Plantation Mayor Nick Sortal is proposing the city’s first property tax cut in seven years, aiming to provide financial relief for residents while maintaining city services.
Sortal’s plan, outlined in his newsletter this week, would reduce the city’s millage rate from 5.8 to 5.7 for the 2025-26 fiscal year.
If approved, it would be the lowest rate since 2014.
Plantation Council members already approved a 5.8 maximum rate in July, but Sortal’s recommendation has been incorporated into the budget now headed for Council review.
“It is clear to me that affordability is a significant challenge,” Sortal said in a statement, adding that his administration thoroughly reviewed the budget to ensure the lower rate would not compromise services.
“There’s going to be a little bit of pain involved, but we believe we can maintain the high quality of services expected in our city while receiving less property tax revenue than expected from our residents.”
Plantation’s last millage rate reduction came in 2018, when it dropped from 5.9 to 5.75. It rose to 5.8 the following year, where it’s remained since.
The 5.7 rate now proposed would be the lowest rate for the city in more than a decade.
Sortal’s proposed cut would mark a symbolic and practical shift at a time when many South Florida residents are grappling with rising housing and living costs.
Public budget hearings to give residents a chance to review the full spending plan and provide feedback are scheduled for Sept. 10 and Sept. 17.
State law mandates that the entire budget must be made available before the meetings.
The millage rate determines property tax bills by applying the set number of mills — one mill equals $1 per $1,000 of taxable property value — to assessed values.
If adopted, the change would slightly reduce the tax burden on property owners while keeping the city’s revenue base stable due to rising property values and strategic spending adjustments.
The proposal by Sortal, a Republican-turned-Democrat, comes as Gov. Ron DeSantis and other state-level GOP officials push to eliminate property taxes. A February study by the Florida Policy Institute found that doing so would require Florida to double its sales tax to compensate for local revenue shortfalls.
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