Ron DeSantis built his reputation taking on the establishment.
Now he's turning his fire on fellow Republicans.
And Ron DeSantis just declared war on House Republicans in Florida with one brutal reality check.
Republicans Fighting Each Other While Homeowners Get Crushed
Florida homeowners are drowning in property taxes that jumped 47% since 2019.¹
Local property tax revenue exploded from $32 billion in 2019 to $56 billion today — a 75% increase that's crushing young families and retirees on fixed incomes.²
Republicans control the Governor's mansion and both chambers of the Legislature, but instead of fixing the problem they're at each other's throats.
Florida House Republicans thought they had a brilliant plan to cut property taxes.
House Speaker Daniel Perez unveiled not one but seven different constitutional amendments to slash homestead property taxes in various ways — from complete elimination to phased reductions over ten years to targeted relief for seniors 65 and older.³
The proposals all protect school funding and law enforcement budgets while putting the power in voters' hands on the November 2026 ballot.
Perez argued voters should get to "choose some, all, or none of the proposals" rather than being limited to a single option.⁴
That's when DeSantis dropped the hammer.
DeSantis Exposes The Truth About Multiple Ballot Measures
"Placing more than one property tax measure on the ballot represents an attempt to kill anything on property taxes," DeSantis fired back on X.⁵
"It's a political game, not a serious attempt to get it done for the people."
https://twitter.com/RonDeSantis/status/1981194783013167322?s=20
DeSantis knows exactly what happens when you confuse voters with multiple competing amendments on the same topic.
They vote no on everything.
Florida's Constitution requires 60% voter approval for any amendment to pass — a deliberately high bar that protects against hasty changes.⁶
When voters see seven different property tax proposals on the same ballot, they don't carefully analyze which combination works best.
They assume politicians are playing games and reject the whole mess.
That's precisely what DeSantis accused House Republicans of doing — sabotaging real relief by cluttering the ballot.
Speaker Perez responded with barely concealed contempt.
"The Governor has not produced a plan on property taxes. Period," Perez shot back.⁷
"It's unclear what he wants to do. I've personally reached out to share with him the House's proposals and he has, so far, not wanted to engage in a conversation."
The House Speaker basically called DeSantis all talk and no action on the signature issue DeSantis has been campaigning on for months.
The Real Numbers Show Why This Fight Matters
DeSantis has the facts on his side about who actually pays Florida property taxes.
Roughly 64-70% of Florida's property tax revenue comes from second homes, vacation rentals, Airbnb properties, and commercial real estate — not primary residences.⁸
That means snowbirds and out-of-state investors are bankrolling most of Florida's local government budgets.
Florida homeowners with homestead exemptions pay only about 30-33% of total property tax revenue, yet they're the ones getting squeezed hardest by rising valuations.⁹
A young family that bought a house three years ago faces vastly higher property taxes than an elderly couple who's lived in their home for 30 years, even if both homes are worth the same amount today.
That's because Florida's Save Our Homes protection caps annual assessment increases at 3% for homesteaded properties, but new buyers start with full market valuations.
DeSantis points out that Florida's entire state budget is less than half of New York's despite having a larger population — and roughly equal to New York City's budget alone despite Florida having more than double the population.¹⁰
The state doesn't get a penny of property tax revenue, so DeSantis can credibly promise he won't raise other taxes to compensate for property tax cuts.
Local governments brought in $24 billion more in property tax revenue between 2019 and 2025 — far beyond what population growth and inflation justify.
That's why DeSantis and Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia have been conducting "DOGE-style" audits across Florida cities and counties, exposing hundreds of millions in wasteful spending.¹¹
https://twitter.com/GovGoneWild/status/1988935965596127505?s=20
They found Miami-Dade County "excessively" spent $94 million beyond what population and inflation would justify.¹²
Tampa's Mayor claims every dollar of the city's $380 million in property tax revenue goes to police and fire — yet somehow spending keeps climbing year after year.¹³
Democrats Play Defense For Big Government Spending
Democrats and local government officials are in full panic mode over any property tax cuts.
Florida House Democrat Leader Fentrice Driskell warned the proposals would "devastate" local services and force cities to impose fees on everything from park access to basic services.¹⁴
"Can you imagine what will happen when the first kid rolls up to a park and is told, 'You can't play here unless you have the fee to pay for it?'" Driskell asked dramatically.
Charles Chapman from the Florida League of Cities claimed "safe isn't free" and accused DeSantis of attacking local officials who were elected by their communities.¹⁵
But Chapman let the mask slip when he admitted the truth about property tax cuts.
"Property tax reform does not actually yield in-your-pocket cash savings to the taxpayer, it simply rearranges the furniture and how things are actually funded," Chapman said.
Translation: local governments plan to replace every dollar of lost property tax revenue with higher fees, sales taxes, or other schemes that hit residents just as hard — or harder.
That's exactly why DeSantis wants a clean elimination of homestead property taxes rather than the House's confusing menu of partial cuts.
Port St. Lucie Vice Mayor Jolien Caraballo told the House committee that eliminating property taxes would mean they "would not be able to fund our police department at the same level" while keeping other departments running.¹⁶
But DeSantis and Ingoglia keep finding millions in waste, fraud, and bloat whenever they audit these supposedly cash-strapped local governments.
The real fight isn't about whether Florida can afford property tax cuts.
The fight is about whether local governments will have to operate as efficiently as DeSantis has forced state government to operate — with three straight years of budget reductions while maintaining services.¹⁷
Florida voters will ultimately decide this issue at the ballot box in November 2026.
But first Republicans need to stop fighting each other long enough to put a clean, simple proposal before voters that actually has a chance of getting the required 60% support.
DeSantis thinks the House is deliberately sabotaging that goal with seven competing amendments designed to confuse voters and preserve the status quo.
The next few months will reveal whether DeSantis or House Republicans have the political muscle to force their vision onto the 2026 ballot.
¹ CoreLogic data via NewsNation, "Florida could potentially punt its property taxes," March 21, 2025.
² Buck Sexton interview transcript, "Ron DeSantis Explains His Plan to Eliminate Homestead Property Taxes," November 20, 2025.
³ Florida House of Representatives, HJR 201, HJR 203, HJR 205, November 2025.
⁴ Daniel Perez memorandum, October 16, 2025.
⁵ Ron DeSantis post on X, October 23, 2025.
⁶ Florida Constitution, Article XI.
⁷ Daniel Perez statement via Florida Phoenix, October 23, 2025.
⁸ PolitiFact, "Is DeSantis right that most Florida property tax dollars come from vacation homes, businesses?" October 30, 2025.
⁹ Buck Sexton interview, Ibid.
¹⁰ Buck Sexton interview, Ibid.
¹¹ Mainstreet Daily News, "DeSantis initiates Gainesville audit," July 23, 2025.
¹² Florida Phoenix, "DeSantis dismisses House proposals," October 23, 2025.
¹³ Tampa.gov budget documents via Florida Phoenix, October 23, 2025.
¹⁴ WUSF, "Florida House committee approves property tax reduction plans," November 20, 2025.
¹⁵ WUSF, Ibid.
¹⁶ CBS Miami, "Florida property tax cut proposals," November 20, 2025.
¹⁷ Mainstreet Daily News, Ibid.
