TAMPA, Fla. – On Tuesday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis criticized local governments that have proposed budget increases, saying that they should focus on what he called “core functions” and reduce property taxes.
DeSantis’ remarks came amid a tug-of-war between the Jacksonville City Council President Kevin Carrico and Mayor Donna Deegan over the mayor’s proposed $2 billion budget for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, up from $1.88 billion from last year.
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“I don’t think anybody can justify the increases that we’ve seen in many of these local government budgets over the last four or five years,” DeSantis said.
Carrico, who has been publicly sparring with Deegan, announced on Monday that the budget the Finance Committee is sending to city council cuts more than $13 million from what Deegan proposed.
Carrico said the proposed cuts don’t come at the expense of what he called “essential services.”
“Our essential services are public safety first and foremost. That’s our responsibility as government: so police, fire, infrastructure needs, things that keep us safe.”
Deegan’s proposed budget included more than $12 million for affordable housing and homelessness programs. However, under the newly announced cuts, the money allocated for these two areas may be at risk.
“We hear all the time about infrastructure in the neighborhoods. We hear all the time about people that feel like their housing is out of control and unaffordable. You have to make sure that people understand that everything is predicated on how things affect our economy. And every time we don’t invest in these things, and every time that we have to pull money out of these things, it hurts our economy and it hurts our city,” Deegan said on Monday following Carrico’s announcement.
During reporter questions at a news conference in Tampa, DeSantis said a big issue that needs to be addressed in local budgets is property taxes, which he said have increased significantly over the last few years.
The governor, who has been pushing for property tax reform, said that instead of growing the budget in other areas, he would rather that money be used for property taxes.
“It’s a gusher of revenue that’s going into the coffers, and so rather than returning that money to the taxpayers, they’ve basically been spending it. What I think taxpayers want is, OK, local government, we want education, we want law enforcement and fire and other first responders. You know, some of the water infrastructure, but we don’t need some of the stuff that’s been spent money on,” DeSantis said.
The Finance Committee’s budget proposal includes a property tax rate cut of 1/8th of a mil, which determines how much you pay in property taxes.
One mill represents $1 of tax for every $1,000 of taxable property value. If your home’s taxable value is $200,000, the 1/8th cut would save you about $25 a year in this case.
But Deegan has called the proposal to cut property taxes “fiscally irresponsible.”
“The average homeowner will get about a dollar. A dollar a month back on property tax rollbacks. But what does that mean for seniors who tell us what they need like pools or meals for seniors? Or like housing that is affordable. All the money is gone for affordable housing right now,” Deegan said.
Carrico and the members of the Finance Committee said any dollar back in the hands of the taxpayer matters, and they countered Deegan’s assertion about funding for public safety and infrastructure.
“Essential services are essential. They will be funded. It’s all the other things, all the other choices that people have made,” said Florida Republican Party Chair Evan Power. “Property tax is the No. 1 issue facing Floridians, and if Jacksonville can make the tough decisions, so can every other city government across this state.”
DeSantis said he is working on a proposal to go on the ballot in November 2026 that will address property tax relief for Floridians.