| 1 | Representative(s) R. Garcia offered the following: |
| 2 |
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| 3 | Amendment (with ballot statement and title amendments) |
| 4 | Remove line(s) 340-468 and insert: |
| 5 | (g) Real property owned and used as a homestead by a |
| 6 | person who has attained age sixty-five, whose household income, |
| 7 | as defined by general law, does not exceed $23,604, and who has |
| 8 | lived in such homestead for at lease 20 years is exempt from ad |
| 9 | valorem taxation. The legislature shall provide for an annual |
| 10 | adjustment of the income limitation prescribed in this |
| 11 | subsection for changes in the cost of living and may provide |
| 12 | additional financial eligibility requirements or other |
| 13 | eligibility requirements. |
| 14 | SECTION 9. Local taxes.-- |
| 15 | (a) Counties, school districts, and municipalities shall, |
| 16 | and special districts may, be authorized by law to levy ad |
| 17 | valorem taxes and may be authorized by general law to levy other |
| 18 | taxes, for their respective purposes, except ad valorem taxes on |
| 19 | intangible personal property and taxes prohibited by this |
| 20 | constitution. |
| 21 | (b) Ad valorem taxes, exclusive of taxes levied for the |
| 22 | payment of bonds and taxes levied for periods not longer than |
| 23 | two years when authorized by vote of the electors who are the |
| 24 | owners of freeholds therein not wholly exempt from taxation, |
| 25 | shall not be levied in excess of the following millages upon the |
| 26 | assessed value of real estate and tangible personal property: |
| 27 | for all county purposes, ten mills; for all municipal purposes, |
| 28 | ten mills; for all school purposes, ten mills; for water |
| 29 | management purposes for the northwest portion of the state lying |
| 30 | west of the line between ranges two and three east, 0.05 mill; |
| 31 | for water management purposes for the remaining portions of the |
| 32 | state, 1.0 mill; and for all other special districts a millage |
| 33 | authorized by law approved by vote of the electors who are |
| 34 | owners of freeholds therein not wholly exempt from taxation. A |
| 35 | county furnishing municipal services may, to the extent |
| 36 | authorized by law, levy additional taxes within the limits fixed |
| 37 | for municipal purposes. |
| 38 | (c) By general law, the legislature shall limit the |
| 39 | authority of counties, municipalities, and special districts to |
| 40 | increase ad valorem taxes. |
| 41 | ARTICLE VIII |
| 42 | LOCAL GOVERNMENT |
| 43 | SECTION 1. Counties.-- |
| 44 | (a) POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS. The state shall be divided by |
| 45 | law into political subdivisions called counties. Counties may be |
| 46 | created, abolished or changed by law, with provision for payment |
| 47 | or apportionment of the public debt. |
| 48 | (b) COUNTY FUNDS. The care, custody and method of |
| 49 | disbursing county funds shall be provided by general law. |
| 50 | (c) GOVERNMENT. Pursuant to general or special law, a |
| 51 | county government may be established by charter which shall be |
| 52 | adopted, amended or repealed only upon vote of the electors of |
| 53 | the county in a special election called for that purpose. |
| 54 | (d) COUNTY OFFICERS. There shall be elected by the |
| 55 | electors of each county, for terms of four years, a sheriff, a |
| 56 | tax collector, a property appraiser, a supervisor of elections, |
| 57 | and a clerk of the circuit court; except, when provided by |
| 58 | county charter or special law approved by vote of the electors |
| 59 | of the county, any county officer other than a property |
| 60 | appraiser may be chosen in another manner therein specified, or |
| 61 | any county office other than the office of property appraiser |
| 62 | may be abolished when all the duties of the office prescribed by |
| 63 | general law are transferred to another office. When not |
| 64 | otherwise provided by county charter or special law approved by |
| 65 | vote of the electors, the clerk of the circuit court shall be ex |
| 66 | officio clerk of the board of county commissioners, auditor, |
| 67 | recorder and custodian of all county funds. |
| 68 | (e) COMMISSIONERS. Except when otherwise provided by |
| 69 | county charter, the governing body of each county shall be a |
| 70 | board of county commissioners composed of five or seven members |
| 71 | serving staggered terms of four years. After each decennial |
| 72 | census the board of county commissioners shall divide the county |
| 73 | into districts of contiguous territory as nearly equal in |
| 74 | population as practicable. One commissioner residing in each |
| 75 | district shall be elected as provided by law. |
| 76 | (f) NON-CHARTER GOVERNMENT. Counties not operating under |
| 77 | county charters shall have such power of self-government as is |
| 78 | provided by general or special law. The board of county |
| 79 | commissioners of a county not operating under a charter may |
| 80 | enact, in a manner prescribed by general law, county ordinances |
| 81 | not inconsistent with general or special law, but an ordinance |
| 82 | in conflict with a municipal ordinance shall not be effective |
| 83 | within the municipality to the extent of such conflict. |
| 84 | (g) CHARTER GOVERNMENT. Counties operating under county |
| 85 | charters shall have all powers of local self-government not |
| 86 | inconsistent with general law, or with special law approved by |
| 87 | vote of the electors. The governing body of a county operating |
| 88 | under a charter may enact county ordinances not inconsistent |
| 89 | with general law. The charter shall provide which shall prevail |
| 90 | in the event of conflict between county and municipal |
| 91 | ordinances. |
| 92 | (h) TAXES; LIMITATION. Property situate within |
| 93 | municipalities shall not be subject to taxation for services |
| 94 | rendered by the county exclusively for the benefit of the |
| 95 | property or residents in unincorporated areas. |
| 96 | (i) COUNTY ORDINANCES. Each county ordinance shall be |
| 97 | filed with the custodian of state records and shall become |
| 98 | effective at such time thereafter as is provided by general law. |
| 99 | (j) VIOLATION OF ORDINANCES. Persons violating county |
| 100 | ordinances shall be prosecuted and punished as provided by law. |
| 101 | (k) COUNTY SEAT. In every county there shall be a county |
| 102 | seat at which shall be located the principal offices and |
| 103 | permanent records of all county officers. The county seat may |
| 104 | not be moved except as provided by general law. Branch offices |
| 105 | for the conduct of county business may be established elsewhere |
| 106 | in the county by resolution of the governing body of the county |
| 107 | in the manner prescribed by law. No instrument shall be deemed |
| 108 | recorded until filed at the county seat, or a branch office |
| 109 | designated by the governing body of the county for the recording |
| 110 | of instruments, according to law. |
| 111 | ARTICLE XII |
| 112 | SCHEDULE |
| 113 | SECTION 27. Elected property appraisers; application.--The |
| 114 | requirement in Section 1(d) of Article VIII for a property |
| 115 | appraiser to be elected by the electors of the county shall |
| 116 | apply in each county, including each charter county, regardless |
| 117 | of whether the charter was adopted pursuant to Section 1(g) of |
| 118 | Article VIII or pursuant to Section 9, Section 10, Section 11, |
| 119 | or Section 24 of Article VIII of the Constitution of 1885, as |
| 120 | amended and incorporated by reference in Section 6(e) of Article |
| 121 | VIII. Any county that does not have an elected property |
| 122 | appraiser on the effective date of the amendment to Section 1 of |
| 123 | Article VIII of this constitution shall provide for electing a |
| 124 | property appraiser at the next general election as provided by |
| 125 | general law. |
| 126 | SECTION 28. Property tax exemptions and ad valorem tax |
| 127 | limitations.--The amendments to Sections 3, 4, 6, and 9 of |
| 128 | Article VII, providing a $25,000 exemption from ad valorem |
| 129 | taxation for tangible personal property, providing an additional |
| 130 | $25,000 homestead exemption, authorizing the transfer of the |
| 131 | accrued benefit from the limitation on the assessment of |
| 132 | homestead property, providing an additional homestead exemption |
| 133 | for first-time homestead property owners, providing a complete |
| 134 | homestead exemption for certain low-income seniors, providing |
| 135 | for |
| 136 |
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| 137 | == B A L L O T S T A T E M E N T A M E N D M E N T == |
| 138 | Remove line(s) 516-520 and insert: |
| 139 | 2. Exempts certain low-income seniors from ad valorem tax |
| 140 | on their homes. Persons 65 or older whose household income is |
| 141 | less than $23,604, adjusted annually for inflation, and who have |
| 142 | lived in their homestead for at least 20 years will be totally |
| 143 | exempt from ad valorem taxes, including school taxes, on their |
| 144 | homestead property. |
| 145 |
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| 146 |
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| 147 | ======= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ======= |
| 148 | Remove line(s) 15 and insert: |
| 149 | complete homestead exemption for certain low-income seniors, to |