Last Monday, over 40 public safety leaders, including local police chiefs and three sheriffs, gathered at the Tampa Firefighters Museum to urge voters to reject Amendment 3. Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister, an elected official who leads the area’s largest law enforcement agency, was noticeably absent.
“Amendment 3 slashes and cuts and burns,” said Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd. “It does not give government a haircut with appropriate tools and scissors; it gives us a haircut with a weed eater. As a result, you’re going to be left with bloody results.”
Florida is less than a week away from Election Day, and unlike his counterparts, Chronister has yet to make a single public statement, press appearance or social media post regarding the statewide referendum that critics say could have devastating impacts on funding for first responder services.
While Chronister has been silent on Amendment 3, it’s important to note that the Florida Realtors, which is bankrolling The Vote Yes on 3 campaign, has also financially backed the sheriff more than any other Tampa Bay law enforcement official.
According to public finance records, Florida Realtors donated four payments totaling $4,000 to the Chad Chronister Campaign Fund between 2018-2020. For comparison, the next highest paid sheriff from the Florida Realtors was Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, who received two payments totaling $2,000 in 2020.
But while $4,000 may not be a devastating amount of cash, records also show the Florida Realtors paid an additional $18,700 in October of 2018 to a company called SGS Inc. to assist with Chronister’s campaign.
As previously reported by Creative Loafing Tampa Bay, SGS Inc. is run by GOP operative Patrick Bainter, who is connected to Florida’s ‘ghost candidate’ election fraud scandal and has so far received over $14.4 million from the PAC to pass Amendment 3.
CL reached out to HCSO for comment from Chronister about Amendment 3 and any guidance on finding any public comment for that matter, and has yet to receive a response.
If approved by 60% of voters, the DeSantis-backed Amendment 3 would increase Florida’s homestead exemption for non-school property taxes to $150,000 in 2027 and $250,000 in 2028, with state economists saying the measure would reduce local government revenue by nearly $5 billion in its first year and nearly $8.8 billion the following year.
Chronister’s silence is somewhat surprising, especially since he’s publicly supported or denounced statewide amendments in the past. More importantly, Chronister oversees roughly 2,000 taxpayer-funded employees in the area’s largest county. In fact, Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Department runs on a budget of more than $653 million, which dwarfs every single other local law enforcement agency in the area.
His cohorts over at the Florida Sheriffs Association call Amendment 3 a “tax shift,” which will result in a loss of jobs for deputies and higher local taxes to make up for lost funds, and most Tampa Bay sheriffs seem to agree.
Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri, who operates the area’s second largest sheriff’s budget of $456,166,190, has gone on record saying the proposal could “trigger an estimated $180 million revenue drop in Pinellas County during its first year alone,” adding that his department accounts for roughly half of the county’s overall spending.
Polk County Sheriff Judd, who oversees a budget of $323,729,594, has been one of the earliest and loudest opponents of the referendum, and has warned that Amendment 3 could have “unintended consequences,” and will likely “devastate counties’ and cities’ ability to deliver vital services, including emergency services, to our citizens.”
This sentiment is shared by nearly every single Tampa Bay area sheriff’s department.
In Marion County, Sheriff Billy Woods penned an op-ed calling Amendment 3 a “tax shift, not tax relief.” Hernando County Sheriff Al Nienhuis raised concerns in county commission meetings over impacts on his budget. Manatee County Sheriff Rick Wells said Amendment 3 will cost him about 20% of his budget. And, Sarasota County Sheriff Kurt Hoffman said his agency has begun looking at what services it can legally cut, including homeless outreach teams, assisting Florida Highway Patrol at traffic crashes, supporting municipal police departments on calls, and more.
The only Tampa Bay sheriff to come out in support of Amendment 3 is Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco, who is currently hoping to leave his job in a special general election for Florida State Senate District 21.
Last Monday, during a roundtable with Gov. DeSantis, Sen. Ashley Moody and former Florida Realtors president Tim Weisheyer, Nocco argued that residents don’t need to worry about first responders losing any money because politicians in Tallahassee will make sure their budgets are a “priority.”
“The legislature is going to make sure the firefighters can go out there and protect our citizens and save lives, and the sheriffs can go do their jobs,” said Nocco. “And the second aspect is governments [will] become more efficient, because they’re going to have to recognize.”
Nocco received a $1,000 payment from the Florida Realtors back in July, according to records.
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This article appears in Oct. 22 – 28, 2026.
