Blog · 15 October 2026

Florida Amendment 3 Homestead Exemption and Property Tax Cap: What the Nov. 3, 2026 Ballot Means for US CPA Firms

By Keshav Bansal, CA

Florida Amendment 3—on the November 3, 2026 ballot—would raise the non-school homestead exemption to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028, cut the annual assessment-growth cap on non-homestead property from 10% to 5%, and limit how counties and cities spend property-tax revenue. It needs 60% voter approval. For US CPA firms with Florida homeowners, landlords, or business property on the roll, the practical lesson is how a property tax bill is built—and why a bigger homestead exemption can shift the burden to renters, businesses, and second homes or push millage higher. This is a proposal, not enacted law.

What Amendment 3 would do

The Florida Division of Elections lists Amendment 3 (from CS/HJR 1F) with ballot language that would:

• Increase the homestead exemption for all non-school taxes to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028, then adjust for inflation thereafter;
• Require the Legislature to prescribe a uniform procedure for counties and municipalities to raise that exemption up to full assessed value for their levies, and allow special districts (with referendum approval) to do the same;
• Give persons who are not Florida residents on December 31, 2026 the existing homestead exemption when they first qualify, with the increased exemption beginning in the fifth year of exemption (to the extent the U.S. Constitution permits);
• Cut the annual cap on assessment increases for non-homestead property from 10% to 5%;
• Limit county and municipal property-tax spending to listed purposes (public safety, education and schools, infrastructure, natural resources, bond debt service, retirement benefits, and operations and administration), with other spending only as general law allows;
• Take effect January 1, 2027 if approved.

School district levies stay outside the new exemption amounts: the ballot summary applies the increase to non-school taxes. Florida Politics (Peter Schorsch, Oct. 8, 2026) describes the same package, including the five-year wait for new residents for the full break.

Fiscal score and the 60% hurdle

The Florida House final bill analysis of CS/HJR 1F reports that the state’s Revenue Estimating Conference estimated cash impacts on local non-school property-tax revenues of −$4.95 billion in FY 2027-28 (with the $150,000 exemption) and −$8.78 billion in FY 2028-29 (with the $250,000 exemption), with a recurring impact of −$11.86 billion. Florida Politics (Schorsch, Oct. 8) cites those state-economist figures and notes there is no replacement funding in the amendment.

Florida constitutional amendments need 60% yes. A St. Pete Polls survey for Florida Politics (Oct. 5–7, 2026; reported Oct. 8) found 42% yes, 35% no, and 23% undecided among likely voters—well short of passage on that poll. Treat it as a live ballot fight.

How a Florida property tax bill is computed

Florida Department of Revenue (DOR) materials stack the bill as:

• Just value − assessment limits = assessed value;
• Assessed value − exemptions = taxable value;
• Taxable value × millage rate = tax.

DOR’s millage guide states that one mill is $1 per $1,000 of taxable value (taxable value ÷ 1,000 × millage). County, city, school board, and special districts each apply their own rates; school and non-school taxable values can differ because homestead exemptions treat school levies differently.

DOR brochure pt113 describes today’s homestead structure: the first $25,000 applies to all taxes including schools; an additional amount applies only above $50,000 of assessed value and only to non-school taxes (with CPI adjustments when positive). Amendment 3 would expand the non-school side for qualifying residents without rewriting school levies in the ballot’s “non-school taxes” framing.

Homestead exemptions vs Save Our Homes

Clients often mix two tools:

• An exemption subtracts dollars from assessed value before millage applies.
• An assessment limitation caps how fast assessed value can rise.

For homestead property, Florida’s Save Our Homes (SOH) limitation—DOR pt112 and §193.155, F.S.—generally holds that after the first homestead year, assessed value cannot rise by more than three percent or the CPI change, whichever is less. The gap between just value and capped assessed value is the SOH benefit. Amendment 3 does not repeal SOH; it layers a larger non-school homestead exemption on top and tightens the non-homestead assessment-growth cap from 10% to 5%.

That non-homestead change matters for rentals, commercial parcels, and second homes outside SOH. A lower growth cap slows assessed-value climb on those parcels—but a larger homestead exemption still removes taxable value from the local base. Related reading: our state millionaire tax 2027 roundup and California Prop 40 domicile vs residency (also on the Nov. 3, 2026 ballot calendar).

Why exemptions can shift the burden

Exempting more homestead value does not, by itself, cut what local governments spend. Without replacement revenue, they face some mix of service cuts, other taxes or fees, or millage increases on the remaining base—rentals, businesses, vacant land, and second homes. Walk Florida clients through their TRIM notice (school vs non-school) rather than quoting a single statewide “savings” figure. On the federal return, property tax still feeds the SALT discussion under the 2026 cap—see our PTET and 2026 SALT cap guide—but this vote is a local-base problem first.

Checklist for US CPA firms

• Frame it as a proposal needing 60% on Nov. 3, 2026; date any poll you cite.
• Separate school vs non-school lines on the client’s notice before estimating any Amendment 3 effect.
• Map homestead vs non-homestead parcels (primary residence, rentals, commercial, second homes).
• Flag new-resident timing for clients not Florida residents on Dec. 31, 2026—existing exemption first; increased exemption in year five per the ballot summary.
• Do not promise millage stays flat if the base shrinks.
• Keep ordinary homestead filing with the county property appraiser—Amendment 3 does not replace SOH portability or exemption applications.

Where Tax Brew fits

Multi-state homeowners generate messy workpapers: TRIM notices, assessed vs just value, entity-owned rentals, and SALT worksheets. Tax Brew provides bookkeeping, cleanup and tax prep support for US CPA firms; your team keeps the advice and sign-off. See our services, or email info@taxbrewglobal.com.

Sources: Florida Division of Elections — Amendment 3; CS/HJR 1F enrolled; Florida House final bill analysis, CS/HJR 1F (Revenue Estimating Conference figures); EDR REC analysis (July 10, 2026); Peter Schorsch, Florida Politics (Oct. 8, 2026); Florida DOR FAQ — calculate property taxes; DOR Homeowner’s Guide: Millage; DOR pt112 Save Our Homes; DOR pt113 homestead exemption. General information, not tax or legal advice. Amendment 3 is a ballot measure as of publication—not enacted law.