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

/ Categories: Research, Local Government

“If You Build It, He Will Come”: Florida TaxWatch Looks At The Tampa Bay Rays’ Ballpark Proposal

This report examines the key aspects of the deal and identifies critical questions that local officials should consider in determining whether the proposed ballpark is in the best interest of taxpayers.

Key Points:

- The City of St. Petersburg and Pinellas County are expected to pay about half of the estimated $1.3 billion cost, with the Rays covering the remainder. 
- Projected 30-year economic impacts include $11.9 billion in total output, up to 17,782 jobs, and $185 million in incremental county tax revenue.
- The report does not draw conclusions on whether the deal is good or bad, but rather outlines important questions officials must answer before making a decision.
- Considerations include the total public costs, the best use of public funds given other community needs, the fairness of the cost-sharing agreement, potential revenue sharing and clawback provisions, and more.
- Research shows that the economic benefits of publicly subsidized sports facilities are often overstated and insufficient to justify large subsidies.

To learn more about this critical issue and the key questions that need to be addressed, download the full report. The independent analysis provides valuable insights to inform the public dialogue as local leaders grapple with this significant decision affecting the Tampa Bay region.

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