Amendment 3 proposed tax relief under attack

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) – July 20, 2010 – Labor unions and a taxpayer are challenging a proposed state constitutional amendment that would give an extra property tax break to some homebuyers.

A Tallahassee judge has scheduled a final hearing Thursday in the lawsuit seeking to remove Amendment 3 from Florida’s November ballot.

The proposal, which the Legislature approved last year, would give people who have not owned a home for at least eight years an added – but temporary – homestead exemption on primary residences purchased on or after Jan. 1, 2010.

The Florida AFL-CIO and Jacksonville resident Brian K. Doyle say in their lawsuit that the title and summary are flawed because they don’t mention the purchase date.

The plaintiffs also argue the title says the added exemption is for “new homestead owners” and the summary refers to “a first-time homestead” despite the eight-year provision that allows previous homeowners to qualify.

Doyle would not qualify for the tax break and many union members are government employees paid from property taxes that would be cut by the amendment.

In a written response, the state says the title and summary accurately describe the proposal’s chief purpose and that the purchase date is the kind of detail not required by law.

The state also contends the terms “new homestead owners” and “first-time homestead” are commonly understood and that the eight-year provision is cited in the summary so it’s clear who can qualify for the tax break.

The amendment would give those homeowners an additional exemption of at least 25 percent in the first year. It would continue for four more years but be reduced incrementally each of those years.

The purpose is to reduce some of the disparity in taxes paid by recent purchasers and longtime homeowners who get more benefit from the Save Our Homes Amendment. That 1992 constitutional provision caps annual assessment increases at 3 percent for owners of primary homes, also known as homesteads.

The disparity only increased after voters approved another tax relief amendment in 2008 that lets homeowners take at least part of their Save Our Homes benefits with them when they move.

Another provision in Amendment 3 would lower a cap on annual assessment increases for businesses and other non-homestead properties from 10 percent to 5 percent.

It is one of five proposed amendments, out of nine slated for the Nov. 2 ballot, that are being challenged.

The Florida Supreme Court is considering two cases involving three proposals dealing with legislative and congressional redistricting. Two of those, Amendments 5 and 6, are citizen initiatives designed to curtail gerrymandering. The other, Amendment 7, was proposed by the Legislature to counteract the initiatives.

Amendment 9, which would block requirements for citizens to buy health insurance, also is being challenged. A Circuit Court hearing is set for July 29 in Tallahassee.

The Republican-controlled Legislature offered the proposal in response to passage of Democratic President Barack Obama’s national health care overhaul. Legal experts, though, say it cannot stand in the way of the new federal law although it could prevent the state from implementing a similar program.

That case and the tax relief challenge also are likely to end up in the Supreme Court.