{"id":357023,"date":"2026-07-30T01:40:13","date_gmt":"2026-07-30T01:40:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/357023\/"},"modified":"2026-07-30T01:40:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-30T01:40:13","slug":"florida-property-tax-amendment-reads-like-political-flyer-court-told","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/357023\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida property tax amendment reads like ‘political flyer,’ court told"},"content":{"rendered":"

Lawyers for groups challenging the state’s property tax-cutting ballot proposal<\/a> argued that voters in November would be misled by terms and language in the measure<\/a> which they said reads more like a sales pitch.<\/p>\n

Beginning with the title, “Save Our Homes from Excessive Property Taxes,” the amendment quickly strays from a legal course, attorneys for the coalition of opponents told Leon County Circuit Judge David Frank<\/a> on July 29.<\/p>\n

“For something to be fair\u2026 it has to be neutral. It cannot be biased,” said Jamie Cole, a Fort Lauderdale attorney for a social welfare group and two South Florida residents. “It cannot be shaded for approval. It should not be political rhetoric.”<\/p>\n

Cole, representing “Save Our Voters,” is asking the court to send the measure to Attorney General James Uthmeier to enact wholesale but very specific changes to the ballot title and summary.<\/p>\n

Cole said the current language is deceptive to voters. He called the current amendment a “political flyer.”<\/p>\n

State argues that meaning is clear<\/p>\n

Ben Gibson, representing Uthmeier’s office, dismissed opponents’ claims. Gibson said that when the ballot title and summary is read together, as past case law in Florida requires, the measure and its meaning is clear to voters.<\/p>\n

He argued that those fighting the amendment were selectively citing “individual words in isolation.”<\/p>\n

“Ballot summary has to address the chief purpose, not every ramification of an amendment,” Gibson argued.<\/p>\n

DeSantis now keeping his distance Orphaned by DeSantis, property tax measure draws organized opposition<\/a><\/p>\n

State could get more muscle over locals Property tax overhaul could give state more muscle over cities and counties<\/a><\/p>\n

In crafting the measure during a June special session called by Gov. Ron DeSantis, the Republican-controlled Legislature added such phrasing in the ballot summary as “protecting small businesses,” and “ensuring fairness for Florida residents,” which amounts to political rhetoric, Cole and attorney Joe Eagleton argued.<\/p>\n

“This is a massive shift in the structure of government. And it does not detail this at all,” Eagleton told the judge, saying that it hamstrings city and county financing, giving the state unconstitutional authority over local spending.<\/p>\n

Opponent argues amendment changes ‘function of government’<\/p>\n

Eagleton added that Florida case law requires that “A ballot statement has to identify major changes in the function of government.”<\/p>\n

Eagleton represents former state Sen. Jeff Brandes, a St. Petersburg Republican, and ex-U.S. Rep. Al Lawson, a Democrat from Tallahassee, who have sued over the amendment<\/a>. Another suit considered in the hearing was filed by Philip Stoddard, a former South Miami mayor.<\/p>\n

If the proposal, set for November as Amendment 3, is approved by at least 60% of Florida voters, it will have a profound impact on local governments, which rely on property tax dollars.<\/p>\n

Cities and counties would lose $5 billion in tax revenue next year and almost $12 billion by 2031, according to state economists. That’s galvanized local governments in opposition, joined by the state’s Fraternal Order of Police<\/a>, along with the state’s firefighters’ union<\/a> and fire chiefs.<\/a><\/p>\n

All are warning that key local services could face reductions due to dwindling property tax dollars. Fees for park entrance or routine city maintenance also could result, opponents say.<\/p>\n

After hearing two-and-a-half hours of arguments, Frank acknowledged that he cannot order the attorney general to use specific language in recasting the amendment. But he can point out areas where he rules that the proposal fails to comply with state law and the constitution when it comes to ballot language.<\/p>\n

Tight deadlines loom<\/p>\n

Lawyers for both sides plan to submit proposed court orders to him Aug. 3. His ruling would come after that.<\/p>\n

There’s clearly a deadline, with the cases being heard even as the state faces a late-August deadline for the Secretary of State to certify ballot language for the upcoming election.<\/p>\n

Amendment 3 would increase the homestead exemption from the current $50,000 to $150,000 in 2027 and then to $250,000 in 2028. Lawmakers modified the measure before placing it on the ballot, exempting school taxes from the higher homestead exemption.<\/p>\n

Gov. Ron DeSantis had pushed for a property tax-cutting ballot amendment \u2013 bringing lawmakers into a special session where it was approved in June.<\/p>\n

The governor, though, has since distanced himself<\/a> from the measure, saying he won’t lead any campaign to pass it \u2013 even as three organizations have formed in opposition.<\/p>\n

“What the Legislature did wasn’t my proposal,” DeSantis said last month.<\/p>\n

John Kennedy is a reporter in the USA TODAY Network’s Florida Capital Bureau. He can be reached at jkennedy2@usatodayco.com<\/a>, or on X at @JKennedyReport.<\/p>\n

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