Amendment
Bill No. 0004B

Amendment No. 623943

CHAMBER ACTION
Senate		House
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1	Representative(s) Altman offered the following:
2
3	Amendment (with ballot statement amendment)
4	On page 7, line(s) 2, through page 12, line 7,
5	remove:  all of said lines
6
7	and insert:
8	assessments for special benefits, on thirty percent of up to the
9	just assessed valuation of such property of five thousand
10	dollars, upon establishment of right thereto in the manner
11	prescribed by law. The exemption shall not be less than fifty
12	thousand dollars but, for low-income seniors who meet the
13	eligibility criteria under subsection (d), the exemption shall
14	not be less than one hundred thousand dollars. The real estate
15	may be held by legal or equitable title, by the entireties,
16	jointly, in common, as a condominium, or indirectly by stock
17	ownership or membership representing the owner's or member's
18	proprietary interest in a corporation owning a fee or a
19	leasehold initially in excess of ninety-eight years. The
20	exemption shall not apply with respect to any assessment roll
21	until such roll is first determined to be in compliance with the
22	provisions of section 4 by a state agency designated by general
23	law. This exemption is repealed on the effective date of any
24	amendment to this Article which provides for the assessment of
25	homestead property at less than just value.
26	(b)  Not more than one exemption shall be allowed any
27	individual or family unit or with respect to any residential
28	unit. No exemption shall exceed the value of the real estate
29	assessable to the owner or, in case of ownership through stock
30	or membership in a corporation, the value of the proportion
31	which the interest in the corporation bears to the assessed
32	value of the property.
33	(c)  By general law and subject to conditions specified
34	therein, the exemption shall be increased to a total of twenty-
35	five thousand dollars of the assessed value of the real estate
36	for each school district levy. By general law and subject to
37	conditions specified therein, the exemption for all other levies
38	may be increased up to an amount not exceeding ten thousand
39	dollars of the assessed value of the real estate if the owner
40	has attained age sixty-five or is totally and permanently
41	disabled and if the owner is not entitled to the exemption
42	provided in subsection (d).
43	(d)  By general law and subject to conditions specified
44	therein, the exemption shall be increased to a total of the
45	following amounts of assessed value of real estate for each levy
46	other than those of school districts: fifteen thousand dollars
47	with respect to 1980 assessments; twenty thousand dollars with
48	respect to 1981 assessments; twenty-five thousand dollars with
49	respect to assessments for 1982 and each year thereafter.
50	However, such increase shall not apply with respect to any
51	assessment roll until such roll is first determined to be in
52	compliance with the provisions of section 4 by a state agency
53	designated by general law. This subsection shall stand repealed
54	on the effective date of any amendment to section 4 which
55	provides for the assessment of homestead property at a specified
56	percentage of its just value.
57	(c)(e)  By general law and subject to conditions specified
58	therein, the Legislature may provide to renters, who are
59	permanent residents, ad valorem tax relief on all ad valorem tax
60	levies. Such ad valorem tax relief shall be in the form and
61	amount established by general law.
62	(d)(f)  The legislature may, by general law, allow counties
63	or municipalities, for the purpose of their respective tax
64	levies and subject to the provisions of general law, to grant an
65	additional homestead tax exemption not exceeding fifty thousand
66	dollars to any person who has the legal or equitable title to
67	real estate and maintains thereon the permanent residence of the
68	owner and who has attained age sixty-five and whose household
69	income, as defined by general law, does not exceed twenty
70	thousand dollars. The general law must allow counties and
71	municipalities to grant this additional exemption, within the
72	limits prescribed in this subsection, by ordinance adopted in
73	the manner prescribed by general law, and must provide for the
74	periodic adjustment of the income limitation prescribed in this
75	subsection for changes in the cost of living.
76	(e)(g)  Each veteran who is age 65 or older who is
77	partially or totally permanently disabled shall receive a
78	discount from the amount of the ad valorem tax otherwise owed on
79	homestead property the veteran owns and resides in if the
80	disability was combat related, the veteran was a resident of
81	this state at the time of entering the military service of the
82	United States, and the veteran was honorably discharged upon
83	separation from military service. The discount shall be in a
84	percentage equal to the percentage of the veteran's permanent,
85	service-connected disability as determined by the United States
86	Department of Veterans Affairs. To qualify for the discount
87	granted by this subsection, an applicant must submit to the
88	county property appraiser, by March 1, proof of residency at the
89	time of entering military service, an official letter from the
90	United States Department of Veterans Affairs stating the
91	percentage of the veteran's service-connected disability and
92	such evidence that reasonably identifies the disability as
93	combat related, and a copy of the veteran's honorable discharge.
94	If the property appraiser denies the request for a discount, the
95	appraiser must notify the applicant in writing of the reasons
96	for the denial, and the veteran may reapply. The Legislature
97	may, by general law, waive the annual application requirement in
98	subsequent years. This subsection shall take effect December 7,
99	2006, is self-executing, and does not require implementing
100	legislation.
101	SECTION 9.  Local taxes.--
102	(a)  Counties, school districts, and municipalities shall,
103	and special districts may, be authorized by law to levy ad
104	valorem taxes and may be authorized by general law to levy other
105	taxes, for their respective purposes, except ad valorem taxes on
106	intangible personal property and taxes prohibited by this
107	constitution.
108	(b)  Ad valorem taxes, exclusive of taxes levied for the
109	payment of bonds and taxes levied for periods not longer than
110	two years when authorized by vote of the electors who are the
111	owners of freeholds therein not wholly exempt from taxation,
112	shall not be levied in excess of the following millages upon the
113	assessed value of real estate and tangible personal property:
114	for all county purposes, ten mills; for all municipal purposes,
115	ten mills; for all school purposes, ten mills; for water
116	management purposes for the northwest portion of the state lying
117	west of the line between ranges two and three east, 0.05 mill;
118	for water management purposes for the remaining portions of the
119	state, 1.0 mill; and for all other special districts a millage
120	authorized by law approved by vote of the electors who are
121	owners of freeholds therein not wholly exempt from taxation. A
122	county furnishing municipal services may, to the extent
123	authorized by law, levy additional taxes within the limits fixed
124	for municipal purposes.
125	(c)  By general law, the legislature shall limit the
126	authority of counties, municipalities, and special districts to
127	increase ad valorem taxes.
128	ARTICLE XII
129	SCHEDULE
130	SECTION 27.  Transitional assessments of homestead
131	property; effective date.--
132	(a)  Each person entitled to a homestead exemption under
133	Section 6 of Article VII on January 1, 2008, shall continue to
134	have the person's current homestead assessed under Section 4(c)
135	of Article VII so long as, on January 1 of each year, the sum of
136	the exemption the person would have received under Section 6(a)-
137	(d) of Article VII, as it existed on December 31, 2007, plus the
138	difference between the homestead's just value and its assessed
139	value determined pursuant to Section 4(c) of Article VII is
140	greater than the exemption provided by Section 6(a) of Article
141	VII. After the exemption provided in Section 6(a) of Article VII
142	exceeds such sum in any year, the homestead may not be assessed
143	under Section 4(c) of Article VII.
144	(b)  The exemption provided in Section 6(a) of Article VII
145	to each person entitled to have the person's homestead assessed
146	under Section 4(c) of Article VII pursuant to subsection (a)
147	shall be limited to the exemption the person would have been
148	entitled to under Section 6(a)-(d) of Article VII as it existed
149	on December 31, 2007.
150	(c)  The amendments to Sections 3, 4, 6, and 9 of Article
151	VII, providing an exemption from ad valorem taxation for
152	tangible personal property, revising provisions limiting an
153	increase in the assessed value of homestead property, providing
154	for assessing rent-restricted affordable housing and commercial
155	and public-access waterfront property pursuant to general law,
156	increasing the homestead exemption, and requiring the
157	legislature to limit the authority of counties, municipalities,
158	and special
159
160
161	=== B A L L O T  S T A T E M E N T  A M E N D M E N T ===
162	On page 12, line(s) 25-31
163	remove:  all of said lines
164
165	and insert:
166	$25,000 to 30 percent of the just value of the property and to
167	specify minimum homestead exemption

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.