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

Download the Recommendations

Other Resources

Florida Disaster.biz
FEMA
Florida Department of Financial Services
Florida SBDC
Disaster Contractors Network
Florida Disaster Fund

Florida TaxWatch Statement on Hurricane Ian Recovery

Community Involvement

/ Categories: Releases

Florida TaxWatch Underscores Financial and Economic Benefits of Effective Access to Student Education (EASE) Grants

Tallahassee, Fla. – Today, Florida TaxWatch (FTW) released The Importance of Effective Access to Student Education (EASE) Grants. In the report, FTW underscores the financial and economic benefits of the EASE Grant Program, which was established by the Florida Legislature in 1979 to offset declining student enrollment at private colleges and universities.

Florida TaxWatch President and CEO Dominic M. Calabro said, “Education is key to maintaining Florida’s healthy, diverse, and steadily growing economy, and the fiscal impacts of the Effective Access to Student Education, or EASE, Grant Program, in particular, are well documented. In Fiscal Year 2019-2020 alone, the EASE Grant Program was responsible for generating more than $136 million in state tax revenue and $146 million in local tax revenue, with each recipient representing an economic contribution to Florida’s economy of over $88,000. This means that every $1 the state invested in the program resulted in a return of $2.48 in tax revenues. This is a great and solid return on investment for Florida's hard-working taxpayers.

“Florida TaxWatch believes that withholding or reducing EASE Grant funding based on private college or university performance significantly limits access to higher education, hurting the pocketbooks of everyday, hard-working taxpayers and ultimately compromising Florida’s economic success. Regular monitoring and performance-based incentives are appropriate, but we encourage the Florida Legislature not to take any action that will limit access to higher education during the upcoming legislative session, and instead, make wise and strategic investments in the EASE Grant Program.”

The EASE Grant Program modestly reduces the difference between public and private tuition to make private institutions more affordable to Florida residents, while fueling enrollment growth and increasing retention and degree completions in the state. FTW notes that this is critical to workforce development and ensuring Florida students are prepared to fill high-demand, high-wage jobs.

The maximum EASE Grant funding per student and the maximum number of students to be served annually are determined by the Florida Legislature. In the report, FTW states that the maximum per-student EASE Grant appropriation for fiscal year 2022-23 ($2,000) is the lowest since the start of the millennium, and the maximum number of students to receive EASE Grants for fiscal year 2022-23 (37,705) is the lowest since fiscal year 2013-14.

According to FTW, this is the result of attempts made during the 2022 Legislative Session to establish a tiered structure for EASE Grant award amounts commensurate with an institution’s performance against established benchmarks, with those on the lowest tier receiving $0 (zero dollars) in tuition assistance. Though that specific legislation did not pass, the General Appropriations Act included a $39.45 million (34 percent) reduction in program funding and 2,725 fewer EASE Grant recipients when compared to fiscal year 2021-22.

FTW warns against similar legislation being filed during the 2023 Legislative Session, citing a failed performance-based funding model presented by the State University System (SUS) in the 2014-2015 academic year, which included penalties for the lowest performing universities. However, valuing transparency and accountability, the government watchdog supports the establishment of a performance-based incentive funding program for private colleges and universities that receive EASE Grant funding, just without denying needed tuition assistance for eligible students.

To learn more and access the full report, please click here. 

 

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