Senate Bill 0338c1

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.


    Florida Senate - 1998                            CS for SB 338

    By the Committee on Ways and Means and Senators Latvala and
    Bronson




    301-1979-98

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to the tax on sales, use, and

  3         other transactions; revising the activities

  4         that constitute a manufacturing function for

  5         purposes of the sales tax exemption on certain

  6         uses of electricity; exempting the sale of

  7         steam energy used in manufacturing; providing a

  8         threshold for electricity use; deleting a

  9         requirement that the electricity be separately

10         metered; revising the applicability of the

11         exemption; providing an effective date.

12

13  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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15         Section 1.  Paragraph (ii) of subsection (7) of section

16  212.08, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

17         212.08  Sales, rental, use, consumption, distribution,

18  and storage tax; specified exemptions.--The sale at retail,

19  the rental, the use, the consumption, the distribution, and

20  the storage to be used or consumed in this state of the

21  following are hereby specifically exempt from the tax imposed

22  by this chapter.

23         (7)  MISCELLANEOUS EXEMPTIONS.--

24         (ii)  Certain electricity uses.--

25         1.  Charges for electricity or steam used to operate

26  machinery and equipment directly and exclusively at a fixed

27  location in this state when such to operate machinery and

28  equipment that is used to manufacture, process, compound, or

29  produce, or prepare for shipment items of tangible personal

30  property for sale, or to operate pollution control equipment,

31  recycling equipment, maintenance equipment, or monitoring or

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    Florida Senate - 1998                            CS for SB 338
    301-1979-98




  1  control equipment used in such operations are exempt to the

  2  extent provided in this paragraph from the tax imposed by this

  3  chapter as provided in subparagraph 2. In order to qualify for

  4  this exemption, 75 percent or more, of the electricity used at

  5  the fixed location must be used to operate qualifying

  6  machinery or equipment. If less than 75 percent, but 50

  7  percent or more, of the electricity is used at a fixed

  8  location to operate qualifying machinery or equipment, then it

  9  is presumed that 50 percent of the charge for electricity is

10  for nonexempt purposes The exemption provided for herein is

11  applicable if the electricity that is used for the exempt

12  purposes is separately metered, or if it is not separately

13  metered, it is irrevocably presumed that 50 percent of the

14  charge for electricity is for nonexempt purposes.

15         2.  This exemption only applies only to industries

16  classified under SIC Industry Major Group Numbers 10, 12, 13,

17  14, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33,

18  34, 35, 36, 37, 38, and 39. As used in this paragraph, "SIC"

19  means those classifications contained in the Standard

20  Industrial Classification Manual, 1987, as published by the

21  Office of Management and Budget, Executive Office of the

22  President.

23         3.  Possession by a seller of a written certification

24  by the purchaser, certifying the purchaser's entitlement to an

25  exemption permitted by this subsection, relieves the seller

26  from the responsibility of collecting the tax on the

27  nontaxable amounts, and the department shall look solely to

28  the purchaser for recovery of such tax if it determines that

29  the purchaser was not entitled to the exemption.

30         4.  Such exemption shall be applied as follows:

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    Florida Senate - 1998                            CS for SB 338
    301-1979-98




  1         1.  Beginning July 1, 1996, 20 percent of the charges

  2  for such electricity shall be exempt.

  3         2.  Beginning July 1, 1997, 40 percent of the charges

  4  for such electricity shall be exempt.

  5         a. 3.  Beginning July 1, 1998, 60 percent of the

  6  charges for such electricity or steam shall be exempt.

  7         b. 4.  Beginning July 1, 1999, 80 percent of the

  8  charges for such electricity or steam shall be exempt.

  9         c. 5.  Beginning July 1, 2000, 100 percent of the

10  charges for such electricity or steam shall be exempt.

11         5.  Notwithstanding any other provision in this

12  paragraph to the contrary, in order to receive the exemption

13  provided in this paragraph a taxpayer must first register with

14  the WAGES Program Business Registry established by the local

15  WAGES coalition for the area in which the taxpayer is located.

16  Such registration establishes a commitment on the part of the

17  taxpayer to hire WAGES program participants to the maximum

18  extent possible consistent with the nature of their business.

19         6.a.  In order to determine whether the exemption

20  provided in this paragraph from the tax on charges for

21  electricity or steam has an effect on retaining or attracting

22  companies to this state, the Office of Program Policy Analysis

23  and Governmental Accountability shall periodically monitor and

24  report on the industries receiving the exemption.

25         b.  The first report shall be submitted no later than

26  January 1, 1997, and must be conducted in such a manner as to

27  specifically determine the number of companies within each SIC

28  Industry Major Group receiving the exemption as of September

29  1, 1996, and the number of individuals employed by companies

30  within each SIC Industry Major Group receiving the exemption

31  as of September 1, 1996.

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    Florida Senate - 1998                            CS for SB 338
    301-1979-98




  1         c.  The second report shall be submitted no later than

  2  January 1, 2001, and must be comprehensive in scope, but, at a

  3  minimum, must be conducted in such a manner as to specifically

  4  determine the number of companies within each SIC Industry

  5  Major Group receiving the exemption as of September 1, 2000,

  6  the number of individuals employed by companies within each

  7  SIC Industry Major Group receiving the exemption as of

  8  September 1, 2000, whether the change, if any, in such number

  9  of companies or employees is attributable to the exemption

10  provided in this paragraph, whether it would be sound public

11  policy to continue or discontinue the exemption, and the

12  consequences of doing so.

13         d.  Both reports shall be submitted to the President of

14  the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the

15  Senate Minority Leader, and the House Minority Leader.

16         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 1998.

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18          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
19                              SB 338

20

21  The committee substitute makes several technical changes which
    clarify that the bill has no retroactive impact. It also
22  removes cigar manufacturers from the list of industries
    eligible to receive an exemption on purchases of electricity
23  and steam.

24  The committee substitute also provides that for manufacturers
    that use less than 75 percent but at least 50 percent of their
25  electricity directly for manufacturing and do not separately
    meter, 50 percent of their electricity purchases are presumed
26  to be for nonexempt purposes.

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