HB 0939

CS

CHAMBER ACTION

1	The Committee on Appropriations recommends the following:
2
3	Committee Substitute
4	Remove the entire bill and insert:
5	A bill to be entitled
6	An act relating to pari-mutuel wagering; amending s.
7	550.09515, F.S.; deleting provisions that require a
8	thoroughbred horse permit to be voided and to escheat to
9	the state for failure to operate performances; deleting
10	provisions for the reissuance of such escheated permit;
11	deleting obsolete provisions; amending s. 550.5251, F.S.;
12	revising provisions for application and issuance of
13	certain thoroughbred horse permits; providing penalties
14	for failure to operate full schedule of performances by
15	such permitholders; providing procedures for election not
16	to operate live performances; providing that such election
17	shall not affect the validity of a permit; exempting from
18	penalties thoroughbred permitholders who failed to operate
19	during specified racing seasons; providing for certain
20	greyhound permitholders that have not produced pari-mutuel
21	wagering tax revenues to conduct intertrack wagering under
22	certain circumstances; authorizing such intertrack
23	wagering to be conducted at a location other than the
24	permit location; amending s. 849.086, F.S.; revising
25	conditions during which a cardroom may be operated by a
26	cardroom licensee; deleting requirement for a cardroom
27	application to be filed as part of the annual license
28	application; providing an effective date.
29
30	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
31
32	Section 1.  Subsections (3) through (7) of section
33	550.09515, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
34	550.09515  Thoroughbred horse taxes; abandoned interest in
35	a permit for nonpayment of taxes.--
36	(3)(a)  The permit of a thoroughbred horse permitholder who
37	does not pay tax on handle for live thoroughbred horse
38	performances for a full schedule of live races during any 2
39	consecutive state fiscal years shall be void and shall escheat
40	to and become the property of the state unless such failure to
41	operate and pay tax on handle was the direct result of fire,
42	strike, war, or other disaster or event beyond the ability of
43	the permitholder to control. Financial hardship to the
44	permitholder shall not, in and of itself, constitute just cause
45	for failure to operate and pay tax on handle.
46	(b)  In order to maximize the tax revenues to the state,
47	the division shall reissue an escheated thoroughbred horse
48	permit to a qualified applicant pursuant to the provisions of
49	this chapter as for the issuance of an initial permit. However,
50	the provisions of this chapter relating to referendum
51	requirements for a pari-mutuel permit shall not apply to the
52	reissuance of an escheated thoroughbred horse permit. As
53	specified in the application and upon approval by the division
54	of an application for the permit, the new permitholder shall be
55	authorized to operate a thoroughbred horse facility anywhere in
56	the same county in which the escheated permit was authorized to
57	be operated, notwithstanding the provisions of s. 550.054(2)
58	relating to mileage limitations.
59	(3)(4)  In the event that a court of competent jurisdiction
60	determines any of the provisions of this section to be
61	unconstitutional, it is the intent of the Legislature that the
62	provisions contained in this section shall be null and void and
63	that the provisions of s. 550.0951 shall apply to all
64	thoroughbred horse permitholders beginning on the date of such
65	judicial determination. To this end, the Legislature declares
66	that it would not have enacted any of the provisions of this
67	section individually and, to that end, expressly finds them not
68	to be severable.
69	(4)(5)  Notwithstanding the provisions of s.
70	550.0951(3)(c), the tax on handle for intertrack wagering on
71	rebroadcasts of simulcast horseraces is 2.4 percent of the
72	handle; provided however, that if the guest track is a
73	thoroughbred track located more than 35 miles from the host
74	track, the host track shall pay a tax of .5 percent of the
75	handle, and additionally the host track shall pay to the guest
76	track 1.9 percent of the handle to be used by the guest track
77	solely for purses. The tax shall be deposited into the Pari-
78	mutuel Wagering Trust Fund.
79	(5)(6)  A credit equal to the amount of contributions made
80	by a thoroughbred permitholder during the taxable year directly
81	to the Jockeys' Guild or its health and welfare fund to be used
82	to provide health and welfare benefits for active, disabled, and
83	retired Florida jockeys and their dependents pursuant to
84	reasonable rules of eligibility established by the Jockeys'
85	Guild is allowed against taxes on live handle due for a taxable
86	year under this section. A thoroughbred permitholder may not
87	receive a credit greater than an amount equal to 1 percent of
88	its paid taxes for the previous taxable year.
89	(7)  If a thoroughbred permitholder fails to operate all
90	performances on its 2001-2002 license, failure to pay tax on
91	handle for a full schedule of live races for those performances
92	in the 2001-2002 fiscal year does not constitute failure to pay
93	taxes on handle for a full schedule of live races in a fiscal
94	year for the purposes of subsection (3). This subsection may not
95	be construed as forgiving a thoroughbred permitholder from
96	paying taxes on performances conducted at its facility pursuant
97	to its 2001-2002 license other than for failure to operate all
98	performances on its 2001-2002 license. This subsection expires
99	July 1, 2003.
100	Section 2.  Subsection (2) of section 550.5251, Florida
101	Statutes, is amended to read:
102	550.5251  Florida thoroughbred racing; certain permits;
103	operating days.--
104	(2)  Each permitholder referred to in subsection (1) shall
105	annually, during the period commencing December 15 of each year
106	and ending January 4 of the following year, file in writing with
107	the division its application to conduct one or more thoroughbred
108	racing meetings during the thoroughbred racing season commencing
109	on the following June 1. Each application shall specify the
110	number and dates of all performances that the permitholder
111	intends to conduct during that thoroughbred racing season. On or
112	before February 15 of each year, the division shall issue a
113	license authorizing each permitholder to conduct performances on
114	the dates specified in its application. Up to March 31 of each
115	year, each permitholder may request and shall be granted changes
116	in its authorized performances, and the division shall issue a
117	license on or before April 30 of each year authorizing each
118	permitholder to conduct performances on the dates specified in
119	its application; but thereafter, as a condition precedent to the
120	validity of its license and its right to retain its permit, each
121	permitholder must operate the full number of days authorized on
122	each of the dates set forth in its license or be subject to
123	discipline pursuant to ss. 550.01215(4) and 550.0251(10). On or
124	before February 15 of each year, a permitholder may elect not to
125	operate live performances during the ensuing thoroughbred racing
126	season by filing an amendment to its application indicating its
127	irrevocable election not to operate, and the division shall not
128	issue a license to such permitholder. An election not to operate
129	shall not affect the continuing validity of the permit of such
130	permitholder. For the 2004-2005 Florida Thoroughbred Racing
131	Season only, an election not to operate will be effective if
132	delivered to the division on or before July 1, 2004. Any
133	thoroughbred permitholder who either failed to operate all
134	performances that it was authorized to operate under the license
135	or licenses issued to it by the division for either or both the
136	2001-2002 or 2002-2003 Florida Thoroughbred Racing Seasons or
137	who failed to operate any performance during the 2003-2004
138	Florida Thoroughbred Racing Season shall be excused from
139	discipline by the division for its failure to operate such
140	performances, and its permit shall be deemed valid and in good
141	standing.
142	Section 3.  A greyhound permitholder in any county of this
143	state which permitholder has not produced pari-mutuel wagering
144	tax revenues for the preceding 5 state fiscal years and which
145	county is contiguous to a county with one or more pari-mutuel
146	permitholders that have produced pari-mutuel wagering tax
147	revenues during the preceding 5 state fiscal years may, at any
148	time during which live pari-mutuel racing or games are being
149	conducted in the contiguous county, conduct intertrack wagering
150	at the location fixed in the permit or at another location to
151	which the permitholder shall be entitled hereunder to move the
152	permit provided such location is within the same county and
153	within 30 miles of the location fixed in the permit.
154	Section 4.  Paragraph (b) of subsection (7) of section
155	849.086, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
156	849.086  Cardrooms authorized.--
157	(7)  CONDITIONS FOR OPERATING A CARDROOM.--
158	(b)  A cardroom may be operated at the facility only when
159	the facility is authorized to accept wagers on pari-mutuel
160	events during its authorized meet. A cardroom may operate
161	between the hours of 12 noon and 12 midnight on any day a pari-
162	mutuel event is conducted live as a part of its authorized meet.
163	However, a permitholder who holds a valid cardroom license may
164	operate a cardroom between the hours of 12 noon and 12 midnight
165	on any day that live racing of the same class of permit is
166	occurring within 35 miles of its facility if no other holder of
167	that same class of permit within 35 miles is operating a
168	cardroom at such time or and if all holders of the same class of
169	permit within the 35-mile area have given their permission in
170	writing to the permitholder to operate the cardroom during the
171	designated period. Application to operate a cardroom under this
172	paragraph must be made to the division as part of the annual
173	license application.
174	Section 5.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.

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