The Florida Senate

¹202.20  Local communications services tax rates.--

(1)(a)  On or before December 31, 2000, the Revenue Estimating Conference shall compute for each municipality and county the rate of local communications services tax which would be required to be levied under s. 202.19(1) in order for such local taxing jurisdiction to raise in calendar year 1999, through the imposition of a local communications services tax, revenues equal to the sum of:

1.  The amount of revenues estimated to have been received in calendar year 1999 based on the revenues that were actually received from the replaced revenue sources in the fiscal year ending September 30, 1999, adjusted to reflect the growth reasonably estimated to have occurred in the final quarter of calendar year 1999; and

2.  An amount representing the revenues the jurisdiction would have received from the replaced revenue sources during the month immediately preceding the month in which local taxing jurisdictions receive their first distributions of revenues under this chapter.

In computing the amounts in subparagraphs 1. and 2., the Revenue Estimating Conference shall consider, to the maximum extent practicable, changes in local replaced revenues, other than changes due to normal growth, and shall adjust the amounts in subparagraphs 1. and 2. accordingly.

(b)  The rates computed by the Revenue Estimating Conference shall be presented to the Legislature for review and approval during the 2001 Regular Session. The rates approved by the Legislature under this subsection shall be effective in the respective local taxing jurisdictions on October 1, 2001, without any action being taken by the governing authority or voters of such local taxing jurisdictions. The rate computed and approved pursuant to this subsection shall be reduced on October 1, 2002, by that portion of the rate which was necessary to recoup the 1 month of foregone revenues addressed in subparagraph (a)2.

(c)  With respect to any local taxing jurisdiction, if, for the periods ending December 31, 2001; March 31, 2002; June 30, 2002; or September 30, 2002, the revenues received by that local government from the local communications services tax imposed under s. 202.19(1) are less than the revenues received from the replaced revenue sources for the corresponding 2000-2001 period; plus reasonably anticipated growth in such revenues over the preceding 1-year period, based on the average growth of such revenues over the immediately preceding 5-year period; plus an amount representing the revenues from the replaced revenue sources for the 1-month period that the local taxing jurisdiction was required to forego, the governing authority may adjust the rate of the local communications services tax upward to the extent necessary to generate the entire shortfall in revenues within 1 year after the rate adjustment and by an amount necessary to generate the expected amount of revenue on an ongoing basis. The adjustment may be made by emergency ordinance and may be made notwithstanding the maximum rate established under subsection (2) and notwithstanding any schedules or timeframes or any other limitations contained in this chapter. The emergency ordinance shall specify an effective date for the adjusted rate, which shall be no less than 90 days after the date of adoption of the ordinance. At the end of that year, the local governing authority shall, as soon as is consistent with s. 202.21, reduce the rate by that portion of the emergency rate which was necessary to recoup the amount of revenues not received prior to the implementation of the emergency rate.

(2)(a)  On or before December 31, 2000, the Revenue Estimating Conference shall compute, in accordance with this paragraph, the maximum rates at which local taxing jurisdictions shall be permitted to impose local communications services taxes under s. 202.19(1).

1.  A single maximum rate shall apply to all municipalities and charter counties, and another single maximum rate shall apply to all other counties.

2.  Each respective maximum rate, when applied to the services taxed pursuant to this chapter, shall be calculated to produce the revenues which could have been generated from the replaced revenue sources, assuming that all local taxing jurisdictions had imposed every replaced revenue source in the manner and at the rate that would have produced the greatest amount of revenues.

(b)  The rates computed by the Revenue Estimating Conference shall be presented to the Legislature for review and approval during the 2001 Regular Session. The rates approved by the Legislature pursuant to this subsection shall be the maximum rates for purposes of s. 202.19(1).

(3)(a)  Each person who provides communications services shall include as part of the August 2000 return due pursuant to chapter 212 on or before September 20, 2000, the information set forth in this paragraph, in a format prescribed by the department. Returns shall contain data for calendar year 1999 that may include, but are not limited to, remittances of replaced revenue sources for each local taxing jurisdiction and an estimate of the revenue from communications services that will be taxable pursuant to this chapter for each local taxing jurisdiction. Such data may also include, on an aggregated statewide basis, each person's statewide sales taxable under chapter 203, taxable sales under s. 212.05(1)(e), and estimates for sales exempt under s. 212.08(7)(j) and exempt sales to governmental and other exempt entities under chapter 212.

(b)  All information furnished to the department under this subsection shall be available to all local taxing jurisdictions. Such taxpayer information shall remain subject to s. 213.053. Such data may not be disclosed or used by local taxing jurisdictions for any purpose other than to review the validity of data and the calculations made pursuant to this subsection.

(c)  For each replaced revenue source, each county and each municipality shall provide the following data to the Department of Revenue on or before September 30, 2000:

1.  The rate of the levy for calendar year 1999.

2.  The amount of revenues received during fiscal year 1998-1999 and, if known, the 1999 calendar year.

3.  A description of the revenue base or taxable services.

4.  The name and federal employer identification number of each taxpayer.

5.  For the purpose of assisting the Revenue Estimating Conference in the computations required by this section, any other relevant information, including, but not limited to, changes in the rate of replaced revenues or imposition of additional replaced revenues subsequent to September 30, 1999.

(d)  The department shall provide technical assistance to the Revenue Estimating Conference and compile and analyze the information submitted pursuant to this subsection in the manner requested by the Revenue Estimating Conference.

(4)  Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, "replaced revenue sources," as used in this section, means the following taxes, charges, fees, or other impositions to the extent that the respective local taxing jurisdictions were authorized to impose them prior to July 1, 2000.

(a)  With respect to municipalities and charter counties and the taxes authorized by s. 202.19(1):

1.  The public service tax on telecommunications authorized by s. 166.231(9).

2.  Franchise fees on cable service providers as authorized by 47 U.S.C. s. 542.

3.  The public service tax on prepaid calling arrangements.

4.  Franchise fees on dealers of communications services which use the public roads or rights-of-way, up to the limit set forth in s. 337.401. For purposes of calculating rates under this section, it is the legislative intent that charter counties be treated as having had the same authority as municipalities to impose franchise fees on recurring local telecommunication service revenues prior to July 1, 2000. However, the Legislature recognizes that the authority of charter counties to impose such fees is in dispute, and the treatment provided in this section is not an expression of legislative intent that charter counties actually do or do not possess such authority.

5.  Actual permit fees relating to placing or maintaining facilities in or on public roads or rights-of-way, collected from providers of long-distance, cable, and mobile communications services for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1999; however, if a municipality or charter county elects the option to charge permit fees pursuant to s. 337.401(3)(c)1.a., such fees shall not be included as a replaced revenue source.

(b)  With respect to all other counties and the taxes authorized in s. 202.19(1), franchise fees on cable service providers as authorized by 47 U.S.C. s. 542.

(5)  For any county or school board that levies a discretionary surtax under s. 212.055, the rate of such tax shall be multiplied by a factor to determine the applicable rate of tax under s. 202.19(5). The Revenue Estimating Conference shall compute the factor on or before December 31, 2000. The factor shall be calculated such that any rate applied under s. 202.19(5) will produce substantially the same tax revenues as the corresponding rate levied on telecommunication services under s. 212.055 during the year ending September 30, 1999. The factor shall be calculated to three decimal places, and the tax rates calculated by applying the factor for purposes of s. 202.19(5) shall be rounded up to the nearest one-tenth percent. The factor shall be presented to the Legislature for review and approval during the 2001 Regular Session.

(6)  For purposes of calculating the appropriate value of the replaced revenue under subparagraph (4)(a)2. and paragraph (4)(b), and in conjunction with the study required by this act, the Revenue Estimating Conference may include in its computation any adjustment necessary to include the value of any in-kind requirements, institutional networks, and contributions for, or in support of, the use or construction of public, educational, or governmental access facilities allowed under federal law.

(7)(a)  The provisions of this subsection shall apply only with respect to the initial tax rate of a local taxing jurisdiction which on October 1, 2001, is entitled to receive from any dealer of communications services fees in excess of the applicable limitation set forth in s. 337.401, as such section existed prior to the effective date of this section, pursuant to an agreement with such dealer of communications services in effect on such date.

(b)  Immediately upon the expiration of an agreement described in paragraph (a), the rate determined under subsection (1), as it applies to such local taxing jurisdiction, shall automatically be reduced by the portion of such rate representing the difference between the fees actually received by the taxing jurisdiction pursuant to the agreement described in paragraph (a) for the fiscal year ending September 30, 1999, and the fees that such jurisdiction would have received for such period under the applicable limitation set forth in s. 337.401, as such section existed prior to the effective date of this section.

History.--ss. 12, 58, ch. 2000-260.

¹Note.--

A.  Repealed June 30, 2001, by s. 58, ch. 2000-260.

B.  Section 52, ch. 2000-260, provides that "[t]he Legislature finds that it may be necessary to adopt a state policy regarding in-kind requirements, institutional networks, and contributions for, or in support of, the use or construction of public, educational, or governmental access facilities allowed under federal law currently imposed only on providers of cable service, especially in light of the in-kind requirements for providers of telecommunications services under s. 337.401(5), Florida Statutes, 1999. Given the development of alternative choices in the delivery of multichannel video programming, including programming by providers of wireless, satellite, Internet, and other video delivery systems, and the potential competitive inequities which may be associated with such requirements, networks, and contributions, the appropriate committees of the Legislature shall study and evaluate, during the 2001 legislative session, an appropriate state policy regarding these issues, including the option of calculating the present and future value of such requirements, networks, and contributions available to local governments in excess of the limitations imposed on franchise fees under 47 U.S.C. s. 542(b) as a part of the computation of replacement revenues under s. 202.20, Florida Statutes, in setting the local communications services tax rate."