TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida lawmakers are laying out competing visions for addressing affordability as the 2026 legislative session officially gets underway.
The two main sides: Property tax reform and property insurance reform.
Dirk and Lynn Schmidt have lived in their Union County home for more than a decade, and costs are on the rise, especially their property insurance bill.
“I mean mine doubled, I think it was three years ago,” Dirk said.
But this year, Florida Republicans are putting their focus on another affordability issue: Property taxes.
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During his State of the State address on Tuesday, Governor Ron DeSantis argued local budgets have gotten out of hand.
“Seven years ago, local governments throughout Florida took in about $32 billion property tax revenue. Last year, that number rose to a whopping $56 billion,” DeSantis said.
But it’s a cost the Schmidts argued they’re willing to pay, especially given the tight budget their rural county already has to operate with.
“And our services are already being cut. We’re already having to pay special assessments. And like she was saying, we don’t have any fire protection,” Dirk said.
And that’s one of the lead reasons Florida Democrats are opposing efforts to slash property taxes this year.
Instead, they’re proposing measures to tackle the property insurance issue, including an interstate compact to share insurance costs with other states.
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“What we’ve proposed could lower cost immediately as much as 30 percent, but I know we’re living in such a partisan era that unfortunately I don’t think they will hear our bill,” House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell (D-Tampa) said.
The Governor argued recent property insurance fixes are working, with more insurers filing for rate decreases for the first time in years.
“But those markets involve a lot of factors beyond the control of state government. Taxes are solely the province of government,” DeSantis said.
But tax relief will need to be approved by voters in November.
And whatever plan Republicans put forward will need to earn the support of Floridians like the Schmidts.
“I feel like that’s just trying to buy votes and I’m not in favor of cutting that,” said Dirk.
Despite opposition from Democrats, property tax relief seems to be the most likely option we’ll see come out of the legislature this year.
Exactly what option Republicans go with, though, remains to be seen.
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