Garcia v. Andonie
101 So. 3d 339 (2012)
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Rule of Law:
A state legislature cannot enact a statute that substantively alters or materially limits the class of individuals entitled to a constitutional tax exemption. A statutory requirement that a property owner must reside on the property to qualify for a homestead exemption is unconstitutional where the state constitution allows the exemption if the owner maintains the property as the permanent residence of either the owner or their dependents.
Facts:
- David and Ana Andonie, citizens of Honduras, were lawfully residing in the United States under a temporary E-2 visa.
- The Andonies owned a residential condominium in Key Biscayne, Florida.
- They had three minor children who were all citizens of the United States and the State of Florida.
- The Andonies and their three U.S. citizen children lived together on the Florida property.
- The children, who were legally and naturally dependent on the Andonies, had no legal impediment to residing in Florida on a permanent basis.
- For the 2006 tax year, the Andonies applied for Florida's ad valorem homestead tax exemption.
- On their application, the Andonies claimed the exemption based on the property being the permanent residence of their dependent minor children, not their own permanent residence.
Procedural Posture:
- David and Ana Andonie applied to the Miami-Dade Property Appraiser for the 2006 ad valorem homestead tax exemption.
- The Property Appraiser administratively denied the application.
- The Andonies appealed the denial to the Miami-Dade County Value Adjustment Board (VAB).
- The VAB conducted a hearing and granted the exemption, overturning the Property Appraiser's denial.
- The Property Appraiser, as the initiating party, appealed the VAB's decision by filing a de novo action in the circuit court.
- The circuit court granted summary judgment in favor of the Andonies, upholding the exemption.
- The Property Appraiser, as appellant, appealed the circuit court's judgment to the Third District Court of Appeal.
- The Third District Court of Appeal affirmed the circuit court's judgment and declared a portion of section 196.031(1), Florida Statutes, invalid and unenforceable.
- The Miami-Dade Property Appraiser then appealed the Third District's decision to the Supreme Court of Florida.
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Issue:
Does a Florida statute that requires a property owner to reside on their property to qualify for a homestead tax exemption violate Article VII, Section 6(a) of the Florida Constitution, which grants the exemption to any owner who maintains on the property the permanent residence of the owner or another legally dependent person?
Opinions:
Majority - Labarga, J.
Yes. The statutory requirement that a property owner must reside on the property to qualify for the homestead exemption is invalid and unenforceable because it unconstitutionally limits the class of taxpayers entitled to relief under the Florida Constitution. The plain language of Article VII, Section 6(a) of the Florida Constitution, as amended in 1968, removed the prior requirement that the owner reside on the property. The current text creates two independent ways for an owner to qualify for the exemption: by maintaining on the property either (1) the permanent residence of the owner, or (2) the permanent residence of another legally or naturally dependent person. By adding an 'and who resides thereon' requirement, section 196.031(1), Florida Statutes, imposes a substantive limitation not found in the Constitution. While the Legislature may regulate the 'manner' of establishing the right to the exemption, it cannot substantively alter or narrow the class of individuals eligible for it under the constitution's plain language.
Analysis:
This decision solidifies the supremacy of the state constitution's text over legislative enactments intended to implement it. By striking down the statutory residency requirement, the Court clarified that non-resident property owners can claim Florida's valuable homestead tax exemption, provided they maintain the property as the permanent residence for their legal dependents, such as minor children who are U.S. citizens. This ruling has significant implications for tax planning and property ownership in Florida, particularly for foreign nationals or out-of-state residents with dependents living in Florida. It reinforces the principle that a legislature cannot use its implementation authority to substantively narrow a constitutionally granted right.
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