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Who is advocating for ending property taxes in Florida?
Executive Summary
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is the principal and most visible advocate pushing proposals to end or sharply reduce property taxes for homeowners in Florida, supported by several Republican state lawmakers who have filed companion measures and ballot initiatives; proponents frame this as allowing homeowners to own their primary residences “free and clear” while opponents warn of major revenue shortfalls for local governments and schools [1] [2] [3]. Multiple bills and proposed constitutional amendments from figures including State Representatives Ryan Chamberlin and Kevin Steele, alongside the Governor’s multi-amendment push for 2026, form the active legislative and ballot strategy; critics including House Democrats and policy groups argue elimination would require either deep service cuts or offsetting tax increases such as a higher sales tax [4] [5] [3].
1. Who’s Leading the Charge — The Governor’s Push and Its Scale
Governor Ron DeSantis has publicly advocated for a package of measures that would cap, cut, or in some versions eliminate most property taxes on owner-occupied homes, and he has signaled intent to place related constitutional amendments before voters in 2026. DeSantis frames the effort as addressing rising housing costs and returning ownership to homeowners, saying primary residences should not be subject to government “rent” via property taxes; his office and allied Republican lawmakers have circulated proposals ranging from targeted exemptions to full elimination of nonschool property levies [1] [2] [6]. The Governor’s strategy ties multiple amendment concepts together, signaling a statewide political campaign rather than a single narrow bill, and several media outlets and state filings document active efforts to draft ballot language and legislative referrals for the next general election [2] [7].
2. Republican Lawmakers: Bills, Ballot Measures, and Specific Proposals
State Representative Ryan Chamberlin and State Representative Kevin Steele have authored proposals that align with DeSantis’s goal: Chamberlin filed a resolution to expand exemptions and phase out property taxes by replacing them with broader sales tax mechanisms, while Steele has proposed a constitutional amendment to exempt homestead property from most ad valorem taxes, except for school levies, subject to voter approval. These Republican sponsors frame their measures as structural shifts requiring constitutional change, often proposing sales-tax–based revenue replacements or significant rebate programs as transition plans [4] [5]. Legislative filings and press statements indicate multiple companion bills and at least eight distinct proposals under consideration in the Legislature, reflecting a coordinated multi-pronged Republican effort to move the idea from advocacy to ballot and statute [3] [6].
3. Opposition and Warnings — Local Governments, Democrats, and Policy Analysts Speak Up
Opponents including House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell, the Florida Policy Institute, and various county and municipal officials warn that eliminating property taxes would create massive revenue gaps—estimated in some analyses around $43 billion—that would force cuts to local services or shifts to regressive taxes like sales taxes. The criticism centers on the practical effect: local governments rely heavily on property taxes for infrastructure, public safety, and county services, while school funding formulas would be disrupted if nonschool levies were removed; critics urge that any change must detail replacement revenues to avoid service disruptions [8] [4]. These voices emphasize equity concerns, noting sales-tax replacements raise costs on lower-income households and pointing out that proposed rebates or phased approaches may not fully address long-term fiscal consequences [8].
4. The Mechanics and Timeline — Constitutional Amendments, Ballots, and Revenue Tradeoffs
Most major proposals acknowledge that full abolition of property taxes requires constitutional amendment via voter approval or major statutory reworking, and backers are targeting the 2026 ballot to seek statewide consent. Proposals vary in mechanism—some call for immediate exemptions or rebates, others for phased phaseouts tied to expanded sales taxes or one-time relief payments—leaving fiscal modeling contested. Supporters propose alternatives such as broader sales-tax bases or rebates like a $1,000 homeowner payment as interim relief, while fiscal analysts and local officials stress that compensatory revenue streams would need to be sizable and sustainable to replace tens of billions in property tax receipts [2] [7] [8]. The timing—legislative referrals in 2025 and ballot campaigning through 2026—creates a compressed window for voters to weigh competing fiscal narratives and modeling before a likely referendum.
5. The Political Storyline and What’s At Stake for Voters
This effort has become both a policy debate and a political narrative: Republican leaders present property tax elimination as a populist homeowner benefit, while Democrats and local officials present it as a fiscal threat to essential services and progressive tax fairness. The stakes for voters include immediate homeowner relief versus potential long-term tradeoffs such as reduced local services, higher consumption taxes, or altered school funding; each side is marshaling legal referrals, media campaigns, and fiscal estimates ahead of the 2026 decision point [1] [8]. Voters will face competing projections about who benefits most from changes and how revenue gaps would be closed, making transparent fiscal modeling and clear ballot language crucial to understanding the likely outcomes of any passed amendment [3] [4].