Bill Text: FL S0842 | 2016 | Regular Session | Comm Sub

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Bill Title: Property Prepared for a Tax-exempt Use

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Failed) 2016-03-11 - Died in Appropriations [S0842 Detail]

Download: Florida-2016-S0842-Comm_Sub.html

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       Florida Senate - 2016                              CS for SB 842
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Finance and Tax; and Senator Hays
       
       593-02545-16                                           2016842c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to property prepared for a tax-exempt
    3         use; creating s. 196.1955, F.S.; consolidating and
    4         revising provisions relating to obtaining an ad
    5         valorem exemption for property owned by an exempt
    6         organization, including the requirement that the owner
    7         of an exempt organization take affirmative steps to
    8         demonstrate an exempt use; requiring the property
    9         appraiser to serve a notice of tax lien on exempt
   10         property that is not in exempt use after a certain
   11         time; providing that the lien attaches to any property
   12         owned by the organization identified in the notice of
   13         lien; providing that the provisions authorizing the
   14         tax lien do not apply to a house of public worship;
   15         defining the term “public worship”; amending s.
   16         196.196, F.S.; deleting provisions relating to the
   17         exemption as it applies to public worship and
   18         affordable housing and provisions incorporated into s.
   19         196.1955, F.S.; amending s. 196.198, F.S.; deleting
   20         provisions relating to property owned by an
   21         educational institution and used for an educational
   22         purpose which are incorporated in s. 196.1955, F.S.;
   23         providing an effective date.
   24          
   25  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   26  
   27         Section 1. Section 196.1955, Florida Statutes, is created
   28  to read:
   29         196.1955 Preparing property for educational, literary,
   30  scientific, religious, or charitable use.—
   31         (1) Property owned by an exempt organization is used for an
   32  exempt purpose if the owner has taken affirmative steps to
   33  prepare the property for an exempt educational, literary,
   34  scientific, religious, or charitable use and no portion of the
   35  property is being used for a nonexempt purpose. The term
   36  “affirmative steps” means environmental or land use permitting
   37  activities, creation of architectural plans or schematic
   38  drawings, land clearing or site preparation, construction or
   39  renovation activities, or other activities that demonstrate a
   40  commitment to prepare the property for an exempt use.
   41         (2)(a) If property owned by an organization that has been
   42  granted an exemption under this section is sold, transferred, or
   43  used for a purpose other than an exempt use or is not in actual
   44  exempt use within 5 years after the date the organization is
   45  granted an exemption, the property appraiser making such
   46  determination shall serve upon the organization that received
   47  the exemption a notice of intent to record in the public records
   48  of the county a notice of tax lien against any property owned by
   49  that organization in that county, and such property must be
   50  identified in the notice of tax lien. The organization owning
   51  such property is subject to the taxes otherwise due as a result
   52  of the failure to use the property in an exempt manner, plus 15
   53  percent interest per annum.
   54         1. The lien, when filed, attaches to any property
   55  identified in the notice of tax lien which is owned by the
   56  organization that received the exemption. If the organization no
   57  longer owns property in the county but owns property in another
   58  county in the state, the property appraiser shall record in each
   59  such county a notice of tax lien identifying the property owned
   60  by the organization in each respective county, which shall
   61  become a lien against the identified property.
   62         2. Before a lien may be filed, the organization must be
   63  given 30 days to pay the taxes and interest.
   64         3. If an exemption is improperly granted as a result of a
   65  clerical mistake or an omission by the property appraiser, the
   66  organization improperly receiving the exemption may not be
   67  assessed interest.
   68         4. The 5-year limitation specified in this subsection shall
   69  be extended by the property appraiser on an annual basis if the
   70  organization continues to take affirmative steps to prepare the
   71  property for the purposes specified in this section.
   72         (b) This subsection does not apply to property being
   73  prepared for use as a house of public worship. The term “public
   74  worship” means religious worship services and those activities
   75  that are incidental to religious worship services, such as
   76  educational activities, parking, recreation, partaking of meals,
   77  and fellowship.
   78         Section 2. Subsections (3), (4), and (5) of section
   79  196.196, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
   80         196.196 Determining whether property is entitled to
   81  charitable, religious, scientific, or literary exemption.—
   82         (3) Property owned by an exempt organization is used for a
   83  religious purpose if the institution has taken affirmative steps
   84  to prepare the property for use as a house of public worship.
   85  The term “affirmative steps” means environmental or land use
   86  permitting activities, creation of architectural plans or
   87  schematic drawings, land clearing or site preparation,
   88  construction or renovation activities, or other similar
   89  activities that demonstrate a commitment of the property to a
   90  religious use as a house of public worship. For purposes of this
   91  subsection, the term “public worship” means religious worship
   92  services and those other activities that are incidental to
   93  religious worship services, such as educational activities,
   94  parking, recreation, partaking of meals, and fellowship.
   95         (3)(4) Except as otherwise provided in this section herein,
   96  property claimed as exempt for literary, scientific, religious,
   97  or charitable purposes which is used for profitmaking purposes
   98  is shall be subject to ad valorem taxation. Use of property for
   99  functions not requiring a business or occupational license
  100  conducted by the organization at its primary residence, the
  101  revenue of which is used wholly for exempt purposes, is shall
  102  not be considered profitmaking profit making. In this connection
  103  the playing of bingo on such property is shall not be considered
  104  a use of as using such property that in such a manner as would
  105  impair its exempt status.
  106         (5)(a) Property owned by an exempt organization qualified
  107  as charitable under s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code is
  108  used for a charitable purpose if the organization has taken
  109  affirmative steps to prepare the property to provide affordable
  110  housing to persons or families that meet the extremely-low
  111  income, very-low-income, low-income, or moderate-income limits,
  112  as specified in s. 420.0004. The term “affirmative steps” means
  113  environmental or land use permitting activities, creation of
  114  architectural plans or schematic drawings, land clearing or site
  115  preparation, construction or renovation activities, or other
  116  similar activities that demonstrate a commitment of the property
  117  to providing affordable housing.
  118         (b)1. If property owned by an organization granted an
  119  exemption under this subsection is transferred for a purpose
  120  other than directly providing affordable homeownership or rental
  121  housing to persons or families who meet the extremely-low
  122  income, very-low-income, low-income, or moderate-income limits,
  123  as specified in s. 420.0004, or is not in actual use to provide
  124  such affordable housing within 5 years after the date the
  125  organization is granted the exemption, the property appraiser
  126  making such determination shall serve upon the organization that
  127  illegally or improperly received the exemption a notice of
  128  intent to record in the public records of the county a notice of
  129  tax lien against any property owned by that organization in the
  130  county, and such property shall be identified in the notice of
  131  tax lien. The organization owning such property is subject to
  132  the taxes otherwise due and owing as a result of the failure to
  133  use the property to provide affordable housing plus 15 percent
  134  interest per annum and a penalty of 50 percent of the taxes
  135  owed.
  136         2. Such lien, when filed, attaches to any property
  137  identified in the notice of tax lien owned by the organization
  138  that illegally or improperly received the exemption. If such
  139  organization no longer owns property in the county but owns
  140  property in any other county in the state, the property
  141  appraiser shall record in each such other county a notice of tax
  142  lien identifying the property owned by such organization in such
  143  county which shall become a lien against the identified
  144  property. Before any such lien may be filed, the organization so
  145  notified must be given 30 days to pay the taxes, penalties, and
  146  interest.
  147         3. If an exemption is improperly granted as a result of a
  148  clerical mistake or an omission by the property appraiser, the
  149  organization improperly receiving the exemption shall not be
  150  assessed a penalty or interest.
  151         4. The 5-year limitation specified in this subsection may
  152  be extended if the holder of the exemption continues to take
  153  affirmative steps to develop the property for the purposes
  154  specified in this subsection.
  155         Section 3. Section 196.198, Florida Statutes, is amended to
  156  read:
  157         196.198 Educational property exemption.—
  158         (1) Educational institutions within this state and their
  159  property used by them or by any other exempt entity or
  160  educational institution exclusively for educational purposes are
  161  exempt from taxation.
  162         (a) Sheltered workshops providing rehabilitation and
  163  retraining of individuals who have disabilities and exempted by
  164  a certificate under s. (d) of the federal Fair Labor Standards
  165  Act of 1938, as amended, are declared wholly educational in
  166  purpose and are exempt from certification, accreditation, and
  167  membership requirements set forth in s. 196.012.
  168         (b) Those portions of property of college fraternities and
  169  sororities certified by the president of the college or
  170  university to the appropriate property appraiser as being
  171  essential to the educational process are exempt from ad valorem
  172  taxation.
  173         (c) The use of property by public fairs and expositions
  174  chartered by chapter 616 is presumed to be an educational use of
  175  such property and is exempt from ad valorem taxation to the
  176  extent of such use.
  177         (2) Property used exclusively for educational purposes
  178  shall be deemed owned by an educational institution if the
  179  entity owning 100 percent of the educational institution is
  180  owned by the identical persons who own the property, or if the
  181  entity owning 100 percent of the educational institution and the
  182  entity owning the property are owned by the identical natural
  183  persons.
  184         (a) Land, buildings, and other improvements to real
  185  property used exclusively for educational purposes shall be
  186  deemed owned by an educational institution if the entity owning
  187  100 percent of the land is a nonprofit entity and the land is
  188  used, under a ground lease or other contractual arrangement, by
  189  an educational institution that owns the buildings and other
  190  improvements to the real property, is a nonprofit entity under
  191  s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and provides
  192  education limited to students in prekindergarten through grade
  193  8.
  194         (b) If legal title to property is held by a governmental
  195  agency that leases the property to a lessee, the property shall
  196  be deemed to be owned by the governmental agency and used
  197  exclusively for educational purposes if the governmental agency
  198  continues to use such property exclusively for educational
  199  purposes pursuant to a sublease or other contractual agreement
  200  with that lessee.
  201         (c) If the title to land is held by the trustee of an
  202  irrevocable inter vivos trust and if the trust grantor owns 100
  203  percent of the entity that owns an educational institution that
  204  is using the land exclusively for educational purposes, the land
  205  is deemed to be property owned by the educational institution
  206  for purposes of this exemption. Property owned by an educational
  207  institution shall be deemed to be used for an educational
  208  purpose if the institution has taken affirmative steps to
  209  prepare the property for educational use. The term “affirmative
  210  steps” means environmental or land use permitting activities,
  211  creation of architectural plans or schematic drawings, land
  212  clearing or site preparation, construction or renovation
  213  activities, or other similar activities that demonstrate
  214  commitment of the property to an educational use.
  215         Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2016.