Proposed constitutional amendment 3 is an item on the November ballot. If passed, it would significantly reduce Floridians' property tax burdens by increasing what's known as the homestead exemption... or the amount of property value exempt from being taxed. Currently, Florida's exemption sits at 50,000 dollars, but amendment 3 aims to raise it to 150,000 dollars next year, and to 250,000 in 2028.Property taxes are a massive source of general revenue for small municipalities that don't have much commercial activity and have low property values. For them, the passage of amendment 3 would mean a dire lack of funding for public services, and the potential shutting of city hall doors. WGCU’s Emma Rodriguez spoke with Kate Payne, state government reporter for The Florida Trib. Payne's reporting on amendment 3's possible impact took her to the Town of Bowling Green, where passage is a worst-case scenario.
As Florida's election season heats up, two high-profile legal battles took place in Leon County court over the past two weeks. One judge made a decision in a challenge toa gubernatorial candidate's ballot eligibility, and another is mulling whether the wording of a proposed property tax amendment should be rewritten before voters cast their ballots. WFSU's Tristan Wood spoke with WUSF state government reporter Douglas Soule about what's at stake.
The first half of this year brought extreme or exceptional drought to the vast majority of Florida. And this has persisted in many areas. The effects are visible in water bodies connected to the Floridan aquifer. In WFSU’s latest Coast to Canopy podcast, we look at water usage in Florida, how it has affected the springs -- and we consider the potential effects of AI data centers on Florida's groundwater. For this excerpt, host Rob Diaz de Villegas sat down with (in this order): Haley Moody, Director of the Florida Springs Institute and Kellie Keys, Communications Director at the FSU Wakulla Springs Lab.
After a shark attack earlier, this summer left a swimmer in Panama City with severe injuries to both arms, some residents along the Gulf coast are thinking twice before getting in the water. But as Randy Vuxta with WFSU’s Rural News Service reports experts say shark attacks remain exceedingly rare.