| 1 | Representative Attkisson offered the following: |
| 2 |
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| 3 | Amendment (with title amendment) |
| 4 | Between lines 434 and 435, insert: |
| 5 | Section 10. Section 212.03, Florida Statutes, is amended to |
| 6 | read: |
| 7 | 212.03 Transient rentals tax; rate, procedure, |
| 8 | enforcement, exemptions.-- |
| 9 | (1) It is hereby declared to be the legislative intent |
| 10 | that every person is exercising a taxable privilege who engages |
| 11 | in the business of renting, leasing, letting, or granting a |
| 12 | license to use any living quarters or sleeping or housekeeping |
| 13 | accommodations that are part of, in, from, or a part of, or in |
| 14 | connection with any hotel, apartment house, roominghouse, or |
| 15 | tourist or trailer camp, mobile home park, recreational vehicle |
| 16 | park, condominium, or timeshare resort. However, any person who |
| 17 | rents, leases, lets, or grants a license to others to use, |
| 18 | occupy, or enter upon any living quarters or sleeping or |
| 19 | housekeeping accommodations in apartment houses, roominghouses, |
| 20 | tourist camps, or trailer camps, mobile home parks, recreational |
| 21 | vehicle parks, condominiums, or timeshare resorts, and who |
| 22 | exclusively enters into a bona fide written agreement for |
| 23 | continuous residence for longer than 6 months in duration at |
| 24 | such property is not exercising a taxable privilege. For the |
| 25 | exercise of such taxable privilege, a tax is hereby levied in an |
| 26 | amount equal to 6 percent of and on the total rental charged for |
| 27 | such living quarters or sleeping or housekeeping accommodations |
| 28 | by the person charging or collecting the rental. Such tax shall |
| 29 | apply to hotels, apartment houses, roominghouses, or tourist or |
| 30 | trailer camps, mobile home parks, recreational vehicle parks, |
| 31 | condominiums, or timeshare resorts whether or not these |
| 32 | facilities have there is in connection with any of the same any |
| 33 | dining rooms, cafes, or other places where meals or lunches are |
| 34 | sold or served to guests. |
| 35 | (2) As used in this section, the terms "rent," "rental," |
| 36 | and "rental payment" mean the amount received by a person |
| 37 | operating transient accommodations for the use or securing of |
| 38 | any living quarters or sleeping or housekeeping accommodations |
| 39 | that are part of, in, from, or in connection with any hotel, |
| 40 | apartment house, roominghouse, mobile home park, recreational |
| 41 | vehicle park, condominium, timeshare resort, or tourist or |
| 42 | trailer camp. The term "person operating transient |
| 43 | accommodations" means the person conducting the daily affairs of |
| 44 | the physical facilities furnishing transient accommodations who |
| 45 | is responsible for providing the services commonly associated |
| 46 | with operating the facilities furnishing transient |
| 47 | accommodations regardless of whether such commonly associated |
| 48 | services are provided by third parties. The terms |
| 49 | "consideration," "rental," and "rent" do not include payments |
| 50 | received by an unrelated person for facilitating the booking of |
| 51 | reservations for or on behalf of a lessee or licensee at a |
| 52 | hotel, apartment house, roominghouse, mobile home park, |
| 53 | recreational vehicle park, condominium, timeshare resort, or |
| 54 | tourist or trailer camp in this state. The term "unrelated |
| 55 | person" means a person who is not in the same affiliated group |
| 56 | of corporations pursuant to s. 1504 of the Internal Revenue Code |
| 57 | of 1986, as amended. |
| 58 | (3) Tax shall be due on the consideration paid for |
| 59 | occupancy in this state pursuant to a regulated short-term |
| 60 | product as defined in s. 721.05 or occupancy in this state |
| 61 | pursuant to a product that would be deemed a regulated short- |
| 62 | term product if the agreement to purchase the short-term product |
| 63 | were executed in this state. Such tax shall be collected on the |
| 64 | last day of occupancy within the state unless the consideration |
| 65 | is applied to the purchase of a timeshare estate. |
| 66 | Notwithstanding subsections (1) and (2), the occupancy of an |
| 67 | accommodation of a timeshare resort pursuant to a timeshare |
| 68 | plan, a multisite timeshare plan, or an exchange transaction in |
| 69 | an exchange program as defined in s. 721.05 by the owner of a |
| 70 | timeshare interest or such owner's guest, which guest is not |
| 71 | paying monetary consideration to the owner or to a third party |
| 72 | for the benefit of the owner, is not a privilege subject to |
| 73 | taxation under this section. A membership or transaction fee |
| 74 | paid by a timeshare owner that does not provide the timeshare |
| 75 | owner with a right to occupy any specific timeshare unit but |
| 76 | merely provides the timeshare owner with an opportunity to |
| 77 | exchange a timeshare interest through an exchange program is a |
| 78 | service charge and is not subject to taxation. |
| 79 | (4) Consideration paid for the purchase of a timeshare |
| 80 | license in a timeshare plan as defined in s. 721.05 is rent |
| 81 | subject to taxation under this section. |
| 82 | (5)(2) The tax provided for herein shall be in addition to |
| 83 | the total amount of the rental, shall be charged by the lessor |
| 84 | or person operating transient accommodations subject to the tax |
| 85 | under this chapter receiving the rent in and by said rental |
| 86 | arrangement to the lessee or person paying the rental, and shall |
| 87 | be due and payable at the time of the receipt of such rental |
| 88 | payment by the lessor or person operating transient |
| 89 | accommodations, as defined in this chapter, who receives said |
| 90 | rental or payment. The owner, lessor, or person operating |
| 91 | transient accommodations receiving the rent shall remit the tax |
| 92 | to the department on the amount of rent received at the times |
| 93 | and in the manner hereinafter provided for dealers to remit |
| 94 | taxes under this chapter. The same duties imposed by this |
| 95 | chapter upon dealers in tangible personal property respecting |
| 96 | the collection and remission of the tax; the making of returns; |
| 97 | the keeping of books, records, and accounts; and the compliance |
| 98 | with the rules and regulations of the department in the |
| 99 | administration of this chapter shall apply to and be binding |
| 100 | upon all persons who manage or operate hotels, apartment houses, |
| 101 | roominghouses, tourist and trailer camps, and the rental of |
| 102 | condominium units, and to all persons who collect or receive |
| 103 | such rents on behalf of such owner or lessor taxable under this |
| 104 | chapter. The person operating transient accommodations shall |
| 105 | state the tax separately from the rental charged on the receipt, |
| 106 | invoice, or other documentation issued with respect to charges |
| 107 | for transient accommodations. A person facilitating the booking |
| 108 | of reservations who is unrelated to the person operating the |
| 109 | transient accommodations in which the reservation is booked is |
| 110 | not required to separately state amounts charged on the receipt, |
| 111 | invoice, or other documentation issued by the person |
| 112 | facilitating the booking of the reservation. Any amounts |
| 113 | specifically collected as a tax are state funds and must be |
| 114 | remitted as tax. |
| 115 | (6)(3) When rentals are received by way of property, |
| 116 | goods, wares, merchandise, services, or other things of value, |
| 117 | the tax shall be at the rate of 6 percent of the value of the |
| 118 | property, goods, wares, merchandise, services, or other things |
| 119 | of value. |
| 120 | (7)(4) The tax levied by this section shall not apply to, |
| 121 | be imposed upon, or collected from any person who shall have |
| 122 | entered into a bona fide written lease for longer than 6 months |
| 123 | in duration for continuous residence at any one hotel, apartment |
| 124 | house, roominghouse, tourist or trailer camp, or condominium, or |
| 125 | to any person who shall reside continuously longer than 6 months |
| 126 | at any one hotel, apartment house, roominghouse, tourist or |
| 127 | trailer camp, or condominium and shall have paid the tax levied |
| 128 | by this section for 6 months of residence in any one hotel, |
| 129 | roominghouse, apartment house, tourist or trailer camp, or |
| 130 | condominium. Notwithstanding other provisions of this chapter, |
| 131 | no tax shall be imposed upon rooms provided guests when there is |
| 132 | no consideration involved between the guest and the public |
| 133 | lodging establishment. Further, any person who, on the effective |
| 134 | date of this act, has resided continuously for 6 months at any |
| 135 | one hotel, apartment house, roominghouse, tourist or trailer |
| 136 | camp, or condominium, or, if less than 6 months, has paid the |
| 137 | tax imposed herein until he or she shall have resided |
| 138 | continuously for 6 months, shall thereafter be exempt, so long |
| 139 | as such person shall continuously reside at such location. The |
| 140 | Department of Revenue shall have the power to reform the rental |
| 141 | contract for the purposes of this chapter if the rental payments |
| 142 | are collected in other than equal daily, weekly, or monthly |
| 143 | amounts so as to reflect the actual consideration to be paid in |
| 144 | the future for the right of occupancy during the first 6 months. |
| 145 | (8)(5) The tax imposed by this section shall constitute a |
| 146 | lien on the property of the lessee or rentee of any sleeping |
| 147 | accommodations in the same manner as and shall be collectible as |
| 148 | are liens authorized and imposed by ss. 713.68 and 713.69. |
| 149 | (9)(6) It is the legislative intent that every person is |
| 150 | engaging in a taxable privilege who leases or rents parking or |
| 151 | storage spaces for motor vehicles in parking lots or garages, |
| 152 | who leases or rents docking or storage spaces for boats in boat |
| 153 | docks or marinas, or who leases or rents tie-down or storage |
| 154 | space for aircraft at airports. For the exercise of this |
| 155 | privilege, a tax is hereby levied at the rate of 6 percent on |
| 156 | the total rental charged. |
| 157 | (10)(7)(a) Full-time students enrolled in an institution |
| 158 | offering postsecondary education and military personnel |
| 159 | currently on active duty who reside in the facilities described |
| 160 | in subsection (1) shall be exempt from the tax imposed by this |
| 161 | section. The department shall be empowered to determine what |
| 162 | shall be deemed acceptable proof of full-time enrollment. The |
| 163 | exemption contained in this subsection shall apply irrespective |
| 164 | of any other provisions of this section. The tax levied by this |
| 165 | section shall not apply to or be imposed upon or collected on |
| 166 | the basis of rentals to any person who resides in any building |
| 167 | or group of buildings intended primarily for lease or rent to |
| 168 | persons as their permanent or principal place of residence. |
| 169 | (b) It is the intent of the Legislature that this |
| 170 | subsection provide tax relief for persons who rent living |
| 171 | accommodations rather than own their homes, while still |
| 172 | providing a tax on the rental of lodging facilities that |
| 173 | primarily serve transient guests. |
| 174 | (c) The rental of facilities, as defined in s. |
| 175 | 212.02(10)(f), which are intended primarily for rental as a |
| 176 | principal or permanent place of residence is exempt from the tax |
| 177 | imposed by this chapter. The rental of such facilities that |
| 178 | primarily serve transient guests is not exempt by this |
| 179 | subsection. In the application of this law, or in making any |
| 180 | determination against the exemption, the department shall |
| 181 | consider the facility as primarily serving transient guests |
| 182 | unless the facility owner makes a verified declaration on a form |
| 183 | prescribed by the department that more than half of the total |
| 184 | rental units available are occupied by tenants who have a |
| 185 | continuous residence in excess of 3 months. The owner of a |
| 186 | facility declared to be exempt by this paragraph must make a |
| 187 | determination of the taxable status of the facility at the end |
| 188 | of the owner's accounting year using any consecutive 3-month |
| 189 | period at least one month of which is in the accounting year. |
| 190 | The owner must use a selected consecutive 3-month period during |
| 191 | each annual redetermination. In the event that an exempt |
| 192 | facility no longer qualifies for exemption by this paragraph, |
| 193 | the owner must notify the department on a form prescribed by the |
| 194 | department by the 20th day of the first month of the owner's |
| 195 | next succeeding accounting year that the facility no longer |
| 196 | qualifies for such exemption. The tax levied by this section |
| 197 | shall apply to the rental of facilities that no longer qualify |
| 198 | for exemption under this paragraph beginning the first day of |
| 199 | the owner's next succeeding accounting year. The provisions of |
| 200 | this paragraph do not apply to mobile home lots regulated under |
| 201 | chapter 723. |
| 202 | (d) The rental of living accommodations in migrant labor |
| 203 | camps is not taxable under this section. "Migrant labor camps" |
| 204 | are defined as one or more buildings or structures, tents, |
| 205 | trailers, or vehicles, or any portion thereof, together with the |
| 206 | land appertaining thereto, established, operated, or used as |
| 207 | living quarters for seasonal, temporary, or migrant workers. |
| 208 | Section 11. The amendments made by this act to section |
| 209 | 212.03, Florida Statutes, are intended to be clarifying and |
| 210 | remedial in nature and are not a basis for assessments of tax |
| 211 | for periods before July 1, 2008, or for refunds of tax for |
| 212 | periods before July 1, 2008. |
| 213 |
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| 214 |
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| 215 |
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| 216 | ----------------------------------------------------- |
| 217 | T I T L E A M E N D M E N T |
| 218 | Remove line 62 and insert: |
| 219 | in Florida; amending s. 212.03, F.S.; revising the list of |
| 220 | living quarters or sleeping or housekeeping accommodations |
| 221 | that are subject to the transient rentals tax; providing |
| 222 | definitions; providing for taxation of regulated short- |
| 223 | term products; providing that the occupancy of an |
| 224 | accommodation of a timeshare resort and membership or |
| 225 | transaction fee paid by a timeshare owner is not a |
| 226 | privilege subject to taxation; providing that |
| 227 | consideration paid for the purchase of a timeshare license |
| 228 | in a timeshare plan is rent subject to taxation; requiring |
| 229 | the person operating transient accommodations to |
| 230 | separately state the tax charged on a receipt or other |
| 231 | documentation; providing that persons facilitating the |
| 232 | booking of reservations are not required to separately |
| 233 | state tax amounts charged; requiring that such amounts be |
| 234 | remitted as tax and classified as county funds; specifying |
| 235 | that certain provisions of the act are clarifying and |
| 236 | remedial in nature and are not a basis for assessments of |
| 237 | tax or for refunds of tax for periods before the effective |
| 238 | date of the act; providing an effective date. |