Senate committee advances broad tax package extending charter-school levy shares and shifting funding to help fiscally constrained counties

Senators on the Florida Senate Finance and Tax Committee on Feb. 26 voted to report SPB 7,046, a comprehensive tax package that authorizes a range of changes to property-tax rules, sales-tax exemptions and county revenue distributions.

The committee adopted an amendment (barcode 363594) by Senator Avila that makes the bill’s change to distribution from voted discretionary operating millages apply only to levies authorized by electors on or after July 1, 2026. After the amendment was adopted, the committee approved the bill as a committee measure.

Why it matters: The package shifts a declining funding stream for fiscally constrained counties (collections tied to direct-to-home satellite taxes) onto a dedicated sales-tax distribution with a legislated $50 million annual allocation and changes the formula that determines which counties qualify and how funds are allocated. Proponents said the change stabilizes and grows payments to counties with persistent revenue needs; critics warned about downstream effects on school and local budgets.

Key provisions and debate: Senator Avila, who carried the bill, said the measure changes the 'live local' standard to use three prior years of annual reports instead of one to determine whether a taxing authority can opt out of an affordable-housing exemption and grandfathered projects that received final site-plan approval within four years of an opt-out. He also said the bill "levels the playing field" by making all charter schools eligible for distributions from voter-approved property-tax levies rather than limiting the distribution to district-sponsored charters.

Avila described the fiscal mechanism for fiscally constrained counties as "a game changer for fiscally constrained counties," saying the bill preserves and grows the counties' shares as state sales-tax collections increase. Organizational witnesses from the Small County Coalition and the Florida Association of Counties told senators they support shifting to a sales-tax base but urged careful attention to the formulas and requested grandfathering or clarification for counties that could be affected by the change to the opt-out lookback and other technical provisions.

Opponents and concerns: Senator Jones said she would oppose the bill, saying she was "not convinced" expanding levy distributions to all charter schools would not take money "from our neighborhood public schools." Jones described a scenario in which a fixed pot divided among more eligible schools leads to less funding per student for traditional public schools. Other senators raised concerns about the bill’s timing and the potential need for school districts and county commissions to adjust budgeting and referendum timing.

Other notable provisions: The bill prohibits special assessments against more than 400 square feet of an RV park space, permanently exempts small liquefied petroleum (LP) gas cylinders (20-pound capacity or less) from sales tax, and establishes a multi-month sales-tax holiday for hunting, fishing and camping items from roughly Sept. 7 through Dec. 31, 2026. It also incorporates language that prohibits governmental entities from adopting or funding "net 0" policies or cap-and-trade–style programs.

Fiscal effects: Committee staff estimated SPB 7,046 will reduce general revenue by approximately $77 million in FY 2026–27 and about $50 million on a recurring basis; shifting to the new sales-tax distribution would direct roughly $43 million to fiscally constrained counties, with the net statewide impact an estimated $34.1 million reduction in FY 2026–27 and indeterminate recurring impacts.

What happened next: Following debate and a roll-call vote, the committee reported SPB 7,046 as a committee bill. An unrelated late-filed amendment by Senator Gates to clarify the ad valorem exemption for some disabled veterans (paraplegic parity with quadriplegic) was withdrawn because staff had not completed a fiscal impact statement.

Outlook: As a committee bill, SPB 7,046 moves into negotiations as the Senate and House reconcile tax-package differences. The legislation contains provisions (effective dates, grandfathering, and formula changes) that could be adjusted during the conference process.