TALLAHASSEE — The House and Senate on Wednesday passed billion-dollar budgets, align their spending targets and give them more than three weeks to reach a tax cut agreement.
The House of Representatives proposes cutting the overall state sales tax rate, but the Senate on Wednesday outlined a non-aggressive proposal that offers permanent sales tax exemptions for clothing and shoes under $75.
Senate President R-Wauchula Ben Albritton said he hopes the House and Senate will “end somewhere in the middle” within the budget. The legislative meeting is expected to end May 2nd, with the state’s new fiscal year beginning July 1st.
“We’re going in the right direction. We communicate a lot. We work together,” Albritton said after a Senate floor session. “And I have all the expectations of landing the plane.”
House Speaker R-Miami Daniel Perez later said he hopes lawmakers will reach budget contracts on time, but said he “we believe in the budget.”
The Senate budget proposal totals $1173.6 billion. The House proposal has revenue of $112.95 billion and is linked to a $5.4 billion tax package that includes reducing the statewide sales tax rate from 6% to 5.25%.
Gov. Ron DeSantis said he would like to deduct one-time property taxes for Homestead’s property and ask voters to pass constitutional reforms in 2026 to reduce or eliminate property taxes.
He also called for the abolition of two-year sales tax on commercial leases and sales tax “holidays” on school supplies, recreational items, hurricane supplies, ammunition and firearms.
Echo of Desantis, MP Mike Caruso of R-Delray Beach, doesn’t say he’s “screaming” the housing sales tax. He said he would only offer “minimum immediate relief” while inadvertently benefiting “out-of-state visitors and tourists.”
“I want to see money go to real Floridians who call home in this state home,” Caruso said before taking part in a unanimous vote in support of the House tax proposal.
House Ways & Means R-Jacksonville Chairman Wyman Duggan noted that Desantis did not recommend a one-off fixed asset tax cut until “developing sales tax relief.”
The housing tax package also reduces the commercial lease tax from 2% to 1.25%, reduces the electricity sales tax rate from 4.35% to 3.6%, reduces the sales tax rate for new mobile homes from 3% to 2.25%, and reduces the tax rate for coin-operated amusement machines such as pinball machines from 4% to 3.25%.
Albritton warns of making cuts that lawmakers may have to revive within a few years. On Wednesday, he sold the proposed sales tax to clothing and shoes, deeming “it’s the place where we can help the most Floridians.”
The Senate proposal will also direct the Congressional Bureau of Economic and Demographic Research to study the effectiveness of reducing or eliminating property taxes on fixed assets in homes.
It will most likely lead to a “back to school” tax holiday in August. Disaster Prevention Substance Tax Holiday in June. Recreational items tax holidays in July. Workers’ daytime tools tax vacation. “Hunting Season” holidays with guns, ammunition and other hunting supplies in September and October.
The estimated $750 million package is expected to go to the Senate Finance and Taxation Committee on Tuesday.
The House and Senate budget proposals fall below the $117,466 billion budget passed by lawmakers last year.
Senate Approval Speaker Ed Hooper, R-Clearwater, described the target as “right sizing” state spending.
The House voted 98-6 to approve the proposed budget. This includes reducing spending on institutions and programs. Rep. Felicia Robinson of D-Miami Gardens said the state should invest in growth-stimulating programs to reduce strong reserves as “reducing unemployment, reduced public services and a stable economy.”
“We understand that we’re trying to be conservative, but doing anything extreme can be harmful,” Robinson said.
The House and Senate agree to several issues, including continuing to spend $80 million next year on tourist management agencies visiting Florida next year. But they differ in other regions. For example, the Senate suggests spending $750 million on repairing the Everglades, or $357 million.
“In the past decade, Congress has spent nearly $4 billion on restoration of the Everglades, of which more than $1.1 billion has exceeded $900 million since the last two fiscal years,” said R-Fort Myers, chairman of the Housing Agriculture and Natural Resources Budget. “We believe it is financially responsible to reduce the diversion of funds until the dollars already allocated are spent.”
The Senate, which seeks to support the state’s troubled citrus industry, will spend $200 million on research, with $125 million in new trees, and $200 million in support of packaging houses and growers. The House has proposed $10 million to combat citrus ulcer disease, causing major damage to the industry over the past 20 years.
Jim Turner, Florida news service
