CopyCited 11 times | Published | United States Bankruptcy Court, N.D. Florida | 37 Collier Bankr. Cas. 2d 636, 10 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. B 196, 1996 Bankr. LEXIS 1727, 1996 WL 765300
...ermined by the equities of each case); In re Davison,
106 B.R. 1021 (Bankr.D.Neb. 1989) (holding that nonconsensual oversecured tax claim is entitled to the statutory rate of interest unless the statutory rate constitutes a penalty). Florida Statute §
197.172 sets forth the interest rate at which delinquent real estate taxes accrue, and provides in part:
197.172 Interest rate; calculation and minimum (1) Real property taxes shall bear interest at the rate of 18 percent per year from the date of delinquency until a tax certificate is sold, except that the minimum charge for delinquent taxes paid prior to the sale of a tax certificate shall be 3 percent....
...nder subsection (1). . . . . . . . . (4) Except as provided in s.
197.262 with regard to deferred payment tax certificates, interest to be accrued pursuant to this chapter shall be calculated monthly from the first day of each month. Florida Statute §
197.172 (1995). The Tax Collector states that it is entitled to the statutory rate of interest provided in §
197.172. The Debtor argues that the statutory interest rate provided in §
197.172 constitutes a penalty, and thus, should not be applied to the Tax Collector's claim....
...458 (1942) (finding that a 12 percent per annum statutory delinquency fee was not a penalty given the credit risk the debtor posed). However, in In re Koger Properties, Inc.,
172 B.R. 351 (Bankr.M.D.Fla.1994), the court held that the 18 percent statutory rate of interest set forth in Florida Statute §
197.172 is in the nature of a penalty....
...tes, as to require a finding that it is penal in nature. Finally, the Debtor has not presented any evidence, in the form of state case law, legislative history or otherwise, which supports his position that the statutory rate of interest provided in § 197.172 is in the nature of a penalty. Having considered all of the above, I can not find that the statutory rate of interest provided in § 197.172 constitutes a penalty with regard to either the pre-petition taxes or the post-petition taxes....
...Conclusion The Debtor failed to present sufficient evidence to overcome the presumption of correctness of the assessment, nor did he prove that every reasonable hypothesis to support the assessment has been excluded. Further, the interest rate provided in § 197.172 does not constitute a penalty and its application would not lead to an inequitable result....
CopyCited 9 times | Published | United States Bankruptcy Court, M.D. Florida | 8 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. B 178, 1994 Bankr. LEXIS 1468, 1994 WL 518930
...328,
121 L.Ed.2d 247 (1992); Galveston Indep. School D. v. Heartland Fed. S & L,
159 B.R. 198 (S.D.Tex.1993); In re Davison,
106 B.R. 1021 (Bankr.D.Neb.1989); In re Krump,
89 B.R. 821 (Bankr.D.S.D.1988); In re Charter Co.,
63 B.R. 568 (Bankr.M.D.Fla.1986). Florida Statute §
197.172 sets forth the interest to accrue on a tax delinquency, and provides, in pertinent part, as follows: §
197.172 Interest rate; Calculation and Minimum (1) Real Property taxes shall bear interest at the rate of 18 percent per year from the date of delinquency until a tax certificate is sold, except that the minimum charge for delinquent taxes paid prior to the sale of a tax certificate shall be 3%....
CopyCited 9 times | Published | United States Bankruptcy Court, S.D. Florida. | 1991 Bankr. LEXIS 1958
...of § 1129(b)(2)(A)(i)(II) virtually identical to § 1129(a)(9)(C) and analysis should be same). [6] Unlike 26 U.S.C. § 6621, which is determined by the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury on a periodic basis, the maximum 18 percent rate under Fla.Stat. § 197.172 does not vary at all....
CopyCited 8 times | Published | United States Bankruptcy Court, M.D. Florida | 13 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. B 296, 2000 Bankr. LEXIS 895, 2000 WL 1195524
...The Trustee shall pay this sum in full with 9% interest over the life of the Plan by equal monthly payments of $628.20 per month for sixty (60) months. Tax Collector is an oversecured creditor asserting entitlement to an eighteen percent (18%) rate of interest from the date of delinquency pursuant to Fla. Stat. § 197.172....
...must look to interest rates charged by the creditor making a loan to a third party with similar terms, duration, collateral, and risk. In the current case, the evidence supports application of an eighteen percent (18%) interest rate. Florida Statute § 197.172, which sets forth the interest rate at which delinquent real estate taxes accrue, provides in pertinent part that: (1) Real property taxes shall bear interest at the rate of 18 percent per year from the date of delinquency until a certificate is sold, except that the minimum charge for delinquent taxes paid prior to the sale of a tax certificate shall be 3 percent. (2) The maximum rate of interest on a tax certificate shall be 18 percent per year;. . . . Fla. Stat. § 197.172 (West 2000)....
CopyCited 6 times | Published | Florida 3rd District Court of Appeal | 2009 Fla. App. LEXIS 553, 2009 WL 187694
...[7] Property taxes that are not paid on time carry a variety of additional charges, for example, including an 18% per annum interest rate between delinquency and tax certificate sale, which bear no apparent relationship to administrative costs or then-prevailing market rates. See § 197.172, Fla....
CopyCited 6 times | Published | United States Bankruptcy Court, N.D. Florida
...Applicable Rate of Interest While all the parties do not agree that the County is entitled to interest on its claim, they do agree that if interest is allowed, that it should be calculated according to a statutory rate rather than a market rate. [5] The County argues for the rate provided *650 for in 197.172(3) Fla.Stat....
...There is little question however that a statutory rate should be applied. As to which one, this Court finds that the statute that should apply in this case to determine the County's pre-distribution interest on its personal property tax claim is 197.172(3) Fla....
...673 (Bankr.D.N.J.1989) (the trustee should apply the statutory rate of interest allowed by N.J.S.A. 54:4-67 when calculating interest due New Jersey municipalities on tax liens). [8] One court has held that the real estate portions (subsections (1) and (2)) of 197.172 Fla.Stat....
...o penalize a taxpayer, rather than for the purpose of calculating interest to the government, the rate may not be used. While the Koger Court found that the 18% interest rate was too high, as the County astutely writes after analyzing the history of section 197.172, "Whether the rate appears to be high or low depends on a fluctuating market rate." Response to Defendants' Supplemental Memorandum at 16....
...In comparison to Koger, the instant case is dramatically different. Koger involved real property taxes. If one uses current real estate mortgage rates as a guide, 18% may seem excessive. The instant case involves personal property taxes however. Subsection (3) of section 197.172, not subsections (1) and (2) is applicable....
...While there was no evidence presented on the question, common sense, and the credit card in this judge's pocket, demonstrates that 18% interest on personal loans is not, although some may wish differently, a legally unreasonable rate and consequently a penalty. The real estate portions of section 197.172 may be a penalty. That issue is not before this Court. But for purposes of calculating pre-distribution interest due the County on a claim for personal property ad valorem taxes, this Court finds that section 197.172(3) Fla.Stat....
CopyCited 4 times | Published | Florida 5th District Court of Appeal | 2000 Fla. App. LEXIS 9476, 2000 WL 1033038
...Respondents argue that the declaratory judgment suit involves issues other than those determined by the prior litigation, such as claims for reimbursement of interest and penalties. With regard to the calculation of interest for delinquent real property taxes, section 197.172(1), Florida Statutes (1999), mandates an interest rate, the application of which by the tax authority is a ministerial duty....
CopyCited 3 times | Published | United States Bankruptcy Court, M.D. Florida | 15 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. B 259, 2002 Bankr. LEXIS 1046, 2002 WL 31118848
...ed by the Tax Collector in this case. Considering the additional contention of the Trustee that the appropriate interest rate of the claims shall be current government rate of nine (9%) percent and not the eighteen (18%) percent imposed by Fla.Stat. § 197.172, this Court had an opportunity to consider the same issue in the case of Koger, supra ....
CopyCited 2 times | Published | District Court, M.D. Florida | 17 Fla. L. Weekly Fed. B 44, 2003 Bankr. LEXIS 1906, 2003 WL 23214212
...The only issue is the specific amount of the distribution that the Tax Collector should receive from the chapter 7 estate. I. Applicable rate of interest The Tax Collector contends that he is entitled to payment of the principal amount of his secured claim, plus interest at the rate of 18 percent per annum as provided by § 197.172 of the Florida Statutes....
...ior to all other liens, on any property against which the taxes have been assessed and shall continue in full force from January 1 of the year the taxes were levied until discharged by payment or until barred under chapter 95. Fla. Stat. §
197.122. Section
197.172 of the Florida Statutes provides in part:
197.172. Interest rate; calculation and minimum . . . . . (3) Personal property taxes shall bear interest at the rate of 18 percent per year from the date of delinquency until paid or barred under chapter 95. Fla. Stat. §
197.172....
...te of 18 percent per annum. The Trustee relies on In re Mulberry Phosphates, Inc.,
283 B.R. 347 (Bankr.M.D.Fla.2002) to support her contention that the Tax Collector is entitled to interest only at the judgment rate, and not at the rate set forth in §
197.172 of the Florida Statutes....
...at 349. See also In re Koger Properties, Inc.,
172 B.R. 351, 353 (Bankr.M.D.Fla.1994)(The 18% interest rate in the statute "is in fact in the nature of a penalty."). *517 In other cases, however, Courts have concluded that the interest rate contained in §
197.172 is not a penalty. In In re Liuzzo,
204 B.R. 235 (Bankr.N.D.Fla.1996)(Killian, J.), for example, the Court addressed the rate of interest established for delinquent real estate taxes (18%) under §
197.172(1) of the Florida Statutes....
...Further, the statutory rate is not high relative to consumer loan transactions with similar risk of non-payment, . . . Finally, the Debtor has not presented any evidence, in the form of state case law, legislative history or otherwise, which supports his proposition that the statutory rate of interest provided in § 197.172 is in the nature of a penalty....
...is not, although some may wish differently, a legally unreasonable rate and consequently a penalty. . . . [F]or purposes of calculating pre-distribution interest due the County on a claim for personal property ad valorem taxes, this Court finds that section 197.172(3) Fla.Stat....
...7 (Bankr.M.D.Fla.2000)(Funk, J.)("Although not raised, the Court recognizes the separate issue of whether statutory rates of interest constitute true interest or provide for a penalty. . . . The Court favors the reasoning in Liuzzo that the statutory rate [contained in § 197.172] does not constitute a penalty.") Further, the decisions in Liuzzo, R & W Enterprises , and Haskell are consistent with decisions in other jurisdictions....
...Conclusion Claim Number 1 filed by the Polk County Tax Collector is an oversecured claim. The Court finds that the Tax Collector should be paid the principal amount of its claim for the 1997, 1998, and 1999 tax years, plus interest calculated at the rate of 18 percent per annum as provided by § 197.172(3) of the Florida Statutes....
