| 1 | The Education Appropriations Committee recommends the following: |
| 2 |
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| 3 | Council/Committee Substitute |
| 4 | Remove the entire bill and insert: |
| 5 | A bill to be entitled |
| 6 | An act relating to the tax on sales, use, and other |
| 7 | transactions; amending s. 212.12, F.S.; authorizing a |
| 8 | dealer to elect to forego the collection allowance and |
| 9 | direct that collection allowance revenues be transferred |
| 10 | to the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund for distribution |
| 11 | to school districts as specified; providing exceptions; |
| 12 | providing for rulemaking by the Department of Revenue; |
| 13 | providing an appropriation; providing for costs recovery; |
| 14 | requiring the Department of Revenue to report collection |
| 15 | information to the Department of Education; providing an |
| 16 | effective date. |
| 17 |
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| 18 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 19 |
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| 20 | Section 1. Paragraph (c) is added to subsection (1) of |
| 21 | section 212.12, Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 22 | 212.12 Dealer's credit for collecting tax; penalties for |
| 23 | noncompliance; powers of Department of Revenue in dealing with |
| 24 | delinquents; brackets applicable to taxable transactions; |
| 25 | records required.-- |
| 26 | (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law and for the |
| 27 | purpose of compensating persons granting licenses for and the |
| 28 | lessors of real and personal property taxed hereunder, for the |
| 29 | purpose of compensating dealers in tangible personal property, |
| 30 | for the purpose of compensating dealers providing communication |
| 31 | services and taxable services, for the purpose of compensating |
| 32 | owners of places where admissions are collected, and for the |
| 33 | purpose of compensating remitters of any taxes or fees reported |
| 34 | on the same documents utilized for the sales and use tax, as |
| 35 | compensation for the keeping of prescribed records, filing |
| 36 | timely tax returns, and the proper accounting and remitting of |
| 37 | taxes by them, such seller, person, lessor, dealer, owner, and |
| 38 | remitter (except dealers who make mail order sales) shall be |
| 39 | allowed 2.5 percent of the amount of the tax due and accounted |
| 40 | for and remitted to the department, in the form of a deduction |
| 41 | in submitting his or her report and paying the amount due by him |
| 42 | or her; the department shall allow such deduction of 2.5 percent |
| 43 | of the amount of the tax to the person paying the same for |
| 44 | remitting the tax and making of tax returns in the manner herein |
| 45 | provided, for paying the amount due to be paid by him or her, |
| 46 | and as further compensation to dealers in tangible personal |
| 47 | property for the keeping of prescribed records and for |
| 48 | collection of taxes and remitting the same. However, if the |
| 49 | amount of the tax due and remitted to the department for the |
| 50 | reporting period exceeds $1,200, no allowance shall be allowed |
| 51 | for all amounts in excess of $1,200. The executive director of |
| 52 | the department is authorized to negotiate a collection |
| 53 | allowance, pursuant to rules promulgated by the department, with |
| 54 | a dealer who makes mail order sales. The rules of the department |
| 55 | shall provide guidelines for establishing the collection |
| 56 | allowance based upon the dealer's estimated costs of collecting |
| 57 | the tax, the volume and value of the dealer's mail order sales |
| 58 | to purchasers in this state, and the administrative and legal |
| 59 | costs and likelihood of achieving collection of the tax absent |
| 60 | the cooperation of the dealer. However, in no event shall the |
| 61 | collection allowance negotiated by the executive director exceed |
| 62 | 10 percent of the tax remitted for a reporting period. |
| 63 | (c)1. A dealer entitled to the collection allowance |
| 64 | provided in this section may elect to forego the collection |
| 65 | allowance and direct the department to transfer the amount of |
| 66 | the collection allowance into the Educational Enhancement Trust |
| 67 | Fund. Such an election must be made with the timely filing of a |
| 68 | return and may not be rescinded once made. If a dealer who makes |
| 69 | such an election files a delinquent return, underpays the tax, |
| 70 | or files an incomplete return, the amount transferred into the |
| 71 | Educational Enhancement Trust Fund shall be the amount of the |
| 72 | collection allowance remaining after resolution of liability for |
| 73 | all of the tax, interest, and penalty due on that return or |
| 74 | underpayment of tax. The Department of Education shall |
| 75 | distribute the remaining amount from the trust fund to the |
| 76 | school districts that have adopted a resolution stating that |
| 77 | those funds will be used to ensure that up-to-date technology is |
| 78 | purchased for the classrooms in the district and that teachers |
| 79 | are trained in the use of that technology. Revenues collected in |
| 80 | districts that do not adopt such a resolution shall be equally |
| 81 | distributed to districts that have adopted such resolutions. |
| 82 | 2. This paragraph applies to all taxes, surtaxes, and any |
| 83 | local option taxes administered under this chapter and remitted |
| 84 | directly to the department. This paragraph does not apply to any |
| 85 | locally imposed and self-administered convention development |
| 86 | tax, tourist development tax, or tourist impact tax administered |
| 87 | under this chapter. |
| 88 | Section 2. Notwithstanding the provisions of chapter 120, |
| 89 | Florida Statutes, the Department of Revenue may adopt rules to |
| 90 | carry out the amendment made by this act to s. 212.12, Florida |
| 91 | Statutes. |
| 92 | Section 3. The sum of $112,920 is appropriated from the |
| 93 | General Revenue Fund to the Department of Revenue for the |
| 94 | purpose of administering the amendment to s. 212.12, Florida |
| 95 | Statutes, made by this act. The Department of Revenue shall |
| 96 | retain all of the revenues from dealer collection allowances |
| 97 | which are deposited into the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund |
| 98 | until the $112,920 appropriated from the General Revenue Fund |
| 99 | has been recovered. |
| 100 | Section 4. Revenues from the dealer collection allowances |
| 101 | shall be transferred quarterly from the General Revenue Fund to |
| 102 | the Educational Enhancement Trust Fund. The Department of |
| 103 | Revenue shall provide to the Department of Education quarterly |
| 104 | information about such revenues by county to which the |
| 105 | collection allowance was attributed. |
| 106 | Section 5. This act shall take effect January 1, 2007. |