Property tax cut emerges from fight

After several failed attempts, the Legislature on Monday voted to put a property tax cut plan on the January ballot that would save taxpayers $12.4-billion over five years. The House's 97-18 vote of approval was more a capitulation to the Senate than it was an embrace of the final package. With a deadline for final action looming and House and Senate leaders at loggerheads, the Senate rushed the plan through its chamber earlier in the day and then left town to avoid further negotiation. Now, Florida voters will consider a Jan. 29 referendum on a property tax plan with three major components: doubling the $25,000 homestead exemption, at an estimated average savings of $240 a year; allowing people to keep their accrued Save Our Homes benefits when they move; and imposing a 10 percent annual cap on nonhomestead assessments.

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