"TAMPA, Fla. - Sept. 18, 2007 - Standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Gov. Charlie Crist, Florida Association of Realtors® (FAR) President Nancy Riley joined forces with other supporters Monday to launch a bi-partisan group, "Yes on 1 - Save our Homes NOW," urging Floridians to vote for the largest tax cut in the state's history on Jan. 29, 2008."
The Florida Association of Realtors has committed 1 million dollars to the passage of the Amendment on Jan. 29th. It has a high hurdle since another FAR supported amendment passed that raised the threshold for amending the constitution to 60%. I for one opposed the super-majority as limiting democracy. With regard to what is being billed as "Save our Homes NOW", I think it is needed to restore sanity, equality, rationality to tax policy as it relates to property taxes.
Save OUR Homes (AKA Amendment X) barely passed because it was questionable public policy as written. After 10 plus years and a speculative real estate bubble later it has clearly failed. Two houses on the same street with similar features, square footage, etc, can have tax bills that are thousands of dollars apart. Homeowners can't downsize with out their tax bill going up thousands of dollars. First-time buyers can buy because they can't afford the taxes based on the purchase price.
So after last year's tax revolt across the state, the legislature crafted an amendment that has been labelled the Super Homestead Exemption". It gives those who want to stay under "Save Our Homes" the option to do so. It will also give them a choice to choose the Super Exemption. The Super Exemption will exempt 70% of the first $200,000 in assessed value and 15% of the value between $200,000 and $500,000. This is much better than the current 25k homestead exemption but it comes with a catch....NO CAP on the potential annual rise in your assessed value. However, the legislature also limited the growth in local government spending to growth plus the rate of inflation. This means if assessments rise 10% and growth and inflation equal 4%....milleage rates will have to be reduced to comply with the law.
In the next several months there will be a battle in Florida. Local governments are afraid. They have been spending money like drunken sailors. The have viewed the rise in ad valorum revenue as a windfall as if it were raining from the heavens rather than being ripped unequally out of the pockets of first-time buyers and others. Local spending has been rsing in the Tampa area at 3 and 4 times the rate of inflation. THEY WILL TRY TO SCARE PEOPLE INTO VOTING FOR THE STATUS QUO. Our Mayor in Tampa is already doing that with her new budget.
The amendment isn't perfect. Politics is after all..."the art of the possible" This is what is possible at the moment. As I looked at how it would affect my tax bill, not only will I support it but I plan to shift to the "Super Exemption" when it passes!
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