The Florida Senate

376.30781  Partial tax credits for rehabilitation of drycleaning-solvent-contaminated sites and brownfield sites in designated brownfield areas; application process; rulemaking authority; revocation authority.--

(1)  The Legislature finds that:

(a)  To facilitate property transactions and economic growth and development, it is in the interest of the state to encourage the cleanup, at the earliest possible time, of drycleaning-solvent-contaminated sites and brownfield sites in designated brownfield areas.

(b)  It is the intent of the Legislature to encourage the voluntary cleanup of drycleaning-solvent-contaminated sites and brownfield sites in designated brownfield areas by providing a partial tax credit for the restoration of such property in specified circumstances.

(2)  Notwithstanding the requirements of paragraph (5)(a), tax credits allowed pursuant to s. 220.1845 are available for any site rehabilitation conducted during the calendar year in which the applicable voluntary cleanup agreement or brownfield site rehabilitation agreement is executed, even if the site rehabilitation is conducted prior to the execution of that agreement or the designation of the brownfield area.

(3)(a)  A credit in the amount of 50 percent of the costs of voluntary cleanup activity that is integral to site rehabilitation at the following sites is allowed pursuant to s. 220.1845:

1.  A drycleaning-solvent-contaminated site eligible for state-funded site rehabilitation under s. 376.3078(3);

2.  A drycleaning-solvent-contaminated site at which cleanup is undertaken by the real property owner pursuant to s. 376.3078(11), if the real property owner is not also, and has never been, the owner or operator of the drycleaning facility where the contamination exists; or

3.  A brownfield site in a designated brownfield area under s. 376.80

(b)  A tax credit applicant, or multiple tax credit applicants working jointly to clean up a single site, may not be granted more than $500,000 per year in tax credits for each site voluntarily rehabilitated. Multiple tax credit applicants shall be granted tax credits in the same proportion as their contribution to payment of cleanup costs. Tax credits are available only for site rehabilitation conducted during the calendar year for which the tax credit application is submitted.

(c)  In order to encourage completion of site rehabilitation at contaminated sites that are being voluntarily cleaned up and that are eligible for a tax credit under this section, the tax credit applicant may claim an additional 25 percent of the total cleanup costs, not to exceed $500,000, in the final year of cleanup as evidenced by the Department of Environmental Protection issuing a "No Further Action" order for that site.

(d)  In order to encourage the construction of housing that meets the definition of affordable provided in s. 420.0004(3), an applicant for the tax credit may claim an additional 25 percent of the total site rehabilitation costs that are eligible for tax credits under this section, not to exceed $500,000. In order to receive this additional tax credit, the applicant must provide a certification letter from the Florida Housing Finance Corporation, the local housing authority, or other governmental agency that is a party to the use agreement, indicating that the construction on the brownfield site is complete, the brownfield site has received a certificate of occupancy, and the brownfield site has a properly recorded instrument that limits the use of the property to housing that meets the definition of affordable provided in s. 420.0004(3). Notwithstanding the limitation that only one application shall be submitted each year for each site, an application for the additional credit provided for in this paragraph shall be submitted as soon as all requirements to obtain this additional tax credit have been met.

(e)  Notwithstanding the restrictions in this section that limit tax credit eligibility to costs that are integral to site rehabilitation, to encourage the redevelopment of properties in designated brownfield areas that are hindered by the presence of solid waste, as defined in s. 403.703, a tax credit applicant may also claim costs to address the solid waste, but only those costs to remove, transport, and dispose of solid waste in accordance with department rules. These costs are eligible for a tax credit provided the applicant submits an affidavit stating that, after consultation with appropriate local government officials and the department, to the best of the applicant's knowledge, the site was never operated as a landfill or dump site for monetary compensation, and submits all other documentation and certifications required by this section. In this section, where reference is made to "site rehabilitation," the department shall instead consider whether the costs claimed are for removal, transportation, and disposal of solid waste. Tax credit applications claiming costs pursuant to this paragraph shall not be subject to the calendar-year limitation and January 15 annual application deadline, and the department shall accept a one-time application filed subsequent to the completion by the tax credit applicant of the applicable requirements listed in this paragraph.

(4)  The Department of Environmental Protection shall be responsible for allocating the tax credits provided for in s. 220.1845, not to exceed a total of $2 million in tax credits annually.

(5)  To claim the credit for site rehabilitation conducted during the current calendar year, each tax credit applicant must apply to the Department of Environmental Protection for an allocation of the $2 million annual credit by January 15 of the following year on a form developed by the Department of Environmental Protection in cooperation with the Department of Revenue. The form shall include an affidavit from each tax credit applicant certifying that all information contained in the application, including all records of costs incurred and claimed in the tax credit application, are true and correct. If the application is submitted pursuant to subparagraph (3)(a)2., the form must include an affidavit signed by the real property owner stating that it is not, and has never been, the owner or operator of the drycleaning facility where the contamination exists. Approval of partial tax credits must be accomplished on a first-come, first-served basis based upon the date complete applications are received by the Division of Waste Management. A tax credit applicant shall submit only one complete application per site for each calendar year's site rehabilitation costs. Incomplete placeholder applications shall not be accepted and will not secure a place in the first-come, first-served application line. To be eligible for a tax credit, the tax credit applicant must:

(a)  Have entered into a voluntary cleanup agreement with the Department of Environmental Protection for a drycleaning-solvent-contaminated site or a Brownfield Site Rehabilitation Agreement, as applicable; and

(b)  Have paid all deductibles pursuant to s. 376.3078(3)(e) for eligible drycleaning-solvent-cleanup program sites.

(6)  To obtain the tax credit certificate, a tax credit applicant must annually file an application for certification, which must be received by the Division of Waste Management of the Department of Environmental Protection by January 15 of the year following the calendar year for which site rehabilitation costs are being claimed in a tax credit application. The tax credit applicant must provide all pertinent information requested on the tax credit application form, including, at a minimum, the name and address of the tax credit applicant and the address and tracking identification number of the eligible site. Along with the tax credit application form, the tax credit applicant must submit the following:

(a)  A nonrefundable review fee of $250 made payable to the Water Quality Assurance Trust Fund to cover the administrative costs associated with the department's review of the tax credit application;

(b)  Copies of contracts and documentation of contract negotiations, accounts, invoices, sales tickets, or other payment records from purchases, sales, leases, or other transactions involving actual costs incurred for that tax year related to site rehabilitation, as that term is defined in ss. 376.301 and 376.79;

(c)  Proof that the documentation submitted pursuant to paragraph (b) has been reviewed and verified by an independent certified public accountant in accordance with standards established by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Specifically, the certified public accountant must attest to the accuracy and validity of the costs incurred and paid by conducting an independent review of the data presented by the tax credit applicant. Accuracy and validity of costs incurred and paid would be determined once the level of effort was certified by an appropriate professional registered in this state in each contributing technical discipline. The certified public accountant's report would also attest that the costs included in the application form are not duplicated within the application. A copy of the accountant's report shall be submitted to the Department of Environmental Protection with the tax credit application; and

(d)  A certification form stating that site rehabilitation activities associated with the documentation submitted pursuant to paragraph (b) have been conducted under the observation of, and related technical documents have been signed and sealed by, an appropriate professional registered in this state in each contributing technical discipline. The certification form shall be signed and sealed by the appropriate registered professionals stating that the costs incurred were integral, necessary, and required for site rehabilitation, as that term is defined in ss. 376.301 and 376.79

(7)  The certified public accountant and appropriate registered professionals submitting forms as part of a tax credit application must verify such forms. Verification must be accomplished as provided in s. 92.525(1)(b) and subject to the provisions of s. 92.525(3).

(8)  The Department of Environmental Protection shall review the tax credit application and any supplemental documentation that the tax credit applicant may submit prior to the annual application deadline in order to have the application considered complete, for the purpose of verifying that the tax credit applicant has met the qualifying criteria in subsections (3) and (5) and has submitted all required documentation listed in subsection (6). Upon verification that the tax credit applicant has met these requirements, the department shall issue a written decision granting eligibility for partial tax credits (a tax credit certificate) in the amount of 50 percent of the total costs claimed, subject to the $500,000 limitation, for the calendar year for which the tax credit application is submitted based on the report of the certified public accountant and the certifications from the appropriate registered technical professionals.

(9)  On or before March 31, the Department of Environmental Protection shall inform each eligible tax credit applicant of the amount of its partial tax credit and provide each eligible tax credit applicant with a tax credit certificate that must be submitted with its tax return to the Department of Revenue to claim the tax credit or be transferred pursuant to s. 220.1845(1)(h). Credits will not result in the payment of refunds if total credits exceed the amount of tax owed.

(10)  If a tax credit applicant does not receive a tax credit allocation due to an exhaustion of the $2 million annual tax credit authorization, such application will then be included in the same first-come, first-served order in the next year's annual tax credit allocation, if any, based on the prior year application.

(11)  The Department of Environmental Protection may adopt rules to prescribe the necessary forms required to claim tax credits under this section and to provide the administrative guidelines and procedures required to administer this section.

(12)  The Department of Environmental Protection may revoke or modify any written decision granting eligibility for partial tax credits under this section if it is discovered that the tax credit applicant submitted any false statement, representation, or certification in any application, record, report, plan, or other document filed in an attempt to receive partial tax credits under this section. The Department of Environmental Protection shall immediately notify the Department of Revenue of any revoked or modified orders affecting previously granted partial tax credits. Additionally, the tax credit applicant must notify the Department of Revenue of any change in its tax credit claimed.

(13)  A tax credit applicant who receives state-funded site rehabilitation under s. 376.3078(3) for rehabilitation of a drycleaning-solvent-contaminated site is ineligible to receive a tax credit under s. 220.1845 for costs incurred by the tax credit applicant in conjunction with the rehabilitation of that site during the same time period that state-administered site rehabilitation was underway.

History.--s. 4, ch. 98-189; s. 181, ch. 99-13; s. 4, ch. 2003-173; s. 3, ch. 2003-276; s. 3, ch. 2006-291; s. 22, ch. 2006-312; s. 64, ch. 2007-5.