Starting May 31, Gainesville will see nine days of no sales tax intended to help residents stock up on supplies for the hurricane season.
Approved by Gov. Rick Scott on May 12, Florida House Bill 5601 was signed to start the tax holiday a day before the 2014 Atlantic hurricane season that begins on June 1 and ends on Nov. 30.
By signing the packet, Scott declared that sales tax cannot be collected from May 31 to June 8 in Florida on certain items to aid in hurricane emergencies. The bill specifies flashlights that sell for $20 or less, tarps for $50 or less, first-aid kits for $30 or less, fuel containers for $25 or less, small household batteries for $30 or less and a portable generator for $750 or less. The bill excludes automotive and boat batteries.
The list of tax-exempt items does not include some items referenced by the National Weather Service on the government’s readiness website: Suggested supplies such as toilet paper, garbage bags, water, manually powered tools and local maps are missing from the list of objects.
Additional items like plasticware and feminine supplies are not covered by the new bill.
Even though portable fuel-powered generators will see a sales tax exemption, fuel will not. Historically, fuel prices rise during large natural occurrences, such as tornadoes or hurricanes.
Hurricane-preparedness tax relief is one part of a three-part series of sales tax holidays established by Scott. As a part of the “It’s Your Money Tax Cut Budget,” more than $121 million in taxes from the $500-million planned tax and fee cuts are going back to Florida taxpayers, according to the Florida government’s website.
Tax breaks on school supplies and energy-efficient appliances are included in the bill as well.
John Fleming, the communications director for the Florida Retail Federation, said he is excited about the new sales tax holiday.
“Florida has done this before,” Fleming said. “It is a good way to allow people to stock up.”
The bill helps people become aware of what they need, he said. And retailers benefit from these tax holidays, too.
“The state had a lot more tax revenue coming in,” Fleming said. “It’s a great thing for consumers in Florida.”
HB 5601 creates sales tax exemptions on child car seats, bicycle helmets, college meal plans, therapeutic pet foods and cement mixers. It also reduces the tax on electricity.
This is the largest broad-based tax cut that has been implemented in a decade, according to the website.
Steven Milian, an assistant supervisor at Zell’s Hardware, located on 3727 W. University Ave., was unaware of the new bill’s passing, but knows customers will take advantage of it.
“I can only see an advantage to get the supplies that they need,” he said.
Milian said he knows that items listed on the bill will go up in sales at Zell’s, and he expects more customers to take advantage of the tax holiday at the store.
“We don’t have any plans for advertisement,” Milian said. “However, we will be mentioning it to customers.”
[A version of this story ran on page 1 - 4 on 5/20/2014 under the headline "Sales tax holiday prepares Floridians for hurricane season"]
