ORLANDO, Fla. – When Florida voters go to the polls in November, they might be surprised to see only a handful of constitutional amendments on their ballot. There are only three this year, a big departure from previous elections.
All of the amendments were placed on the ballot by the Florida Legislature, and two of them deal with taxes, while one of them deals with abolishing a commission that reviews the constitution. There are no citizen initiatives on the ballot this year.
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For an amendment to pass the ballot, it must get 60% approval from the voters.
Here is what Florida Amendment 3 is about.
[RELATED: Here’s what Florida Amendment 1 means on the November ballot | Here’s what Florida Amendment 2 means on the November ballot]
BALLOT LANGUAGE
“Proposing an amendment to the State Constitution to authorize the Legislature, by general law, to grant an additional homestead tax exemption for nonschool levies of up to $50,000 of the assessed value of homestead property owned by classroom teachers, law enforcement officers, correctional officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians, paramedics, child welfare services professionals, active duty members of the United States Armed Forces, and Florida National Guard members. This amendment shall take effect January 1, 2023.”
BREAKING IT DOWN
In Florida, property owners get a homestead exemption on their primary residence.
Say a house has an assessed value of $100,000. In Florida, the property is taxed like this:
- First $25,000 – tax-exempt
- $25,000-$50,000 – taxed
- $50,000-$75,000 - exempt from all taxes except school taxes
- $75,000-$100,000 - taxed
All property value after that $100,000 would also be taxed unless you qualify for another exemption.
Florida has a number of additional property tax exemption programs, many approved by voters through constitutional amendments. Recent homestead exemptions include:
- Property Tax benefits for active duty military and veterans
- Property tax benefits for persons 65 and older
- Property tax benefits for surviving spouses of a first responder who died in the line of duty
You can learn more about property tax exemptions on the Florida Dept. of Revenue website.
Amendment 3 creates a homestead exemption for a large swath of public service employees, including teachers, law enforcement officers, correctional officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians, paramedics, child welfare services professionals and active duty members of the military and national guard.
If passed, these homeowners would get an extra $50,000 exemption on property valued between $100,000 and $150,000.
On a home valued at $150,000, the property tax would look like this for a public service employee if the amendment is approved:
- First $25,000 – tax-exempt
- $25,000-$50,000 – taxed
- $50,000-$75,000 - exempt from all taxes except school taxes
- $75,000-$100,000 - taxed
- $100,000-$150,000 - exempt from all taxes except school taxes
During the legislative session, the Florida Association of Counties told lawmakers that the amendment would shift more of the property tax burden onto businesses and renters.
A Florida House staff analysis for the amendment found that, if approved, the amendment would reduce local property tax revenue for everything other than school taxes by $85.9 million starting in fiscal year 2023-2024.
The state legislature did not specify in the measure how one would prove they are eligible for the tax exemption. That likely would be handled in an implementing bill should the amendment be approved by voters.
BOTTOM LINE
A “YES” vote on Amendment 3 means you approve giving public service employees an extra exemption on property taxes.
A “NO” vote on Amendment 3 means you do not approve giving public service employees an extra exemption on property taxes.