As Florida lawmakers head into the 2026 Legislative Session with ambitious plans to slash property taxes, the state’s leading government watchdog is waving a yellow flag. In a new report released today, Florida TaxWatch warns that eliminating property taxes entirely—without a concrete plan to replace the revenue—could disastrously shift the financial burden onto renters, business owners, and new residents.
The report, titled Save Our Taxpayers – Property Tax Relief Must be Accomplished Equitably, serves as a reality check to the momentum building in the House of Representatives for a total repeal of property taxes.
While conceding that tax relief is necessary, TaxWatch President and CEO Jeff Kottkamp argues that the current approach is lopsided. The organization points out that property tax levies have more than doubled in the last decade, funding everything from police and fire rescue to sanitation.
Simply cutting the tax for homeowners without curbing government spending will inevitably force local governments to extract that money elsewhere—specifically from “non-homestead” properties.
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“Providing property tax relief to Florida taxpayers is commendable,” Kottkamp said. “But putting a proposal on the 2026 ballot to eliminate all property taxes, without also addressing ever-escalating local government spending, is not advisable.”
The “Hidden” Taxpayers
The core of the TaxWatch argument is that the “non-homestead” category isn’t just faceless corporations. It includes apartment complexes (which pass costs to renters), small businesses, snowbirds, and residents currently renovating their homes.
According to the report, existing proposals would exacerbate a “tax shift” that already forces these groups to cover a disproportionate share of the $59.2 billion collected by local governments. The burden on non-homestead properties currently exceeds $10 billion and is rising.
A New Proposal: “Save Our Taxpayers”
Instead of a total repeal, TaxWatch is pitching a counter-proposal they are calling the “Save Our Taxpayers” amendment. The plan focuses on equity rather than elimination.
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The cornerstone of their recommendation is to tighten the cap on annual assessment increases for non-homestead properties. Currently, investment properties and second homes are capped at a 10 percent annual increase. TaxWatch wants to lower that to 3 percent—matching the “Save Our Homes” benefit enjoyed by primary residents.
“The time is right for a ‘Save Our Taxpayers’ cap to be created,” the report states, arguing this would stop the tax burden from silently sliding onto the backs of renters and businesses.
Help for New Buyers
The report also addresses Florida’s housing affordability crisis with a specific recommendation for new homebuyers. TaxWatch suggests an additional exemption that would knock 25 percent off a home’s assessed value for the first year. This discount would gradually phase out as the homeowner builds up their own “Save Our Homes” savings, effectively lowering the barrier to entry for first-time buyers.
Other key recommendations include:
- Regional Adjustments: Tying homestead exemptions to the median home value of a specific county, rather than a “one size fits all” statewide number. This would help rural counties with lower property values avoid catastrophic revenue losses.
- Restricting Rates: Requiring local governments to adopt “rolled-back rates” temporarily if new exemptions are passed, ensuring they don’t simply raise the millage rate to claw back the savings voters just approved.
- VAB Reform: Overhauling the Value Adjustment Board system. TaxWatch noted that outside of Miami-Dade, taxpayers challenging their assessments have a success rate of only three percent, a figure they argue proves the system is stacked against the public.
Lawmakers are expected to debate these conflicting visions for tax relief as the 2026 session commences.
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