Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida signed a plethora of bills on Friday, including ones pertaining to bear hunting, fire district regulations, and even a state senate bill requiring rabies vaccinations. But one item that the governor signed truly drew our attention and will be very beneficial to Florida homeowners.
House Bill 7019 (HB 7019), a measure introduced by the Florida Legislature to modify the state’s homestead exemption legislation, was signed into law on Friday by Governor DeSantis.
This bill is a big step in the right direction for lowering homeowners’ taxes.
The comprehensive legislation introduces a number of strategic yet complex provisions designed to protect Floridians’ financial well-being.
Fundamentally, the goal of HB 7019 is to address rising property values and how they affect homeowners’ tax payments.
Revision of the current homestead exemption framework is one of the main features of HB 7019. As per the suggested modifications, homeowners who meet the eligibility requirements will receive an extra exemption of up to $25,000 on the assessed valuation exceeding $50,000. With the exception of levies imposed by school districts, this clause covers all levies.
The exemption will be kept current and sensitive to inflationary pressures by adjusting the $25,000 value annually in accordance with the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U).
Through linking the exemption value to the CPI-U, the law seeks to protect homeowners from the unrelenting rise in living costs.
The exemption will rise in tandem with the rising cost of goods and services, giving homeowners who are struggling to make ends meet a much-needed financial break.
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The Florida Legislature will provide money specifically designated to counteract the decreased ad valorem tax revenue that financially strapped counties suffer, beginning with the 2025–2026 fiscal year.
According to the state’s criteria, these counties will get a portion of the monies that have been allotted in proportion to the revenue losses that have resulted from the implementation of the amended homestead exemption laws.
Each qualified county must submit an application to the Department of Revenue by November 15 of each year, and the distribution procedure is carefully laid out. The county’s property appraiser’s detailed evidence, which supports the county’s expected decrease in ad valorem tax revenue, must be included with this application.
HB 7019 specifies a certain calculating process for figuring out each county’s revenue loss in order to guarantee accuracy and fairness.
For each county taxing jurisdiction, the computation takes into account 95% of the expected reduction in taxable value, multiplied by the smaller of the applicable millage rate for 2024 or the applicable millage rate for the current year.
Once approved, the emergency regulations will be in force for six months, after which they may be extended while the permanent rules-making process is underway.
