Rep. Ryan Chamberlin (R-Belleview) announced he will lead an initiative to abolish property taxes in Florida by putting a constitutional amendment on the ballot through the citizen petition process while speaking in Tallahassee this week.
“Today I am announcing that I will be pursuing action to take property tax relief to the next level,” Chamberlin said in a statement. “I will help lead an effort to pass a citizen constitutional amendment that bans ad valorem taxes on real estate levied by any level of government."
"Then the legislature will be forced to implement new solutions to make sure we have a system in place for funding police, fire departments, and schools. No one is interested in defunding any of the vitally important government service(s) funded by local taxes," Chamberlin commented. "It’s just time to figure out a better way to pay for it than letting government continue to be the owner of all property and impose an onerous tax system on our people."
Rep. Chamberlin filed bills to eliminate Florida's property tax before the state's Legislative session in January. While the Florida House of Representatives eventually passed a related bill to phase out non-school property taxes on homesteads, the bill failed to gain steam in the Senate before the regular session's ending in March.
"I have made the points before about our current property tax system," Chamberlin said. "It is unfair," adding that it puts taxes on unrealized gains.
"It is based on the fictional math living in some local bureaucrat’s head. It is predicated upon the concept that government owns all property, and we the people are just renters," Chamberlin continued. "I believe this tax system is immoral and runs counter to everything we believe as Americans and definitely as the people of the free state of Florida."
Rep. Chamberlin's effort would need 891,523 valid signatures to appear on November's ballot, including an initial mark of 90,000 (or 10%) to permit a judicial review of the proposal. If met, the measure would still need 60% voter approval on the ballot to take effect.
Gov. Ron DeSantis has indicated a Special Session to eliminate property taxes could come as soon as April, but a date has yet to be finalized.
“The people of Florida are hungry for meaningful progress on this issue,” Chamberlin said. “We’ve had a lot of discussion and a lot of ideas, but the people are tired of talk and ready for action. If we end up with partial measures on the ballot this year, I will be supportive, but we cannot continue waiting for uncertain outcomes. This petition process is just what we need to make full and final elimination of property taxes a reality.”
Where is the petition located?
I’ll sign it. Let’s get rid of property taxes.