Florida voters are set to decide in November whether they support a constitutional amendment that would significantly cut property taxes for some homeowners and potentially cut millions in funding for local hospitals and other vital services. The proposal, known as Amendment 3, would increase the nonschool homestead tax exemption from $50,000 to $150,000 in 2027 and up to $250,000 by 2028. The amendment would also limit local spending to "core services," such as public safety, public education, infrastructure and natural resource management.
It is similar, though not exactly the same, to the proposal backed by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, who said last year that he was in favor of abolishing property taxes entirely. The amendment gets close to that goal, creating a pathway for the full elimination of nonschool property taxes on homesteads. Opponents—which include economists, health care officials, former Republican lawmakers, incumbent mayors and local municipalities across the state—say the move would leave a gaping hole in local governments' budgets, which would force a drastic loss in funding for crucial services, including public health care and law enforcement.
Amendment 3, formerly known as Save Our Homes From Excessive Property Taxes, is set to appear on the ballot on November 3. The language of the proposal was recently changed after a judge ruled that it was "misleading" in portraying the amendment as something that all Floridians would benefit from, among other issues. The ruling followed a lawsuit by a nonprofit group and three former Florida politicians, who called the original wording a "sales pitch" and accused it of representing the amendment's impact unfairly.
The new wording of the proposal, as Floridians are set to see it on the ballot, is included below. Amendment 3: "Increased Homestead Exemption; Lower Cap on Increases in Non-Homesteaded Property Assessments" "This amendment increases the homestead exemption, for all non-school taxes, to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028, and adjusts for inflation thereafter. It requires the Legislature to prescribe a uniform procedure for counties and municipalities, for their respective levies, to increase the homestead exemption up to full assessed value, and allows special districts, subject to referendum approval, to do the same.
"Persons who are not Florida residents on December 31, 2026, will receive the existing homestead exemption upon qualifying for a homestead exemption, with the increased homestead exemption beginning with the fifth year of exemption, to the extent permitted by the U.S. "This amendment reduces the annual cap on assessment increases for non-homestead properties from 10 percent to 5 percent. "This amendment requires counties and municipalities to use property taxes solely for public safety, education and schools, infrastructure, natural resources, bond debt service, retirement benefits for employees, and operations and administration.
Other expenditures may be approved by county officers or county or municipal governing bodies unless prohibited by general law, notwithstanding Article VII, Section 9(a) of the Florida Constitution, which allows counties and municipalities to levy property taxes for their respective purposes. "This amendment takes effect January 1, 2027." To pass, the proposal for a constitutional amendment would require the backing of at least 60 percent of Florida voters. Property taxes have risen all across the country since the pandemic, as the homebuying frenzy unleashed by historically low borrowing costs between 2020 and 2022 sent home values through the roof.
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