In the coming weeks, everyone in Florida will need to become something of an expert on a subject that, more than anything, could impact the quality of life in this state.
Property taxes.
Gov. Ron DeSantis, entering his last year in office, has made abolishing or greatly reducing property taxes a top priority. Those taxes are paid by homeowners and business owners and pay for public schools and local government, everything from police and fire protection to health care and mosquito control.
Mike Stocker/Sun Sentinel
Steve Bousquet, South Florida Sun Sentinel columnist.
DeSantis’ strategy, defined by his typically pugnacious us-against-them approach, includes demonizing cities and counties as arrogant and wasteful to build momentum for a statewide property tax revolt.
As local property values have steadily risen, so have property taxes — but no clear plan has emerged as to how cities and counties would replace the potential loss of all that revenue.
Slashing property taxes sounds great, but is it so great if it means a lack of code enforcement or fewer garbage pickups? It could mean closing the town swimming pool, higher fees for services, and possibly a much higher sales tax.
The real-life impacts are not yet clear to taxpayers or many members of the Legislature, who will ultimately decide what to place before voters in the 2026 election. Any changes would require approval of three-fifths of the members of the House and Senate to reach the 2026 general election, where passage requires approval by 60% of voters.
Rolando Otero / Sun Sentinel
Marty Kiar was first elected Broward property appraiser in 2016.
The subject is dense and weighed down by mountains of numbers, but it’s critically important.
At this fraught time, Broward County has a capable subject-matter expert on the topic.
Marty Kiar, now in his third term as county property appraiser, is well-grounded as a former Democratic state legislator and county commissioner.
He has a cheerful and unfailingly polite approach that’s contagious, especially in this ugly and hyper-partisan political climate. If he were a doctor, he could probably make a colonoscopy an enjoyable experience.
At a Thursday gathering of Broward legislators, Kiar presented an 18-page report that breaks down how the Legislature’s first set of property tax proposals would affect Broward’s 31 cities and towns, the two tax-supported public hospital districts and other mini-governments that rely on property taxes, such as the vitally important Children’s Services Council.
“I really believe that when you vote, it’s going to be one of the most consequential votes you’ll ever take,” Kiar told lawmakers, “because it’s going to be so far-reaching.”
A report by Broward’s property appraiser shows the fiscal impact of one of the Legislature’s property tax cut proposals.
He zeroed in first on a House bill (HJR 201) that would eliminate most property taxes on homes where owners qualify for the state homestead exemption.
The proposal exempts property taxes for public schools and would prevent cutting total funding for law enforcement.
If it passes, Kiar’s report says, based on current property values, the owner of a median-priced home in Broward with a homestead exemption would save $2,421 this year.
At the same time, 34.6% of the property taxes now collected in Broward would disappear, a simple calculation made by mining the property appraiser’s vast trove of information.
A closer look at the report shows wide disparities on how HJR 201 would impact different parts of Broward very differently.
Wealthier residential communities with the least commercial property would be hit hardest, while cities reliant on commercial and industrial users would experience much less impact.
At one extreme end of this spectrum, Parkland would lose 75% of its property tax revenue, higher than any other community in Broward.
At the other extreme is Pembroke Park, where most residential units are mobile homes. That town would lose just 1.3% of its property taxes.
Cooper City would lose 62% of its property tax base, Lighthouse Point, 59%, and Weston, 53%. The property tax hit would be substantially less in Dania Beach, at 12%; Pompano Beach, 21%, Lauderdale Lakes, 23%, and Sunrise, 27%.
In Tallahassee next Thursday, the House Select Committee on Property Taxes will hold a four-hour hearing to discuss seven tax proposals for the first time. The 37-member committee includes four lawmakers from Broward and three from Palm Beach County.
Guided by Kiar’s research, the Broward members will be able to pose serious questions.
Steve Bousquet is Opinion Editor of the Sun Sentinel and a columnist in Tallahassee and Fort Lauerdale. Contact him at sbousquet@sunsentinel.com or (850) 567-2240 and follow him on X @stevebousquet.