Governor Lauds Property Tax Cut, Pushes Further Savings

Gov. Charlie Crist toured the state Thursday, touting an average property tax cut of about $200 for homeowners and making his pitch to voters for their approval of another measure to save even more.

“We’re here to celebrate Florida’s largest tax cut in our history,” Crist told near Palm Springs. “Property taxes in Florida will drop like a rock.”

For the hundreds of thousands struggling with Florida mortgage loan payments and insurance, on top of taxes, that’s music to their ears.

In addition to the Palm Beach County event, Crist held bill-signing ceremonies in Tallahassee, Miami and Tampa, the Palm Beach Post reports.

One bill Crist signed forces local governments to cut $15.6 billion in property taxes over the next five years.

Crist is not required to sign the third bill lawmakers passed, called a joint resolution, which asks voters to decide whether to change the way homestead properties are taxed, but he did sign a bill that sets that special election on January 29.

In Palm Beach County, Crist visited the home of Mike and Jeanette Waddle and their three children.

“This is going to make a big difference in our family, because it’s going to give me more money to do what we want to do as a family,” Jeanette Waddle said. “It’s going to give me more money to make my children’s life better.”

The cut, which includes a cap on future local government property tax revenues, will result in a statewide average cut of about $200 for homeowners, or about 7 percent. The Waddles expect to save about $350.

But their bigger savings could come next year, when voters will decide whether to create homestead exemptions that would total 75 percent of the first $200,000 in home value and 15 percent of the next $300,000.

If approved, all new owners of primary homes, known as homesteads, would receive the exemption instead of benefits from Save Our Homes, which caps assessment increases at no more than 3 percent a year.

Current homestead owners would keep their accrued Save Our Homes benefits, unless they choose to take the bigger exemption.

“The people will have the power to further drop their property taxes like a boulder,” Crist said. “The people will have that power to cut their taxes in a historic way.”

Crist lauded the constitutional amendment, saying it will help people move and spark the Florida housing market, which has lagged this year.

For the Waddles, it could mean a tax bill of $1,600 instead of the $4,650 they paid last year, a big difference for a couple that still has Florida mortgage payments to make.

The family could have paid $4,100 this year but does not have the $25,000 homestead exemption allowed by law.

But Jeanette Waddle, who met Crist at a town hall meeting in April after writing him a letter complaining about her property taxes, said she planned to apply for the exemption.

“Gov. Crist, you’re awesome,” she said. “You are absolutely awesome.”

Firefighters have opposed the constitutional amendment, saying it could cost jobs and hurt emergency services. But Mike Waddle, a Greenacres firefighter, doesn’t think that will happen.

“Honestly, I think it’s more of a scare tactic,” he said.

Joining Crist at the Waddles’ home were Sen. Jeff Atwater, R-North Palm Beach, and Delray Beach Democratic Reps. Richard Machek and Maria Sachs.

While Democrats supported the bills (HB 1B, 5B) Crist signed into law, they opposed the constitutional amendment that will be considered in the special election. The proposed amendment (SJR 4B) does not need Crist’s approval.

“You’ve got to have some tax relief,” Machek said of supporting the tax cut but not the constitutional amendment, which some say is the only way to spur Florida real estate growth. “I think the constitutional amendment will be very debatable.”

During a special session last week, Democrats said the amendment would hit local governments too hard and jeopardize education funding.

Crist’s office estimated it would cost between $10 billion and $15 billion during the first four years. House Republicans said Thursday that Democrats were trying to “have it both ways.”

“It was amazing to see Democrats standing side by side with Gov. Charlie Crist,” House majority leader Adam Hasner, R-Delray Beach, said in a statement.

“They cannot attack the tax cuts and protections contained in the constitutional amendment on one day, and then turn around the next day and stand next to the governor, who campaigned for these tax cuts.”

SOURCE: Palm Beach Post