Here’s what Florida Amendment 1 means on the November ballot

ORLANDO, Fla. – When Florida voters go to the polls in November, they may be stunned to see solely a handful of constitutional amendments on their poll. There are solely three this 12 months, an enormous departure from earlier elections.

The entire amendments had been positioned on the poll by the Florida Legislature. Two of them take care of taxes whereas one in all them offers with abolishing a fee that evaluations the structure. There aren’t any citizen initiatives on the poll this 12 months.

[RESULTS 2022: Everything you need to know about elections in Florida | How to make sure you can vote in Florida’s November election | Want to vote by mail in Florida? Here’s what you need to know ]

For an modification to move the poll, it should get 60% approval from the voters.

Here’s what Florida Modification 1 is about.

[ Here’s what Florida Amendment 2 means on the November ballot | Here’s what Florida Amendment 3 means on the November ballot]

BALLOT LANGUAGE

“Proposing an modification to the State Structure, efficient January 1, 2023, to authorize the Legislature, by basic legislation, to ban the consideration of any change or enchancment made to actual property used for residential functions to enhance the property’s resistance to flood injury in figuring out the assessed worth of such property for advert valorem taxation functions.”

BREAKING IT DOWN

While you make main adjustments to a house, these adjustments can have an effect on the assessed worth of your property, inflicting it to go up or down. There are already provisions within the state structure that enable the legislature to exempt wind injury property adjustments, or photo voltaic or renewable vitality units, from property assessments. This modification creates the identical exemption for adjustments that defend property from flood injury.

In accordance with a Florida Home workers evaluation of the invoice, these adjustments may embrace particular person initiatives like elevating constructions, filling basements in or waterproofing. It may additionally embrace upkeep initiatives like landscaping that enables for stormwater runoff, waterproofing basements, and elevating furnaces, heaters and electrical panels.

It may additionally embrace massive public works initiatives like dams, seawalls and levees.

Florida holds over one-third of the flood insurance coverage insurance policies issued by the Nationwide Flood Insurance coverage Program, and as local weather change causes sea ranges to rise, Florida will see extra extreme flood injury within the coming years from storms.

In accordance with the modification’s sponsors, the purpose of the modification is to incentivize these flooding resiliency adjustments.

BOTTOM LINE

A “YES” vote for this modification permits the Florida Legislature to move legal guidelines that will exempt flood resistance enhancements from being thought-about in property worth assessments, doubtlessly elevating property taxes. It takes impact Jan. 1, 2023.

A “NO” vote would imply nothing adjustments and the Florida Legislature can’t move legal guidelines to exempt flood resistance enhancements.