Florida Senate - 2012                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. SJR 1064
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Barcode 858192                          
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
                  Comm: RCS            .                                
                  02/24/2012           .                                
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       The Committee on Budget Subcommittee on Finance and Tax (Altman)
       recommended the following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
    2  
    3         Delete everything after the resolving clause
    4  and insert:
    5         That the following amendment to Section 3 of Article VII
    6  and the creation of Section 32 of Article XII of the State
    7  Constitution are agreed to and shall be submitted to the
    8  electors of this state for approval or rejection at the next
    9  general election or at an earlier special election specifically
   10  authorized by law for that purpose:
   11                             ARTICLE VII                           
   12                        FINANCE AND TAXATION                       
   13         SECTION 3. Taxes; exemptions.—
   14         (a) All property owned by a municipality and used
   15  exclusively by it for municipal or public purposes is shall be
   16  exempt from taxation. A municipality, owning property outside
   17  the municipality, may be required by general law to make payment
   18  to the taxing unit in which the property is located. Such
   19  portions of property as are used predominantly for educational,
   20  literary, scientific, religious, or charitable purposes may be
   21  exempted by general law from taxation.
   22         (b) There shall be exempt from taxation, cumulatively, to
   23  every head of a family residing in this state, household goods
   24  and personal effects to the value fixed by general law, not less
   25  than one thousand dollars, and to every widow or widower or
   26  person who is blind or totally and permanently disabled,
   27  property to the value fixed by general law not less than five
   28  hundred dollars.
   29         (c) Any county or municipality may, for the purpose of its
   30  respective tax levy and subject to the provisions of this
   31  subsection and general law, grant community and economic
   32  development ad valorem tax exemptions to new businesses and
   33  expansions of existing businesses, as defined by general law.
   34  Such an exemption may be granted only by ordinance of the county
   35  or municipality, and only after the electors of the county or
   36  municipality voting on such question in a referendum authorize
   37  the county or municipality to adopt such ordinances. An
   38  exemption so granted shall apply to improvements to real
   39  property made by or for the use of a new business and
   40  improvements to real property related to the expansion of an
   41  existing business and shall also apply to tangible personal
   42  property of such new business and tangible personal property
   43  related to the expansion of an existing business. The amount or
   44  limits of the amount of such exemption shall be specified by
   45  general law. The period of time for which such exemption may be
   46  granted to a new business or expansion of an existing business
   47  shall be determined by general law. The authority to grant such
   48  exemption shall expire ten years from the date of approval by
   49  the electors of the county or municipality, and may be renewable
   50  by referendum as provided by general law.
   51         (d) Any county or municipality may, for the purpose of its
   52  respective tax levy and subject to the provisions of this
   53  subsection and general law, grant historic preservation ad
   54  valorem tax exemptions to owners of historic properties. This
   55  exemption may be granted only by ordinance of the county or
   56  municipality. The amount or limits of the amount of this
   57  exemption and the requirements for eligible properties must be
   58  specified by general law. The period of time for which this
   59  exemption may be granted to a property owner shall be determined
   60  by general law.
   61         (e)1. By general law and subject to conditions specified
   62  therein, twenty-five thousand dollars of the assessed value of
   63  tangible personal property is subject to tangible personal
   64  property tax shall be exempt from ad valorem taxation. Tangible
   65  personal property is also exempt from ad valorem taxation if the
   66  assessed value of such property is greater than twenty-five
   67  thousand dollars but less than fifty thousand dollars.
   68         2. A county or municipality may, for the purposes of its
   69  respective tax levy and subject to the provisions of this
   70  subsection and general law, provide additional tangible personal
   71  property tax exemptions by ordinance.
   72         (f) There shall be granted an ad valorem tax exemption for
   73  real property dedicated in perpetuity for conservation purposes,
   74  including real property encumbered by perpetual conservation
   75  easements or by other perpetual conservation protections, as
   76  defined by general law.
   77         (g) By general law and subject to the conditions specified
   78  therein, each person who receives a homestead exemption as
   79  provided in section 6 of this article; who was a member of the
   80  United States military or military reserves, the United States
   81  Coast Guard or its reserves, or the Florida National Guard; and
   82  who was deployed during the preceding calendar year on active
   83  duty outside the continental United States, Alaska, or Hawaii in
   84  support of military operations designated by the legislature
   85  shall receive an additional exemption equal to a percentage of
   86  the taxable value of his or her homestead property. The
   87  applicable percentage shall be calculated as the number of days
   88  during the preceding calendar year the person was deployed on
   89  active duty outside the continental United States, Alaska, or
   90  Hawaii in support of military operations designated by the
   91  legislature divided by the number of days in that year.
   92                             ARTICLE XII                           
   93                              SCHEDULE                             
   94         SECTION 32. Tangible personal property; ad valorem tax
   95  exemption.—The amendment to Section 3 of Article VII providing
   96  that property is exempt from tangible personal property tax if
   97  the assessed value of such property is greater than twenty-five
   98  thousand dollars but less than fifty-thousand dollars applies to
   99  assessments for tax years beginning January 1, 2013.
  100         BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the following statement be
  101  placed on the ballot:
  102                      CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT                     
  103                       ARTICLE VII, SECTION 3                      
  104                       ARTICLE XII, SECTION 32                     
  105         PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTION.—Proposing an amendment to the State
  106  Constitution to:
  107         (1) Provide an exemption from ad valorem taxes on tangible
  108  personal property if the assessed value of an owner’s tangible
  109  personal property is greater than $25,000 but less than $50,000
  110  dollars. This additional exemption, if approved by the voters,
  111  will take effect on January 1, 2013, and apply to the 2013 tax
  112  roll.
  113         (2) Authorize a county or municipality, for the purpose of
  114  its respective levy and subject to general law, to provide
  115  tangible personal property tax exemptions by ordinance. This is
  116  in addition to other statewide tangible personal property
  117  exemptions already provided by the Constitution.
  118  
  119  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
  120         And the title is amended as follows:
  121         Delete everything before the resolving clause
  122  and insert:
  123                       Senate Joint Resolution                     
  124         A joint resolution proposing an amendment to Section 3
  125         of Article VII and the creation of Section 32 of
  126         Article XII of the State Constitution to provide an
  127         additional exemption from ad valorem taxes on tangible
  128         personal property valued at more than $25,000 but less
  129         than $50,000, to authorize a county or municipality to
  130         provide an additional exemption from ad valorem
  131         taxation for tangible personal property by ordinance,
  132         and to provide an effective date.