state and local budgets accounted for by property taxes in one line ^{[6] [9]}. Precise statewide percentage of total state-plus-local budgets that property taxes comprise is not given in a single authoritative line in the available materials — reporting focuses on local shares and dollar totals, and available sources do not mention a single unanimously agreed statewide share of all government revenue consumed by property taxes.

7. Bottom line for readers and policymakers

Property taxes in Florida are a large, locally controlled revenue stream — tens of billions annually and a major share of county, municipal and especially school district budgets. Replacing them would require equivalent revenue from other sources or commensurate spending cuts, and the burden would fall unevenly across communities because reliance on property taxes varies widely by county and function ^{[1] [2] [5]}.