TALHASSEE, Fla. (WFLA) — State lawmakers have not yet begun their next legislative meeting, but Gov. Ron DeSantis has already warned about a special summer session. That’s if the House and Senate are unable to pass his preferred property tax proposal.
There is already a long list of property tax ideas floating around the state capitol. Anywhere from prioritizing tax elimination for seniors, first-time home buyers, or Homestead Florida people. But there’s still a long way to go before everyone starts to see relief.
Florida State Legislators propose a new bill that requires background checks to buy ammunition
“I’m not only doing this, I don’t just like crows when it comes to property taxes. I want to see something big in place,” DeSantis said.
Last year, DeSantis has been promoting Floridian property tax mitigation ideas. The lawmakers escaped from the 2025 session without a final proposal. Instead, they plan to create an idea to consider voting for 2026 in the next session.
“There are a few ideas in the book right now. Everything from a complete exclusion to a very generous homestead exemption, everything has its own ideas,” state representative Bernie Jack (R Seminole).
Sitting on the House Selection Committee on Property Tax, Jack believes that lawmakers are on the right track.
“This was the fact-finding stage. We spoke to stakeholders in our community, to our elected officials, to our members, and of course, as we saw in the committee last week, from our stakeholders,” Jack said.
One of the biggest takeaways and concerns coming out of the final two House committee hearings is the recognition that there is no one-size-fits-all proposal on the issue.
But even the challenge of finding something useful for every city or county, Desantis hopes to accomplish something by August next year.
“I’m not saying we’re not going to wait that long, but I know there could be a special property tax session in the middle of the Republican primary season in July or August.
Another concern is to ensure that the final product that appears in the vote is something voters understand and not only support.
“I think a lot of the amendments that Congress has drafted over the years is because you’re reading it and you don’t know what it means. It’s like a legislative bureaucrat writing that normal people don’t speak or write,” DeSantis said.
The House of Representatives are in the midst of creating property tax proposals to prepare for the next session, but the Senate has been tough on the issue for the past few months.
