The Proposal
1. What Is it?
The Proposed Constitutional Amendment
In broad terms, the proposal would expand homestead property tax exemptions. If approved by voters, it would reduce the amount of property tax revenue collected by local governments throughout the state.
Because property taxes support many local services, changes of this size could affect everything from public safety and emergency preparedness to parks, libraries, and environmental programs. This page is intended to help residents better understand the proposal and its potential local impacts.
Some Everyday Perspective
2. Why is it important?
Your Investment In Your Community
While lower property taxes may reduce costs for homeowners, residents should also understand the potential tradeoffs.
In Volusia County, those property taxes fund many local services residents use regularly or depend on during emergencies.
The proposed Property Tax Reform Ammendment will reduce revenues for many of those services including Law Enforcement, Fire Rescue, EMS, Beach Safety, Emergency Management, Animal Services, Stormwater and Flood Protection, Roads, Sidewalks, and Drainage, Mosquito Control, Veterans Services, Library Services, Parks and Recreation, VoTran/VoRide, Environmental and Wildlife Protection, Volusia Forever and Volusia ECHO.
- Law Enforcement
- Fire Rescue
- EMS
- Beach Safety
- Emergency Management
- Animal Services
- Stormwater and Flood Protection
- Roads, Sidewalks, and Drainage
- Mosquito Control
- Veterans Services
- Library Services
- Parks and Recreation
- VoTran/VoRide
- Environmental and Wildlife Protection
- Volusia Forever and Volusia ECHO
Potential Funding opportunities
3. What Options will local governments have?
Public Safety, Infrastructure, Quality of Life
If the proposed constitutional amendment passes, Volusia County will still be required by law to adopt a balanced budget and provide mandated services. A combination of options would have to be considered, including:
Eliminate or Reduce Services, Programs, Facilities
Increase the Millage Rate
Implement New Fees
Increase Existing Fees
effects on volusia county
4. What Will the local financial impact be?
understanding the county budget
What a Homestead Property Saves
Average annual savings on Volusia County taxes at full $250,000 exemption:
Every Property Tax Fund Will Be Reduced
| Fund | Annual revenue reduction | Share of that fund |
|---|---|---|
| General Fund | $59.3M | 27.8% |
| Law Enforcement Fund | $29.7M | 27.8% |
| Fire District | $16.1M | 32.8% |
| Municipal Service District | $7.4M | 32.9% |
| Library | $6.9M | 27.8% |
| Volusia Forever | $3.7M | 27.8% |
| Volusia ECHO | $3.7M | 27.8% |
| Mosquito Control | $1.7M | 23.9% |
| Ponce Inlet Port Authority | $0.8M | 24.3% |
| All County property tax funds | $129.3M | 28.5% |
What Your Property Tax Pays For
-
Public safety $254.6M
-
State mandates and payments $48.7M
-
Parks, transit & other services $45.9M
-
Volusia ECHO & Volusia Forever $25.0M
-
Libraries $24.0M
-
Buildings, technology & operations $22.6M
-
Beaches $19.8M
-
CRA payments to cities $13.9M
-
Roads $5.0M
*Property taxes are assumed to pay (1) CRA payments and property appraiser / tax collector commissions; (2) sheriff’s budget; (3) limited fund purpose expenditures (i.e. port district, mosquito control, fire district, library). After that assumption, other flexible revenues applied as follows (in order): (1) state mandated payments / courts; (2) buildings, technology & operations.
The Cost of Services and Programs
The Scale of the Loss
-
Public safety $254.6M
-
The annual loss under Amendment 3 $129.3M
-
State mandates and payments $48.7M
-
Parks, transit & other services $45.9M
-
Volusia ECHO & Volusia Forever $25.0M
-
Libraries $24.0M
-
Buildings, technology & operations $22.6M
-
Beaches $19.8M
-
CRA payments to cities $13.9M
-
Roads $5.0M
What $129 Million a Year Actually Costs
Public Safety Impacts
-
Beaches $17.2M
-
Human & veterans services $11.4M
-
VoTran transit services $11.0M
-
Parks, recreation & culture $8.7M
-
Roads $5.0M
-
Planning, environmental & econ dev $4.4M
The impact to public safety spending will likely be even larger than $31.3M.
Fire District and MSD Have Fewer Options
A shortfall in one fund cannot be covered by another fund.
The fire district reduction can only be absorbed by the fire services division.
The Sheriff’s budget consumes and utilizes all property taxes collected by the municipal service district.
Community challenges
5. What service and programs could be affected?
Public Safety, Infrastructure, Quality of Life
Property taxes help fund a majority of the infrastructure, services, programs, and facilities Volusia County provides for the community. While the proposal would reduce property tax revenue collected by local governments, the demand for services and the cost of providing them will not go away — there will simply be significantly less revenue available to pay for them.
Select a Service Area to See Details:
- Potential $37M loss in funding for deputies, vehicles, and equipment.
- Potential $16M loss resulting in fewer firefighters, closed fire stations, and longer response times.
- Potentially longer ambulance response times during periods of high demand.
- Fewer resources available to expand EMS coverage for our growing population.
- Potentially fewer lifeguards and fewer staffed lifeguard towers.
- Increased beach driving or off-beach parking fees to help maintain beach operations.
- Potentially fewer resources available to prepare for, respond to, and recover from major emergencies and natural disasters.
- Potentially fewer resources available to reunite lost pets with their owners and respond to public safety calls regarding animal concerns.
- Potentially less frequent canal and drainage maintenance.
- Delayed stormwater and flooding improvement projects.
- Potentially longer timelines for road resurfacing, sidewalk improvements, and neighborhood drainage projects.
- Potentially longer wait times for mosquito treatment requests.
- Greater emphasis on reactive spraying rather than proactive neighborhood treatments.
- Potentially longer wait times and fewer staff to assist with navigating VA benefits and claims.
- Reduced operating hours.
- Potentially shuttered library branches, fewer days open, and reduced hours.
- Fewer educational programs for children, seniors, and families.
- Potentially closed parks and delayed park and trail maintenance.
- Reduced recreational programming and higher participation fees.
- Potentially fewer VoTran routes or shorter operating hours.
- Fares could increase to help offset operating costs.
- Water quality monitoring, sea turtle conservation efforts, and habitat restoration projects could all be reduced or delayed.
- Potentially fewer conservation acquisitions.
- Less public land for recreational opportunities.
- Elimination of programming.
Private businesses and nonprofit agencies: Could experience a significant reduction in contracts with local governments.
Not One-Size-Fits-All
6. Who Pays Under a Tax Shift?
Segments of the Community Will Be Impacted Differently
A tax shift could occur if elected officials determine it is necessary to raise additional revenue by assessing higher taxes on non-homestead properties or fees for services now funded by property taxes.
Community Wide
A tax shift is predicted to impact businesses, commercial property owners, renters, military families, young Floridians, visitors and tourists.
Commercial & Residential Properties
Rents could increase, millage rates could increase on residential and commercial properties, and residents could experience new fees.
Local Governments
Depending on the makeup of a local government’s tax base, the tax shift will impact each agency and municipality differently.
putting it into perspective
7. Volusia’s record... a decade of rate cuts
a history of responsible budgeting and financial stewardship
Through conservative fiscal management and thorough financial oversight, Volusia County has reduced the millage rate every year for the last decade.
| Fund | FY2016 rate | FY2026 rate | Annual difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Fund + Law Enforcement | 6.3189 | 4.8001 | $95,986,005 |
| Library | 0.5520 | 0.3697 | $11,521,101 |
| Municipal Service District | 2.2399 | 1.6956 | $6,919,472 |
| Fire Rescue District | 4.0815 | 3.6236 | $5,964,500 |
| Mosquito Control | 0.1880 | 0.1573 | $1,349,037 |
| Ponce Inlet Port Authority | 0.0929 | 0.0660 | $1,182,056 |
| Silver Sands–Bethune Beach | 0.0150 | 0.0099 | $7,914 |
| ECHO / Volusia Forever | 0.2000 | 0.2000 | — no change |
| Total, all county taxing funds | $122,930,086 |
What This Means for Volusia County
- $528 million is the flexible revenue the County has to work with.
- 86 percent of that flexible revenue is property tax.
- $129.3 million is removed every year — 28% of all property taxes.
- Largest impact on quality-of-life services (beaches, parks, transit, human & veterans services).
- No allocation of a cut this large avoids public safety.
The Big Picture on Property Tax Reform
in Volusia County
A Record of Conservative Fiscal Management
- Volusia County has a long history of conservative fiscal management.
- Like any household or business, we continuously look for efficiencies, evaluate spending, and find ways to operate more effectively within the budget.
- In fact, the County decreased its operating budget every year for the previous nine years.
- We also steadily reduced the millage rate over the past nine years while continuing to provide services to a growing community.
The Community and Its Investment
- Property taxes represent the relationship between the community and residents' investment in the services they need and utilize — property taxes fund many of those services.
- If the amendment passes, local governments will have to make difficult decisions about how those services are delivered and funded in the future.
- Those decisions could include closed facilities, eliminated services, and additional or higher fees.
- Whatever your perspective on the proposed amendment, we hope this page provided a clearer understanding of why this proposal is significant and why these conversations matter.
