Florida TaxWatch’s 2025 Legislative Session Wrap-Up report provides a concise but comprehensive overview of the extraordinary budget impasse that extended this year’s session to June 6, 2025, the narrow scope of allowed legislation (including the General Appropriations Act, budget conforming bills, the House and Senate tax packages, and the Rural Renaissance bill), and the high-stakes negotiations that will resume on May 12 in conference committee.

This Florida TaxWatch report highlights a severe affordable housing crisis in Florida, where rising housing costs and a limited supply of affordable units place significant financial and social burdens on low-income families and essential workers. It advocates for the adoption of state-level tax credits to supplement federal programs, thereby incentivizing the construction of affordable housing, stimulating local economies, and reducing public costs.

Florida TaxWatch's latest report looks into how neighborhood and built environment factors significantly affect community health. The analysis highlights the impact of poor housing conditions, overcrowding, and limited access to essential resources like healthcare and healthy food, which elevate the risk of chronic illnesses and mental health challenges. Unsafe neighborhoods and environmental hazards also disproportionately affect vulnerable populations. The report underscores the need for strategic community investments to improve health outcomes and economic stability, advocating for healthier and safer environments that can lead to reduced healthcare costs.

This Florida TaxWatch commentary highlights the imbalance between the demand and supply of rental units in the state, leading to rising rental costs. The document notes significant increases in rental prices since the pandemic, with specific emphasis on metropolitan areas like Miami, Tampa, and Jacksonville. It also addresses the impact of these rising costs on Florida's workforce and economy, including the implications for cost-burdened households. The paper further examines state-to-state migration trends, particularly focusing on Florida residents moving to Georgia for more affordable housing options. The overall narrative suggests a complex interplay between economic factors, housing market dynamics, and demographic shifts in Florida's rental market.

"Unlicensed Vacation Rentals: An Analysis of Florida's Tourism-Driven Economy" provides an in-depth analysis of the unlicensed vacation rental market in Florida. It highlights the significant impact these rentals have on the state's tourism economy, including issues of tax evasion, safety concerns, and unfair competitive advantages over licensed properties. The research reveals a notable prevalence of unlicensed rentals in Florida, which, in 2022, constituted a significant proportion of the state’s temporary public lodging units. The study brings to light how operators of these unlicensed rentals often circumvent tax obligations, thus negatively impacting the state's revenue and creating an unlevel playing field in the tourism sector. This paper includes recommendations for stricter enforcement of licensing regulations, improved transparency in rental operations, and more efficient tax collection mechanisms to address these challenges. The paper serves as a critical resource for policymakers, business owners in the tourism sector, and tax authorities, providing essential insights to inform decisions and strategies aimed at ensuring a fair and regulated tourism industry in Florida.

Two main drivers of Florida’s economy are tourism and real estate development. With an estimated 1,000 people moving to Florida every day, real estate development puts a strain on public facilities (e.g., roads, water and wastewater system, etc.) and services (e.g., police, fire protection, parks, etc.). Local governments rely on impact fees to generate the money necessary to accommodate the impacts of new development on existing public facilities and services.

As Florida continues to grow, the development of infrastructure (e.g., roads, water and wastewater systems, parks, etc.) must keep pace. In January 2023, Florida TaxWatch released “Economic Commentary: An Update on Florida’s Housing Rental Market,” which evaluated the troubles Florida has experienced with the ever-rising cost of rent. In Florida, the cost of rent has jumped by 36 percent since 2020, with much of the increase occurring in 2021 alone.

The increase of rental prices burdens the budgets of Floridians—whose budgets are already burdened by inflated prices on goods—and results in long-lasting implications for Florida’s workforce.