The Florida PACE Funding Agency has officially escalated its statewide legal battle to the Florida Supreme Court, filing a petition to compel 42 county tax collectors to resume the collection of clean-energy assessment fees.
The emergency filing warns that a coordinated “revolt” by local officials threatens to trigger a $5 billion bond default and undermine the integrity of the state’s financial systems.
The petition for “All Writs Jurisdiction” follows years of litigation over the Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program, which allows homeowners to finance hurricane hardening and energy-efficiency improvements through non-ad valorem assessments on their property tax bills.
The Core of the Conflict
At the heart of the dispute is a 2022 Final Judgment that validated up to $5 billion in revenue bonds for the Agency. That court order explicitly stated that the Agency has the authority to operate statewide without needing individual agreements from every county and declared that tax collectors have a “wholly ministerial” duty to place these assessments on the tax rolls.
READ: Battle For The “Coincident Peak”: Industrial Giants Fight To Keep Tampa Electric Rate Formula
Despite that ruling being labeled “forever conclusive” under Florida law, tax collectors from dozens of counties—including Hillsborough, Pinellas, Palm Beach, and Duval—have refused to comply.
These officials argue they should not have to collect fees in jurisdictions where local commissions have not explicitly approved the Agency’s operations.
“Enough is Enough”
In the filing, attorneys for the Florida PACE Funding Agency, led by former Florida Supreme Court Justice Alan Lawson, argue that the tax collectors are openly defying the law.
“A judgment that Chapter 75 makes conclusive cannot be allowed to become optional in practice,” the petition states. “This continuing noncompliance presents a direct and escalating separation-of-powers violation.”
The Agency highlights several key facts in its push for Supreme Court intervention:
- Imminent Default: The Agency warns that because these assessments are the sole source of revenue to pay back bondholders, the refusal to collect them has caused a material disruption that could lead to default.
- State Guidance Ignored: The Florida Department of Revenue previously issued guidance confirming the Agency had met all legal requirements and that tax collectors lack the discretion to refuse the assessments.
- Conflicting Stances: The petition points out that many of the responding tax collectors have argued in other court cases that their roles are purely ministerial, yet they are claiming discretionary power in this specific instance.
Statewide Impact
The legal standoff has created a patchwork of enforcement across Florida. While some property owners have already received financing and completed home improvements, the lack of a uniform collection process has thrown the program into chaos.
The Agency has attempted to mitigate the damage by directly billing some property owners, but it maintains that this is no substitute for the statutory tax-roll mechanism.
READ: Appeal Filed As Execution Date Nears For James E. Hitchcock In 1976 Florida Killing Of Step-Niece
The Supreme Court filing names tax collectors from 42 counties as respondents, ranging from rural North Florida to the state’s most populous metropolitan hubs. The Agency is asking the justices to issue a writ of mandamus, which would legally force the officials to perform their duties as outlined in the original 2022 judgment.
If the Court declines to act, the Agency warns of long-term damage to Florida’s bond market, suggesting that investors may lose confidence in the state’s bond-validation process if final court orders can be ignored by local executive officers.
Please make a small donation to the Tampa Free Press to help sustain independent journalism. Your contribution enables us to continue delivering high-quality, local, and national news coverage.
Sign up: Subscribe to our free newsletter for a curated selection of top stories delivered straight to your inbox
