Introduction Many in the Florida Legislature have been rightly criticizing local governments for rapidly increasing property taxes and budgets. The property tax debate and the […]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, April 14, 2026 CONTACT: Christina Johnson Tallahassee, Fla. – Florida TaxWatch announced today that Friday, April 17 is Florida Taxpayer Independence Day (TID) 2026. This
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Thursday, August 28, 2025 CONTACT: Christina Johnson Tallahassee, Fla. – Today, Florida TaxWatch released a report Government Efficiency Should Not Be Something We Only Do Every
Where and how well our school districts spend our education dollars can have a profound impact on student academic achievement and success. Historically, education makes up about one-fourth of Florida’s total budget. Florida TaxWatch believes that shifting education spending away from administrative and other expenses and toward classroom/instructional expenses is beneficial.
Have you ever wondered how Florida’s taxes stack up against the taxes in other states? If so, this report is for you.
The 2020 Census is finally over, capping off a historic effort to accurately count every person in the United States during a pandemic. A few interesting stories emerge from the latest enumeration of the nation, such as the growing population shift to the South and New York losing a congressional House seat by only 89 people. Although Florida was one of the so-called “winners” in the current census because it secured an additional seat in Congress, the result was not as spectacular as expected.
Florida TaxWatch is constantly looking to spread the word about our research, recommendations, and programs, all in pursuit of serving each and every taxpayer in Florida. Below is just a selection of where we’ve popped up in the last few weeks!
Today, Florida TaxWatch (FTW) announced the appointment of Tony Carvajal as Executive Vice President. Mr. Carvajal succeeds Robert Weissert who is moving to Washington, D.C. to pursue the next chapter of his career after 14 great years with the taxpayer research institute. Along with Mr. Carvajal, TaxWatch also welcomes Carolyn Gosselin as Chief Growth and Strategy Officer, Tanya Bechtold as Director of Investor Relations, and Kat Dunn as Digital Content Manager. Florida TaxWatch is also announcing the promotions of Kurt Wenner and Bob Nave to Senior Vice Presidents of Research and Chris Barry to Vice President of Communications.
PRINT & DIGITAL Workers Push to Pass Amendment 2 for $15 Minimum Wage as Florida’s Tourism Industry Fights It (October 1, 2020) Orlando Sentinel Orlando
The 2020 Florida Legislature enacted two more sales tax holidays, a three-day “back-to-school” and a seven-day disaster preparedness tax holiday. Although the pending threat from the COVID-19 virus lead to the Legislature eliminating nearly all the tax cuts they were considering, the popularity of sales tax holidays was affirmed once again. From May 29-June 4, items to help Floridians prepare for hurricane season, such as flashlights, portable two-way or weatherband radios, waterproof sheeting, generators, and tie-down kits will be exempt from sales sax. This will save Floridians an estimated $5.6 million.
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