Florida Senate - 2019                                     SB 576
       
       
        
       By Senator Perry
       
       
       
       
       
       8-01247-19                                             2019576__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to a back-to-school sales tax holiday;
    3         providing exemptions from the sales and use tax on the
    4         retail sale of certain clothing, school supplies,
    5         personal computers, and personal computer-related
    6         accessories during a specified timeframe; defining
    7         terms; specifying locations where the exemptions do
    8         not apply; authorizing the Department of Revenue to
    9         adopt emergency rules; providing an appropriation;
   10         providing an effective date.
   11          
   12  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   13  
   14         Section 1. Clothing, school supplies, personal computers,
   15  and personal computer-related accessories; sales tax holiday.—
   16         (1) The tax levied under chapter 212, Florida Statutes, may
   17  not be collected during the period from 12:01 a.m. on August 2,
   18  2019, through 11:59 p.m. on August 11, 2019, on the retail sale
   19  of:
   20         (a) Clothing, wallets, or bags, including handbags,
   21  backpacks, fanny packs, and diaper bags, but excluding
   22  briefcases, suitcases, and other garment bags, having a sales
   23  price of $100 or less per item. As used in this paragraph, the
   24  term “clothing” means:
   25         1. Any article of wearing apparel intended to be worn on or
   26  about the human body, excluding watches, watchbands, jewelry,
   27  umbrellas, and handkerchiefs; and
   28         2. All footwear, excluding skis, swim fins, roller blades,
   29  and skates.
   30         (b) School supplies having a sales price of $15 or less per
   31  item. As used in this paragraph, the term “school supplies”
   32  means pens, pencils, erasers, crayons, notebooks, notebook
   33  filler paper, legal pads, binders, lunch boxes, construction
   34  paper, markers, folders, poster board, composition books, poster
   35  paper, scissors, cellophane tape, glue or paste, rulers,
   36  computer disks, protractors, compasses, and calculators.
   37         (c) Personal computers and related accessories that have a
   38  sales price of $1,000 or less per item and that are purchased
   39  for noncommercial home or personal use. As used in this
   40  paragraph, the term:
   41         1. “Personal computer” means an electronic device that
   42  accepts information in digital or a similar form and manipulates
   43  such information for a result based on a sequence of
   44  instructions. The term includes an electronic book reader and a
   45  laptop, desktop, handheld, tablet, or tower computer, but does
   46  not include a cellular telephone, video game console, digital
   47  media receiver, or device that is not primarily designed to
   48  process data.
   49         2. “Related accessories” includes keyboards, mice, personal
   50  digital assistants, monitors, other peripheral devices, modems,
   51  routers, and nonrecreational software, regardless of whether the
   52  accessories are used in association with a personal computer
   53  base unit. The term does not include furniture or systems,
   54  devices, software, monitors with a television tuner, or other
   55  peripherals that are designed or intended primarily for
   56  recreational use.
   57         (2) The tax exemptions provided in this section do not
   58  apply to sales within a theme park or entertainment complex as
   59  defined in s. 509.013(9), Florida Statutes, within a public
   60  lodging establishment as defined in s. 509.013(4), Florida
   61  Statutes, or within an airport as defined in s. 330.27(2),
   62  Florida Statutes.
   63         (3) The Department of Revenue may, and all conditions are
   64  deemed met to, adopt emergency rules pursuant to s. 120.54(4),
   65  Florida Statutes, to implement this section.
   66         Section 2. For the 2019-2020 fiscal year, the sum of
   67  $225,000 in nonrecurring funds is appropriated from the General
   68  Revenue Fund to the Department of Revenue for the purpose of
   69  implementing this section.
   70         Section 3. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.