As lawmakers in Tallahassee discuss the possibility of abolishing property taxes in the state, a new poll shows that only 33 percent of Florida voters are in support of such a move, while 45 percent would back a candidate advocating for it.
A strong majority of Floridians, however, do want to see some changes when it comes to property taxes—something that lawmakers in the state are working toward, though they do not necessarily agree on what kind of reforms to implement.
What Are Florida Lawmakers Doing About Property Taxes?
The surge in home prices over the past five years has led to rising property taxes all across the country, with the Tax Foundation reporting that they rose nearly 27 percent faster than inflation between January 2020 and July 2024.
According to a recent study by Redfin, property tax bills increased in nearly every U.S. metropolitan area within the same period. In Florida, they have risen 45 percent statewide since 2019; in cities like Tampa and Jacksonville, bills have increased by an even higher 60 percent, exacerbating the state’s housing affordability crisis.
Republican Governor Ron DeSantis said earlier this year that he supports the idea of completely eliminating the state’s property tax, which is used to fund services such as public schools, libraries, street maintenance, firefighting and police.
This summer, DeSantis created a working group to study what property tax reforms to put before voters in 2026, including a potential proposal to abolish the taxes entirely. Such a move, crucially, would require a constitutional amendment backed by a majority of voters.
While earlier this month GOP State Representative Toby Overdorf told Newsweek that lawmakers were not “currently entertaining” the idea of completely abolishing property taxes, Florida House Speaker Daniel Perez, also a Republican, told NBC6 on Sunday that the potential elimination of property taxes was still on the table and is one of the proposals the House committee is discussing.
“We’ve put together a select committee with different proposals, from raising the homestead exemption to the potential abolishment of property taxes and what would that mean as an effect to our local communities. We are having these discussions every day, we’ve come up with five different proposals here in the House,” Perez said.
The committee has already held three meetings to explore how to slash—or eliminate—property taxes.
Perez added that the committee has not received a proposal on reform by either the Senate or DeSantis—something which he suggests is needed to have a real conversation about eliminating property taxes.
“Eight months ago, he [DeSantis] said, we should reduce or abolish property taxes. I said, ‘Great. I’m in. Send me a proposal. What do you mean by that? It’s very easy to say, I want to abolish property taxes. OK, how? Give me the language.’ I’m more than happy to work with him to get that product across the finish line,” he said.
What Do Floridians Think?
A majority of 66 percent of Florida voters told the James Madison Institute that they are concerned about being able to afford their homes due to rising property taxes and housing costs. The share of concerned homeowners went up to 75 percent in southeast Florida.
Seven in 10 (72 percent) of respondents to the poll said that they want some type of property tax reform—whether that is through significantly reducing or eliminating property taxes.
Thirty-nine percent think they are a valid source of income, but should be limited. Thirty-three think they should be eliminated outright. Only 20 percent think property taxes are critical and should be preserved.
Significantly, however, 65 percent of Floridians said they would support a constitutional amendment to significantly reduce or eliminate property taxes.
Read the full article here
