Amendment 3 in Palm Beach County: What Voters Heard at the Town Hall

Early voting opens in Palm Beach County on Monday, October 19. Amendment 3, the property tax measure, is on that ballot, and over the past week the local debate got a lot louder. Here is what residents heard, what the new numbers show, and why we are still voting Yes.

Both sides in one room at Palm Beach State College

WPTV's "Let's Hear It" town hall at Palm Beach State College's Lake Worth Beach campus put supporters and opponents in front of the same audience, with the League of Women Voters helping residents work through the proposal.

On the Yes side, State Rep. Toby Overdorf told the room that homeowners could save roughly $1,700 to as much as $4,000 a year and deserve that money back in their pockets. One Palm Beach County resident put it more bluntly: the current property tax load is unsustainable. Another supporter's point was simple. Local governments need to budget like everyone else does.

On the No side, West Palm Beach Mayor Keith James said the city could lose $21.7 million in the first year and more than $31 million over two years, and that voters have to factor in the impact on services. State Sen. Tina Polsky warned that a constitutional amendment is very hard to undo once it passes. Opponents also warned that more than 21,000 Palm Beach County children could lose access to child care, after-school programs and summer camps.

Fire Rescue puts a number on it

On October 8, the Palm Beach Post reported that Palm Beach County Fire Rescue would lose about $41 million in fiscal year 2028 and $26 million in fiscal year 2029, roughly $67 million over the first two years. Fire Rescue Chief Patrick Kennedy said the department plans to bring in a consultant to study fee-based services as a way to make up revenue. County officials warned that the loss could mean slower response times and delays in building new stations as the county grows.

That is consistent with what county budget staff showed commissioners at the September 29 workshop, which we covered earlier this month. It is also worth reading closely: if some of the lost tax revenue comes back as new fees, part of the savings shrinks. Voters should know that going in.

What Amendment 3 actually does

• Raises the homestead exemption for non-school property taxes to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028, then adjusts it for inflation starting in 2029.

• Leaves the school tax exemption at the current $25,000.

• Cuts the annual assessment increase cap on non-homestead property, including commercial property, from 10% to 5%.

• Sets constitutional limits on how counties and cities can use property tax revenue.

• Needs at least 60% of the vote to pass, and would take effect January 1, 2027.

Why we are voting Yes

The concerns raised at the town hall are real, and we are not going to pretend otherwise. Local governments will have less property tax revenue to work with, and some services will feel it. But Palm Beach County homeowners and business owners have absorbed years of rising assessments, and the bills have outpaced what many families and small businesses can plan around.

For commercial owners and tenants, the 5% cap matters as much as the homestead exemption. Most tenants on NNN leases pay their share of property taxes directly through operating expenses, so a tighter cap on non-homestead assessments means more predictable occupancy costs for the businesses that lease space here. That predictability is a big part of why Florida Realtors supports a Yes vote, and why we do too.

How to vote in Palm Beach County

• Request a mail ballot by Thursday, October 22 at 5 p.m.

• Early voting runs October 19 through November 1. Sites and hours are posted at votepalmbeach.gov.

• Mail ballots must be received by 7 p.m. on Election Day. A postmark alone is not enough.

• Election Day is Tuesday, November 3, with polls open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

• Want to see your own numbers first? The Palm Beach County Property Appraiser's Amendment 3 calculator estimates the change for your homestead.

Questions about what Amendment 3 means for a property you own or a space you lease? Reach out to RH Realty and we will walk through it with you.