TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A Florida bill filed on Thursday could introduce a new tax holiday to the state — one that could help residents bolster their homes against powerful storms.
The bill — HB 853 — was filed by state Rep. Chip LaMarca (R-100), and it would make changes to state statutes regarding sales taxes in the Sunshine State.
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According to the legislation, HB 853 would establish a sales tax exemption each February for the following qualifying items:
- Impact-resistant doors — Exterior door systems designed to resist wind and blown debris
- Impact-resistant garage doors — Garage doors designed to resist wind and blown debris
- Impact-resistant windows — Windows that are laminated or treated with a polycarbonate glazing system designed to resist wind and blown debris
This legislation also refers to another bill filed by LaMarca on Thursday — HB 851 — that aims to create a “My Safe Florida Home Trust Fund.”
Under that bill, the trust fund would collect money that would go toward the My Safe Florida Home Program, which provides grants and inspections to help homeowners ward against hurricanes.
The trust would be funded using a portion of sales taxes collected from areas of the state impacted by hurricanes, with a maximum balance of $300 million.
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As a result, HB 853 includes provisions allowing for the Department of Revenue to disperse these funds as necessary during emergencies, provided that HB 851 becomes law during the upcoming Legislative session.
If approved, HB 851 would take effect on July 1. Meanwhile, HB 853 would take effect upon being signed into law.
This isn’t the only sales tax holiday proposal to come about ahead of the Legislative session, though. Earlier this month, Gov. Ron DeSantis suggested his own idea in his budget recommendations. Those suggestions are as follows:
- The return of a back-to-school sales tax holiday on school supplies and clothes in August
- The return of a hurricane preparedness sales tax holiday on disaster supplies at the start and peak of hurricane season
- The return of a sales tax holiday for recreational purchases in July
- A new “Second Amendment Summer” sales tax holiday for ammunition and firearms between Memorial Day and the Fourth of July
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