D-I-S-G-U-S-T-I-N-G...

Yep, that's how I feel about the Lobbyist-coddling, myopic Florida Senate and President of the Senate, Ken Pruitt. The House took an aggressive approach to cutting OUR taxes, only to be rebuffed by the high-and-mighty Senate...Below is a snapshot of the Senate's proposal, courtesy of the Florida Senate:

The Florida Senate's new property tax cut proposal would:

1. Make Save Our Homes portable. Owners can use the benefit, up to $500,000, when they buy a new home. People who moved in 2007 could get the benefit retroactively.

2. Double the $25,000 homestead exemption.

3. Cap annual nonhomestead property assessments at 10 percent. It does not apply to school taxes.

4. Exempt $25,000 in tangible personal property.

The portability is good - please don't get me wrong. But I am not too excited about bringing my HUGE $4800 tax bill with me around Tampa Bay. Sure it helps the longtime homeowner, which is great. But what about the TENS OF THOUSANDS of Homeowners who bought during the run-up and lost that cap??? What about the THOUSANDS of investors who purchased beach property for the purposes of renting and watched their tax bills skyrocket, thus making the investment aspect moot. What about the THOUSANDS OF BUSINESSES that are failing under skyrocketing insurance and tax bills...

History has proven that stifling taxes will only serve to stifle that which is taxed - we can not afford to stifle an already-burdened real estate sector that has take a 1-2 punch from insurance woes and mortgage defaults.