Amendment 3 passed. Here’s what changes locally

Florida voters approved Amendment 3 on Tuesday with about 62% of the vote, two points over what it needed. Osceola went about 66% yes, per Positively Osceola. All of these results are unofficial until the state certifies them. Vol. 29 priced this as a ballot question. Now it’s a change to your bill and to four local budgets, and both depend on where you live.

Nothing changes on the bill arriving this month. The exemption rises to $150,000 on the 2027 tax roll and $250,000 on the 2028 roll, for non-school taxes only. Assessments and fees stay. Osceola County says homesteaded owners average about $939 a year in those.

Two notes on the numbers below. The savings are my math: $198,589 of added exemption by 2028, at today’s rates, on a home assessed at $250,000 or more. Assessed value, not market value. Boards can change rates, so none of it is a promise. The budget figures are each government’s own estimate, made before the vote, and some of the officials citing them publicly opposed the amendment, including Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer.

Osceola County

On your bill, the general county tax falls about $1,331 a year by 2028. The county’s EMS, library and SAVE Osceola taxes could add up to about $321 more if they’re on your bill, so check which lines you pay.

In the budget, the county estimates collecting about $57.3 million less in tax year 2027 and $94.6 million less by 2028. That’s about 19% of the $492.6 million it raises in property taxes and about 3% of its $3.1 billion total budget. Read both numbers. The county says much of the rest of that budget is restricted by law, grants or contracts.

Staff have listed $77.0 million in possible reductions, and the county says none have been adopted. The ones closest to this corridor: removing the rescue unit at Station 54 in Harmony, reducing or eliminating subdivision road resurfacing, and renegotiating or eliminating developer agreements that include Sunbridge Parkway, Jack Brack and Hickory Tree. In September, Commission Chairman Brandon Arrington told WFTV the county might claw back the sheriff’s 12% budget increase if the amendment passed.

City of St. Cloud

On your bill, the city’s 5.1128 mills fall about $1,015 by 2028. Inside the city you pay the county lines too, so a qualifying home saves about $2,346 across the city and general county taxes, or up to about $2,667 if all three other county taxes apply. The new school mill goes the other way. It costs about $325 on a home assessed at $350,000, and it runs for four years starting in 2027-28.

In the budget, the city estimated losing $8 million in 2027-28 and $13.73 million in 2028-29, per a pre-vote Osceola News-Gazette report. By my math, the larger figure is about 37% of the roughly $36.9 million in property taxes behind the General Fund and about 6% of the full $231.3 million budget. Those come from different documents, so treat them as estimates.

The $231.3 million budget the city proposed in September used no reserves, a first in more than 30 years, and its rate has held for 14 years. It also added 48 firefighters for new stations. Before the vote, Deputy City Manager Scott Davidoff said future reductions would mean cuts to public service. I haven’t found a city statement since Tuesday. Alex Rodriguez won Seat 5, so a new council member will be voting on these budgets.

Orange County

The county estimates $165 million less in 2027 and $275 million less in 2028, which is about 3% of a budget above $9 billion. Budget Director Kurt Petersen’s first-year breakdown was about $89 million in countywide taxes, $46 million in fire taxes for unincorporated Orange County, and $30 million in sheriff’s taxes. Most of Lake Nona sits inside Orlando, so the countywide piece is the one to follow there.

Mayor-elect Tiffany Moore Russell takes office Dec. 8. She told WFTV the options include a hiring freeze, cutting vacant positions and delaying capital projects, and that she isn’t ready to propose fees or increases.

City of Orlando and Lake Nona

On your bill, Orlando’s 6.65 mills fall about $1,321 by 2028, before counting Orange County’s lines. In the budget, the city estimates $30 million less in fiscal 2028 and $50 million less in fiscal 2029. City staff recommended a hiring freeze through fiscal 2029, and the city proposed a stabilization fund built from year-end surpluses. I haven’t seen a cut that names Lake Nona, and I won’t imply one.

The case for it, and who gets less

Supporters say this keeps people in their homes. Florida Realtors CEO Margy Grant made that case to CBS12, and backers point to state data showing nearly 30% of Florida homeowners 65 and older spend at least 30% of their income on housing. In St. Cloud, John Kalish has argued it will force local governments to budget soundly, per the News-Gazette. The amendment also directs county and city property taxes toward listed uses, including public safety and infrastructure, though the ballot summary lets those boards approve other spending unless state law prohibits it.

Renters and owners of second homes, rentals and commercial property get none of the larger exemption. Non-homestead owners get the 5% assessment cap, which supporters say could lower costs for landlords and businesses. Osceola County says that if it raises its rate, those owners carry a greater share, and landlords may pass that on. Orlando says more than 60% of its residents rent. No board has voted on a response yet, so neither outcome has happened.

Boards can’t simply raise rates by majority vote. Under a state law that took effect in June, going above the rolled-back rate takes a two-thirds vote up to 110% of that rate. Beyond that takes a unanimous vote, three-fourths on boards of nine or more, or a referendum. I’m not telling you whether voters got this right. They decided, and these are the local consequences as each government has estimated them.

Moving here after Dec. 31? The big exemption waits

Vol. 13 flagged this as ballot language. It now has a date, 56 days out. Per the ballot summary, anyone who isn’t a Florida resident on Dec. 31, 2026 gets the existing exemption when they first qualify. The increased one starts with their fifth year of exemption, to the extent the U.S. Constitution allows. That last clause suggests it could be tested. I’m not a lawyer, and more detail is expected in implementing legislation.

On my math, that’s about $2,346 a year in city and general county taxes on a qualifying St. Cloud home, for the first four years, at today’s rates. This matters if you’re relocating from out of state. It doesn’t apply on its face if you’re already a Florida resident on Dec. 31 and moving within the state. The summary says resident, and it doesn’t say closed on a house, so ask the property appraiser what proof counts.

What to watch

State certification, then the implementing bill expected by the 2027 session. It also has to set the procedure for counties and cities to raise the exemption up to full assessed value. One question of mine, not reported anywhere I’ve found: the new rate law doesn’t say how the rolled-back rate treats a tax base shrunk by a larger exemption.

Osceola’s first post-vote budget workshop, and which listed options become actual proposals. Mary Downey joins the commission in District 4.

What Moore Russell proposes after Dec. 8, and whether Orlando names any project affected in Lake Nona.

I’m also watching

Something heard, not confirmed: social media posts say county commissioners voted Nov. 2 on a contractor for a $100 million performing arts center at NeoCity. I couldn’t find a county record or news report of it. GrowthSpotter reported in 2025 that the county issued $125 million in Tourist Development Tax bonds toward the project, and the county says that tax generally can’t replace property tax revenue. The meeting agenda or video would confirm it.

A filed plan, reported secondhand: Tavistock submitted plans for a large home improvement store on about 15.6 acres east of Lake Nona West. Reports point to Home Depot, which hasn’t confirmed it. A filing that names the tenant would settle it.

My stake, so you can weigh this: I sell real estate here, lower carrying costs can help my business, and Florida Realtors, my industry’s statewide trade group, backed this amendment.

Chad