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Florida Constitution Revision Commission

PUB 700711: Property Tax Swap by Aaron Nevins

ARTICLE VII: FINANCE AND TAXATION, Section 9. Local taxes.

SECTION 9.Local taxes.
  1. Counties, school districts, and municipalities shall, and special districts may, be authorized by law to levy ad valorem taxes and may be authorized by general law to levy other taxes, for their respective purposes, except ad valorem taxes on intangible personal property and taxes prohibited by this constitution.
  2. Ad valorem taxes, exclusive of taxes levied for the payment of bonds and taxes levied for periods not longer than two years when authorized by vote of the electors who are the owners of freeholds therein not wholly exempt from taxation, shall not be levied in excess of the following millages upon the assessed value of real estate and tangible personal property: for all county purposes, ten mills; for all municipal purposes, ten mills; for all school purposes, two ten mills; for water management purposes for the northwest portion of the state lying west of the line between ranges two and three east, 0.05 mill; for water management purposes for the remaining portions of the state, 1.0 mill; and for all other special districts a millage authorized by law approved by vote of the electors who are owners of freeholds therein not wholly exempt from taxation. A county furnishing municipal services may, to the extent authorized by law, levy additional taxes within the limits fixed for municipal purposes.

ARTICLE VII: FINANCE AND TAXATION, New Section.

Catchline: Revised state sales and use tax; first year revenue neutrality; distribution to school districts.

 

As provided by general law, the rate of the state tax on sales, use, and other transactions shall be revised to generate in the first year after this section takes effect the same amount of revenues as the aggregate total revenues generated from Required Local Effort of School Districts as determined by the FEFP in the General Appropriations Act and ad valorem taxes in the year immediately preceding the date this section takes effect.

Revenues from the revised sales and use tax shall be distributed to the school districts as provided by general law and pursuant to the Florida Education Finance Plan. Thereafter, the distribution shall be adjusted each year by the lesser of 3 percent or the percentage change that year in the Consumer Price Index as compiled by the United States Department of Labor. Each district at its budget hearing my levy a discretionary millage up to 2 mils pursuant to Article VII, Section 9.

For the purposes of this section, “Florida Education Finance Program” has the meaning given in Section 1011.61, Florida Statutes (2016), and, in addition, “Required Local Effort” has the meaning given to that term in 1011.62, Florida Statutes (2016).