Florida Lawmakers Send Sweeping Property Tax Cut to November Ballot

Florida lawmakers this week approved a sweeping constitutional amendment that would dramatically cut property taxes for homeowners and set the state on a path toward eliminating the tax entirely, sending the measure to voters on the November 3, 2026 statewide ballot. The proposal, which Governor Ron DeSantis branded the 'Save Our Homes from Excessive Property Taxes' plan, cleared a special session the governor called for the week of June 1 and now needs the approval of 60 percent of Florida voters to become part of the state constitution.

The amendment would raise the homestead exemption, the slice of a primary home's value shielded from most property taxes, from the current $50,000 to $150,000 in 2027 and then to $250,000 in 2028. It also calls for a schedule, to be filled in through general law, that moves the state toward the full elimination of property taxes over time. For millions of Florida homeowners squeezed by rising insurance costs, climbing assessments, and a higher cost of living, the stakes are immediate and personal.

The Senate passed the measure 30-9 and the House approved it 75-26, largely along party lines, sending it to the ballot as one of three statewide measures Floridians will weigh this fall. Supporters cast the vote as a generational tax cut. Opponents, including many Democrats and local-government groups, warned that the loss of revenue could strain the city and county budgets that fund police, fire, roads, and parks.

What the Amendment Would Do

At its core, the amendment rewrites how Florida treats the homes its residents live in. By tripling and then quintupling the homestead exemption, the plan would remove a far larger portion of a primary residence's taxable value from the rolls. A homeowner whose property currently qualifies for the standard $50,000 exemption would, under the proposal, see that shield grow to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028, sharply reducing the taxable base on which local millage rates are applied.

The measure reaches beyond owner-occupied homes. It would lower the cap on annual assessment increases for non-homestead properties, a category that includes vacation homes, investment properties, and commercial real estate, from the current 10 percent down to 5 percent. That change would slow how quickly the assessed value of those properties can rise from year to year, offering a measure of predictability to landlords, second-home owners, and business operators who have watched valuations climb.

The amendment also includes a residency requirement aimed at newcomers. Anyone who establishes Florida residency after January 1, 2027 would have to maintain that residency for up to five years before becoming eligible for the increased exemption. State officials have framed that provision as a way to direct the largest benefits toward established Florida residents rather than recent arrivals, though the precise mechanics are still being detailed as the implementing language takes shape.

Crucially, the plan is written to shield school-district funding from the impact. Public schools in Florida draw a significant share of their budgets from property taxes, and the amendment carves out that funding so the cuts do not fall on classrooms. That design choice was central to building the legislative support needed to advance the measure, and it is likely to feature heavily in the campaign messaging on both sides this fall.

How It Reached the Ballot

The path to the November ballot ran through a special legislative session, a tool the governor used to focus lawmakers on property taxes outside the regular spring schedule. DeSantis has made property tax relief a signature priority, repeatedly arguing that Floridians never truly own their homes if they must keep paying the government to live in them. The special session gave that argument a legislative vehicle.

Getting a constitutional amendment onto the ballot through the Legislature requires supermajority support in both chambers, and the votes reflected the partisan contours of the debate. The 30-9 Senate margin and the 75-26 House margin cleared the bar, but the dissents signaled the opposition that will animate the campaign. Several lawmakers who voted no said they support tax relief in principle but worry the amendment goes too far, too fast, without a clear plan to replace the revenue local governments would lose.

The measure's journey was not entirely smooth. DeSantis recently vetoed a portion of HB 7031 that would have funded a $1 million state study of property taxes, a move that drew attention given the scale of the changes now headed to voters. Critics seized on the veto to argue that the state is asking residents to approve a historic restructuring of local finance without a fully completed analysis of the consequences. Supporters countered that the broad direction is clear enough and that the details can be refined through general law.

Because the plan envisions a schedule toward full elimination of property taxes carried out through general law, much of the work would continue after any November approval. The constitutional amendment sets the framework and the immediate exemption increases, but the longer arc toward eliminating the tax would depend on future legislative action. That structure leaves room for the details to evolve, and lawmakers on both sides acknowledged that significant questions remain about timing and replacement revenue.

What Supporters Say

Backers of the amendment describe it as the most consequential tax relief Florida has considered in a generation. The governor's office has cast the homestead increases as a direct response to a cost-of-living crunch that has hit homeowners hard, pointing to rising assessments and insurance premiums as evidence that families need a break. In the supporters' telling, shielding more of a primary home's value from taxation puts real money back into household budgets each year.

Proponents also emphasize the protections for non-homestead properties. Lowering the assessment cap from 10 percent to 5 percent, they argue, would help renters indirectly by easing pressure on landlords and would give small businesses more stable, predictable costs. By tying the largest benefits to established residency, supporters say the plan rewards Floridians who have built their lives in the state rather than recent transplants.

Republican leaders have framed the school-funding carve-out as proof that the measure can deliver tax relief without gutting essential services. By insulating classroom budgets, supporters contend, the amendment targets the cut at the parts of local government that have the most flexibility, leaving the highest-priority public function untouched. They argue that local governments have room to find efficiencies and that residents deserve relief regardless.

What Critics Warn

Opponents see a budget shock waiting to unfold. Democrats and organizations representing Florida's cities and counties have warned that property taxes are the backbone of local finance, funding police and fire departments, emergency services, road maintenance, libraries, and parks. Stripping a large share of taxable value from the rolls, they argue, would force painful choices between cutting services and raising other taxes or fees to fill the gap.

Local-government advocates have raised particular concern about smaller counties and municipalities that lack diverse revenue streams and depend heavily on property taxes. For those communities, critics say, even the first phase of exemption increases could blow a hole in budgets that are difficult to backfill. The schedule toward full elimination deepens that anxiety, because the long-term endpoint would remove the single largest source of local revenue without a clearly identified replacement.

Skeptics also point to the vetoed property-tax study as a reason for caution. Without a completed state analysis, they argue, voters are being asked to commit to a constitutional change whose downstream effects on local services remain uncertain. The residency requirement for newcomers has drawn its own scrutiny, with some questioning how a multi-year waiting period would be administered and whether it could create disparities among otherwise similar homeowners.

The November Ballot Picture

The property tax amendment is one of three measures Floridians will see on the November 3, 2026 statewide ballot, making this fall a consequential moment for the state's direction. Each measure must clear the 60 percent threshold, a deliberately high bar that has defeated past amendments even when they won simple majorities. That supermajority requirement means the property tax plan will need broad support across party lines and regions to pass.

For voters, the 60 percent rule reframes the stakes. A measure can command majority support and still fail, which means the campaign will be fought over the margin as much as the topline. Both sides understand that the difference between 55 and 60 percent could decide the outcome, and that reality is likely to shape how aggressively supporters and opponents court undecided Floridians in the months ahead.

The amendment's place alongside two other measures also means voters will be weighing it in a crowded context, where attention and resources are divided. How the property tax question is presented on the ballot, and how clearly its long-term implications are communicated, could prove decisive given that the most far-reaching elements, the schedule toward elimination, would play out over years rather than all at once.

What's Next

Between now and November, expect an intensive campaign on both sides. Supporters will press the case that homeowners deserve relief from rising costs, while opponents will warn about the strain on local budgets and services. The vetoed property-tax study, the residency requirement, and the long-term path toward elimination all remain points of contention that will be litigated in public over the coming months.

Much also depends on the implementing details still being worked out. Because the amendment leans on general law to chart the schedule toward eliminating property taxes, the practical shape of that elimination, including how and whether lost revenue would be replaced, remains unsettled. Lawmakers, local officials, and budget analysts will continue refining those questions even as the campaign unfolds, and the answers could influence how voters ultimately decide.

If the measure clears 60 percent on November 3, the first exemption increase would take effect in 2027, with the larger increase following in 2028 and the broader elimination effort proceeding through future legislation. If it falls short, the existing $50,000 exemption and current assessment caps would remain in place, and the debate over how to ease Florida's property tax burden would almost certainly continue into the next legislative session.