By Martin E. Comas
Orlando Sentinel
(TNS)
Gov. Ron DeSantis on Friday doubled down on his plan to phase out property taxes on homeowners’ primary residences, saying local governments should turn to uber-wealthy landowners to shore up their budgets from the lost revenue.
“In places like Miami, you have some of the wealthiest people in the history of humanity buying homes here,” DeSantis said. “They’re paying tax. Why not give your middle class residents a break on their property tax?”
DeSantis made the comments during a press conference at a Florida Highway Patrol office in Davie. Although the conference was to focus on his administration’s efforts in working with law enforcement to detain immigrants, the governor spent a majority of the event touting his tax plan, which has roiled local governments—the primary recipients of property tax revenue—across the state.
The Florida Legislature will begin a special session on Monday to tackle the tax issue and decide whether to place it on the Nov. 3 general election ballot.
As the governor describes it, the proposal—phased in over several years—would first eliminate taxes on homes valued at $250,000 or less next year. The homestead tax exemption would eventually rise to $500,000 and then to a complete exemption. But the plan seems to be in some amount of flux.
A resolution submitted to the Legislature on behalf of the governor Wednesday calls for a $150,000 exemption on all homesteaded properties in 2027 and rising to $250,000 in 2028. It does not refer to any future increases in property tax exemptions, or even eliminating all property taxes completely.
The governor needs 60% of the Legislature to approve placing any plan on the ballot. And it would require approval by 60% of voters in November to be enacted on Jan. 1.
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The plan has received criticism from Democrats and some Republicans who say it would place severe financial handicaps on local services and would require cities and counties to get state approval for much of their spending.
DeSantis, though, argued Friday that eliminating property taxes on middle-class homeowners will spur the economy.
“Some people pay off their home entirely, and it’s like at what point do you stop paying, right?” DeSantis said. “So this gives them a chance to stop paying. And guess what they’re going to do with that money? They’re going to use it in the economy.”
The governor added that Florida counties can turn to revenue from the roughly 140 million tourists who visit the state annually, as well as dunning residents from northern states and Canadians who buy second homes in Florida for the winter months.
“That’s a lot of people, and that’s a massive tax base,” DeSantis said.
The governor said repeatedly that counties with multibillion-dollar budgets—such as Miami-Dade County—can afford the elimination of homestead property taxes.
“You have got massive money flowing in here particularly from very, very wealthy people,” DeSantis, a Republican, said. “And so it’s like, why would you want to have all this wealth come in and then just price middle-class people out? I would capitalize … on that wealth by relieving middle class people of a burden so that they can actually afford to live in Miami-Dade like back when it was less expensive.”
Some of Miami’s richest homeowners include Google co-founders Larry Page, worth $257 billion, and Sergey Brin, worth $237 billion; Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, worth $224 billion; and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, worth $222 billion.
For less wealthy, rural counties, DeSantis said Florida should make available state grants to help them pay for essential services to make up the shortfall in revenue.
Focusing on the rich as the main source of tax revenue has become a growing trend, especially among politicians seemingly far from DeSantis on the ideological spectrum.
In New York City, Mayor Zohran Mamdani recently enacted a new tax on second homes that will more than double the property taxes owed by many wealthy owners of luxury apartments.
DeSantis had slammed Mamdani earlier this month for what he called his “tax the rich” message, according to Yahoo News, saying rich NYC residents such as billionaire hedge fund manager Ken Griffin were wise to decamp to Miami.
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“He’s out to push a Marxist agenda. He’s a leftist. That’s what they do,” DeSantis said of Mamdani then. “… Of course, you’re going to want to run from that area, and you’re going to want to embrace Florida.”
Photo credit: Governor Ron DeSantis/YouTube
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Tags: Florida, property tax, property taxes, Ron DeSantis, tax the rich, Taxes, wealthy
