Overview
- Lawmakers convened a three-day special session starting Monday to consider SJR 2-F, which would raise the homestead exemption to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028 and set a path toward eventual elimination of homestead property taxes.
- The state launched a 'Save Our Homes' online calculator to show homeowners estimated savings under the proposal and to help publicize the measure before legislators finish final language.
- Analyses from groups including the Florida Policy Institute and the Florida Association of Counties estimate the $250,000 exemption could cut school funding by about $5 billion a year and reduce county revenue by roughly $4.6–4.8 billion annually, with larger losses if homestead taxes are fully eliminated.
- Key policy details under negotiation include a five-year residency waiting period for new arrivals, a reduction of the non‑homestead assessment cap from 10% to 5%, limits on how local ad valorem revenue may be spent, and a proposed but undefined state trust fund to backfill lost local revenue.
- The proposal faces legal, fiscal and political hurdles: committees have amended the measure, critics warn of fee or assessment shifts to renters and businesses, and the plan must win 60% support in both chambers and then 60% of voters to become law.