Politics
Last Call for 8.12.26 – A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida
Last Call – A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
— First Shot —
The Florida Rural Economic Development Association is joining the growing opposition to Amendment 3, warning the property tax proposal could put rural communities at a disadvantage in competing for jobs and investment.
FREDA announced its opposition Wednesday to the proposed constitutional amendment, which will appear on Florida’s Nov. 3 ballot.
The group represents economic development interests across rural Florida, which includes 31 of the state’s 67 counties. FREDA argues that those communities are particularly vulnerable to reductions in property tax revenue because many already operate with limited tax bases and lack some of the revenue streams available to the state’s larger population and tourism centers.
Amendment 3 would increase the homestead exemption for property taxes other than those levied by School Districts, ultimately raising it to $250,000 by 2028.
FREDA contends the resulting revenue losses could leave rural governments choosing among delaying infrastructure projects, reducing services or finding additional revenue from businesses and other property owners.
“Florida’s rural communities succeed when they have the tools to invest in their future,” said FREDA Chair Richard Williams. “Amendment 3 would jeopardize funding for essential public safety services, infrastructure and community investments while shifting more of the tax burden to businesses and other property owners. These changes would make it more difficult for rural communities to compete for jobs, attract new investment and grow their local economies.”
FREDA’s opposition adds another constituency to a coalition that has expanded well beyond traditional opponents of property tax cuts — the Florida Sheriffs Association, Fraternal Order of Police and Florida Professional Firefighters are firmly in the “no” lane.
Also opposed are the Florida AFL-CIO, Florida Education Association, League of Women Voters of Florida, Florida Policy Institute, NAACP Florida State Conference and several SEIU organizations.
The growing opposition comes after a Leon County Circuit Judge ruled the ballot title and summary were “clearly and conclusively defective,” finding the language improperly advocated for the proposal rather than neutrally explaining it. Attorney General James Uthmeier was ordered to rewrite the language.
Meanwhile, the proposal hasn’t consistently crossed the 60% threshold needed to pass in public polling, with some measures indicating the amendment’s chances of getting across the finish line inversely correlate with how well voters understand its potential impacts.
— Evening Reads —
—“A catering truck and a decoy plane: How Donald Trump’s great escape unfolded” via Eric Schmitt, Maggie Haberman, Aric Toler, Jamie Leventhal, Simon Ducroquet and Yuliya Parshina-Kottas of The New York Times
—“Trump’s new strategy of nothing” via Jonathan Lemire of The Atlantic
—“One takeaway from Tuesday’s Primaries? TV ads still matter.” via Jessica Piper of POLITICO
—“Are data centers enough to flip a key House race?” via Dan Merica of The Washington Post
—“The ‘truth machine’ is lying to you” via Judd Legum, Rebecca Crosby and Noel Sims of Popular Information
—“Wealth management has a $3 trillion problem: Investors are keeping too much cash” via Miriam Gottfried of The Wall Street Journal
—“McDonald’s built a 515-page dossier on me. It says I’ll never stop eating there” via Reece Rogers of WIRED
—“Everybody needs a personal AI policy. Just ask Hank Green.” via Marina Bolotnikova of Vox
—“Democrats run military veterans as they hope for blue wave in Florida” via Shauna Muckle and Katelyn Ferral of the Tampa Bay Times
—“Byron Donalds says it takes at least $80M to win Governor’s race” via A.G. Gancarski of Florida Politics
— Quote of the Day —
“You’re really going to just say that it was a mulligan or something like that?”
— Gov. Ron DeSantis, on Democrats putting ‘Woke 1’ at arm’s length.
— Put it on the Tab —
Look to your left, then look to your right. If you see one of these people at your happy hour haunt, flag down the bartender and put one of these on your tab. Recipes included, just in case the Cocktail Codex fell into the well.
Pick your poison — BAMCO is happy enough to break out the good stuff after a pair of U.S. Representatives filed the Beverage Regulatory Parity Act.
Apple BBQ Tequila doesn’t have the best reviews, but experts say it’d be the perfect complement to the sweet setup at Rep. Meg Weinberger’s late-August meet-and-greets.
Attorney General James Uthmeier gets his pick from the Hachiroku 116 Crown menu after wrangling more than 100 traffickers during “Operation Relentless Summer.”
— Breakthrough Insights —
— Tune In —
Cup calculus
Both Florida MLS teams continue group-stage play in the Leagues Cup as Inter Miami hosts Club Leon and Orlando City hosts San Luis (both at 7:30 p.m. ET on Apple TV+).
Miami will be without Lionel Messi due to the death of Messi’s father, Jorge, on Friday.
Inter Miami split a pair of group stage matches in this year’s Leagues Cup, beating San Luis 4-2 and falling 2-1 to Monterrey. To advance to the knockout round, Miami must defeat Leon in regulation time tonight. They will also likely need a multi-goal victory to improve the +1 goal differential, the first tiebreaker. Miami will also look for help from other MLS sides. Charlotte, Austin and Cincinnati all hold stronger positions to advance. Only the top four MLS clubs advance directly to the knockout round.
Orlando City is in a similar situation, having beaten Monterrey 2-1 before losing by the same score to Club Leon. Because Orlando City’s goal differential is zero, they must win big over San Luis and get substantial help to advance. It’s a long shot. Orlando City sits in 15th place out of 18 in the MLS standings. If Orlando City fails to win in regulation, they will be out of the competition.
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Last Call is published by Peter Schorsch, assembled and edited by Phil Ammann and Drew Wilson, with contributions from the staff of Florida Politics.
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