Weston raises city tax rate after 8 years, cites Amendment 3

Updated Nov. 4: Florida voters approved Amendment 3 on Nov. 3 with 61.98% of the vote statewide, in the Division of Elections’ unofficial results. Weston’s nine precincts voted 67.48% yes. The homestead exemption rises to $150,000 on Jan. 1, 2027. The city has not yet published an estimate of its revenue loss. See our results story.

Weston’s city property tax rate is going up after eight years at the same level. The new rate will show on the tax bills mailed Nov. 1.

The City Commission adopted a rate of 3.5046 mills for fiscal year 2027. The city had held it at 3.3464 mills for eight straight years, according to the city’s fiscal 2027 adopted budget summary (PDF), dated Sept. 28.

The city gives one reason for the change. Amendment 3, the property tax amendment on the Nov. 3 ballot, “will significantly affect the City’s General Fund” if voters approve it, the summary said. The new rate “ensures the City can continue operating effectively no matter how the November election unfolds,” it said.

What it adds to your bill

One mill is $1 of tax for every $1,000 of taxable value. On the city’s line of the bill:

That is the city’s share only. Broward County, Broward County Public Schools and the other taxing bodies set their own rates. Our property tax guide shows the whole bill.

Other charges on the same bill also change, the budget summary said:

• Fire assessment: up 8.98% for a single-family home, from $770.06 to $839.19 a year. Multifamily homes go from $790.28 to $861.31.
• Garbage and recycling: the curbside collection charge is $426.91 a year.
• Water and sewer: the monthly charge for the most common meter sizes stays at $21.20.

The fire assessment pays for fire protection and fire prevention from the Broward Sheriff’s Office at all four of the city’s fire-rescue stations, the summary said.

Where the money goes

The city expects to collect $45.6 million in property tax for its general fund this year. That is up $4.3 million, or about 10.5%, from the $41.2 million budgeted last year, according to the fiscal 2027 adopted budgets (PDF).

Two things drive the rise. The rate is higher, and the city’s gross taxable value grew 5.52% to about $13.7 billion, including new construction.

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Property tax is about 58% of the general fund’s $78.5 million in revenue this year, by the budget’s own figures. The general fund spends $72.5 million, up 4.66%.

Most of the extra spending is public safety, which rises $3.37 million. The city’s police contract with the Broward Sheriff’s Office goes up 9.33%. The emergency medical services part of its fire-rescue contract with the sheriff’s office goes up 7.23%.

The city first proposed a higher rate. The city manager’s proposed budget (PDF) recommended 3.6260 mills, which “produces a balanced budget with no reserve drawdown.” The adopted budget instead draws $675,000 from fund balances, leaving an estimated $33.7 million in unassigned reserves.

What Amendment 3 would do

Amendment 3 is a proposed change to the Florida Constitution. It needs 60% of the vote to pass. The city’s property tax reform page lists what it would do:

• raise the homestead exemption from $50,000 to $150,000 on Jan. 1, 2027
• raise it to $250,000 on Jan. 1, 2028
• let the Legislature later set a way for counties and cities to exempt more of a homestead’s value
• cut the yearly cap on assessment increases for non-homestead property from 10% to 5%
• make people who become Florida residents after Jan. 1, 2027, wait five years for the larger exemption

The extra exemption does not apply to school taxes. A judge ruled in August that the original ballot summary was misleading and ordered the attorney general to rewrite it, the city’s page said. Amendment 3 is on every Broward ballot Nov. 3; our voting guide has the full list of questions.

For homeowners, the amendment is a tax cut. Take a Weston homestead assessed at $250,000 or more. At the new city rate, the extra $100,000 exemption in 2027 would take $350.46 off the city’s line of the bill. The extra $200,000 in 2028 would take off $700.92 if the rate stayed the same. The county and other non-school levies would fall too.

What the city says it would lose

The city has not published a dollar estimate of what Amendment 3 would cost it. Its page gives these figures:

• 57% of city revenue comes from property tax
• 88% of the city’s tax base is residential
• 62% of that residential taxable value is homesteaded

If revenue falls, the city’s choices are to “reduce service levels, increase fees, raise the millage rate, or implement some combination of all three,” the budget summary said.

The city’s page lists services that could be cut or reduced if it did not raise the rate or fees to cover a loss. They include:

• school resource officers at the public schools
• crossing guards at school crosswalks
• the fire-rescue whole blood program for trauma patients
• citywide events such as the Hometown Concert Series and the July 4 celebration
• park operating hours
• code enforcement

Florida law bars cities from spending public money to campaign for or against a ballot question, the city’s page notes. The page sets out the city’s view of the amendment. The Weston Journal does not take a position on it.

What it means for you

• Look for the new rate on your bill. Bills are mailed Nov. 1, and paying in November earns a 4% discount, according to the Broward County Tax Collector.
• Vote on Amendment 3 by Nov. 3. Early voting in Broward County runs Monday, Oct. 19, through Sunday, Nov. 1. Our voting guide has the Weston site and the hours.
• Read the exact ballot wording on your sample ballot before you vote, as the summary was rewritten after the court ruling.
• Check the city’s other charges. Your fire and garbage assessments are on the same bill, and some Weston neighborhoods also pay Indian Trace or Bonaventure development district assessments, which the adopted budgets list by neighborhood.