By L. A. “Tony” Kovach
According to the Institute on Tax and Economic Policy (itep.org), it is approaching 50 years since California’s famous Proposition 13 to control property taxes was enacted in 1978. Fast forward to election season 2026, and early voting is underway in Florida (and several other states). Amendment 3 is on the ballot, one of several similar efforts in various parts of the U.S. to bring rising real estate property taxes under control.
Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) is hardly the first politician or personality to express the notion that if you are paying property taxes, you are effectively renting your land from the government because if you don’t pay the tax you will lose your property. Recent public polling tends to show that Amendment 3 is favored by over half of voters, but by less than the 60 percent needed to pass.
Sassafrass84 on X advised county officials: “You can learn to budget” and pivoted to fellow citizens: “Attention Floridians…vote YES on amendment 3…” Someone responded to that X-post with the “No on 3″ video. That X-post doesn’t say how much local spending by public officials increased since 2019.
From BEA/FRED annual data : FRED | St. Louis Fed: Year Local Gov’t Current Expenditures (Billions, not seasonally adjusted) 20193,150.0 (approx., from historical series)20203,200.0020213,354.9020223,603.4020233,827.6020244,063.50
Bottom lines?
- Local government spending has jumped 35% nationally from 2019 to 2025.
- ‘Official’ inflation during that 2019-2025 timeframe is 26.02 percent.
- From 2019 to 2025, U.S. existing home prices rose about 51%.
- New single‑family “site‑built” home prices rose about 50%.
- The U.S. average manufactured home price increased roughly 40% according to available national data.
In the Amendment 3 contest that looks ‘tight’ per public opinion surveys, one might think that Florida Realtors would have posted their video on social media for easy sharing. If so, this writer and two different AIs couldn’t find it. So, I reached out to Pam Wiles, Chief Marketing & Communications Officer for that trade group plus other documented outreaches to Florida Realtors. Four days later, there has been no apparent response.
Speaking of polls.
“The polls are just being used as another tool of voter suppression. The polls are an attempt to not reflect public opinion, but to shape it. Yours. They want to depress the heck out of you.” BrainyQuote. – Rush Limbaugh, American radio host, political commentator, and media personality (1951–2021). For some years, yours truly frankly didn’t get Rush Limbaugh’s sense of humor or his use of sarcasm. When I flipped through the AM radio dial while driving and listened for a few minutes, I would end up moving on to another station. As a longtime political independent, for some time I could honestly say, Rush who? Living in the suburbs of Chicago, I heard progressive talk radio and conservative talk radio.
I’m still a political independent, a transplant to Florida from Illinois some 14 years ago, where the cost of moving to the Sunshine State was rapidly recovered by the savings in income and other taxes. I don’t work for Florida Realtors nor any candidate. I’ve been on both sides of the rent/own picture. That transparently frames my thoughts and research into Amendment 3. For a focused history on property taxes in the U.S., England, France, and Spain, plus more on the Amendment 3 issue, click here.
In voting on Amendment 3, or on any other issue or candidate, don’t let opinion polling keep you from voting. History proves polls have been correct as well as flawed. The only poll that ultimately counts is the final count by actual voters like you. No one needs to know how you voted once you enter that ballot – except you. ##
By L. A. “Tony” Kovach, publisher and co-founder of MHProNews, MHLivingNews, HousingWire contributor and previous op-eds via the Lakeland Gazette here.