Article Compliments of the Florida Chamber of Commerce

HB 15 just keeps getting better. Three weeks ago, House Speaker Chris Sprowls and Senate President Wilton Simpson announced a plan to tie Mainstreet Fairness and the unemployment compensation tax, using revenue from the collection of sales tax on internet purchases to replenish the unemployment compensation trust fund and avoid a $713 million tax increase. Shortly prior to the hearing of HB 15 in the House Commerce Committee, the Speaker and President announced a deal to also reduce the business rent tax from 5.5% to 2%, which was filed and passed as an amendment in Committee. Florida is the only state to levy a business rent tax and one of only two (Missouri) that has not passed legislation to level the playing field between brick and mortar, local businesses and their out-of-state online competitors. So not only does the bill level the playing field for main street businesses and avoid an inadvertent $713 million tax increase this year alone due to the pandemic, but the bill will now save businesses annually over $1 billion by allowing for the biggest business rent tax reduction since we’ve started advocating to eliminate this tax. The business rent tax reduction will not take effect until after the unemployment compensation trust fund reaches a balance of pre-pandemic levels of more than $4 billion, which will be in about 4 years. Ultimately, this is a win, win, win for the business community, or what we like to call the triple crown.