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Florida's Property Tax System FLORIDA'S PROPERTY TAX SYSTEM Who Is Involved? OWNER Property Owner/Taxpayer:A/\ Ay persontaxes or other legal entity who owns property which is assessed annually for property PA Property Appraiser: A county official,governed by the' orida Constitution and CI Statutes, responsible for determining the value of all property within the county TA ft Taxing Authority: A unit of government, governed by the Florida Constitution and Statutes, that adopts a budget and levies a millage rate to fund the budget. Some examples of �; taxing authorities are county governments, school boards, water management districts, special •' ..' districts and municipalities within a county. TC it Tax Collector: A county official, governed by the Florida Constitution and Statutes, responsible for the collection and distribution of all property taxes that are established by Q I taxing authorities within the county VAB • • Value Adjustment Board (VAB): Each county has a value adjustment board. • The VAB has five members: two from the board of county commissioners, one from the A county's school board and two citizens. How Is a Tax Bill Calculated? What Does That Mean? -- Market(or Just)Value:The property appraiser determines the market value Market(or _ Assessment = Assessed of a parcel based on market activity prior to the assessment date. Just)Value Differential Value Assessment Differential:The property appraiser ensures that annual value I caps,established in the Florida Constitution,are applied to the market value(no more than 3%increase for homestead residential property and 10%for Assessed _ Exemptions _ 411.11,0110 commercial properties). Value Assessed Value:The property's market value with assessment differential for annual value caps applied Exemptions:Reductions in property tax owed based on applying and qualifying Taxable % Millage = Ad Valorem for the exemption(e.g.,homestead,military/veteran,etc.) Rates Taxes Taxable Value:The property's assessed value with exemptions applied Millage Rates:Each taxing authority adopts a budget and levies a millage rate to fund the budget. Ad Valorem + Non-Ad Valorem = Annual Ad Valorem Taxes:The tax collector applies the millage rate set by taxing Taxes Assessments Tax Bill authorities to the taxable value provided by the property appraiser. Non-Ad Valorem Assessments:Taxing authorities determine the non-ad valorem assessments(e.g.,fire service,solid waste service,mosquito control, iii etc.). Annual Tax Bill:The tax collector sends the tax bills and collects the annual ad 1 valorem property taxes and non-ad valorem assessments due from property a owners. FLORIDA FLORIDA'S PROPERTY TAX SYSTFM: The Assessment Year rJanuary 1 In Florida,the date of assessment,or valuation,is January 1.The property appraiser determines property values based on the previous year's market activities.The valuation includes applicable assessment caps.This amount is called the .— assessed value. March 1 Many property owners may be eligible for exemptions or classifications that can reduce their property taxes.Property owners must submit all exemption and classified use applications and documentation to the property appraiser in the county where the property is located no later than March 1. June 1 Each property appraiser reports the estimated total taxable value of all properties in the county to the taxing authorities. ®i, Taxing authorities include cities,counties,school boards,and independent districts.Taxing authorities use this estimated iiil ..nn taxable value to calculate the proposed millage rate and prepare a budget. July 1 Property appraisers formally certify the total taxable value of all properties in the county to the taxing authorities.This is called the county tax roll,and it is the beginning of the Truth in Millage(TRIM) process. Property appraisers must approve or deny property owners'exemption and classification applications by July 1. iil[ M NOTE:Property owners who wish to challenge the denial of the exemption or classification must file a petition to the �` value adjustment board(VAB)within 30 days after the property appraiser mails the denial notice. Mid/Late July Once the Department of Revenue(Department)reviews and determines the county tax roll is complete,the Department certifies the taxable value to the Department of Education for their work in setting school millage rates and computing the required local effort.This process is called equalization,and it ensures all school systems receive equal per-pupil funding regardless of the county's tax base.In mid to late July,school districts advertise their first public hearings to adopt r i 0K, tentative millage rates. NOTE: Property owners can attend and provide input at the public hearings. Before Each taxing authority reports its prior year millage rate,current year proposed millage rate,the rolled-back millage rate, August 5 TAI�•1 meeting location and schedule to the county property appraiser for use on the Notice of Proposed Property Taxes(known ®t� as the TRIM notice). Before Property appraisers mail the TRIM notice to property owners.This notice includes the: August 25 • Property appraiser's January 1 taxable value,classification,exemptions,assessment limitation/cap • Proposed budget and millage rate to fund the budget for each taxing authority and the amount of property taxes the property owner would owe if adopted by the taxing authority • Rolled-back millage rate,which is generally the amount of property taxes the property owner would owe if there is no change to the taxing authority's budget • Non-ad valorem assessments(if applicable) • Meeting date,time,and location for each taxing authority's public hearing NOTE:Property owners may request an informal conference with the property appraiser to discuss assessed value. °W"IA Property owners who wish to challenge their property's assessment must file a petition with the VAB within 25 days of tf receiving their TRIM notice. _ September- Taxing authorities hold public hearings to adopt a budget and levy a millage rate to fund the budget.At their first hearing October 9 (also called the tentative hearing),taxing authorities may amend their tentative budget and recalculate the millage rate. Additionally,at this hearing,the taxing authority must publicly announce the percentage(if any) by which the recalculated rate exceeds the rolled-back millage rate.If the first public hearing does not result in an adopted tentative budget and millage rate to fund the budget,taxing authorities recess the hearing and notify the public of the continued hearing date(s).The hearing continuation process may repeat until the tentative budget and millage rate are adopted. Next,taxing authorities hold final hearings to approve the budget and levy a millage rate to fund the budget two to five days after their public advertisement appears.The approval threshold for the taxing authority varies.The requirements are: • A simple majority for millage rates equal to the rolled-back millage rate • 2/3 approval for millage rates up to 110%of the rolled-back millage rate • Unanimous approval or a referendum for millage rates that exceed statutory maximum millage limits W^ ' The final adopted millage rate cannot be higher than the millage rate printed on the TRIM notice. AlriNOTE:Property owners can attend and provide input at the public hearings. October- The tax collector applies each taxing authority's final millage rate to the property's taxable value to calculate the amount November of ad valorem tax a property owner owes.Tax collectors mail tax bills to property owners.Tax bills detail the property's Tcjii assessed value,taxable value,and exemptions,as well as the millage rate and tax owed for each taxing authority.The 'n- total is the amount the taxpayer must pay by March 31 of the next year. November- Property owners pay property tax bills.A lienholder who has collected estimated property taxes from the property owner March 31 and held the funds in an escrow account may pay the bill.Property owners may receive a discount of up to 4%for early ill payment(payment is due by March 31). September- Value adjustment boards(VAB)meet.VABs hear and make final decisions on appeals regarding property value June assessments,denials of exemptions or classifications,denials of tax deferrals,portability decisions,and changes of ownership or control. Year- TC • round Q� County tax collectors distribute funds to the county taxing authorities monthly throughout the year.