House Bill 1463c1

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2000             CS/HB 1463

        By the Committee on Regulated Services and Representatives
    Sanderson and Fasano





  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to pari-mutuel wagering;

  3         amending s. 550.0951, F.S.; revising the tax on

  4         handle for intertrack wagering with respect to

  5         harness horse racing tracks; providing a

  6         limitation on the tax on handle for live jai

  7         alai performances; amending s. 550.09512, F.S.;

  8         revising the tax on handle for live harness

  9         horse racing performances; amending s.

10         550.2625, F.S.; increasing the amount required

11         to be held out to pay purses with respect to

12         certain horse racing meets; amending s.

13         550.625, F.S.; increasing the amount to be paid

14         for purses with respect to host tracks racing

15         under a harness permit for intertrack wagering;

16         providing an effective date.

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

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20         Section 1.  Paragraph (c) of subsection (3) of section

21  550.0951, Florida Statutes, is amended, and paragraph (d) is

22  added to said subsection, to read:

23         550.0951  Payment of daily license fee and taxes.--

24         (3)  TAX ON HANDLE.--Each permitholder shall pay a tax

25  on contributions to pari-mutuel pools, the aggregate of which

26  is hereinafter referred to as "handle," on races or games

27  conducted by the permitholder. The tax is imposed daily and is

28  based on the total contributions to all pari-mutuel pools

29  conducted during the daily performance.  If a permitholder

30  conducts more than one performance daily, the tax is imposed

31  on each performance separately.

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2000             CS/HB 1463

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  1         (c)1.  The tax on handle for intertrack wagering is 3.3

  2  percent of the handle if the host track is a horse track, 1.6

  3  percent if the host track is a harness track, 7.6 percent if

  4  the host track is a dog track, and 7.1 percent if the host

  5  track is a jai alai fronton.  The tax on handle for intertrack

  6  wagering on rebroadcasts of simulcast horseraces is 2.4

  7  percent of the handle and 1.2 percent of the handle if the

  8  permitholder's facility is a harness track.  The tax shall be

  9  deposited into the General Revenue Fund.

10         2.  Effective October 1, 1996, the tax on handle for

11  intertrack wagers accepted by any dog track located in an area

12  of the state in which there are only three permitholders, all

13  of which are greyhound permitholders, located in three

14  contiguous counties, from any greyhound permitholder also

15  located within such area or any dog track or jai alai fronton

16  located as specified in s. 550.615(6) or (8), on races or

17  games received from the same class of permitholder located

18  within the same market area is 6 percent if the host facility

19  is a greyhound permitholder and, if the host facility is a jai

20  alai permitholder, the rate shall be 6.1 percent except that

21  it shall be 2.3 percent on handle at such time as the total

22  tax on intertrack handle paid to the division by the

23  permitholder during the current state fiscal year exceeds the

24  total tax on intertrack handle paid to the division by the

25  permitholder during the 1992-1993 state fiscal year.

26         3.  Any guest track that imposes a surcharge on each

27  winning ticket cashed pursuant to s. 550.6335 shall pay an

28  additional tax equal to 5 percent of the surcharge so imposed.

29  Any taxes so imposed shall be deposited into the General

30  Revenue Fund.

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2000             CS/HB 1463

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  1         (d)  Notwithstanding any other provision of this

  2  chapter, in order to protect the Florida jai alai industry,

  3  effective July 1, 2000, a jai alai permitholder may not be

  4  taxed on live handle at a rate higher than 2 percent.

  5         Section 2.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section

  6  550.09512, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

  7         550.09512  Harness horse taxes; abandoned interest in a

  8  permit for nonpayment of taxes.--

  9         (2)(a)  Notwithstanding the provisions of s.

10  550.0951(3)(a), the tax on handle for live harness horse

11  performances is 0.5 1 percent of handle per performance.

12         Section 3.  Paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of section

13  550.2625, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

14         550.2625  Horseracing; minimum purse requirement,

15  Florida breeders' and owners' awards.--

16         (2)  Each permitholder conducting a horserace meet is

17  required to pay from the takeout withheld on pari-mutuel pools

18  a sum for purses in accordance with the type of race

19  performed.

20         (b)1.  A permitholder conducting a harness horse race

21  meet under this chapter must pay to the purse pool from the

22  takeout withheld a purse requirement that totals an amount not

23  less than 8.25 8 percent of all contributions to pari-mutuel

24  pools conducted during the race meet.  An amount not less than

25  7.75 7.5 percent of the total handle shall be paid from this

26  purse pool as purses.

27         2.  An amount not to exceed 0.5 percent of the total

28  handle on all harness horse races that are subject to the

29  purse requirement of subparagraph 1., must be available for

30  use to provide medical, dental, surgical, life, funeral, or

31  disability insurance benefits for occupational licensees who

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  1  work at tracks in this state at which harness horse races are

  2  conducted.  Such insurance benefits must be paid from the

  3  purse pool specified in subparagraph 1.  An annual plan for

  4  payment of insurance benefits from the purse pool, including

  5  qualifications for eligibility, must be submitted by the

  6  Florida Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association for

  7  approval to the division.  An annual report of the implemented

  8  plan shall be submitted to the division.  All records of the

  9  Florida Standardbred Breeders and Owners Association

10  concerning the administration of the plan must be available

11  for audit at the discretion of the division to determine that

12  the plan has been implemented and administered as authorized.

13  If the division finds that the Florida Standardbred Breeders

14  and Owners Association has not complied with the provisions of

15  this section, the division may order the association to cease

16  and desist from administering the plan and shall appoint the

17  division as temporary administrator of the plan until the

18  division reestablishes administration of the plan with the

19  association.

20         Section 4.  Subsection (1) of section 550.625, Florida

21  Statutes, is amended to read:

22         550.625  Intertrack wagering; purses; breeders'

23  awards.--If a host track is a horse track:

24         (1)  A host track racing under either a thoroughbred or

25  quarter horse permit shall pay an amount equal to 6.125

26  percent of all wagers placed pursuant to the provisions of s.

27  550.615, as purses during its current race meet.  However, up

28  to 0.50 percent of all wagers placed pursuant to s. 550.615

29  may, at the option of the host track, be deducted from the

30  amount retained by the host track for purses to supplement the

31  awards program for owners of Florida-bred horses as set forth

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    Florida House of Representatives - 2000             CS/HB 1463

    615-122-00






  1  in s. 550.2625(6).  A host track racing under a harness permit

  2  shall pay an amount equal to 7.85 7 percent of all wagers

  3  placed pursuant to the provisions of s. 550.615, as purses

  4  during its current race meet.  If a host track underpays or

  5  overpays purses required by this section and s. 550.2625, the

  6  provisions of s. 550.2625 apply to the overpayment or

  7  underpayment.

  8         Section 5.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

  9  law.

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