The Florida Senate

192.032  Situs of property for assessment purposes.--All property shall be assessed according to its situs as follows:

(1)  Real property, in that county in which it is located and in that taxing jurisdiction in which it may be located.

(2)  All tangible personal property which is not immune under the state or federal constitutions from ad valorem taxation, in that county and taxing jurisdiction in which it is physically present on January 1 of each year unless such property has been physically present in another county of this state at any time during the preceding 12-month period, in which case the provisions of subsection (3) apply. Additionally, tangible personal property brought into the state after January 1 and before April 1 of any year shall be taxable for that year if the property appraiser has reason to believe that such property will be removed from the state prior to January 1 of the next succeeding year. However, tangible personal property physically present in the state on or after January 1 for temporary purposes only, which property is in the state for 30 days or less, shall not be subject to assessment. This subsection does not apply to goods in transit as described in subsection (4) or supersede the provisions of s. 193.085(4).

(3)  If more than one county of this state assesses the same tangible personal property in the same assessment year, resolution of such multicounty dispute shall be governed by the following provisions:

(a)  Tangible personal property which was physically present in one county of this state on January 1, but present in another county of this state at any time during the preceding year, shall be assessed in the county and taxing jurisdiction where it was habitually located or typically present. All tangible personal property which is removed from one county in this state to another county after January 1 of any year shall be subject to taxation for that year in the county where located on January 1; except that this subsection does not apply to tangible personal property located in a county on January 1 on a temporary or transitory basis if such property is included in the tax return being filed in the county in this state where such tangible personal property is habitually located or typically present.

(b)  For purposes of this subsection, an item of tangible personal property is "habitually located or typically present" in the county where it is generally kept for use or storage or where it is consistently returned for use or storage. For purposes of this subsection, an item of tangible personal property is located in a county on a "temporary or transitory basis" if it is located in that county for a short duration or limited utilization with an intention to remove it to another county where it is usually used or stored.

(4)(a)  Personal property manufactured or produced outside this state and brought into this state only for transshipment out of the United States, or manufactured or produced outside the United States and brought into this state for transshipment out of this state, for sale in the ordinary course of trade or business is considered goods-in-transit and shall not be deemed to have acquired a taxable situs within a county even though the property is temporarily halted or stored within the state.

(b)  The term "goods-in-transit" implies that the personal property manufactured or produced outside this state and brought into this state has not been diverted to domestic use and has not reached its final destination, which may be evidenced by the fact that the individual unit packaging device utilized in the shipping of the specific personal property has not been opened except for inspection, storage, or other process utilized in the transportation of the personal property.

(c)  Personal property transshipped into this state and subjected in this state to a subsequent manufacturing process or used in this state in the production of other personal property is not goods-in-transit. Breaking in bulk, labeling, packaging, relabeling, or repacking of such property solely for its inspection, storage, or transportation to its final destination outside the state shall not be considered to be a manufacturing process or the production of other personal property within the meaning of this subsection. However, such storage shall not exceed 180 days.

(5)  Intangible personal property, according to the rules laid down in chapter 199.

(6)(a)  Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (2), personal property used as a marine cargo container in the conduct of foreign or interstate commerce shall not be deemed to have acquired a taxable situs within a county when the property is temporarily halted or stored within the state for a period not exceeding 180 days.

(b)  "Marine cargo container" means a nondisposable receptacle which is of a permanent character, strong enough to be suitable for repeated use; which is specifically designed to facilitate the carriage of goods by one or more modes of transport, one of which shall be by ocean vessel, without intermediate reloading; and which is fitted with devices permitting its ready handling, particularly in the transfer from one transport mode to another. The term "marine cargo container" includes a container when carried on a chassis but does not include a vehicle or packaging.

(7)  Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, tangible personal property used in traveling shows such as carnivals, ice shows, or circuses shall be deemed to be physically present or habitually located or typically present only to the extent the value of such property is multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which is the number of days such property is present in Florida during the taxable year and the denominator of which is the number of days in the taxable year. However, railroad property of such traveling shows shall be taxable under s. 193.085(4)(b) and not under this section.

History.--s. 3, ch. 70-243; s. 1, ch. 77-102; s. 1, ch. 77-305; s. 1, ch. 78-269; s. 5, ch. 79-334; s. 85, ch. 79-400; s. 9, ch. 81-308; s. 17, ch. 82-208; s. 75, ch. 82-226; s. 1, ch. 88-83.

Note.--Consolidation of provisions of former ss. 193.022, 193.034, 196.0011.