203.01 Tax on gross receipts for utility and communications services.—
(1)(a)1. A tax is imposed on gross receipts from utility services that are delivered to a retail consumer in this state. The tax shall be levied as provided in paragraphs (b)-(j).
2. A tax is levied on communications services as defined in s. 202.11(1). The tax shall be applied to the same services and transactions as are subject to taxation under chapter 202, and to communications services that are subject to the exemption provided in s. 202.125(1). The tax shall be applied to the sales price of communications services when sold at retail, as the terms are defined in s. 202.11, shall be due and payable at the same time as the taxes imposed pursuant to chapter 202, and shall be administered and collected pursuant to chapter 202.
3. An additional tax is levied on charges for, or the use of, electrical power or energy that is subject to the tax levied pursuant to s. 212.05(1)(e)1.c. or s. 212.06(1). The tax shall be applied to the same transactions or uses as are subject to taxation under s. 212.05(1)(e)1.c. or s. 212.06(1). If a transaction or use is exempt from the tax imposed under s. 212.05(1)(e)1.c. or s. 212.06(1), the transaction or use is also exempt from the tax imposed under this subparagraph. The tax shall be applied to charges for electrical power or energy and is due and payable at the same time as taxes imposed pursuant to chapter 212. Chapter 212 governs the administration and enforcement of the tax imposed by this subparagraph. The charges upon which the tax imposed by this subparagraph is applied do not include the taxes imposed by subparagraph 1. or s. 166.231. The tax imposed by this subparagraph becomes state funds at the moment of collection and is not considered as revenue of a utility for purposes of a franchise agreement between the utility and a local government.
(b)1. The rate applied to utility services shall be 2.5 percent.
2. The rate applied to communications services shall be 2.37 percent.
3. An additional rate of 0.15 percent shall be applied to communication services subject to the tax levied pursuant to s. 202.12(1)(a), (c), and (d). The exemption provided in s. 202.125(1) applies to the tax levied pursuant to this subparagraph.
4. The rate applied to electrical power or energy taxed under subparagraph (a)3. shall be 2.6 percent.
(c)1. The tax imposed under subparagraph (a)1. shall be levied against the total amount of gross receipts received by a distribution company for its sale of utility services if the utility service is delivered to the retail consumer by a distribution company and the retail consumer pays the distribution company a charge for utility service which includes a charge for both the electricity and the transportation of electricity to the retail consumer. The distribution company shall report and remit to the Department of Revenue by the 20th day of each month the taxes levied pursuant to this paragraph during the preceding month.
2. To the extent practicable, the Department of Revenue must distribute all receipts of taxes remitted under this chapter to the Public Education Capital Outlay and Debt Service Trust Fund in the same month as the department collects such taxes.
(d)1. Each distribution company that receives payment for the delivery of electricity to a retail consumer in this state is subject to tax on the exercise of this privilege as provided by this paragraph unless the payment is subject to tax under paragraph (c). For the exercise of this privilege, the tax levied on the distribution company’s receipts for the delivery of electricity shall be determined by multiplying the number of kilowatt hours delivered by the index price and applying the rate in subparagraph (b)1. to the result.
2. The index price is the Florida price per kilowatt hour for retail consumers in the previous calendar year, as published in the United States Energy Information Administration Electric Power Monthly and announced by the Department of Revenue on June 1 of each year to be effective for the 12-month period beginning July 1 of that year. For each residential, commercial, and industrial customer class, the applicable index posted for residential, commercial, and industrial shall be applied in calculating the gross receipts to which the tax applies. If publication of the indices is delayed or discontinued, the last posted index shall be used until a current index is posted or the department adopts a comparable index by rule.
3. Tax due under this paragraph shall be administered, paid, and reported in the same manner as the tax due under paragraph (c).
4. The amount of tax due under this paragraph shall be reduced by the amount of any like tax lawfully imposed on and paid by the person from whom the retail consumer purchased the electricity, whether imposed by and paid to this state, another state, a territory of the United States, or the District of Columbia. This reduction in tax shall be available to the retail consumer as a refund made pursuant to s. 215.26 and does not inure to the benefit of the person who receives payment for the delivery of the electricity. The methods of demonstrating proof of payment and the amount of such refund shall be made according to rules of the Department of Revenue.
(e)1. A distribution company that receives payment for the sale or transportation of natural or manufactured gas to a retail consumer in this state is subject to tax on the exercise of this privilege as provided by this paragraph. For the exercise of this privilege, the tax levied on the distribution company’s receipts for the sale or transportation of natural or manufactured gas shall be determined by dividing the number of cubic feet delivered by 1,000, multiplying the resulting number by the index price, and applying the rate in subparagraph (b)1. to the result.
2. The index price is the Florida price per 1,000 cubic feet for retail consumers in the previous calendar year as published in the United States Energy Information Administration Natural Gas Monthly and announced by the Department of Revenue on June 1 of each year to be effective for the 12-month period beginning July 1 of that year. For each residential, commercial, and industrial customer class, the applicable index posted for residential, commercial, and industrial shall be applied in calculating the gross receipts to which the tax applies. If publication of the indices is delayed or discontinued, the last posted index shall be used until a current index is posted or the department adopts a comparable index by rule.
3. Tax due under this paragraph shall be administered, paid, and reported in the same manner as the tax due under paragraph (c).
4. The amount of tax due under this paragraph shall be reduced by the amount of any like tax lawfully imposed on and paid by the person from whom the retail consumer purchased the natural gas or manufactured gas, whether imposed by and paid to this state, another state, a territory of the United States, or the District of Columbia. This reduction in tax shall be available to the retail consumer as a refund pursuant to s. 215.26 and does not inure to the benefit of the person providing the transportation service. The methods of demonstrating proof of payment and the amount of such refund shall be made according to rules of the Department of Revenue.
(f) Any person who imports into this state electricity, natural gas, or manufactured gas, or severs natural gas, for that person’s own use or consumption as a substitute for purchasing utility, transportation, or delivery services taxable under subparagraph (a)1. and who cannot demonstrate payment of the tax imposed by this chapter must register with the Department of Revenue and pay into the State Treasury each month an amount equal to the cost price, as defined in s. 212.02, of such electricity, natural gas, or manufactured gas times the rate set forth in subparagraph (b)1., reduced by the amount of any like tax lawfully imposed on and paid by the person from whom the electricity, natural gas, or manufactured gas was purchased or any person who provided delivery service or transportation service in connection with the electricity, natural gas, or manufactured gas. The methods of demonstrating proof of payment and the amount of such reductions in tax shall be made according to rules of the Department of Revenue.
(g) Electricity produced by cogeneration or by small power producers which is transmitted and distributed by a public utility between two locations of a customer of the utility pursuant to s. 366.051 is subject to the tax imposed by subparagraph (a)1. The tax shall be applied to the cost price, as defined in s. 212.02, of such electricity and shall be paid each month by the producer of such electricity.
(h) Electricity produced by cogeneration or by small power producers during the 12-month period ending June 30 of each year which is in excess of nontaxable electricity produced during the 12-month period ending June 30, 1990, is subject to the tax imposed by subparagraph (a)1. The tax shall be applied to the cost price, as defined in s. 212.02, of such electricity and shall be paid each month, beginning with the month in which total production exceeds the production of nontaxable electricity for the 12-month period ending June 30, 1990. As used in this paragraph, the term “nontaxable electricity” means electricity produced by cogeneration or by small power producers which is not subject to tax under paragraph (g). Taxes paid pursuant to paragraph (g) may be credited against taxes due under this paragraph. Electricity generated as part of an industrial manufacturing process that manufactures products from phosphate rock, raw wood fiber, paper, citrus, or any agricultural product is not subject to the tax imposed by this paragraph. The term “industrial manufacturing process” means the entire process conducted at the location where the process takes place.
(i) Any person other than a cogenerator or small power producer described in paragraph (h) who produces for his or her own use electrical energy that is a substitute for electrical energy produced by an electric utility as defined in s. 366.02 is subject to the tax imposed by subparagraph (a)1. The tax shall be applied to the cost price, as defined in s. 212.02, of such electrical energy and shall be paid each month. This paragraph does not apply to electrical energy produced and used by an electric utility.
(j) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, with the exception of a communications services dealer reporting taxes administered under chapter 202, the department may require:
1. A quarterly return and payment when the tax remitted for the preceding four calendar quarters did not exceed $1,000;
2. A semiannual return and payment when the tax remitted for the preceding four calendar quarters did not exceed $500; or
3. An annual return and payment when the tax remitted for the preceding four calendar quarters did not exceed $100.
(2)(a) In addition to any other penalty provided by law, any person who fails to timely report and pay any tax imposed on gross receipts from utility services under this chapter shall pay a penalty equal to 10 percent of any unpaid tax, if the failure is for less than 31 days, plus an additional 10 percent of any unpaid tax for each additional 30 days or fraction thereof. However, such penalty may not be less than $10 or exceed a total of 50 percent in the aggregate of any unpaid tax.
(b) In addition to any other penalty provided by law, any person who falsely or fraudulently reports or unlawfully attempts to evade paying any tax imposed on gross receipts from utility services under this chapter shall pay a penalty equal to 100 percent of any tax due and is guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided under s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
(3) The tax imposed by subparagraph (1)(a)1. does not apply to:
(a)1. The sale or transportation of natural gas or manufactured gas to a public or private utility, including a municipal corporation or rural electric cooperative association, for resale or for use as fuel in the generation of electricity; or
2. The sale or delivery of electricity to a public or private utility, including a municipal corporation or rural electric cooperative association, for resale, or as part of an electrical interchange agreement or contract between such utilities for the purpose of transferring more economically generated power;
if the person deriving gross receipts from such sale demonstrates that a sale, transportation, or delivery for resale in fact occurred and complies with the following requirements: A sale, transportation, or delivery for resale must be in strict compliance with the rules of the Department of Revenue; and any sale subject to the tax imposed by this section which is not in strict compliance with the rules of the Department of Revenue shall be subject to the tax at the appropriate rate imposed on utilities under subparagraph (1)(b)1. on the person making the sale. Any person making a sale for resale may, through an informal protest provided in s. 213.21 and the rules of the Department of Revenue, provide the department with evidence of the exempt status of a sale. The department shall adopt rules that provide that valid proof and documentation of the resale by a person making the sale for resale will be accepted by the department when submitted during the protest period but will not be accepted when submitted in any proceeding under chapter 120 or any circuit court action instituted under chapter 72;
(b) Wholesale sales of electric transmission service;
(c) The use of natural gas in the production of oil or gas, or the use of natural or manufactured gas by a person transporting natural or manufactured gas, when used and consumed in providing such services; or
(d) The sale or transportation to, or use of, natural gas or manufactured gas by a person eligible for an exemption under s. 212.08(7)(ff)2. for use as an energy source or a raw material. Possession by a seller of natural or manufactured gas or by any person providing transportation or delivery of natural or manufactured gas of a written certification by the purchaser, certifying the purchaser’s entitlement to the exclusion permitted by this paragraph, relieves the seller or person providing transportation or delivery from the responsibility of remitting tax on the nontaxable amounts, and the department shall look solely to the purchaser for recovery of such tax if the department determines that the purchaser was not entitled to the exclusion. The certification must include an acknowledgment by the purchaser that it will be liable for tax pursuant to paragraph (1)(f) if the requirements for exclusion are not met.
(4) The tax imposed pursuant to subparagraph (1)(a)1. relating to the provision of utility services at the option of the person supplying the taxable services may be separately stated as Florida gross receipts tax on the total amount of any bill, invoice, or other tangible evidence of the provision of such taxable services and may be added as a component part of the total charge. If a provider of taxable services elects to separately state such tax as a component of the charge for the provision of such taxable services, any person, including all governmental units, shall remit the tax to the person who provides such taxable services as a part of the total bill, and the tax is a component part of the debt of the purchaser to the person who provides such taxable services until paid and, if unpaid, is recoverable at law in the same manner as any other part of the charge for such taxable services. For a utility, the decision to separately state any increase in the rate of tax imposed by this chapter which is effective after December 31, 1989, and the ability to recover the increased charge from the customer is not subject to regulatory approval.
(5) The tax is imposed upon every person for the privilege of conducting a utility or communications services business, and each provider of the taxable services remains fully and completely liable for the tax, even if the tax is separately stated as a line item or component of the total bill.
(6) Any person who provides such services and who fails, neglects, or refuses to remit the tax imposed in this chapter, either by himself or herself, or through agents or employees, is liable for the tax and is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
(7) Gross receipts subject to the tax imposed under subparagraph (1)(a)1. for the provision of electricity must include receipts from monthly customer charges or monthly customer facility charges.
(8) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (4) and s. 212.07(2), sums that were charged or billed as taxes under this section and chapter 212 and that were remitted to the state in full as taxes shall not be subject to refund by the state or by the utility or other person that remitted the sums, when the amount remitted was not in excess of the amount of tax imposed by chapter 212 and this section.
(9) Any person who engages in the transportation of natural or manufactured gas shall furnish annually to the Department of Revenue a list of customers to whom transportation services were provided in the prior year. This reporting requirement does not apply to distribution companies. Any person required to furnish such a list may elect to identify only those customers who take direct delivery without purchasing interconnection services from a distribution company. Such reports are subject to the confidentiality provisions of s. 213.053. Any person required to furnish a customer list may instead comply by maintaining a publicly accessible customer list on its Internet website. Such list shall be updated no less than annually.
Cited 14 times | Published | Supreme Court of Florida
...relator sought to compel the respondent, City of Pensacola, and certain of its officers to pay to the comptroller a gross receipts tax on the sale of natural gas by the City of Pensacola during 1955. The tax sought to be collected is that imposed by Section 203.01, Florida Statutes F.S.A....
...However, I am moved to say that the policy of exempting cities from paying the tax involved is not a wise one and is certain to result in further use of the exemption by other cities and on other utilities to the serious detriment of the state's revenue. HOBSON and THORNAL, JJ., concur. NOTES [1] "203.01....
... Case: 14-14524 Date Filed: 08/26/2015 Page: 4 of 64
Florida also imposes a tax “on gross receipts from utility services that are
delivered to a retail consumer” in Florida (“the Utility Tax”). See Fla. Stat. §
203.01(1)(a)(1) (2012). 3 The statute permits a utility provider, at its discretion, to
separately state this Utility Tax as a line item on the customer’s bill but does not
require it to do so. See id. § 203.01(4)....
...every person for the privilege of conducting a utility or communications services
business, and each provider of the taxable services remains fully and completely
liable for the tax, even if the tax is separately stated as a line item or component of
the total bill.” Id. § 203.01(5).
Similarly, Florida’s administrative regulations specify that even when stated
on the consumer’s bill, the “tax is imposed on the privilege of doing business, and
it is an item of cost to the distribution company,” who...
...uncollected billings when it prepays the tax to the state based on gross billings, as
opposed to actual gross receipts. Fla. Admin. Code R. 12B-6.005(1)(e). A service
provider who fails to remit the tax to the state is also guilty of a misdemeanor. Fla.
Stat. § 203.01(6).
Florida assessed the Rental Tax against the Ark Entities for the period of
July 2005 through June 2008....
...015 Page: 50 of 64
2. The Legal Incidence of Florida’s Utility Tax Falls on the Utility Company
Florida imposes a tax on the “gross receipts from utility services that are
delivered to a retail consumer” in Florida. See Fla. Stat. § 203.01(1)(a)(1) (2012).
In evaluating where the legal incidence of this tax falls, we consider the framework
and language of the statute.
The statute, which is contained in Chapter 203 of the Florida Statutes—a
chapter devoted exclusiv...
...the privilege of conducting a utility or communications services business, and each
provider of the taxable services remains fully and completely liable for the tax,
even if the tax is separately stated as a line item or component of the total bill.” Id.
§ 203.01(5) (emphasis added)....
...50
Case: 14-14524 Date Filed: 08/26/2015 Page: 51 of 64
In determining that the legal incidence of Florida’s Utility Tax fell on the
consumer Tribe, the district court relied on § 203.01(4), Fla. Stat., to conclude that
“[e]very consumer is required to ‘remit the tax’ to the utility company as part of
the total bill.” Seminole Tribe, 49 F. Supp. 3d at 1104. On appeal, the Tribe
similarly invokes § 203.01(4) in an effort to show that the legislature intended to
require the Utility Tax to be passed through to the consumer. But this provision of
the statute applies only when the utility service provider has elected to itemize the
tax separately on its bills—a choice completely left to the discretion of the service
provider. See Fla. Stat. § 203.01(4) (“The tax imposed pursuant to this chapter
relating to the provision of any utility services at the option of the person
supplying the taxable services may be separately stated ....
...us19
here than in Chickasaw Nation.
The district court also put significant weight on a provision of the statute
concerning an exemption regarding certain natural-gas customers. Seminole Tribe,
49 F. Supp. 3d at 1104-05 (citing Fla. Stat. § 203.01(3)(d)). That provision states
that the Utility Tax does not apply to natural-gas sales to a limited class of
industrial customers that use the gas as an energy source or a raw material. Fla.
Stat. § 203.01(3)(d) (cross-referencing Fla....
...Compare Fla. Stat. § 212.05 (“It is
hereby declared to be the legislative intent that every person is exercising a taxable
privilege who engages in the business of selling tangible personal property at retail
in this state . . . .”) with Fla. Stat. § 203.01(5) (2012) (“The tax is imposed upon
every person for the privilege of conducting a utility or communications services
business ....
...See
Chickasaw Nation, 515 U.S. at 460, 115 S. Ct. at 2221.
Finally, we observe that Florida also levies a sales tax on electricity, the
legal incidence of which falls on the purchaser of electricity. Fla. Stat. §
212.05(1)(e)(1)(c); see Fla. Stat. § 203.01(1)(a)(3); id....
...not apply its tax
60
Case: 14-14524 Date Filed: 08/26/2015 Page: 61 of 64
to sales of natural gas or electricity from one utility service provider to another.
See Fla. Stat. § 203.01(3)(a)(1), (2); Fla....
Cited 3 times | Published | Florida 3rd District Court of Appeal | 11 Fla. L. Weekly 600
...The current version of the public service tax statute, § 166.231, Fla. Stat. (1985), does not include "telephone service" in the list of taxable services. The present statute, § 166.231(9), Fla. Stat. (1985), authorizes a municipality to levy a tax on the purchase of "telecommunication services" as defined in section 203.012, Florida Statutes (1985). Section 203.012 is the definitional section of chapter 203, Florida Statutes (1985), which imposes a state gross receipts tax on utility services. The definition of "gross receipts from telecommunication services" in section 203.012 expressly excludes charges for CPE leased or rented by a customer from any source. § 203.012(2)(b)1, Fla. Stat. (1985). The current version of section 203.01 is the result of an amendment by chapter 84-342, section 1, Laws of Florida, in which the legislature imposed the gross receipts tax on "telecommunication services" rather than on the "use of telephones," a change similar to the amendm...
...The preamble to chapter 84-342 announces the expansion and clarification of the legislative intent of chapter 203, in response to the divestiture of AT & T. [2] See State v. Lanier, 464 So.2d 1192 (Fla. 1985). The interrelationship of chapter 203 and section 166.231 is evident from the legislature's reference to section 203.012 as the definitional section of the operative terms used in section 166.231, Florida Statutes (1985)....
...e Comptroller’s duty to collect, control and disburse the same. For this reason the order appealed from is reversed and the cause remanded for further proceedings. Reversed and remanded. STURGIS, C. J., and THORNAL, Associate Judge, concur. . E.S. § 203.01, F.S.A., “Every person, including municipal corporations, receiving payment for electricity for light, heat or power, for natural or manufactured gas for light, heat or power, for use of telephones, and for the sending of telegrams and te...
Cited 2 times | Published | Florida 2nd District Court of Appeal | 1999 WL 140176
...ice during the period 10/1/91 through 9/30/94. We affirm. Florida imposes a gross receipts tax on every person that receives payment for any utility service, which includes telecommunication services. GTE is a provider of telecommunication services. Section 203.01, Florida Statutes (1991), states in pertinent part: (1)(a) Every person that receives payment for any utility service shall report by the last day of each month to the Department of Revenue ......
...* * * * * (6) The tax is imposed upon every person for the privilege of conducting a utility business, and each provider of the taxable services remains fully and completely liable for the tax, even if the tax is separately stated as a line item or component of the total bill. "Utility service" is defined in section 203.012(9), Florida Statutes (1991), to mean "electricity for light, heat, or power ......
...tutory definition of "telecommunication service" that services incidental to cellular service, such as detailed billing, should not be considered telecommunication services. The definition of "telecommunication service" is contained in section *1127 203.012(5), Florida Statutes (1991), and provides in pertinent part: The term `telecommunication service' means: (a) Local telephone service, toll telephone service, telegram or telegraph service, teletypewriter or computer exchange service, or priva...
...This case involves only the gross receipts taxes paid by GTE on the separately stated charges for the optional detailed billing. It does not involve taxes on charges for any actual "cellular telecommunication service" provided GTE customers as that term is defined in section 203.012(5)(b)....
...ctly construed and that any ambiguities or doubts must be resolved in favor of the taxpayer. See Mikos v. Ringling Bros. Barnum & Bailey Combined Shows, Inc., 475 So.2d 292 (Fla. 2d DCA 1985). Appellant argues that in determining legislative intent, section 203.012(5) should be read in pari materia with section 203.012(2)(a), in which the legislature broadly defined what constitutes gross receipts from telecommunication services: (2)(a) Gross receipts from telecommunication services include the gross receipts for all telecommunication services of wh...
...uncement service charges; dial-it charges; local area data transport charges; key lines charges; private branch exchange trunk-flat rate charges; and directory listing charges other than yellowpage classified listing charges. We cannot conclude that section 203.012(2)(a) conflicts with the subsequent section 203.012(5), which specifically excludes incidental telecommunication services from the gross receipts tax....
THORNAL, Justice. Appellant Green, who was defendant below, seeks reversal of a declaratory decree enjoining him as State Comptroller from collecting a portion of the gross receipts tax described in Section 203.01, Florida Statutes, F.S.A....
...which Western Union’s Florida rates are fixed by the Florida Railroad and Public Utilities Commission. Insisting that the transaction is entirely intrastate the appellant Comptroller *715 has demanded payment of the gross receipts tax described in Section 203.01, supra, calculated on the entire gross receipts of Western Union derived from messages transmitted between Florida points but in the manner described above....
...Appellee Western Union contends that its operation is interstate and that its advocated method of apportionment of the tax on the line mileage basis is the only one which will enable the Comptroller to collect the tax in a manner comporting with the requirements of the Federal Constitution. The statute involved is Section 203.01, Florida Statutes, F.S.A., which in material parts reads as follows: “203.01....
...ption. To ignore these regulations would be contrary to well-established precedent. 3. Florida’s Utility Tax Florida’s Utility Tax is “imposed on gross receipts from utility services that are *1103 delivered to a retail consumer.” Fla. Stat. § 203.01 (l)(a)(l) (2012)....
...Both the language and structure of Florida’s Utility Tax reveal that its legal incidence falls upon the consumer, not the utility company. Florida’s Utility Tax is “imposed on gross receipts from utility services that are delivered to a retail consumer.” Fla. Stat. § 203.01 (l)(a)(l) (2012). Every consumer is required to “remit the tax” to the utility company as a part of the total bill. Fla. Stat. § 203.01 (4)....
...Although a utility company may separately itemize the tax on a consumer’s bill, the consumer is still required to “remit the tax” to the utility company and the utility company is still responsible for collecting the tax and paying the State. See Fla. Stat. § 203.01 (4) & (5)....
...The Utility Tax has several provisions relating to exemptions based on the identity of the consumer. For example, certain consumers who are engaged in industrial operations are exempt from paying the Utility Tax when purchasing natural gas. See Fla. Stat. § 203.01 (3)(d)....
...the military purchasers.”). Stranburg argues that the legal incidence of the Utility Tax falls upon the utility company because the statute states that the “tax is imposed ... for the privilege of conducting a utility ... business.” Fla. Stat. § 203.01 (4)....
...The retailor “must add the amount of the tax to the sale price and separately state the amount, which then becomes part of the price of the sale.” Id. Under the Florida Utility Tax, the tax is automatically included in, and becomes part of, the utility bill, though it may be separately stated. See Fla. Stat. § 203.01 (4)....
...ayment since the utility company is not liable to pay the tax to' the State until it collects it from the consumer—is flawed. The tax is a debt of the consumer, owed to the utility company (to be forwarded to the State upon collection). Fla. Stat. § 203.01 (4)....
...the imposition of local CSTs for cable companies. § 202.19, Fla. Stat. (2005).
Counties and municipalities may tax cable companies up to 5.1 percent. §
2
Cable and satellite services are also subject to a Gross Receipts Tax, which is
equal for both types of services. § 203.01(2)(b), Fla....
Published | Supreme Court of Florida | 1986 Fla. LEXIS 2413, 11 Fla. L. Weekly 322
...For the reasons expressed, we reverse the order of the Commission and remand for further proceedings. It is so ordered. MCDONALD, C.J., and EHRLICH and SHAW, JJ., concur. ADKINS, BOYD and BARKETT, JJ., dissent. The change was accomplished by repeal of the credit provision contained in section 203.011, Florida Statutes (Supp.1984) (see § 3, ch. 84-342, Laws of Fla.), and the simultaneous amendment of the definition of gross receipts to exclude revenues from resold services from the local companies’ gross receipts (see § 4, ch. 84-342, Laws of Fla., codified as § 203.01(3)(c)).
SMITH, Acting Chief Judge. Merritt Square appeals from a circuit court judgment holding it liable to pay the tax imposed by Section 203.01, Florida Statutes (1975), on receipts collected from its shopping center tenants for electricity produced by Merritt Square and sold to its tenants....
...shall report semiannually to the Department of Revenue . . . the total amount of gross receipts derived from business done within this state . . . and, at the same time, shall pay into the state treasury the sum of $1.50 upon each $100 of such gross receipts. *144 The catchline of Section 203.01 is misleadingly labeled “Public service corporations, tax upon gross receipts.” Merritt Square is not a “public service corporation” but is rather a private utility....
Published | Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
... Case: 14-14524 Date Filed: 08/26/2015 Page: 4 of 64
Florida also imposes a tax “on gross receipts from utility services that are
delivered to a retail consumer” in Florida (“the Utility Tax”). See Fla. Stat. §
203.01(1)(a)(1) (2012). 3 The statute permits a utility provider, at its discretion, to
separately state this Utility Tax as a line item on the customer’s bill but does not
require it to do so. See id. § 203.01(4)....
...every person for the privilege of conducting a utility or communications services
business, and each provider of the taxable services remains fully and completely
liable for the tax, even if the tax is separately stated as a line item or component of
the total bill.” Id. § 203.01(5).
Similarly, Florida’s administrative regulations specify that even when stated
on the consumer’s bill, the “tax is imposed on the privilege of doing business, and
it is an item of cost to the distribution company,” who...
...uncollected billings when it prepays the tax to the state based on gross billings, as
opposed to actual gross receipts. Fla. Admin. Code R. 12B-6.005(1)(e). A service
provider who fails to remit the tax to the state is also guilty of a misdemeanor. Fla.
Stat. § 203.01(6).
Florida assessed the Rental Tax against the Ark Entities for the period of
July 2005 through June 2008....
...015 Page: 50 of 64
2. The Legal Incidence of Florida’s Utility Tax Falls on the Utility Company
Florida imposes a tax on the “gross receipts from utility services that are
delivered to a retail consumer” in Florida. See Fla. Stat. § 203.01(1)(a)(1) (2012).
In evaluating where the legal incidence of this tax falls, we consider the framework
and language of the statute.
The statute, which is contained in Chapter 203 of the Florida Statutes—a
chapter devoted exclusiv...
...the privilege of conducting a utility or communications services business, and each
provider of the taxable services remains fully and completely liable for the tax,
even if the tax is separately stated as a line item or component of the total bill.” Id.
§ 203.01(5) (emphasis added)....
...50
Case: 14-14524 Date Filed: 08/26/2015 Page: 51 of 64
In determining that the legal incidence of Florida’s Utility Tax fell on the
consumer Tribe, the district court relied on § 203.01(4), Fla. Stat., to conclude that
“[e]very consumer is required to ‘remit the tax’ to the utility company as part of
the total bill.” Seminole Tribe, 49 F. Supp. 3d at 1104. On appeal, the Tribe
similarly invokes § 203.01(4) in an effort to show that the legislature intended to
require the Utility Tax to be passed through to the consumer. But this provision of
the statute applies only when the utility service provider has elected to itemize the
tax separately on its bills—a choice completely left to the discretion of the service
provider. See Fla. Stat. § 203.01(4) (“The tax imposed pursuant to this chapter
relating to the provision of any utility services at the option of the person
supplying the taxable services may be separately stated ....
...us19
here than in Chickasaw Nation.
The district court also put significant weight on a provision of the statute
concerning an exemption regarding certain natural-gas customers. Seminole Tribe,
49 F. Supp. 3d at 1104-05 (citing Fla. Stat. § 203.01(3)(d)). That provision states
that the Utility Tax does not apply to natural-gas sales to a limited class of
industrial customers that use the gas as an energy source or a raw material. Fla.
Stat. § 203.01(3)(d) (cross-referencing Fla....
...Compare Fla. Stat. § 212.05 (“It is
hereby declared to be the legislative intent that every person is exercising a taxable
privilege who engages in the business of selling tangible personal property at retail
in this state . . . .”) with Fla. Stat. § 203.01(5) (2012) (“The tax is imposed upon
every person for the privilege of conducting a utility or communications services
business ....
...See
Chickasaw Nation, 515 U.S. at 460, 115 S. Ct. at 2221.
Finally, we observe that Florida also levies a sales tax on electricity, the
legal incidence of which falls on the purchaser of electricity. Fla. Stat. §
212.05(1)(e)(1)(c); see Fla. Stat. § 203.01(1)(a)(3); id....
...not apply its tax
60
Case: 14-14524 Date Filed: 08/26/2015 Page: 61 of 64
to sales of natural gas or electricity from one utility service provider to another.
See Fla. Stat. § 203.01(3)(a)(1), (2); Fla....
This Florida statute resource is curated by Graham W. Syfert, Esq., a Jacksonville, Florida personal injury and workers' compensation attorney. For legal consultation, call 904-383-7448.
