Florida Senate - 2024                            CS for SJR 1560
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Finance and Tax; and Senator Collins
       
       
       
       
       
       593-03551-24                                          20241560c1
    1                       Senate Joint Resolution                     
    2         A joint resolution proposing an amendment to Section 3
    3         of Article VII and the creation of a new section in
    4         Article XII of the State Constitution to authorize the
    5         Legislature, by general law, to exempt certain
    6         tangible personal property from ad valorem taxation.
    7  
    8          
    9  
   10  Be It Resolved by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   11  
   12         That the following amendment to Section 3 of Article VII
   13  and the creation of a new section in Article XII of the State
   14  Constitution are agreed to and shall be submitted to the
   15  electors of this state for approval or rejection at the next
   16  general election or at an earlier special election specifically
   17  authorized by law for that purpose:
   18                             ARTICLE VII                           
   19                        FINANCE AND TAXATION                       
   20         SECTION 3. Taxes; exemptions.—
   21         (a) All property owned by a municipality and used
   22  exclusively by it for municipal or public purposes shall be
   23  exempt from taxation. A municipality, owning property outside
   24  the municipality, may be required by general law to make payment
   25  to the taxing unit in which the property is located. Such
   26  portions of property as are used predominantly for educational,
   27  literary, scientific, religious or charitable purposes may be
   28  exempted by general law from taxation.
   29         (b) There shall be exempt from taxation, cumulatively, to
   30  every head of a family residing in this state, household goods
   31  and personal effects to the value fixed by general law, not less
   32  than one thousand dollars, and to every widow or widower or
   33  person who is blind or totally and permanently disabled,
   34  property to the value fixed by general law not less than five
   35  hundred dollars.
   36         (c) Any county or municipality may, for the purpose of its
   37  respective tax levy and subject to the provisions of this
   38  subsection and general law, grant community and economic
   39  development ad valorem tax exemptions to new businesses and
   40  expansions of existing businesses, as defined by general law.
   41  Such an exemption may be granted only by ordinance of the county
   42  or municipality, and only after the electors of the county or
   43  municipality voting on such question in a referendum authorize
   44  the county or municipality to adopt such ordinances. An
   45  exemption so granted shall apply to improvements to real
   46  property made by or for the use of a new business and
   47  improvements to real property related to the expansion of an
   48  existing business and shall also apply to tangible personal
   49  property of such new business and tangible personal property
   50  related to the expansion of an existing business. The amount or
   51  limits of the amount of such exemption shall be specified by
   52  general law. The period of time for which such exemption may be
   53  granted to a new business or expansion of an existing business
   54  shall be determined by general law. The authority to grant such
   55  exemption shall expire ten years from the date of approval by
   56  the electors of the county or municipality, and may be renewable
   57  by referendum as provided by general law.
   58         (d) Any county or municipality may, for the purpose of its
   59  respective tax levy and subject to the provisions of this
   60  subsection and general law, grant historic preservation ad
   61  valorem tax exemptions to owners of historic properties. This
   62  exemption may be granted only by ordinance of the county or
   63  municipality. The amount or limits of the amount of this
   64  exemption and the requirements for eligible properties must be
   65  specified by general law. The period of time for which this
   66  exemption may be granted to a property owner shall be determined
   67  by general law.
   68         (e) By general law and subject to conditions specified
   69  therein:
   70         (1) Twenty-five thousand dollars of the assessed value of
   71  property subject to tangible personal property tax shall be
   72  exempt from ad valorem taxation.
   73         (2) The assessed value of solar devices or renewable energy
   74  source devices subject to tangible personal property tax may be
   75  exempt from ad valorem taxation, subject to limitations provided
   76  by general law.
   77         (3)Tangible personal property that is located on property
   78  classified as agricultural land, as specified by general law;
   79  used on such property in the production of agricultural products
   80  or for agritourism activities; and owned by the landowner or
   81  leaseholder of the agricultural land shall be exempt from ad
   82  valorem taxation.
   83         (f) There shall be granted an ad valorem tax exemption for
   84  real property dedicated in perpetuity for conservation purposes,
   85  including real property encumbered by perpetual conservation
   86  easements or by other perpetual conservation protections, as
   87  defined by general law.
   88         (g) By general law and subject to the conditions specified
   89  therein, each person who receives a homestead exemption as
   90  provided in section 6 of this article; who was a member of the
   91  United States military or military reserves, the United States
   92  Coast Guard or its reserves, or the Florida National Guard; and
   93  who was deployed during the preceding calendar year on active
   94  duty outside the continental United States, Alaska, or Hawaii in
   95  support of military operations designated by the legislature
   96  shall receive an additional exemption equal to a percentage of
   97  the taxable value of his or her homestead property. The
   98  applicable percentage shall be calculated as the number of days
   99  during the preceding calendar year the person was deployed on
  100  active duty outside the continental United States, Alaska, or
  101  Hawaii in support of military operations designated by the
  102  legislature divided by the number of days in that year.
  103                             ARTICLE XII                           
  104                              SCHEDULE                             
  105         Ad valorem exemption for tangible personal property on land
  106  classified as agricultural.—This section and the amendment to
  107  Section 3 of Article VII, which authorizes the Legislature to
  108  provide for a tax exemption for certain tangible personal
  109  property, apply beginning with the 2026 tax roll.
  110  
  111         BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the following statement be
  112  placed on the ballot:
  113                      CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT                     
  114                       ARTICLE VII, SECTION 3                      
  115                             ARTICLE XII                           
  116         AUTHORIZING LEGISLATURE TO EXEMPT TANGIBLE PERSONAL
  117  PROPERTY ON AGRICULTURAL LAND FROM TAXATION.—Proposing an
  118  amendment to the State Constitution to authorize the
  119  Legislature, beginning with the 2026 tax roll, to exempt
  120  tangible personal property located on land classified as
  121  agricultural, used on such property in the production of
  122  agricultural products or for agritourism activities, and owned
  123  by the landowner or leaseholder of the land from ad valorem
  124  taxation.