THE GREAT BROWARD TAX SWITCHEROO
The governor is calling a special session on property tax reform.
Right on schedule, the panic machine fires up. Mention property tax reform and suddenly Broward is on the brink. Parks closed. Libraries only open for 2 hours - after the seniors go home for their nap and before the kids get out of school. AC turned off at city buildings so you can sweat it out while paying your water bill or filing a permit.
And if the sheriff doesn't get what he wants? You already heard threats about staffing shortages and we haven't even cut yet!
It's always the same script. Public safety. Parks. Libraries. Feel the pain.
Ignore the drama. Look at the math.
Government isn't starving. The state's latest revenue estimates for Broward County show something strange happening over the next five years.
The taxable value of homesteaded property – that's the homes where you and I sleep at night - is projected to jump almost 50 percent. Taxable value is the amount you are taxed on after exemptions and Save our Homes caps.
Investment properties and commercial buildings? They are only projected to go up about 30 percent.
This is backward.
For years, we were told growth pays for growth. Let the cranes rise and commercial development will shoulder the load. Homeowners will stabilize. The skyline will subsidize the subdivision.
Instead, homeowners are projected to grow 20 points faster than commercial property. The curves are flipped. The "protected" homeowners are growing faster than the investments. The projections show homeowners becoming the main engine of government growth. We are the cash cow.
Officials will say assessments are capped. That's technically true.
But what isn't capped is proportional burden. It matters because we all share the same tax bill. If the homeowner slice of the pie gets bigger, we pay a bigger chunk of the total cost. That's just math.
City and county leaders see these projections. They are licking their chops. They see nearly 50 percent growth in six years and start planning new spending.
So when the scare tactics start, don't bite.
This debate isn't about whether Broward can keep the lights on. Government isn't going broke. It is swimming in projected cash.
The special session needs to answer one question.
Why is a system designed to protect homeowners doing the exact opposite, and how can we fix the curve?