Florida’s sheriffs have mounted a high-profile campaign against Amendment 3, warning that the November 2026 ballot measure’s large expansion of the homestead exemption will gut funding for public safety. At the same time, documented spending growth, high executive compensation, and specific perks at several sheriff’s offices have fueled criticism that local governments, including some of those sounding the alarms, have room to cut before essential services are threatened. The tension is sharpened by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ argument that local property-tax collections have nearly doubled in recent years and that spending discipline, not automatic service reductions, is the proper response.
Amendment 3 would raise the homestead exemption for non-school property taxes (those levied by counties, cities, and special districts) from the current roughly $50,000–$51,000 level to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028, with further inflation adjustments thereafter and a pathway toward eventual full elimination of non-school taxes on qualifying homes. School taxes are unaffected. It would also lower the annual assessment-growth cap on non-homestead properties from 10% to 5% and restrict the uses of remaining property-tax revenue to core functions including public safety, education, infrastructure, and natural resources. State economists project multi-billion-dollar annual reductions in local revenue once phased in, with no automatic state replacement funding.
Under Florida law, a homestead for property-tax exemption purposes is the owner’s permanent residence as of January 1 of the tax year. The owner must hold legal or beneficial title, make the property their primary home in good faith (supported by evidence such as a Florida driver’s license, voter registration, and actual occupancy), and file the exemption application by March 1. Qualifying properties include single-family homes, condominiums, cooperative apartments, and mobile homes with an ownership interest in the land. An individual can claim only one homestead. Second homes, investment properties, rentals, and commercial real estate do not qualify for the exemption. The constitutional acreage limits (half an acre inside a municipality or 160 acres outside) apply mainly to the separate creditor-protection homestead, but the tax exemption follows the permanent-residence rules in statute.
The Florida Sheriffs Association and many individual sheriffs, including Polk County’s Grady Judd and Marion County’s Billy Woods, have described Amendment 3 as a “train wreck.” Their ads and statements argue it would produce fewer deputies, slower 911 responses, and longer waits for ambulances and fire services because property taxes are the largest single funding source for those functions in most counties. Several offices have released local impact estimates projecting tens of millions in annual shortfalls that could force hiring freezes or service reductions. Miami-Dade Sheriff Rosie Cordero-Stutz has broken with the association, saying voters should not be told that tax relief and public safety are mutually exclusive and that agencies have a duty to find efficiencies.
Critics counter that some sheriff’s offices have expanded spending and compensation well beyond inflation and population growth. In Palm Beach County, Sheriff Ric Bradshaw’s office has funded supplemental 401(a) retirement accounts for executives that have absorbed more than $6.3 million in taxpayer money since 2021, with top officials receiving 20% of salaries (including some paid $352,000 annually) deposited into the accounts on top of Florida Retirement System pensions. Former Chief Deputy Michael Gauger received a roughly $743,000 administrative-leave payout upon retirement in addition to unused leave. More than 100 PBSO employees have earned over $200,000. Bradshaw’s overall budget has grown substantially and recently approached or exceeded $1 billion.
In Broward County, Sheriff Gregory Tony’s Research, Development and Training Center saw costs rise from an original roughly $34 million proposal to about $74 million. County audits and officials have flagged amenities including a sauna, cold plunge, spa-like facilities, and extensive branding featuring the sheriff’s name (including on shower curtains), along with questions about diverted salary funds and overruns. Ongoing budget disputes have centered on transparency and the size of the office’s request relative to other county priorities. Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno’s budget has risen sharply since he took office (reports cite roughly 65% growth in earlier periods), with purchases including multiple ice cream trucks totaling nearly $350,000 and other non-core items; command staff salaries have reached the $200,000–$295,000 range in some cases. Across the state, many sheriffs earn well above $200,000, with some of the highest (such as in large counties) exceeding $280,000, figures that exceed the governor’s salary.
DeSantis has repeatedly argued that local governments can absorb the proposed relief through spending restraint. He has noted that statewide local property-tax collections rose from roughly $31 billion eight years ago to about $61 billion, describing the increase as unsustainable and stating that local officials “don’t need to have doubled property tax revenue in eight years.” His message is that rising collections from higher property values have driven spending growth, and that Amendment 3 would force prioritization of core services while returning money to homestead owners. He has indicated he will vote for the measure but has not fully campaigned for this legislative version, which differs from his preferred full phase-out of homestead taxes and includes no dedicated state backfill fund.
The resulting debate pits warnings about service levels, especially in smaller jurisdictions with limited commercial tax bases, against evidence of compensation growth, executive perks, and facility spending at certain sheriff’s offices. Whether voters view those documented expenditures as evidence that cuts can be made without endangering public safety, or as secondary to the scale of the revenue reduction, will help determine the outcome on November 3.
