The last Florida county was created a century ago, when Gilchrist County got chiseled out of Alachua.
Florida has had 67 counties since, with only occasional small boundary tweaks.
Yet, in discussing potential property tax changes on WLRN's The Florida Roundup, House Speaker Daniel Perez questioned whether some sweeping changes might be necessary.
"I would have to assume some of these very, very small counties rely on their property taxes," he said in late October.
"I'm gonna play devil's advocate here," he continued. "Should some of these counties not exist? Do we have too many counties? Should some of them maybe be combined? I don't know. I have no idea. I'm not saying yes or no, but those are the questions that I'm asking."
Perez's spokesperson didn't respond to follow-up questions. A spokesperson for Senate President Ben Albritton declined to comment about his thoughts on these questions.
Representatives for Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has been calling loudly for property tax cuts, didn't reply either.
There hasn't been chatter in the Capitol let alone legislation concerning such sweeping changes to Florida's map (unless you're talking about the state's congressional map, which is a complete other story).
But, when contacted by WUSF, county representatives weren't quiet about their thoughts on the consolidation consideration.
Cragin Mosteller from the Florida Association of Counties said Perez's questions create many more.
"You just have a lot of things to look at, like which counties merge. Why should they merge?" she said. "How do services get divided so that everyone gets the same services that they need or are required for safety and care and water and all of those things? What about debt?"
Okeechobee County Commissioner Terry Burroughs said he appreciates the House speaker thinking "outside the box" but added his residents would "revolt against that situation."
He thinks it would clash with local residents' pride — as well as practicality.
"Your needs in a rural county are much different than a large urban county," he said. "And so once you're shifted over into an urban county, you're just lost in the mix."
Commissioner Ralph Thomas agreed. He represents Wakulla County, a rural area near Tallahassee. Like Okeechobee County, which is located in south-central Florida on the large lake it's named after, Wakulla is considered "financially constrained."
"If we're now somehow a financial burden, would Leon County say, 'Oh, well, we'll carry Wakulla's burden?'" he said. "Their citizens are not going to like it either."
Then there's the tax 'proposals'
The Florida House has unveiled a list of proposals aimed at reducing the state's property tax.
On The Florida Roundup, Perez emphasized the legislation was meant to initiate a conversation about the tax.
The Senate has been more close-mouthed on what it might support.
DeSantis said he doesn't think Floridians should pay the tax on properties they own and live on, but he hasn't released a specific proposal.
Any tax change would ultimately have to be approved by voters on the 2026 ballot.
Mosteller from the Florida Association of Counties said it's hard to take a stance on the issue when there's so much uncertainty about what could make it on the ballot.
"We want to make sure that anything that is done is done recognizing the complicated nature of the problem and making sure that we can continue to provide critical services to our citizens," she said. "I think the broader concern is the fact that everyone is speaking in sound bites and not in sound policy."
There's no disagreement, as recognized by Perez, that smaller counties would be especially impacted by property tax cuts.
"You do not have a large tax base, so what you have to do is you have to be very nimble when you're trying to do things for your county and provide the services that your constituents require," said Okeechobee's Terry Burroughs.
Wakulla's Ralph Thomas agreed: "It's not going to mean tightening the belt. It's going to mean severing limbs," he said.
If you have any questions about state government or the legislative process, you can ask the Your Florida team by clicking here.
This story was produced by WUSF as part of a statewide journalism initiative funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
