9 Actions Florida Should Take to Help Taxpayers Impacted by Hurricane Ian

1.     Postpone tax notices and waive penalties or interest for late tax filings in affected areas

2.     Extend the date for residents to take advantage of the tax discounts they would normally receive for paying property taxes and special assessments in November and postpone or defer the deadline for property tax installment payments

3.     Protect individual and business taxpayers from the risks for notices that they will likely not receive because their home or business addresses is not accessible anymore

4.     Issue no new audits in severely impacted areas, extend the statute of limitations and postpone existing audits that haven’t reached the assessment stage because these can’t be responded to while entire communities are still recovering

5.     Create procedures for fairly estimating taxes which can’t be calculated because records have been destroyed by the storm, moving away from the current method which significantly overestimates activity if no records are available

6.     Initiate procedures to offer payment plan assistance for late taxes, rather than resorting to the standard collection methods, like liens, levies, or bank freezes

7.     Retroactively apply the recently passed law that provides property tax refunds for residential property rendered uninhabitable as a result of a catastrophic event

8.     Provide tangible personal property relief and allow n on-residential properties rendered uninhabitable to receive property tax refunds

9.     Get Congress to pass a Disaster Tax Relief Act that includes provisions from past packages, including elements such as an Employee Retention Credit, an enhanced casualty loss deduction, and other relief provisions

Other Resources

Florida TaxWatch Statement on Hurricane Ian Recovery

Community Involvement

2015 Economic Preview

As we begin 2015, Floridians have plenty of reasons to be optimistic about the economy. After a year of solid job growth, declining unemployment, and high consumer confidence, the Florida economy is expected to continue to strengthen in 2015.

Florida’s real gross state product is projected by the University of Central Florida (UCF) to grow 2.7 percent, with IHS Global Insight estimating 3.7 percent growth, and J.P. Morgan Chase projecting an even higher 4.2 percent. All three reports expect Florida to grow faster than the nation.

UCF has also projected real personal income to grow by 3.4 percent in 2015, and the latest available Florida Leading Index, produced by the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, proposes an expansion of the state’s economy through April 2015. The latest Revenue Estimating Conference revisions and record-low gas prices also suggest that Floridians will begin 2015 with more disposable income, likely resulting in an increase in consumer spending, which in turn increases tax revenues.

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