Florida Senate - 2019                                     SB 580
       
       
        
       By Senator Bean
       
       
       
       
       
       4-00858A-19                                            2019580__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to the taxation of aircraft sales and
    3         leases; amending s. 212.05, F.S.; decreasing the sales
    4         tax rate on aircraft sales and leases; amending s.
    5         212.08, F.S.; decreasing the maximum applicable sales
    6         tax rate under the flyable aircraft partial sales tax
    7         exemption; providing an effective date.
    8          
    9  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   10  
   11         Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section
   12  212.05, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   13         212.05 Sales, storage, use tax.—It is hereby declared to be
   14  the legislative intent that every person is exercising a taxable
   15  privilege who engages in the business of selling tangible
   16  personal property at retail in this state, including the
   17  business of making mail order sales, or who rents or furnishes
   18  any of the things or services taxable under this chapter, or who
   19  stores for use or consumption in this state any item or article
   20  of tangible personal property as defined herein and who leases
   21  or rents such property within the state.
   22         (1) For the exercise of such privilege, a tax is levied on
   23  each taxable transaction or incident, which tax is due and
   24  payable as follows:
   25         (a)1.a. At the rate of 6 percent of the sales price of each
   26  item or article of tangible personal property when sold at
   27  retail in this state, computed on each taxable sale for the
   28  purpose of remitting the amount of tax due the state, and
   29  including each and every retail sale; except that a sale or
   30  lease of an aircraft is subject to tax at the rate of 4 percent.
   31         b. Each occasional or isolated sale of an aircraft, boat,
   32  mobile home, or motor vehicle of a class or type which is
   33  required to be registered, licensed, titled, or documented in
   34  this state or by the United States Government shall be subject
   35  to tax at the rate provided in this paragraph. The department
   36  shall by rule adopt any nationally recognized publication for
   37  valuation of used motor vehicles as the reference price list for
   38  any used motor vehicle which is required to be licensed pursuant
   39  to s. 320.08(1), (2), (3)(a), (b), (c), or (e), or (9). If any
   40  party to an occasional or isolated sale of such a vehicle
   41  reports to the tax collector a sales price which is less than 80
   42  percent of the average loan price for the specified model and
   43  year of such vehicle as listed in the most recent reference
   44  price list, the tax levied under this paragraph shall be
   45  computed by the department on such average loan price unless the
   46  parties to the sale have provided to the tax collector an
   47  affidavit signed by each party, or other substantial proof,
   48  stating the actual sales price. Any party to such sale who
   49  reports a sales price less than the actual sales price is guilty
   50  of a misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided in
   51  s. 775.082 or s. 775.083. The department shall collect or
   52  attempt to collect from such party any delinquent sales taxes.
   53  In addition, such party shall pay any tax due and any penalty
   54  and interest assessed plus a penalty equal to twice the amount
   55  of the additional tax owed. Notwithstanding any other provision
   56  of law, the Department of Revenue may waive or compromise any
   57  penalty imposed pursuant to this subparagraph.
   58         2. This paragraph does not apply to the sale of a boat or
   59  aircraft by or through a registered dealer under this chapter to
   60  a purchaser who, at the time of taking delivery, is a
   61  nonresident of this state, does not make his or her permanent
   62  place of abode in this state, and is not engaged in carrying on
   63  in this state any employment, trade, business, or profession in
   64  which the boat or aircraft will be used in this state, or is a
   65  corporation none of the officers or directors of which is a
   66  resident of, or makes his or her permanent place of abode in,
   67  this state, or is a noncorporate entity that has no individual
   68  vested with authority to participate in the management,
   69  direction, or control of the entity’s affairs who is a resident
   70  of, or makes his or her permanent abode in, this state. For
   71  purposes of this exemption, either a registered dealer acting on
   72  his or her own behalf as seller, a registered dealer acting as
   73  broker on behalf of a seller, or a registered dealer acting as
   74  broker on behalf of the purchaser may be deemed to be the
   75  selling dealer. This exemption shall not be allowed unless:
   76         a. The purchaser removes a qualifying boat, as described in
   77  sub-subparagraph f., from the state within 90 days after the
   78  date of purchase or extension, or the purchaser removes a
   79  nonqualifying boat or an aircraft from this state within 10 days
   80  after the date of purchase or, when the boat or aircraft is
   81  repaired or altered, within 20 days after completion of the
   82  repairs or alterations; or if the aircraft will be registered in
   83  a foreign jurisdiction and:
   84         (I) Application for the aircraft’s registration is properly
   85  filed with a civil airworthiness authority of a foreign
   86  jurisdiction within 10 days after the date of purchase;
   87         (II) The purchaser removes the aircraft from the state to a
   88  foreign jurisdiction within 10 days after the date the aircraft
   89  is registered by the applicable foreign airworthiness authority;
   90  and
   91         (III) The aircraft is operated in the state solely to
   92  remove it from the state to a foreign jurisdiction.
   93  
   94  For purposes of this sub-subparagraph, the term “foreign
   95  jurisdiction” means any jurisdiction outside of the United
   96  States or any of its territories;
   97         b. The purchaser, within 30 days from the date of
   98  departure, provides the department with written proof that the
   99  purchaser licensed, registered, titled, or documented the boat
  100  or aircraft outside the state. If such written proof is
  101  unavailable, within 30 days the purchaser shall provide proof
  102  that the purchaser applied for such license, title,
  103  registration, or documentation. The purchaser shall forward to
  104  the department proof of title, license, registration, or
  105  documentation upon receipt;
  106         c. The purchaser, within 10 days of removing the boat or
  107  aircraft from Florida, furnishes the department with proof of
  108  removal in the form of receipts for fuel, dockage, slippage,
  109  tie-down, or hangaring from outside of Florida. The information
  110  so provided must clearly and specifically identify the boat or
  111  aircraft;
  112         d. The selling dealer, within 5 days of the date of sale,
  113  provides to the department a copy of the sales invoice, closing
  114  statement, bills of sale, and the original affidavit signed by
  115  the purchaser attesting that he or she has read the provisions
  116  of this section;
  117         e. The seller makes a copy of the affidavit a part of his
  118  or her record for as long as required by s. 213.35; and
  119         f. Unless the nonresident purchaser of a boat of 5 net tons
  120  of admeasurement or larger intends to remove the boat from this
  121  state within 10 days after the date of purchase or when the boat
  122  is repaired or altered, within 20 days after completion of the
  123  repairs or alterations, the nonresident purchaser applies to the
  124  selling dealer for a decal which authorizes 90 days after the
  125  date of purchase for removal of the boat. The nonresident
  126  purchaser of a qualifying boat may apply to the selling dealer
  127  within 60 days after the date of purchase for an extension decal
  128  that authorizes the boat to remain in this state for an
  129  additional 90 days, but not more than a total of 180 days,
  130  before the nonresident purchaser is required to pay the tax
  131  imposed by this chapter. The department is authorized to issue
  132  decals in advance to dealers. The number of decals issued in
  133  advance to a dealer shall be consistent with the volume of the
  134  dealer’s past sales of boats which qualify under this sub
  135  subparagraph. The selling dealer or his or her agent shall mark
  136  and affix the decals to qualifying boats in the manner
  137  prescribed by the department, before delivery of the boat.
  138         (I) The department is hereby authorized to charge dealers a
  139  fee sufficient to recover the costs of decals issued, except the
  140  extension decal shall cost $425.
  141         (II) The proceeds from the sale of decals will be deposited
  142  into the administrative trust fund.
  143         (III) Decals shall display information to identify the boat
  144  as a qualifying boat under this sub-subparagraph, including, but
  145  not limited to, the decal’s date of expiration.
  146         (IV) The department is authorized to require dealers who
  147  purchase decals to file reports with the department and may
  148  prescribe all necessary records by rule. All such records are
  149  subject to inspection by the department.
  150         (V) Any dealer or his or her agent who issues a decal
  151  falsely, fails to affix a decal, mismarks the expiration date of
  152  a decal, or fails to properly account for decals will be
  153  considered prima facie to have committed a fraudulent act to
  154  evade the tax and will be liable for payment of the tax plus a
  155  mandatory penalty of 200 percent of the tax, and shall be liable
  156  for fine and punishment as provided by law for a conviction of a
  157  misdemeanor of the first degree, as provided in s. 775.082 or s.
  158  775.083.
  159         (VI) Any nonresident purchaser of a boat who removes a
  160  decal before permanently removing the boat from the state, or
  161  defaces, changes, modifies, or alters a decal in a manner
  162  affecting its expiration date before its expiration, or who
  163  causes or allows the same to be done by another, will be
  164  considered prima facie to have committed a fraudulent act to
  165  evade the tax and will be liable for payment of the tax plus a
  166  mandatory penalty of 200 percent of the tax, and shall be liable
  167  for fine and punishment as provided by law for a conviction of a
  168  misdemeanor of the first degree, as provided in s. 775.082 or s.
  169  775.083.
  170         (VII) The department is authorized to adopt rules necessary
  171  to administer and enforce this subparagraph and to publish the
  172  necessary forms and instructions.
  173         (VIII) The department is hereby authorized to adopt
  174  emergency rules pursuant to s. 120.54(4) to administer and
  175  enforce the provisions of this subparagraph.
  176  
  177  If the purchaser fails to remove the qualifying boat from this
  178  state within the maximum 180 days after purchase or a
  179  nonqualifying boat or an aircraft from this state within 10 days
  180  after purchase or, when the boat or aircraft is repaired or
  181  altered, within 20 days after completion of such repairs or
  182  alterations, or permits the boat or aircraft to return to this
  183  state within 6 months from the date of departure, except as
  184  provided in s. 212.08(7)(fff), or if the purchaser fails to
  185  furnish the department with any of the documentation required by
  186  this subparagraph within the prescribed time period, the
  187  purchaser shall be liable for use tax on the cost price of the
  188  boat or aircraft and, in addition thereto, payment of a penalty
  189  to the Department of Revenue equal to the tax payable. This
  190  penalty shall be in lieu of the penalty imposed by s. 212.12(2).
  191  The maximum 180-day period following the sale of a qualifying
  192  boat tax-exempt to a nonresident may not be tolled for any
  193  reason.
  194         Section 2. Subsection (11) of section 212.08, Florida
  195  Statutes, is amended to read:
  196         212.08 Sales, rental, use, consumption, distribution, and
  197  storage tax; specified exemptions.—The sale at retail, the
  198  rental, the use, the consumption, the distribution, and the
  199  storage to be used or consumed in this state of the following
  200  are hereby specifically exempt from the tax imposed by this
  201  chapter.
  202         (11) PARTIAL EXEMPTION; FLYABLE AIRCRAFT.—
  203         (a) The tax imposed on the sale by a manufacturer of
  204  flyable aircraft, who designs such aircraft, which sale may
  205  include necessary equipment and modifications placed on such
  206  flyable aircraft prior to delivery by the manufacturer, shall be
  207  an amount equal to the sales tax which would be imposed on such
  208  sale under the laws of the state in which the aircraft will be
  209  domiciled.
  210         (b) This partial exemption applies only if the purchaser is
  211  a resident of another state who will not use the aircraft in
  212  this state, or if the purchaser is a resident of another state
  213  and uses the aircraft in interstate or foreign commerce, or if
  214  the purchaser is a resident of a foreign country.
  215         (c) The maximum tax collectible under this subsection may
  216  not exceed 4 6 percent of the sales price of such aircraft. No
  217  Florida tax may be imposed on the sale of such aircraft if the
  218  state in which the aircraft will be domiciled does not allow
  219  Florida sales or use tax to be credited against its sales or use
  220  tax. Furthermore, no tax may be imposed on the sale of such
  221  aircraft if the state in which the aircraft will be domiciled
  222  has enacted a sales and use tax exemption for flyable aircraft
  223  or if the aircraft will be domiciled outside the United States.
  224         (d) The purchaser shall execute a sworn affidavit attesting
  225  that he or she is not a resident of this state and stating where
  226  the aircraft will be domiciled. If the aircraft is subsequently
  227  used in this state within 6 months of the time of purchase, in
  228  violation of the intent of this subsection, the purchaser shall
  229  be liable for payment of the full use tax imposed by this
  230  chapter and shall be subject to the penalty imposed by s.
  231  212.12(2), which penalty shall be mandatory. Notwithstanding the
  232  provisions of this paragraph, the owner of an aircraft purchased
  233  pursuant to this subsection may permit the aircraft to be
  234  returned to this state for repairs within 6 months after the
  235  date of sale without the aircraft being in violation of the law
  236  and without incurring liability for payment of tax or penalty on
  237  the purchase price of the aircraft, so long as the aircraft is
  238  removed from this state within 20 days after the completion of
  239  the repairs and such removal can be proven by invoices for fuel,
  240  tie-down, or hangar charges issued by out-of-state vendors or
  241  suppliers or similar documentation.
  242         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019.