Florida Senate - 2012 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT Bill No. SB 1392 Barcode 907828 LEGISLATIVE ACTION Senate . House Comm: RCS . 01/27/2012 . . . . ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————— The Committee on Transportation (Benacquisto) recommended the following: 1 Senate Amendment (with title amendment) 2 3 Delete everything after the enacting clause 4 and insert: 5 Section 1. Paragraph (hhh) is added to subsection (7) of 6 section 212.08, Florida Statutes, to read: 7 212.08 Sales, rental, use, consumption, distribution, and 8 storage tax; specified exemptions.—The sale at retail, the 9 rental, the use, the consumption, the distribution, and the 10 storage to be used or consumed in this state of the following 11 are hereby specifically exempt from the tax imposed by this 12 chapter. 13 (7) MISCELLANEOUS EXEMPTIONS.—Exemptions provided to any 14 entity by this chapter do not inure to any transaction that is 15 otherwise taxable under this chapter when payment is made by a 16 representative or employee of the entity by any means, 17 including, but not limited to, cash, check, or credit card, even 18 when that representative or employee is subsequently reimbursed 19 by the entity. In addition, exemptions provided to any entity by 20 this subsection do not inure to any transaction that is 21 otherwise taxable under this chapter unless the entity has 22 obtained a sales tax exemption certificate from the department 23 or the entity obtains or provides other documentation as 24 required by the department. Eligible purchases or leases made 25 with such a certificate must be in strict compliance with this 26 subsection and departmental rules, and any person who makes an 27 exempt purchase with a certificate that is not in strict 28 compliance with this subsection and the rules is liable for and 29 shall pay the tax. The department may adopt rules to administer 30 this subsection. 31 (hhh) Accessible vehicles.—The sale or lease of accessible 32 taxicabs is exempt from the tax imposed by this chapter. As used 33 in this paragraph, the term “accessible taxicab” means a 34 chauffer driven taxi, limousine, sedan, van, or other passenger 35 vehicle where the operator and the motor vehicle are hired and 36 used for the transportation of persons for compensation, and 37 which transports eight passengers or fewer and is equipped with 38 a lift or ramp designed specifically to transport physically 39 disabled persons or contains any other device designed to permit 40 access to and enable the transportation of physically disabled 41 persons, including persons who use wheelchairs, motorized 42 wheelchairs, or similar mobility aids; complies with the 43 accessibility requirements of the Americans with Disabilities 44 Act of 1990, 49 C.F.R., ss. 38.23, 38.25, and 38.31, as amended, 45 whether or not such regulations would apply under federal law; 46 and meets all applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards 47 and regulations adopted thereunder. If such equipment is 48 installed through an aftermarket conversion of a stock vehicle, 49 only the value of the conversion is exempt from the tax imposed 50 by this chapter. 51 Section 2. (1) The Office of Program Policy Analysis and 52 Government Accountability shall conduct a study to determine the 53 availability of accessible taxicabs operating in metropolitan 54 and tourist destination areas, including, but not limited, to 55 Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Orange, Hillsborough, Duval, 56 Lee, Escambia, and Volusia Counties. 57 (2) Specifically, the Office of Program Policy Analysis and 58 Government Accountability shall collect the following 59 information: 60 (a) The number of accessible taxicabs available in the 61 counties being studied, including the total percentage of 62 accessible cabs relative to the entire fleet of taxicabs. 63 (b) The availability of accessible taxicabs at airports and 64 seaports, including average wait times for passengers needing 65 such vehicles. 66 (c) Statements from persons who work with disabled and 67 senior communities regarding the availability of accessible 68 taxicabs for use in everyday life, such as access to grocery 69 stores, doctor offices, and recreational activities, along with 70 the availability of accessible vehicles when traveling 71 throughout the state. 72 (d) A synopsis of any recent court decisions related to 73 availability of accessible taxicabs and the potential effect of 74 such decisions on persons desiring accessible vehicles in this 75 state. 76 (e) Information relating to how major cities in Florida 77 compare to other cities around the country in terms of the 78 operation and regulation of accessible and available taxicabs, 79 including Washington, D.C., Chicago, New York City, Atlanta, and 80 Philadelphia. 81 (f) Information concerning cooperative agreements in this 82 state between smaller taxi vendors and larger taxi vendors who 83 act as partners to satisfy demand for accessible transportation. 84 (3) The Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government 85 Accountability shall issue a final report and present 86 recommendations to the Legislature for planning and providing 87 funding for the provision of accessible vehicles. The report 88 shall be submitted to the President of the Senate and the 89 Speaker of the House of Representatives by February 1, 2013. 90 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012. 91 92 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================ 93 And the title is amended as follows: 94 95 Delete everything before the enacting clause 96 and insert: 97 A bill to be entitled 98 An act relating to transportation accessibility; 99 amending s. 212.08, F.S.; providing a tax exemption 100 for the sale or lease of accessible vehicles; 101 providing a definition; requiring the Office of 102 Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability 103 to conduct a study to determine the availability of 104 accessible taxicabs operating in metropolitan and 105 tourist destination areas of the state; describing the 106 information to be collected in the study; requiring 107 the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government 108 Accountability to include in its final report 109 recommendations for consideration by the Legislature; 110 providing an effective date.