{"id":321430,"date":"2026-06-27T01:33:41","date_gmt":"2026-06-27T01:33:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/321430\/"},"modified":"2026-06-27T01:33:41","modified_gmt":"2026-06-27T01:33:41","slug":"surgery-with-an-axe-vote-no-on-3%e2%80%b2-campaign-opposing-property-tax-amendment-led-by-former-leon-co-commissioner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/321430\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Surgery with an axe\u2019: \u2018Vote No on 3\u2032 campaign opposing property tax amendment led by former Leon Co. commissioner"},"content":{"rendered":"

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – A former Leon County commissioner is now leading the charge against a ballot measure that would cut property taxes in Florida.<\/a><\/p>\n

Bryan Desloge is chairing \u201cVote No on 3,\u201d a new campaign hoping to convince voters that changes promising to reduce property taxes will likely result in tax hikes elsewhere and deep cuts in services. <\/p>\n

\u201cThe governor is touting this as a property tax reduction, but it\u2019s not coming out of his budget; it\u2019s coming out of local governments\u2019 budgets. Could we improve? Absolutely, there are cases around the state where counties could run a little tighter; this is not a little tighter. This is doing surgery with an axe,\u201d Desloge said. \u201cThis is catastrophic.\u201d<\/p>\n

Desloge served on the Leon County Commission from 2006 to 2020 and went on to lead both the Florida Association of Counties and the National Association of Counties. <\/p>\n

He calls Amendment 3 a shift, not a reduction, in taxes with the potential to impact critical services.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverybody would love to have their taxes go lower, but the problem here is how we fund most the services we provide and local government is who provides 80% of the services most of us take for granted – roads and parks and libraries, the water, the power – these are all services in most cases that your city or county provides,\u201d Desloge said. <\/p>\n

More Florida politics:<\/p>\n

The campaign kicked off this week just as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation that would implement the property tax changes if voters pass Amendment 3 in November. <\/p>\n

\u201cDo you care about affordability or not? If you care about affordability, what better tool in the toolbox do we have than to do this for our homestead exempt property owners?\u201d DeSantis said at Wednesday\u2019s bill signing in Bradenton.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019ll be meaningful particularly for people that are more working-class and middle-class homeowners, and they\u2019re going to see a big cut,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Amendment 3 is designed to lower property taxes by increasing Florida\u2019s homestead exemption. It would raise the homestead exemption to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028. <\/p>\n

The proposed Constitutional amendment will appear on the ballot this November and would need to be approved by 60% of voters to pass. <\/p>\n

To keep up with the latest news as it develops, follow WCTV on Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, Nextdoor<\/a> <\/a>and X<\/a> (Twitter<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Have a news tip or see an error? Write to us here<\/a>. Please include the article\u2019s headline in your message.<\/p>\n

Be the first to see all the biggest headlines by downloading the WCTV News app. Click here<\/a> to get started.<\/p>\n

Copyright 2026 WCTV. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n