Article
Courtesy of Florida Politics
By Gray Rohrer
Published March 11, 2024
In one of the last bills to pass in the
Regular Session, lawmakers approved a bill (HB 7073) that is
projected to save consumers, homeowners and businesses up to
$1.5 billion over two years.
The measure even won plaudits from Democrats, some of whom
have criticized the tax cut bill in prior years for being
tilted toward big businesses instead of average citizens.
“No bill is going to be perfect … but I do think this is a
strong package that has more of a consumer focus,” said Rep.
Anna Eskamani, an Orlando Democrat.
One provision not included in the bill but part of a budget
bill (HB 5003) is a measure to grant toll rebates for one
year worth up to $450 million for drivers with more than 35
toll transactions per month across the state. The program
will start April 1 and last for 12 months.
That was adopted late in negotiations between the House and
Senate over the bill at the behest of Gov. Ron DeSantis, who
previously secured a similar one-year toll rebate program
from the Legislature that expired in January.
The biggest piece of the bill cuts insurance premium taxes
and assessments, giving insurance companies a rebate on
those taxes for reducing rates for homeowners. It’s
projected to save $502 million over two years, but the
savings for homeowners is projected to be 3%, a small amount
in the face of skyrocketing rates in recent years.
The package also includes a quartet of sales tax holidays,
but some are pared back from the past year.
The back-to-school sales tax holiday on clothing and school
items will last two weeks starting July 29; the holiday for
the Spring semester lawmakers that approved for the current
year wasn’t included.
Last year’s “Freedom Summer” sales tax holiday on event
tickets to museums, sporting events, plays, festivals, fairs
and outdoor items has been reduced to “Freedom Month” and
will last during July. There’s also a one-week holiday on
tools starting Sept. 1 and two separate two-week sales tax
holidays for disaster preparedness items, starting June 1
and August 24.
The bill passed unanimously in both chambers, but one
provision that caused some consternation was a piece that
grants a reduction in the sales tax in Hillsborough County
sales tax for a short period, until $165 million from the
state is drained to replenish the county.
That is part of the way the state is returning $570 million
to Hillsborough, where a surtax approved by voters in 2018
was in effect for two years before it was ruled
unconstitutional. The tax was intended to pay for
transportation improvements, and the rest of the funds will
go toward those projects and to refund taxpayers and settle
lawsuits.
Rep. Mike Beltran, a Riverview Republican, said all of the
money should be refunded to taxpayers or given back through
a short-term sales tax reduction instead of going toward the
transportation projects the surtax was intended to support.
“This money should not be spent on the exact same types of
projects that were being promoted by the downtown special
interests who (passed) the illegal tax in the first place,”
Beltran said.
But House Democratic Leader Fentrice Driskell, who
represents a Tampa district in Hillsborough, said the money
is needed to improve roads in the area.
“Traffic is ruining peoples’ lives,” Driskell said. “We just
want people to have a better quality of life.”
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