Senate Bill sb0486

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    Florida Senate - 2001                                   SB 486

    By the Committee on Commerce and Economic Opportunities





    310-558A-01

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to public records; amending s.

  3         288.1066, F.S.; abrogating the scheduled repeal

  4         of a public records exemption for specified

  5         business information received under the

  6         qualified defense contractor and qualified

  7         target industry tax refund programs;

  8         eliminating obsolete references to the

  9         Department of Commerce; making the listing of

10         tax information covered by the public records

11         exemption consistent with the program's terms

12         and conditions; providing confidentiality for

13         information concerning taxes paid by businesses

14         while participating in the programs; providing

15         confidentiality for information concerning jobs

16         created and wages paid by such businesses;

17         providing for future repeal and legislative

18         review; providing a statement of public

19         necessity; providing an effective date.

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

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23         Section 1.  Section 288.1066, Florida Statutes, is

24  amended to read:

25         288.1066  Confidentiality of records.--

26         (1)  The following information when received by the

27  Department of Commerce; the Office of Tourism, Trade, and

28  Economic Development; Enterprise Florida, Inc.; or county or

29  municipal governmental entities and their employees pursuant

30  to the qualified defense contractor tax refund program as

31  required by s. 288.1045 is confidential and exempt from the

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    Florida Senate - 2001                                   SB 486
    310-558A-01




  1  provisions of s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State

  2  Constitution for a period not to exceed the duration of the

  3  tax refund agreement or 10 years, whichever is earlier:

  4         (a)  The applicant's federal employer identification

  5  number and Florida sales tax registration number.

  6         (b)  The percentage of the applicant's gross receipts

  7  derived from Department of Defense contracts during the 5

  8  taxable years immediately preceding the date the application

  9  is submitted.

10         (c)  The amount of:

11         1.  Taxes on sales, use, and other transactions paid

12  pursuant to chapter 212;

13         2.  Corporate income taxes paid pursuant to chapter

14  220;

15         3.  Intangible personal property taxes paid pursuant to

16  chapter 199;

17         4.  Emergency excise taxes paid pursuant to chapter

18  221;

19         5.  Excise taxes on documents paid pursuant to chapter

20  201; and

21         6.5.  Ad valorem taxes paid

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23  during the 5 fiscal years immediately preceding the date of

24  the application, and the projected amounts of such taxes to be

25  due in the 3 fiscal years immediately following the date of

26  the application.

27         (d)  The amount of the taxes specified in paragraph (c)

28  which the qualified applicant paid during the tax refund

29  agreement and for which the qualified applicant seeks a tax

30  refund under s. 288.1045.

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    Florida Senate - 2001                                   SB 486
    310-558A-01




  1         (e)(d)  Any trade secret information as defined in s.

  2  812.081 contained within any statement concerning the

  3  applicant's need for tax refunds or concerning the proposed

  4  uses of such refunds by the applicant.

  5         (f)  Data concerning the number of jobs created and the

  6  wages paid for those jobs by a qualified applicant which are

  7  submitted as part of a claim for a tax refund under s.

  8  288.1045 and as evidence of the achievement of performance

  9  items contained in the tax refund agreement.

10         (2)  The following information when received by the

11  Department of Commerce; the Office of Tourism, Trade, and

12  Economic Development; Enterprise Florida, Inc.; or county or

13  municipal governmental entities and their employees pursuant

14  to the qualified target industry tax refund program as

15  required by s. 288.106 is confidential and exempt from the

16  provisions of s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I of the State

17  Constitution for a period not to exceed the duration of the

18  tax refund agreement or 10 years, whichever is earlier:

19         (a)  The applicant's federal employer identification

20  number and Florida sales tax registration number.

21         (b)  Any trade secret information as defined in s.

22  812.081 contained within any description of the type of

23  business activity or product covered by the project.

24         (c)  The anticipated wages of those jobs projected to

25  be created by the project.

26         (d)  The amount of:

27         1.  Taxes on sales, use, and other transactions paid

28  pursuant to chapter 212;

29         2.  Corporate income taxes paid pursuant to chapter

30  220;

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    Florida Senate - 2001                                   SB 486
    310-558A-01




  1         3.  Intangible personal property taxes paid pursuant to

  2  chapter 199;

  3         4.  Emergency excise taxes paid pursuant to chapter

  4  221;

  5         5.  Insurance premium taxes paid pursuant to s.

  6  624.509;

  7         6.  Excise taxes on documents paid pursuant to chapter

  8  201; and

  9         7.5.  Ad valorem taxes paid

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11  during the 5 fiscal years immediately preceding the date of

12  the application, and the projected amounts of such taxes to be

13  due in the 3 fiscal years immediately following the date of

14  the application.

15         (e)  The amount of the taxes specified in paragraph (d)

16  which the qualified target industry business paid during the

17  tax refund agreement and for which the business seeks a tax

18  refund under s. 288.106.

19         (f)(e)  Any trade secret information as defined in s.

20  812.081 contained within any statement concerning the role

21  that the tax refunds requested will play in the decision of

22  the applicant to locate or expand in this state.

23         (g)(f)  An estimate of the proportion of the sales

24  resulting from the project that will be made outside this

25  state.

26         (h)  Data concerning the number of jobs created by the

27  project and the wages paid for those jobs by a qualified

28  target industry business which are submitted as part of a

29  claim for a tax refund under s. 288.106 and as evidence of the

30  achievement of performance items contained in the tax refund

31  agreement.

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    Florida Senate - 2001                                   SB 486
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  1         (3)  Nothing contained in this section shall prevent

  2  the Department of Commerce; the Office of Tourism, Trade, and

  3  Economic Development; Enterprise Florida, Inc.; or any county

  4  or municipal governmental entity receiving the information

  5  described in this section from publishing statistics in the

  6  aggregate and so classified as to prevent the identification

  7  of a single qualified applicant.

  8         (4)  This section is subject to the Open Government

  9  Sunset Review Act of 1995 in accordance with s. 119.15, and

10  shall stand repealed on October 2, 2006 October 2, 2001,

11  unless reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by

12  the Legislature.

13         Section 2.  The Legislature finds that it is a public

14  necessity that the confidentiality provided by section

15  288.1066, Florida Statutes, for specified information received

16  under the qualified defense contractor and qualified target

17  industry tax refund programs be expanded to include

18  information concerning the amount of taxes paid by qualified

19  businesses while participating in the programs which

20  information provides the basis for actual tax refunds sought

21  under the programs. The Legislature further finds that it is a

22  public necessity that such confidentiality also be expanded to

23  include information concerning the number of jobs created and

24  the amount of wages paid for those jobs by qualified

25  businesses participating in the programs which information

26  businesses must submit to demonstrate compliance with the

27  terms of tax refund agreements. Finally, the Legislature finds

28  that the listing of taxes to which confidentiality currently

29  applies under section 288.1066, Florida Statutes, should be

30  expanded to include excise taxes on documents and insurance

31  premium taxes because these taxes provide a basis for tax

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    Florida Senate - 2001                                   SB 486
    310-558A-01




  1  refunds under the programs, thus conforming the scope of

  2  confidentiality to the scope of the programs. An exemption

  3  from the public records requirements for information

  4  concerning the amount of taxes paid and for information

  5  concerning employment and wages is necessary because the

  6  disclosure of such information could injure a business in the

  7  marketplace by providing its competitors with detailed

  8  insights into the financial status and strategic plans of the

  9  business, thereby diminishing the advantage that the business

10  maintains over those who do not possess such information.

11  Without this exemption, private businesses whose records are

12  not required to be open might refrain from participating in

13  these economic development programs and thus would be unable

14  to use the tax refunds available. If a business were unable to

15  use the tax refunds, it might choose to locate its

16  job-creating and investment activities outside the state,

17  depriving the state and the public of the potential economic

18  benefits associated with such activities. The harm to

19  businesses in the marketplace and to effective administration

20  of these economic development programs caused by the release

21  of such information far outweighs the public benefit derived

22  from release of such information.

23         Section 3.  This act shall take effect October 1, 2001.

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    Florida Senate - 2001                                   SB 486
    310-558A-01




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  2                          SENATE SUMMARY

  3    Saves from repeal a public records exemption for
      specified business information that is received by the
  4    Office of Tourism, Trade, and Economic Development;
      Enterprise Florida, Inc.; or county or municipal
  5    governmental entities through their administration of the
      Qualified Defense Contractor (QDC) Tax Refund Program and
  6    the Qualified Target Industry (QTI) Tax Refund Program.
      Revises the exemption to include information concerning
  7    actual taxes paid by a business while participating in
      the QDC or QTI tax refund programs which information the
  8    business submits as part of its claim for a tax refund.
      Conforms the listing of tax information covered by the
  9    public records exemption to the listing of taxes for
      which refunds may be obtained under the two programs.
10    Provides confidentiality for actual employment and wage
      data submitted by a participating business as proof of
11    its compliance with performance conditions established
      under the programs.
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