TALLAHASSEE
Floridians demand tax relief
Hundreds of Floridians traveled hundreds of miles to beg for property tax relief in Tallahassee.
By YUDY PINEIRO, BREANNE GILPATRICK AND CHARLES RABIN
ypineiro@MiamiHerald.com
TALLAHASSEE - They carried signs proclaiming ''Ax the Tax,'' and ''House plan -- yes, Senate plan -- no.'' They chanted, ''Cut the tax,'' while sporting T-shirts that read, ''I am a voter, please help'' on the front and ''No taxes'' on the back.
It wasn't just a property tax rally. It was a House tax-plan rally.
Hundreds of taxpayers, many from South Florida, descended on the front lawn of the Old Capitol on Tuesday, touting House Speaker Marco Rubio's plan to eliminate property taxes and replace the lost income with an increase in sales taxes.
''When I saw it, I was in love with it,'' said Jodi van Slee. She said a $7,000 property tax bill forced her from her Miramar home last year.
For the Miami crowd, the 480-mile trip began at 3:11 a.m. That's when buses carrying about 100 Miami-Dade residents demanding property-tax relief rolled out in procession from Hialeah, toward Tallahassee.
CALL YOUR SENATOR
When the buses pulled in at around 
12:30 p.m., they were greeted with more anti-property tax signs, T-shirts and fliers blasting Senate tax decisions -- complete with the names and office numbers of the Senate Finance and Tax Committee.
Despite the breakdown of one Miami bus -- temporarily sidelining Rubio's own dad -- the protesters arrived in time to listen to speeches from Rubio and Gov. Charlie Crist.
''Many of us believe that taxing property is immoral -- and that we should eliminate it altogether,'' Rubio told the crowd in Spanish.
Carlos Vasquez, 42, of West Miami-Dade, was among the bleary-eyed crowd. He said he heard about the rally through an e-mail from Rubio's office and immediately set out on a mission: ``We need to show these legislators we don't want taxes anymore. They're driving around in limousines, buying several homes, and we can't even keep ours.''
Most other ralliers from Miami learned of it from Telemiami television host Tomás GarcÃa Fusté, a backer of Rubio and the trip organizer. The Latin Builders Association helped pay for the Miami buses.
Hundreds of other protesters were bused in from other parts of the state. Many were elderly men and women on fixed incomes, nurses and teachers, or mortgage brokers and Realtors.
Organizers also sent e-mails to the Republican Party faithful around the state.
ONLINE NOTIFICATION
Horace Prince was surprised when he and 10 fellow mortgage brokers got an e-mail from Floridians for Property Tax Reform. His wife, who works in real estate, got a similar e-mail.
Prince said he decided to attend because his tax bill rose by $2,000 after he left his home in Plantation two years ago.
''I don't think you should pay taxes on the house you live in,'' he said, gesturing toward the Old Capitol steps as Rubio made a similar point. ``The American dream is saying you should own your own home.''
Tom Wagner of Palm Coast came to Tallahassee after seeing his property taxes triple between 2004 and 2005. He called the Senate plan, which offers more moderate relief, ''totally inept,'' adding that without more substantial tax cuts he will have to leave Florida.
''The Senate doesn't have a plan,'' he said. ``The Senate's plan is so inept it's worthless. It's garbage.''
Pete Capo, 54, of Miami said Rubio's promises sound great so far, but voters will be watching to see if anything actually happens. He doubts it.
''I'm still waiting on insurance relief,'' Capo said.
