Floridians, some info on the tax bill that the GOP wants on the ballot.

[madfloridian]

I will crosspost this in the Florida forum.

I think there is a lawsuit going on now to see if it is proper to be on the January 29th ballot. Decision due by next week I hear.

I got this from the local DEC, and I left out the name of the person speaking for privacy reasons.

This is pretty scary stuff that sounds good on the surface, but has many hidden dangers. One thing I thought of was that our neighborhod not long ago was declared an historic district. Usually this ups taxes greatly. It would price present residents out of their homes who have lived there for years.

But the Save Our Homes that is in place would best I can see work like this. As long as we stay in our home, the taxes can't be raised more than 3% a year. I think that is the correct figure. If we sell, the taxes might skyrocket for the buyer as older homes here are in big demand. (Well, not counting the slowdown in the market here right now.)

So note the references to the SOH project. The wealthy Republicans would benefit by another way of doing things, and it is pretty complicated.

Here is part of the email from the local group. This is what the state party should be hammering on every day on the media and in the newspapers. They should be sending out emails and flyers and all kinds of stuff. They are conducting a battle against their own party instead of tending to business like this.

The major provisions of the amendment are:

1. The amendment will increase the homestead exemption to 75% of the first $200,000. of value, plus 15% of the next $300,000 in value.
2. The higher homestead exemption will not be subject to the Save Our Homes limitation, which limits annual increases in property taxes to 3% per year.
3. Homeowners have the right to choose to stay with the Save Our Homes program, and not go with the new, higher, homestead exemption.
4. The amendment requires the Florida state legislature to limit the authority of local governments, with the exception of school districts, to increase property taxes.

The vote will be on January29, 2008, along with the Florida Presidential Preference Primary. I am going to present some pros and cons and everyone will have to decide for themselves how they are going to vote. To decide you should consider what is best for the community as a whole, as well as your own personal circumstances, such as how long you plan to stay in your present home, how much property taxes you now pay, and would pay under the new plan, your age and health, your income and net worth, and other personal and family circumstances.


What are some of the pros:

1. First, if you only plan to stay in your present home a few years the super exemption will save you money.
2. Also, if you plan to move to a different home the super exemption will save you money, since the Save Our Homes program is not portable. For example, you might move to a smaller, less expensive home and still wind up paying a lot more in property taxes.

If you are not confused yet, you are not paying attention. Most Floridians will hear the save on taxes part and vote for anything.

Next, what are some of the cons:

1. First, this amendment is premature since the constitutionally created Taxation and Budget Reform Commission is still meeting and has not issued its report. The public meetings in this area are scheduled for:

Wed. October 3, 2007
4 - 7 p.m.
Hillsborough County Meeting Rooms
Frederick B. Karl County Center, Twenty Sixth Floor
601 East Kennedy Boulevard
Tampa, Florida

Thursday, October 4, 2007
4 - 7 p.m.
Orange County Commission Chamber
Orange County Administration Building, First Floor
201 South Rosalind Avenue
Orlando, Florida

Their report is due no later than May 7, 2008, and the Tax Commission report may disagree with the constitutional amendment on January 29, 2008.


2. Unlike Save Our Homes, the amendment places no limits on how much a homeowner's taxes may increase. That is why, over time, the present Save Our Homes is a better deal.


3. If you plan to stay in your present home for more than 5 years you are probably better off to stay with Save Our Homes and vote against the amendment. For example, Tim Wilmath of the Hillsborough County Appraiser's office did an analysis and found that the super exemption would benefit:

In year 1 - 78% of the homeowners
In year 5 - 57.7%
In year 10 - 25.8%
In year 15 - less than 5%.

Calculations for Pasco County showed:
In year 1 - 70% benefited
In year 5 - 58%
In year 10 - 15%
In year 15 - 2%

Mike Wells, the 60 year old Pasco County Property Appraiser, calculated by the time he was 80 choosing the super exemption would cost him an additional $11,000 annually in property taxes.

4. This amendment would severely limit the ability of local governments to raise funds, which will probably lead to sharply reduced local government services.

As I said at the beginning, whether the super exemption will help you financially depends on your personal circumstances. But, I believe, for sure, it will cut government services. Personally, I plan to vote against it, because it is premature, because I plan to stay in my present home, and because I am against drastic cuts in government services.

Lastly, I move that the Polk County DEC go on record as opposing this Property Tax Reform Amendment on the January 29, 2008, ballot because it is premature since the Taxation and Budget Reform Commission has not issued its recommendations and they may disagree with the January 29, 2008, constitutional amendment; and also for the other reasons listed as cons in the Issues Committee Report of 9/10/07.

I don't think this email is worded strongly enough. There are far more cons than pros, and it is very dangerous for average people.