Florida’s Governor, Charlie Crist, has signed an executive order that aims to help property owners file damage claims with British Petroleum (BP). The order authorizes appraisers in 26 counties to give property owners new assessments if they believe their property value has been impacted by the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The purpose of the governor's order is to provide homeowners and businesses with documentation to be used in filing damage claims against BP. Figuring out how and to whom to provide the new assessments is up to the local tax authorities that administer property taxes.
Unfortunately, the executive order will not provide property tax relief. These new assessments are only being provided to serve as proof in claims against BP, they will not lower your property taxes whatsoever. This is because Florida state law requires that property tax bills be based on the pre-spill values that were assessed on January 1, 2010. Changing that would require state lawmakers to pass special tax relief legislation.
The Florida Legislature plans to meet for a special session in September 2010 to determine what kind of legislation, if any, is needed to help those affected by the gulf oil spill.