Senate Bill 0018e1

    SB 18                                    First Engrossed (ntc)



  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to the Department of Revenue;

  3         providing for the relief of Ray Construction of

  4         Okaloosa County, Ltd.; providing an

  5         appropriation to compensate Ray Construction of

  6         Okaloosa County, Ltd., for documentary stamp

  7         tax assessments paid to the Department of

  8         Revenue and for attorney's fees and court

  9         costs; providing an effective date.

10

11         WHEREAS, on December 6, 1994, the Circuit Court of the

12  First Judicial Circuit in and for Okaloosa County entered a

13  final judgment (Case No. 94-501-CA) pursuant to a complaint by

14  Ray Construction of Okaloosa County, Ltd., which sought a

15  declaratory judgment against the State of Florida, Department

16  of Revenue, relative to the legality of four contested

17  documentary stamp tax assessments made by the Department of

18  Revenue against Ray Construction, and relative to a refund

19  sought by Ray Construction against the Department of Revenue

20  for a tax warrant issued pursuant to an assessment which Ray

21  Construction contended was illegal and improper, and

22         WHEREAS, Ray Construction also sought a declaratory

23  judgment to determine its documentary stamp tax liability with

24  respect to other land transactions similar to those giving

25  rise to the contested assessments but not yet subjected to

26  audit and tax assessments by the department, and

27         WHEREAS, the Circuit Court ruled in favor of Ray

28  Construction and against the Department of Revenue, finding

29  that Ray Construction did not owe the department for the four

30  contested documentary stamp tax assessments or the contested

31  tax warrant, and that numerous other similar land transactions


                                  1

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    SB 18                                    First Engrossed (ntc)



  1  by Ray Construction were not subject to audit and tax

  2  assessments by the department, and

  3         WHEREAS, the Department of Revenue appealed the Circuit

  4  Court's decision in this matter (Case No. 95-228), and

  5         WHEREAS, in its opinion filed January 30, 1996, the

  6  First District Court of Appeal found that the Department of

  7  Revenue's notice of the contested assessments to Ray

  8  Construction was sufficient and disagreed with Ray

  9  Construction's assertion that the Department of Revenue's

10  failure to adopt a rule setting out specific procedure for

11  delivery of notice of proposed tax assessment voids such

12  notices, and

13         WHEREAS, the First District Court of Appeal found that,

14  because Ray Construction's challenge to the four disputed

15  assessments was untimely, the Circuit Court lacked

16  subject-matter jurisdiction to entertain a challenge to the

17  assessments and subsequently reversed that portion of the

18  trial court's final judgment, and

19         WHEREAS, the First District Court of Appeal upheld that

20  portion of the final judgment awarding a declaratory judgment

21  in favor of Ray Construction in which the court declared that

22  the Department of Revenue had no right to impose an assessment

23  of additional documentary stamp taxes with respect to similar

24  land conveyances not yet subjected to audit and assessment by

25  the Department of Revenue, and

26         WHEREAS, given the First District Court of Appeal's

27  affirmative ruling on that portion of the trial court's final

28  judgment, Ray Construction would have prevailed with regard to

29  a challenge to the four contested assessments if its challenge

30  had been timely filed, and

31


                                  2

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    SB 18                                    First Engrossed (ntc)



  1         WHEREAS, Ray Construction of Okaloosa County, Ltd.,

  2  seeks to recover $2,479.96 for four documentary stamp tax

  3  assessments paid to the Department of Revenue and $15,750.50

  4  in attorney's fees and court costs, and

  5         WHEREAS, the total amount of the claim against the

  6  Department of Revenue is $18,230.46, NOW, THEREFORE,

  7

  8  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

  9

10         Section 1.  The facts stated in the preamble to this

11  act are found and declared to be true.

12         Section 2.  The Executive Office of the Governor is

13  directed to transfer existing spending authority or establish

14  spending authority from the General Revenue Fund in the State

15  Treasury in the amount of $18,230.46 to a new category titled

16  "Relief - Ray Construction of Okaloosa County, Ltd." as relief

17  for damages sustained.

18         Section 3.  The Comptroller is directed to draw his

19  warrant in favor of Ray Construction of Okaloosa County, Ltd.,

20  in the sum of $18,230.46 upon funds in the State Treasury and

21  the State Treasurer is directed to pay the same out of such

22  funds in the State Treasury.

23         Section 4.  No additional attorney fees shall be

24  payable pursuant to section 57.111, Florida Statutes.

25         Section 5.  This act shall take effect July 1, 1998.

26

27

28

29

30

31


                                  3