Governor Pritzker Says His State Has 'Done Too Good' and Must Now Abolish the Tax That Pays for the Schools
The rainy-day fund is full, the surplus is up, the debt is down, and therefore — the governor reasons — the one tax homeowners hate most can be retired by November, with the details arriving afterward
Ink = the flip (fiction). Red = real Republican · Blue = real Democrat.
SPRINGFIELD — Governor Pritzker called this week for abolishing property taxes in his state by November, on the grounds that the state's finances were now so healthy that it was constitutionally forbidden from saving any more money and had no choice but to stop collecting some.
"We've done too good," the governor said, a sentence the Press's property tax desk has checked for grammar and for math and cleared on neither. The rainy-day fund, he said, had been quadrupled to the point that the constitution will not accept another deposit, surpluses were projected, debt was being paid down, and a lean government was therefore in a position to remove the principal funding source for counties, cities and special districts while trusting everyone to work it out.
The mechanism is a ballot amendment that would lift homestead exemptions high enough that the governor estimates more than nine in ten residents would owe nothing, at least to the taxing authorities that are not schools. School levies, which are roughly 40 percent of a typical bill, would remain — a detail the governor's language about abolition does not dwell on, and which local officials have been dwelling on for him.
Supporters called it bold relief for homeowners crushed by assessments that have grown faster than population and inflation combined. Opponents called it a governor promising to cancel the bill and leave the services, which is a trick that has been attempted before and has usually ended with the services. Both groups are aware that the other would swap speeches if the governor's party swapped.
"The money is there," said one aide. Asked where it would be in three years, the aide said that was a question for three years.
At press time the state's rainy-day fund remained full to the lid, overflowing slightly onto the capitol lawn, with a gauge on its side pegged into the red and a placard explaining that this was, in the governor's view, the good kind of red.
📜 The Receipts
What actually happened: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis called at a Thursday press conference for abolishing property taxes in the state by November, citing a balanced budget, surpluses, debt paydown and a rainy-day fund he said had been 'quadrupled' to the point the state is constitutionally barred from adding more — 'We've done too good.' He promoted a November ballot amendment that would raise homestead exemptions (he cited up to $500,000, making an estimated 92% of residents tax-free on non-school levies); the amendment requires 60% approval and does not apply to school district taxes, roughly 40% of a typical bill.