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The Florida Legislature approved on Friday a comprehensive tax package that establishes tax exemptions for the purchase of firearms and ammunition, tickets to professional tennis tournaments, and items for hunting, fishing, and camping, among other measures, with an estimated impact of $272.2 million in reduced state and local revenue.
The HB 7031E bill received 88 votes in favor and 11 against in the House, and 29 in favor and six against in the Senate, before being sent to Governor Ron DeSantis for his signature.
"This is a comprehensive tax relief package that positively impacts taxpayers, homeowners with a principal residence exemption, positively impacts military service members, small counties, and rural counties," said Bryan Avila, chairman of the Senate Finance and Tax Committee and Republican from Miami Springs, as quoted by Telemundo 51.
One of the most notable provisions is the sales tax "holiday" for hunting, fishing, and camping items, scheduled from September 1 to December 31.
During that period, pistols, rifles, ammunition, silencers, sights, magazines, holsters, slings, stocks, cleaning kits, and triggers, among other firearm accessories, will be exempt from taxes.
It also includes tents costing less than $200, sleeping bags and stoves under $50, flashlights for under $30, fishing rods and reels for less than $75, tackle boxes under $30, and bait costing $10 or less.
It is estimated that this holiday will save consumers $32.2 million.
Another measure eliminates the sales tax on tickets for the ATP Masters 1000 and WTA 1000 tournaments until July 1, 2029, both held at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, with an estimated impact of $25.8 million in revenue reduction.
The package also moves the back-to-school tax holiday to the period from July 20 to August 20, includes a three-year exemption for impact-resistant windows and doors—with an impact of $45.3 million—and expands the tax credit for businesses that donate to charities supporting vulnerable children and families, from $40 million to $53.1 million.
Additionally, the taxes on pari-mutuel operators are reduced in counties with two casinos of the Seminole Tribe: the tax on slot machine revenue decreases from 35% to 34%, and the tax on card rooms falls from 8% to 5%.
The approval generated a strong debate between Republicans and Democrats, who criticized that the package overlooked the high price of gasoline, which exceeded $4.23 per gallon in Florida according to the AAA organization, while the state fuel tax is around 40 cents per gallon.
Democratic Senator Tina Polsky asked rhetorically during the debate, "When you ask your constituents if they prefer a cut in gasoline or a cut in guns, what do you think they will choose?"
Representative Angie Nixon, a Democrat from Jacksonville, was more straightforward: "We are providing a significant amount of tax relief to people who go out and buy tennis tickets, to people who go out and buy firearms. For the average working person living here in our state, there is absolutely no relief whatsoever."
Independent Senator Jason Pizzo also voted against it and questioned the benefits for wealthy donors: "Why are we giving millionaires individual tax cuts in the best of times? What are we doing? We should be ashamed."
The Democratic representative from Orlando, Anna Eskamani, concluded with a warning: "Hopefully, future legislators will listen to the voters. They are asking us to focus on affordability, not on giving tax breaks to large corporations."
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