Florida TaxWatch released its 2026 Budget Turkey Watch Report, an annual independent review of the state budget to promote oversight, integrity, and transparency in the appropriations process. This year’s review of Florida’s $114.5 billion budget for FY2025-26 identifies 621 items totaling $829.7 million that qualify as “Budget Turkeys.” These are appropriations that bypass or violate established budget procedures or legislative and public scrutiny.
Since 1983, the term ‘Budget Turkey’ has become synonymous with Florida TaxWatch, and the report has an enviable acceptance by Republican and Democratic governors these many decades and helps provide the state’s taxpayers with a final check and balance in spending their hard-earned dollars.
In addition to projects that qualify as Budget Turkeys, the report highlights other areas in the budget, including an additional 484 member projects total $441.1 million. While they do not qualify as Budget Turkeys, Florida TaxWatch notes they should be subjected to a statutorily defined competitive review and selection process, ensuring they are prioritized, competing fairly for limited dollars, and funded with a coordinated, statewide vision that allows for limited funding to go to the most critical projects that provide the highest return on taxpayer dollars.
Florida TaxWatch President and CEO Jeff Kottkamp said, “We release this report every year because someone needs to be looking out for the taxpayers of Florida. That is what we do every day at Florida TaxWatch. It is important to note that the Budget Turkey label does not signify our judgment of a project’s merit, value, or need. When considering the budget, Florida TaxWatch strongly encourages Governor DeSantis to assess each project we flagged – Turkey or otherwise – and determine whether its funding is counter to good budgeting practices; it addresses a core state government function; and/or it was selected through a fair process that promotes the best interests of taxpaying citizens across the state.
“The principle behind the Florida TaxWatch Budget Turkey Watch Report is simple: taxpayer dollars should be allocated through a transparent, accountable, and deliberative process. The hard-earned tax dollars of the citizens of Florida should not be spent by the millions, in the backrooms of the Capitol, outside of public view. All appropriations, especially projects inserted into the budget by individual legislators, should be subject to rigorous review. This is especially important since these are typically projects that are local rather than statewide in scope and are often outside the core functions of state government.”
The session ended with a $1.4 billion gap between the House ($113.6 billion) and the Senate ($115.0 billion) budgets. A special session (one of six over the last two years) finally resulted in a $114.5 billion spending plan, a slight reduction from last year’s budget. At least it is being portrayed as a reduction, but the budget spends $2 billion more General Revenue (GR) than last year, offset by a reduction in federal funds and state trust fund authorizations
Moreover, despite the call for a leaner budget, legislators requested more hometown projects than ever before. House and Senate members submitted more than 5,600 project requests (most projects are requested in both chambers) totaling $12.5 billion, an average of 35 requests and $78 million per legislator. These totals eclipse last year’s amounts – 5,100 requests worth $11.7 billion.
And most projects end up in the budget. The FY2026-27 budget includes nearly 2,000 local member projects worth $2.7 billion. Since almost every member project in the budget was requested by both a House member and a Senate member, the average Senator had approximately 45 projects worth $60 million funded, and the average Representative got 15 projects worth $20 million. Of course, some legislators receive far more than others. This continues a five-year run that has seen approximately $14 billion in member projects appropriated.
Florida TaxWatch Senior Vice President of Research Kurt Wenner said, “The lack of a systematic review and selection process in some areas of the budget has become a glaring problem. Member projects are peppered throughout the budget, but there are several line-items where numerous projects end up, and the number of projects that are funded in these line-items is increasing. Not that long ago, funding for some of these types of local projects was rare. Funding them through the state budget has now become standard. To make sure that these projects are prioritized; funded with a transparent, coordinated, statewide vision; compete for limited funding fairly; and meet specified requirements to qualify for funding, Florida TaxWatch recommends that, if the Legislature is going to fund such projects, it must create a competitive review and selection process in statute for each of these areas.
“According to Florida’s Long-Range Fiscal Outlook, if state spending continues its present course, General Revenue budget shortfalls are on the horizon. In addition, many in the Florida Legislature have been rightly criticizing local governments for rapidly increasing property taxes and budgets and wasteful and inefficient spending. Despite this, legislators continue to request and fund billions of dollars for projects back in their districts, rewarding local governments that may not be sufficiently protecting taxpayers. And while many of these projects are worthwhile, many more are hardly priorities or even essential. In addition, many of these appropriations bypass or violate established budget procedures or legislative and public scrutiny. This is why Florida TaxWatch undertakes its annual Budget Turkey Watch.”
Florida TaxWatch is providing this report to assist the Governor in his budget deliberations, recommending that he not only consider the value and efficacy of a project, but also if it meets Budget Turkey-criteria, if it addresses a core state government function, and if it was selected through a fair process that promotes the best interest of taxpayers statewide.
The Florida TaxWatch Budget Turkey criteria are clearly defined. Appropriations must violate sound budgeting practices in at least one of these ways to be designated as a Budget Turkey:
- A project that circumvents established review and selection processes or has completed the established process but is funded ahead of much higher priority projects (as determined by the selection process);
- Appropriations that are inserted in the budget during conference committee meetings, meaning they did not appear in either the final Senate or House budgets;
- Appropriations from inappropriate trust funds; duplicative appropriations; and appropriations contingent on legislation that did not pass; and/or
- Appropriations that may have been in the House or Senate budget, but were removed by agreement in conference, only to be added back at the last minute through the supplemental appropriation (“sprinkle”) lists.
» Access the full 2026 Budget Turkey Watch Report.
About Florida TaxWatch
As an independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit government watchdog and taxpayer research institute, and the trusted “eyes and ears” of Florida taxpayers for more than 47 years, Florida TaxWatch (FTW) works to improve the productivity and accountability of Florida government. Its research recommends productivity enhancements and explains the statewide impact of fiscal and economic policies and practices on taxpayers and businesses. FTW is supported by its membership via voluntary, tax-deductible donations and private grants. Donations provide a solid, lasting foundation that has enabled FTW to bring about a more effective, responsive government that is more accountable to, and productive for, the taxpayers it has served since 1979. For more information, please visit www.floridataxwatch.org .