Senate Bill 2402c2

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 2402

    By the Committees on Commerce and Economic Opportunities;
    Fiscal Resource; and Senator Sebesta




    310-2117-00

  1                      A bill to be entitled

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

  3         other transactions; amending s. 212.08, F.S.;

  4         revising an exemption from taxation for

  5         machinery and equipment used in

  6         silicon-technology production and research and

  7         development; making the exemption applicable to

  8         semiconductor-technology production and

  9         research and development; providing an

10         exemption from taxation for building materials

11         purchased for use in manufacturing or expanding

12         clean rooms for semiconductor-manufacturing

13         facilities; revising definitions; revising

14         criteria and procedures; providing an effective

15         date.

16

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

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19         Section 1.  Paragraph (j) of subsection (5) of section

20  212.08, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

21         212.08  Sales, rental, use, consumption, distribution,

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

23  the rental, the use, the consumption, the distribution, and

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

25  following are hereby specifically exempt from the tax imposed

26  by this chapter.

27         (5)  EXEMPTIONS; ACCOUNT OF USE.--

28         (j)  Machinery and equipment used in semiconductor

29  silicon technology production and research and development.--

30         1.  Industrial machinery and equipment purchased for

31  use in semiconductor silicon technology facilities certified

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 2402
    310-2117-00




  1  under subparagraph 6. 5. to manufacture, process, compound, or

  2  produce semiconductor silicon technology products for sale or

  3  for use by these facilities are exempt from the tax imposed by

  4  this chapter.

  5         2.  Machinery and equipment are exempt from the tax

  6  imposed by this chapter if purchased for use predominately in

  7  semiconductor silicon wafer research and development

  8  activities in a semiconductor silicon technology research and

  9  development facility certified under subparagraph 6. 5.

10         3.  Building materials purchased for use in

11  manufacturing or expanding clean rooms in

12  semiconductor-manufacturing facilities are exempt from the tax

13  imposed by this chapter.

14         4.3.  In addition to meeting the criteria mandated by

15  subparagraph 1., or subparagraph 2., or subparagraph 3., a

16  business must be certified by the Office of Tourism, Trade,

17  and Economic Development as authorized in this paragraph in

18  order to qualify for exemption under this paragraph.

19         5.4.  For items purchased tax exempt pursuant to this

20  paragraph, possession of a written certification from the

21  purchaser, certifying the purchaser's entitlement to exemption

22  pursuant to this paragraph, relieves the seller of the

23  responsibility of collecting the tax on the sale of such

24  items, and the department shall look solely to the purchaser

25  for recovery of tax if it determines that the purchaser was

26  not entitled to the exemption.

27         6.5.a.  To be eligible to receive the exemption

28  provided by subparagraph 1., or subparagraph 2., or

29  subparagraph 3., a qualifying business entity shall apply to

30  Enterprise Florida, Inc. The application shall be developed by

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 2402
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  1  the Office of Tourism, Trade, and Economic Development in

  2  consultation with Enterprise Florida, Inc.

  3         b.  Enterprise Florida, Inc., shall review each

  4  submitted application and information and determine whether or

  5  not the application is complete within 5 working days. Once an

  6  application is complete, Enterprise Florida, Inc., shall,

  7  within 10 working days, evaluate the application and recommend

  8  approval or disapproval of the application to the Office of

  9  Tourism, Trade, and Economic Development.

10         c.  Upon receipt of the application and recommendation

11  from Enterprise Florida, Inc., the Office of Tourism, Trade,

12  and Economic Development shall certify within 5 working days

13  those applicants who are found to meet the requirements of

14  this section and notify the applicant, Enterprise Florida,

15  Inc., and the department of the certification. If the Office

16  of Tourism, Trade, and Economic Development finds that the

17  applicant does not meet the requirements of this section, it

18  shall notify the applicant and Enterprise Florida, Inc.,

19  within 10 working days that the application for certification

20  has been denied and the reasons for denial. The Office of

21  Tourism, Trade, and Economic Development has final approval

22  authority for certification under this section.

23         7.6.a.  A business certified to receive this exemption

24  may apply once each year for the exemption.

25         b.  The first claim submitted by a business may include

26  all eligible expenditures made after the date the business was

27  certified.

28         b.c.  To apply for the annual exemption, the business

29  shall submit a claim to the Office of Tourism, Trade, and

30  Economic Development, which claim indicates and documents the

31  sales and use taxes otherwise payable on eligible machinery

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 2402
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  1  and equipment. The application claim must also indicate, for

  2  program evaluation purposes only, the average number of

  3  full-time equivalent employees at the facility over the

  4  preceding calendar year, the average wage and benefits paid to

  5  those employees over the preceding calendar year, and the

  6  total investment made in real and tangible personal property

  7  over the preceding calendar year, and the total value of

  8  tax-exempt purchases and taxes exempted during the previous

  9  year or, for the first claim submitted, since the date of

10  certification. The department shall assist the Office of

11  Tourism, Trade, and Economic Development in evaluating and

12  verifying information provided in the application for

13  exemption.

14         c.d.  The Office of Tourism, Trade, and Economic

15  Development may use the information reported on the

16  application claims for evaluation purposes only and shall

17  prepare an annual report on the exemption program and its cost

18  and impact. The annual report for the preceding fiscal year

19  shall be submitted to the Governor, the President of the

20  Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives by

21  September 30 of each fiscal year. This report may be submitted

22  in conjunction with the annual report required in s.

23  288.095(3)(c).

24         8.7.  A business certified to receive this exemption

25  may elect to designate one or more state universities or

26  community colleges as recipients of up to 100 percent of the

27  amount of the exemption for which they may qualify. To receive

28  these funds, the institution must agree to match the funds so

29  earned with equivalent cash, programs, services, or other

30  in-kind support on a one-to-one basis in the pursuit of

31  research and development projects as requested by the

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 2402
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  1  certified business. The rights to any patents, royalties, or

  2  real or intellectual property must be vested in the business

  3  unless otherwise agreed to by the business and the university

  4  or community college.

  5         9.8.  As used in this paragraph, the term:

  6         a.  "Predominately" means at least 50 percent of the

  7  time in qualifying research and development.

  8         b.  "Research and development" means basic and applied

  9  research in the science or engineering, as well as the design,

10  development, and testing of prototypes or processes of new or

11  improved products. Research and development does not include

12  market research, routine consumer product testing, sales

13  research, research in the social sciences or psychology,

14  nontechnological activities, or technical services.

15         c.  "Semiconductor Silicon technology products" means

16  raw semiconductor silicon wafers or semiconductor thin films

17  that are transformed into semiconductor memory or logic

18  wafers, including wafers containing mixed memory and logic

19  circuits; related assembly and test operations; active-matrix

20  flat panel displays; semiconductor chips; semiconductor

21  lasers; optoelectronic elements; and related semiconductor

22  silicon technology products as determined by the Office of

23  Tourism, Trade, and Economic Development.

24         d.  "Clean rooms" means manufacturing facilities

25  enclosed in a manner that meets the clean manufacturing

26  requirements necessary for high-technology

27  semiconductor-manufacturing environments.

28         Section 2.  This act shall take effect January 1, 2001.

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    Florida Senate - 2000                    CS for CS for SB 2402
    310-2117-00




  1          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
  2                            CS/SB 2402

  3

  4  This committee substitute differs from the committee
    substitute for Senate Bill 2402 by including a sales tax
  5  exemption for building materials purchased for use in
    manufacturing or expanding "clean rooms" and defines the term
  6  as manufacturing facilities enclosed in such a manner that the
    rooms meet the clean manufacturing requirements necessary for
  7  high-technology semiconductor manufacturing environments.

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