West Palm Beach, Fla. — The CBS12 News I-Team is on Waste Watch

Governor Ron DeSantis says Florida residents need a break. He says local cities and counties should cool it with our property taxes or get rid of them altogether, and soon, lawmakers in Tallahassee will be fine-tuning their proposals to make that happen.

But if our property taxes go away, we could see our sales taxes going up.

And some of the things we depend on and enjoy might not be available anymore.

There are eight bills that aim to reduce or abolish property taxes in Florida.

If one of them makes it over the finish line, then it’s a ballot consideration, and Florida voters will get to decide in an upcoming election if property taxes are actually worth keeping.

Lawmakers say our local first responders and our schools will not be impacted, but the fact is, other things funded by property taxes certainly would be.

State Representative Toby Overdorf is a Republican from Stuart. He chairs the Select Committee on property taxes.

He tells the I-Team it’s important for people to remember, property tax is not collected by the state government, it’s collected by your local government. And right now, many local governments and Tallahassee are not on the same page about what’s happening and why.

“The reality is, we have seen property tax revenue increase by 18 billion just in the last three years, we’re seeing it approaching 60 billion statewide, just property tax revenue,” Overdorf said. “I certainly have seen times at which there have been accountability agendas [in the state capitol], I don’t know that I’ve seen it to this degree.”

And Overdorf says, in January, around the time the next session starts, lawmakers will get to see the results of the Florida DOGE audits that have been happening all year long. Those audits looked at how counties are spending tax dollars.

“I’m not going to go as far as calling it fraud, but I think there are some ways we can tighten our belts, I mean, you and I have to do it every day,” Overdorf said.

But for the other side of this debate, the I-Team spoke to Dr. Esteban Leonardo Santis, from the Florida Policy Institute.

“Unfortunately, when we talk about property tax reduction, that’s a cost shift, not a direct solution to affordability,” Santis said.

He’s concerned that if property taxes are reduced or totally axed, sales taxes are likely to go up. Maybe by two percent, possibly doubling.

And Santis says this is not a way to help renters become first-time home buyers.

“It’s unclear to me how that translates to lower property values. I think the down-payments, the mortgages, the way they have spiked up since 2020, really, I think that’s a bigger barrier to home ownership entry than just the property tax itself, but you are touching on a complex issue. I think first-time homeowners are really being shut out in Florida,” Santis said.

But for people trying to sell their homes and attempting to attract out-of-state buyers, property tax reduction or getting rid of property taxes is potentially excellent. That’s what Senior Vice President of Sales for Kolter Homes, Marc Friedman, tells the I-Team.

“We feel that will create more homestead properties in the state of Florida, more people will come here to live and have a homestead here, which is going to help boost our economy,” Friedman said. “Our buyers are active adults, and they are coming down and they want to have a lower cost of living, so this definitely helps them.”

One of the bills that already has the Governor’s support would eliminate property taxes as early as 2027. But Florida voters have to like this plan: 60 percent of the voters would have to green-light it.

Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins tells the I-Team, “We’re talking about home ownership. Everybody wants to own their home. And do you really ever own your home if you’re paying taxes to the government? The Governor has done a fantastic job of framing that up in that manner. You really don’t — if the government can take it, you don’t own it. So what we’re talking about is homesteaded properties. How can we get rid of the homesteaded property tax and make sure that when you pay for your home, you own it free and clear of the government.”

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