Tampa Mayor Jane Castor says property tax Amendment 3 would cut 1st responder services

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Tampa Mayor Jane Castor urged citizens to be well informed ahead of the vote for Florida’s Amendment 3, which could reduce property taxes in the state.

Amendment 3, if passed by a 60% supermajority of votes, would raise the state’s homestead exemption for non-school property taxes to $150,000 by 2027, $250,000 by 2028, and then establish a possibility toward full elimination further on in the future.

 Amendment 3 supporters promise relief, critics warn of hospital revenue cuts 

Supporters of the amendment, which include Gov. Ron DeSantis and other Republicans, say this will give Floridians relief from having to pay huge property tax amounts, especially on fully owned homes.

Detractors, which include large swaths of Florida’s law enforcement leadership, say the amendment could have devastating impacts on funding for public services. This includes first responder services, road maintenance, sanitation, and even funding for public hospitals, according to a report from the Florida Policy Institute.

During a groundbreaking ceremony for a fire station in North Tampa, Castor spoke on the potential effect Amendment 3 would have on first responder services.

“We are in the state of Florida, one of the lowest-tax states in the nation,” Castor said. “We don’t have individual income tax. We derive the majority of our funding for Tampa Fire Rescue, Tampa Police Department, our Parks and Recreation, and a myriad of other needs through our property tax.

“So a cut in our property tax would be a cut in TFR service, a cut in the Tampa Police Department service, and certainly a cut in the myriad of recreational services, facilities, paving, you name it. It would be impacted in our community, so what I would ask everyone, when you walk into the voting booth, please make a decision on Amendment Three in an informed way because it’s going to have a dramatic impact on our community and the services we provide.”

 DeSantis promises grants for rural communities that lose funding from property tax amendment 

Last week, DeSantis told the media that communities, particularly rural ones, would receive support from the State of Florida to make up for the lost revenue.

“If you have a police department, and let’s say they — ‘We’re going to have to lay off two police officers because we’re $250,000 short’ — we can then issue a grant from the state’s surplus,” he said. “Same thing with some of the things in the counties or some of these water management.”

If approved by the voters, Amendment 3 would take effect on Jan. 1, 2027.

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