| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to property taxes; amending s. 200.071, |
| 3 | F.S.; authorizing counties to cap annual growth in ad |
| 4 | valorem tax revenues by charter; providing requirements |
| 5 | and limitations; providing an exception; prohibiting ad |
| 6 | valorem tax levies by counties in excess of amounts |
| 7 | specified in the county charter; prohibiting ad valorem |
| 8 | tax levies by counties through municipal service taxing |
| 9 | units in excess of amounts specified in the ordinance |
| 10 | establishing the unit; providing an effective date. |
| 11 |
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| 12 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 13 |
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| 14 | Section 1. Subsections (1) and (3) of section 200.071, |
| 15 | Florida Statutes, are amended to read: |
| 16 | 200.071 Limitation of millage; counties.-- |
| 17 | (1)(a) Except as otherwise provided herein, no ad valorem |
| 18 | tax millage shall be levied against real property and tangible |
| 19 | personal property by counties in excess of 10 mills or the |
| 20 | amount specified in the county charter, whichever is less, as |
| 21 | provided in paragraph (b), except for voted levies. |
| 22 | (b) A county may cap, through a provision in its charter, |
| 23 | the annual growth in ad valorem tax revenues. Any such cap may |
| 24 | not restrict the annual growth at a rate below the lesser of 3 |
| 25 | percent or the Consumer Price Index as provided in s. |
| 26 | 193.155(1)(b). Any such cap specified in a county charter must |
| 27 | allow for the cap to be overcome by a finding of necessity due |
| 28 | to emergency or critical need by a super-majority vote of the |
| 29 | county commission. In applying the increase or growth cap, the |
| 30 | county shall compute a millage rate which, exclusive of new |
| 31 | construction, additions to structures, deletions, increases in |
| 32 | the value of improvements that have undergone a substantial |
| 33 | rehabilitation which increased the assessed value of such |
| 34 | improvements by at least 100 percent, and property added due to |
| 35 | geographic boundary changes, will provide the same ad valorem |
| 36 | tax revenue for each taxing authority as was levied during the |
| 37 | prior year. It is the rate that shall be subject to any cap in |
| 38 | growth or increase in ad valorem revenues established by county |
| 39 | charter. In preparing their respective budgets for submittal to |
| 40 | the county commission, and notwithstanding any other provision |
| 41 | of law, constitutional and charter officers are required to |
| 42 | comply with any cap in growth established by county charter when |
| 43 | submitting their respective budgets to the county commission. |
| 44 | (3) Any county which, through a municipal service taxing |
| 45 | unit, provides services or facilities of the kind or type |
| 46 | commonly provided by municipalities, may levy, in addition to |
| 47 | the millages otherwise provided in this section, against real |
| 48 | property and tangible personal property within each such |
| 49 | municipal service taxing unit an ad valorem tax millage not in |
| 50 | excess of 10 mills, or an amount specified in the ordinance |
| 51 | establishing the municipal service taxing unit, if any, |
| 52 | whichever is less, to pay for such services or facilities |
| 53 | provided with the funds obtained through such levy within such |
| 54 | municipal service taxing unit. |
| 55 | Section 2. This act shall take effect January 1, 2006. |