AMENDMENT 1 Spurs A Flurry Of Portability Applications

SEBRING - Three weeks ago, when Amendment One was passed, the great unknown was portability. That provision in the constitutional amendment allows homeowners to take the 3 percent their Save Our Home caps property taxes and move it to a new home.

Now that question is starting to be answered.

"We've had 100 applications for portability," said Property Appraiser Raymond McIntyre. "That's from inside Highlands County. We've also had 36 people who are moving here from other counties."

When they receive a homestead exemption application, taxpayers are asked if they already have a homestead exemption in another Florida county. If they do, McIntyre's office faxes the other county to get information.

So far, only five requests have been received from other property appraisers, so it appears Highlands County could have an influx of people moving here.

Before Jan. 29, when voters approved constitutional Amendment One, it was speculated that coastal homeowners might to sell their expensive homes and move to Highlands, where homes and land may cost far less, and taxes are cheaper.

That could be good for the local economy because new residents will buy gasoline, shop at grocery stores and build new homes, but bad because they'll pay far less in taxes than Highlands County citizens, McIntyre said.

Highlands County homeowners will also get a tax break from Amendment One, McIntyre said.
For instance, if a homeowner sold his $500,000 house and bought a $250,000 house, he would have a $150,000 taxable value, and pay about $977 less in annual taxes.

"We're scrambling here, with getting the new forms, and getting everything lined up so we can do a methodical job between counties," McIntyre said.

"We're also working with our mobile home park residents, sending out forms for them to sign to get their exemptions," McIntyre said. Businesses, farms and mobile home owners were also granted new tax exemptions by Amendment One.

Homestead exemptions must be filed by March 1.

More info: Property Appraiser, 402-6659.

Lawsuit Challenges Tax Exemptions
A lawsuit filed Feb. 14 in state court challenges Amendment One and the increased disparity between what taxpayers pay because of tax exemptions.

The plaintiffs, three homeowners from Tallahassee, Port Charlotte and North Palm Beach, have asked a judge to strike down Save Our Homes and the portability provision that lets homeowners take tax exemptions when they move from one Florida home to another.

They allege the exemptions violate the people's right to travel, guaranteed under the U.S. Constitution. Amendment One also gives longtime homeowners a bigger tax exemption than short-term homeowners.

The judge is asked to refund the money the plaintiffs paid in extra taxes, compared to what their neighbors paid.

Another state judge in Tallahassee has dismissed a similar lawsuit by out-of-state owners of second homes in Florida. An appeal of that decision is pending.

HOW SAVE OUR HOMES WORKS
A Florida citizen who lives in his home may apply for a $25,000 homestead exemption. If the market value of the home is $200,000, the taxable value of the home is $175,000.

Amendment One granted an extra $25,000 on the value of homes, so the taxable value of the same $200,000 home is now $150,000.

Save Our Homes is a 1992 constitutional amendment which allows the tax assessor to raise the assessed value of the home by a maximum of 3 percent per year. So a $200,000 home can be worth no more than $206,000 in the next tax year.