The Florida Senate
BILL ANALYSIS AND FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT
(This document is based on the provisions contained in the legislation as of the latest date listed below.)
Prepared By: The Professional Staff of the Committee on Appropriations
BILL: CS/CS/SB 1610
INTRODUCER: Appropriations Committee; Finance and Tax Committee; and Senator Rodriguez and
others
SUBJECT: Abatement of Ad Valorem Taxes and Non-ad Valorem Assessments for Residential
Improvements Destroyed Due to a Sudden and Unforeseen Collapse
DATE: March 2, 2022 REVISED:
ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR REFERENCE ACTION
1. Hackett Ryon CA Favorable
2. Gross Babin FT Fav/CS
3. Gross Sadberry AP Fav/CS
Please see Section IX. for Additional Information:
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE - Substantial Changes
I. Summary:
CS/CS/SB 1610 provides property tax relief to parcel owners affected by a sudden and
unforeseen collapse of a residential building. The bill requires the tax collector to abate all
property taxes and non-ad valorem assessments for each affected parcel and the property
appraiser must notify all parcel owners of the abatement. Parcel owners are not required to remit
payment and tax collectors and property appraisers may not issue tax notices.
The section of the Florida Statutes being created by the bill is repealed December 31, 2023,
unless reenacted by the Legislature.
The Revenue Estimating Conference estimated that the bill will reduce local property tax
revenue by $0.8 million in Fiscal Year 2022-2023 and by an insignificant amount each year
thereafter. School district revenue is estimated to decrease by $0.3 million in Fiscal Year 2022-
2023.
The bill takes effect upon becoming a law and applies retroactively to January 1, 2021.
BILL: CS/CS/SB 1610 Page 2
II. Present Situation:
General Overview of Property Taxation
The ad valorem tax or “property tax” is an annual tax levied by counties, municipalities, school
districts, and some special districts. The tax is based on the taxable value of property as of
January 1 of each year.1 The property appraiser annually determines the assessed or “just value”2
of property within the taxing jurisdiction and then applies relevant exclusions, assessment
limitations, and exemptions to determine the property’s “taxable value.”3 Tax bills are mailed in
November of each year based on the previous January 1 valuation and payment is due by March
31.
The Florida Constitution prohibits the state from levying ad valorem taxes4 and limits the
Legislature’s authority to provide for property valuations at less than just value, unless expressly
authorized.5
The just valuation standard generally requires the property appraiser to consider the highest and
best use of property;6 however, the Florida Constitution authorizes certain types of property to be
valued based on their current use (classified use assessments), which often result in lower
assessments. Properties that receive classified use treatment in Florida include: agricultural land,
land producing high water recharge to Florida’s aquifers, and land used exclusively for
noncommercial recreational purposes; land used for conservation purposes; historic properties
when authorized by the county or municipality; and certain working waterfront property.7
Tax Abatement for Natural Disasters
The Legislature has provided tax relief for property damaged by natural disasters on at least five
occasions.8 In 1988, the Legislature provided an abatement of taxes for properties damaged by
windstorms or tornadoes.9 To receive the abatement, the property owner was required to file an
application with the property appraiser by March 1 of the year following the year in which the
windstorm or tornado occurred.10 After making a determination on the validity of the
application, the property appraiser was directed to issue an official statement to the tax collector
containing the number of months the property was uninhabitable due to the damage or
1
Both real property and tangible personal property are subject to tax. Section 192.001(12), F.S., defines “real property” as
land, buildings, fixtures, and all other improvements to land. Section 192.001(11)(d), F.S., defines “tangible personal
property” as all goods, chattels, and other articles of value capable of manual possession and whose chief value is intrinsic to
the article itself.
2
Property must be valued at “just value” for purposes of property taxation, unless the Florida Constitution provides
otherwise. FLA. CONST. art VII, s. 4. Just value has been interpreted by the courts to mean the fair market value that a willing
buyer would pay a willing seller for the property in an arm’s-length transaction. See Walter v. Shuler, 176 So. 2d 81 (Fla.
1965); Deltona Corp. v. Bailey, 336 So. 2d 1163 (Fla. 1976); Southern Bell Tel. & Tel. Co. v. Dade County, 275 So. 2d 4
(Fla. 1973).
3
See s. 192.001(2) and (16), F.S.
4
FLA. CONST. art. VII, s. 1(a).
5
See FLA. CONST. art. VII, s. 4.
6
Section 193.011(2), F.S.
7
FLA. CONST. art. VII, s. 4.
8
Chapters 88-101, 98-185, 2004-474, 2007-106, and 2018-118, Laws of Fla.
9
Section 196.295(3), F.S., repealed by ch. 92-173, s. 8, Laws of Fla.
10
Section 196.295(3)(a), F.S., repealed by ch. 92-173, s. 8, Laws of Fla.
BILL: CS/CS/SB 1610 Page 3
destruction, the value of the property prior to the damage or destruction, the total taxes due on
the property as reduced by the number of months the property was uninhabitable, and the amount
of the reduction in taxes.11
Upon receipt of the official statement, the tax collector reduced the amount of taxes due on the
property on the tax collection roll and informed the board of county commissioners and the
Department of Revenue (DOR) of the total reduction in taxes for all property in the county
receiving the abatement.12 The law was applied retroactively to January 1, 1988, and included a
repeal effective July 1, 1989.13 The language was removed from statute in 1992.14
Most recently, the Legislature applied a similar process to abate taxes for homestead parcels
damaged or destroyed by Hurricanes Hermine and Matthew in 2016 or Hurricane Irma in 2017.
If the residential improvement was rendered uninhabitable for at least 30 days due to such a
hurricane, taxes initially levied in 2019 could be abated.15 The Legislature was required to
appropriate funds to fiscally constrained counties to offset the reduction in ad valorem tax
revenue resulting from the abatement.16
The Value Adjustment Board Process
Each county has a Value Adjustment Board (VAB), comprised of two members of the governing
body of the county, one member of the school board, and two citizen members appointed by the
governing body of the county.17 The county clerk acts as the clerk of the VAB.18 A property
owner may initiate an assessment valuation challenge by filing a petition with the clerk of the
VAB within 25 days after the mailing of the TRIM notice.19
The clerk of the VAB will schedule the petition for a hearing, during which a special magistrate
will hear testimony and make a recommendation to the VAB on how the petition should be
resolved.20 The VAB renders a written decision within 20 calendar days after the last day the
VAB is in session.21 The decision of the VAB must contain findings of fact and conclusions of
law and must include reasons for upholding or overturning the determination of the property
appraiser.22 The clerk of the VAB, upon issuance of a decision, must notify each taxpayer and
the property appraiser of the decision of the VAB.23
11
Section 196.295(3)(d), F.S., repealed by ch. 92-173, s. 8, Laws of Fla.
12
Section 196.295(3)(e)-(f), F.S., repealed by ch. 92-173, s. 8, Laws of Fla.
13
Section 196.295(3)(h), F.S., repealed by ch. 92-173, s. 8, Laws of Fla.
14
Chapter 92-173, s. 8, Laws of Fla.
15
Chapter 2018-118, s. 17, Laws of Fla. enacting s. 197.318, F.S.
16
Section 218.135, F.S., (2018) (Repealed 2019).
17
Section 194.015, F.S.
18
Id.
19
Section 194.011(3)(d), F.S. With respect to an issue involving the denial of an exemption, an agricultural or high-water
recharge classification application, an application for classification as historic property used for commercial or certain
nonprofit purposes, or a deferral, the petition must be filed at any time during the taxable year on or before the 30th day
following the mailing of the notice by the property appraiser.
20
Section 194.035, F.S.
21
Section 194.034(2), F.S.
22
Id.
23
Id.
BILL: CS/CS/SB 1610 Page 4
Champlain Towers South
On the morning of June 24, 2021, a 12-story condominium in Surfside, Florida unexpectedly
experienced structural failure and partially collapsed, resulting in the death of ninety-eight
people. The standing portion of the building, rendered uninhabitable, was demolished 10 days
later.
Alongside an extensive emergency management effort, the Governor issued Executive Order 21-
160 to suspend deadlines related to property tax administration for taxpayers whose property was
destroyed or rendered uninhabitable by the collapse.24 The suspensions include deadlines
regarding the notification and collection of ad valorem taxes. The executive order also requested
“the Florida Legislature to explore additional legislative acts as may be necessary to alleviate the
taxpayers’ property tax obligations.”25
III. Effect of Proposed Changes:
The bill creates s. 197.319, F.S., to provide tax relief to parcel owners affected by a sudden and
unforeseen collapse of a residential building. The bill requires the tax collector to abate all taxes
and non-ad valorem assessments for destroyed parcels and the property appraiser must notify the
owners of the abatement.
The bill defines “residential improvement” to mean a multistory residential building comprised
of at least 50 dwelling units. The condition of the residential improvement on the January 1 of
the year the property was destroyed must have been in such a state that the residential
improvement had no value due to a latent defect of the property not readily discernable by
inspection.
Parcel owners whose property tax is abated are not required to make a payment and property
appraisers and tax collectors are prohibited from issuing tax notices.
The bill requires value adjustment boards to dismiss petitions from parcel owners challenging the
value of the parcel for the year of the collapse.
For purposes of determining the “Save Our Homes” assessment limitation for property newly
homesteaded by an affected parcel owner, the property appraiser shall look to the just value and
assessed value of the destroyed parcel on the January 1 of the year preceding the year of the
destruction.
The bill requires tax collectors to refund tax payments made for taxes levied in the year of
collapse.
The section of the Florida Statutes being created by the bill is repealed December 31, 2023,
unless reenacted by the Legislature.
24
Executive Order 21-160, Office of the Governor, Jul. 9, 2021, available at: https://www.flgov.com/wp-
content/uploads/2021/07/EO-21-160.pdf (last visited January 20, 2022).
25
Id., s.2.
BILL: CS/CS/SB 1610 Page 5
The bill takes effect upon becoming a law and applies retroactively to January 1, 2021.
IV. Constitutional Issues:
A. Municipality/County Mandates Restrictions:
Article VII, s. 18 (b) of the Florida Constitution provides that except upon approval of
each house of the Legislature by two-thirds vote of the membership, the legislature may
not enact, amend, or repeal any general law if the anticipated effect of doing so would be
to reduce the authority that municipalities or counties have to raise revenue in the
aggregate, as such authority existed on February 1, 1989. However, the mandate
requirement does not apply to laws having an insignificant impact,26, 27 which for Fiscal
Year 2022-2023, is forecast at $2.3 million.28
The Revenue Estimating Conference’s estimate of the reduction to local property tax
revenue is less than $2.3 million. Therefore, this bill is not a mandate subject to the
provisions of Article VII, s. of the Florida Constitution.
B. Public Records/Open Meetings Issues:
None.
C. Trust Funds Restrictions:
None.
D. State Tax or Fee Increases:
This bill does not create or raise a state tax or fee. Therefore, the requirements of
Article VII, s. 19 of the Florida Constitution do not apply.
E. Other Constitutional Issues:
None identified.
V. Fiscal Impact Statement:
A. Tax/Fee Issues:
The Revenue Estimating Conference estimated that the bill will reduce local property tax
revenue by $0.8 million in Fiscal Year 2022-2023 and by an insignificant amount each
26
FLA. CONST. art. VII, s. 18(d).
27
An insignificant fiscal impact is the amount not greater than the average statewide population for the applicable fiscal year
multiplied by $0.10. See Florida Senate Committee on Community Affairs, Interim Report 2012-115: Insignificant Impact,
(September 2011), available at: http://www.flsenate.gov/PublishedContent/Session/2012/InterimReports/2012-115ca.pdf
(last visited Jan. 26, 2022).
28
Based on the Demographic Estimating Conference’s population estimates adopted on March 3, 2021. The conference
packet is available at http://edr.state.fl.us/Content/conferences/population/archives/210303demographic.pdf (last visited Jan.
26, 2022).
 BILL: CS/CS/SB 1610 Page 6
year thereafter. School district revenue is estimated to decrease by $0.3 million in Fiscal
Year 2022-2023.
B. Private Sector Impact:
Property owners who apply for and receive the tax abatement authorized by the bill will
benefit by a reduced tax burden.
C. Government Sector Impact:
None.
VI. Technical Deficiencies:
None.
VII. Related Issues:
None.
VIII. Statutes Affected:
This bill creates section 197.319 of the Florida Statutes.
IX. Additional Information:
A. Committee Substitute – Statement of Substantial Changes:
(Summarizing differences between the Committee Substitute and the prior version of the bill.)
CS/CS by Appropriations on February 28, 2022:
The committee substitute makes technical changes to clarify that a property appraiser
should look to the value of the destroyed parcel to determine the Save Our Homes benefit
that can be transferred to a new homestead. The CS clarifies that eligible persons may
receive a refund of non-ad valorem assessments, along with property taxes.
CS by Finance and Tax on February 10, 2022:
The CS:
 Abates all taxes and non-ad valorem assessments for property destroyed by a sudden
and unforeseen collapse.
 Defines a residential improvement as a multistory residential building consisting of at
least 50 dwelling units.
 Requires the condition of the building on the January 1 immediately preceding the
collapse to have had no value due to a latent defect not readily discernable by
inspection.
 Does not require parcel owners to remit a payment.
 Prohibits property appraisers and tax collectors to issue tax notices.
BILL: CS/CS/SB 1610 Page 7
 Requires the property appraiser to notify the taxpayer that all taxes and non-ad
valorem assessments have been abated for the year in which the property was
destroyed.
 Requires the value adjustment board to dismiss petitions pertaining to a challenge by
a parcel owner.
 Instructs property appraisers to use the values from the year be