CopyCited 3 times | Published | District Court, S.D. Florida | 2003 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 10250, 2003 WL 1743738
...The County has the discretion to use such funds as it sees fit for the construction and maintenance of roads throughout the County. Id The County also receives revenue from the State's "county fuel tax" paid by all County residents. [17] Fla. Stat. ง 206.41(b)....
...It may be used for any transportation related purpose within the County. Fla. Stat. ง
206.60. The County also receives a portion of the State's "municipal fuel tax" as a result of its status as the municipal government of the unincorporated area. Fla. Stat. ง
206.41(c)....
...Finally, the County receives the proceeds of the State's "local option fuel tax," paid by all County residents, that it shares with eligible cities to be used for a variety of transportation *1283 purposes pursuant to Fla. Stat. ง
336.025(7). Fla. Stat. ง
206.41(e)....
...If North Dade is incorporated, the new city will include over 100,000 residents, making it the third largest city in the County, after Miami and Hialeah. Several other incorporations are actively being considered, including East Kendall, West Kendall, the Redlands, Northwest Dade and North Central Dade. [17] Section 206.41, entitled, "State taxes imposed on motor fuel" reads in pertinent part as follows: (1) The following taxes are imposed on motor fuel under the circumstances described in subsection (6): (a) An excise or license tax of 2 cents per net gallon, which is the tax as levied by s....
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CopyCited 1 times | Published | Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit | 2014 WL 1760855, 2014 U.S. App. LEXIS 8400
...facilities, roads, bridges, and paths. See, e.g., Fla. Const. Art. 12, § 9(c)(5); Fla.
Stat. §§
206.60(1)(b)(1),
206.605(1), (2). For administrative convenience, the State
precollects the tax from suppliers of fuel before the suppliers sell the fuel to
consumers. See Fla. Stat. §
206.41(4)(a), (6)....
...s fuel at a retail gas
station. Even though the Department precollects the tax from a supplier before the
fuel is sold to the ultimate consumer, Florida law provides that the “legal incidence
of the tax” is “on the ultimate consumer.” Id. § 206.41(4)(a).
Florida law exempts some consumers, but not the Tribe, from the fuel tax. If
a consumer is exempt from the tax, then the consumer may obtain a refund from
the Department for the amount of fuel taxes the consumer has paid. Id.
§ 206.41(4), (5)....
...3
Case: 13-10566 Date Filed: 05/05/2014 Page: 4 of 34
municipality for fuel used in a municipal vehicle, and the municipality uses that
refund for the construction and maintenance of roadways within its borders. Id.
§ 206.41(4)(d). Likewise, any consumer who uses fuel for agricultural,
aquacultural, commercial fishing, or commercial aviation purposes is exempt from
the tax and eligible for a refund from the Department. Id. § 206.41(4)(c).
Florida law does not exempt the Tribe from the fuel tax, and the Department
has refused to refund taxes the Tribe paid when it purchased fuel at gas stations
located off tribal lands....
...at 1639 (“Ex parte Young cannot be used
to obtain an injunction requiring the payment of funds from the State’s treasury.”).
A declaratory ruling that the Tribe is exempt from the tax would amount to a
judgment that the Tribe is entitled to a refund under Florida law. See Fla. Stat.
§ 206.41(4), (5). The tax is precollected from suppliers of fuel, so every consumer
must pay the tax at the pump, and any exempt consumer may then collect a refund
after-the-fact. Id. § 206.41(5)....
...at already have been assessed, is
prospective, and therefore available under the Ex parte Young doctrine.”). The
only distinction here is that Florida precollects its fuel tax from suppliers for mere
“administrative convenience,” Fla. Stat. § 206.41(4)(a), but that is a distinction
without a difference, and the majority’s opinion therefore creates a circuit split.
25
Case: 13-10566 Date Filed: 05/05/2014 Page: 26 of 34...
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CopyCited 1 times | Published | Florida 2nd District Court of Appeal | 2011 Fla. App. LEXIS 8464, 2011 WL 2278975
...for the circuit court to enter summary judgment in favor of the Department. On July 12, 2007, the School Board filed a request for a refund of motor fuel taxes paid during the two quarters ending in December 31, 2006, and March 31, 2007, pursuant to section 206.41, Florida Statutes (2006). In a final agency decision, the Department denied the School Board's request for a refund of motor fuel taxes paid during those two quarters. The Department denied the refund because the requests were time-barred under subsection 206.41(5)(c)(1)....
...sues of any material facts and they were entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law. The circuit court granted the School Board's motion, denied the Department's motion, and entered a final judgment in favor of the School Board, finding that subsection 206.41(5)(c)(1) did not apply to the School Board. The Department *688 then brought this appeal, arguing that by its plain meaning subsection (5)(c)(1) applies to the School Board. Subsection 206.41(4) provides for refunds on motor fuel taxes....
...ict." Finally, subsection (4)(e)(1) notes that "[a] school district . . . shall be entitled to take a credit on the monthly diesel fuel tax return not to exceed the tax imposed . . . on those gallons which would otherwise be eligible for refund." Subsection 206.41(5) provides the mechanism by which these refunds may be claimed: (5)(a)1....
...No refund will be authorized unless the amount due is for $5 or more for any refund period and unless application is made upon forms prescribed by the department. It is undisputed that the School Board's refund requests for the quarters ending in December 31, 2006, and March 31, 2007, were untimely filed under subsection 206.41(5)(c)(1)....
...7, respectively. But the School Board filed its requests on July 12, 2007. The requests did not include any excuse for late filing, and they would have been untimely even if the School Board had been granted a one-month extension as allowed under subsection 206.41(5)(c)(1). The circuit court nonetheless granted the School Board's motion for summary judgment, finding that subsection 206.41(5)(c)(1) did not apply to the School Board....
...Second, the court found that failing to return the funds to the School Board would constitute forfeiture. We review the circuit court's decision de novo. See Armiger v. Associated Outdoor Clubs, Inc.,
48 So.3d 864, 869 (Fla. 2d DCA 2010). For the reasons set forth below, we hold that the plain language of subsection
206.41(5)(c)(1) applies to the School Board and, accordingly, the School Board is not entitled to a refund of the motor fuel taxes it paid during the two quarters in question. Instead, the Department is entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law. See id. *689 The phrases "shall be returned" and "is entitled to a refund" are used interchangeably throughout section
206.41. Even subsection (4)(e)(1) that the circuit court relies on uses the word "return" as well as "refund" to reference a school district's entitlement to funds. Section
206.41 does not provide any alternative mechanism to request the "return" of funds as opposed to a "refund." There is simply no substantive difference between the terms used....
...A "basic rule of statutory construction requires a court to avoid a literal interpretation that would result in an absurd or ridiculous conclusion." M.D. v. State,
993 So.2d 1061, 1063 (Fla. 1st DCA 2008). Here, the circuit court's interpretation of subsections
206.41(4)-(5) would allow for an automatic return of the funds to the School Board at any time whatsoever....
...("[W]hen a statute is clear and unambiguous, courts will not look behind the statute's plain language for legislative intent, or resort to rules of statutory construction to ascertain intent insofar as this would constitute an abrogation of legislative power."). Moreover, section 206.41 does not provide any alternative mechanism to request the "return" of funds as opposed to a "refund." Subsection (5)(c)(1) delineates the sole method of requesting the funds....
...d or return of the motor fuel taxes it paid during the two quarters in question. And finally, we reject the argument that the School Board has forfeited the funds. The circuit court's reliance on criminal forfeiture cases has no application here. Subsection 206.41(2) provides that the revenues from motor fuel taxes "become state funds at the time of collection." Because the School Board's refund requests were untimely filed, we reverse the final judgment entered in favor of the School Board and...
CopyPublished | Florida 4th District Court of Appeal | 2011 Fla. App. LEXIS 9595, 2011 WL 2462710
...Count I sought ■ a refund of sales and excise taxes paid between January 1, 2004, and February 28, 2006, for fuel purchased off the reservations and tribal lands, but used for the performance of the Tribe’s functions as a sovereign government, pursuant to sections
206.41 and
212.08(6), Florida Statutes (2004). 1 The second count sought a declaration that the Tribe was exempt under sections
206.41(4)(d) and
212.08(6), Florida Statutes (2004)....
...The DOR filed an answer, affirmative defenses, and a motion to strike the jury trial demand. In its affirmative defenses, the DOR alleged: (1) the trial court lacked jurisdiction for declaratory relief because there was no bona fide claim; (2) the complaint failed to state a cause of action because section 206.41(4)(d) only applied to counties and municipalities; and (3) venue was improper because the DOR had not waived its home venue privilege....
...Based on our holding, the second issue concerning the Tribe’s supporting affidavit becomes moot. We therefore reverse and *1098 remand the case for entry of summary judgment for the Department of Revenue. Reversed and Remanded. WARNER and TAYLOR, JJ., concur. . Section 206.41 provides for the imposition of taxes on motor fuel and for refunds in certain instances....
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CopyPublished | District Court, S.D. Florida | 2013 WL 118065, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3381
...on tribal land, including police and fire protection, public schools, and road maintenance. Id. ¶ 9 . In performing such services, Plaintiff uses motor fuel which it purchases both on and off of tribal land. Id. ¶ 10 . Pursuant to Florida Statutes § 206.41, the State of Florida imposes a tax on motor and diesel fuel, which Plaintiff pays on its fuel purchases. Fla. Stat. § 206.41 ....
...Therefore, the applicability of the TIA in this case hinges on the locus of the fuel tax. Plaintiff contends that, since the taxable event is the use of the fuel, and Plaintiff uses the fuel on tribal lands, the tax is fundamentally a tax on its on-reservation activities. The Court disagrees. Florida Statutes § 206.41 imposes several taxes on the “use” of motor fuel....
0 red0 yellow1 green0 procedural
CopyPublished | Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
...facilities, roads, bridges, and paths. See, e.g., Fla. Const. Art. 12, § 9(c)(5); Fla.
Stat. §§
206.60(1)(b)(1),
206.605(1), (2). For administrative convenience, the State
precollects the tax from suppliers of fuel before the suppliers sell the fuel to
consumers. See Fla. Stat. §
206.41(4)(a), (6)....
...s fuel at a retail gas
station. Even though the Department precollects the tax from a supplier before the
fuel is sold to the ultimate consumer, Florida law provides that the “legal incidence
of the tax” is “on the ultimate consumer.” Id. § 206.41(4)(a).
Florida law exempts some consumers, but not the Tribe, from the fuel tax. If
a consumer is exempt from the tax, then the consumer may obtain a refund from
the Department for the amount of fuel taxes the consumer has paid. Id.
§ 206.41(4), (5)....
...3
Case: 13-10566 Date Filed: 05/05/2014 Page: 4 of 34
municipality for fuel used in a municipal vehicle, and the municipality uses that
refund for the construction and maintenance of roadways within its borders. Id.
§ 206.41(4)(d). Likewise, any consumer who uses fuel for agricultural,
aquacultural, commercial fishing, or commercial aviation purposes is exempt from
the tax and eligible for a refund from the Department. Id. § 206.41(4)(c).
Florida law does not exempt the Tribe from the fuel tax, and the Department
has refused to refund taxes the Tribe paid when it purchased fuel at gas stations
located off tribal lands....
...at 1639 (“Ex parte Young cannot be used
to obtain an injunction requiring the payment of funds from the State’s treasury.”).
A declaratory ruling that the Tribe is exempt from the tax would amount to a
judgment that the Tribe is entitled to a refund under Florida law. See Fla. Stat.
§ 206.41(4), (5). The tax is precollected from suppliers of fuel, so every consumer
must pay the tax at the pump, and any exempt consumer may then collect a refund
after-the-fact. Id. § 206.41(5)....
...at already have been assessed, is
prospective, and therefore available under the Ex parte Young doctrine.”). The
only distinction here is that Florida precollects its fuel tax from suppliers for mere
“administrative convenience,” Fla. Stat. § 206.41(4)(a), but that is a distinction
without a difference, and the majority’s opinion therefore creates a circuit split.
25
Case: 13-10566 Date Filed: 05/05/2014 Page: 26 of 34...
CopyPublished | Florida 1st District Court of Appeal | 2016 Fla. App. LEXIS 9723
...It argues that Florida’s taxing scheme doesn’t
apply to off-road uses of gasoline and, if it does, that it violates the Equal Protection
Clause. The trial court disagreed with ValleyCrest’s arguments, and we affirm.
I.
Section
206.41, Florida Statutes, imposes eight separate taxes on “motor
fuel,” which it defines as (1) “all gasoline products,” (2) “any product blended with
gasoline,” or (3) “any fuel placed in the storage supply tank of a gasoline-powered
motor vehicle.” §
206.01(9), Fla. Stat. The Department “precollects” these taxes for
“administrative convenience prior to the sale to the ultimate consumer.”
§
206.41(4)(a), Fla. Stat. Section
206.41(4)(c) exempts “[a]ny person who uses any
motor fuel for agricultural aquacultural, commercial fishing, or commercial aviation
purposes . . . no part of which fuel is used in any vehicle or equipment driven or
operated upon the public highways of this state.” §§
206.41(1), (4)(c)(1-4), Fla....
...ValleyCrest protested, claiming that it qualifies under
the statutory exemption. It filed a tax refund action in the Second Judicial Circuit
alleging that the Department’s decision violated Article XII, § 9(c) of the Florida
2
Constitution, § 206.41, Florida Statutes, and the Equal Protection Clause....
...3d 1266, 1269 (Fla. 1st DCA 2015). ValleyCrest argues that
the Department should refund taxes on gasoline used in lawn care equipment
because (1) Article XII, § 9(c) of the Florida Constitution limits the Legislature’s
inherent power to tax all gasoline; (2) section 206.41(1)(a) applies the “second gas
tax” paid by ValleyCrest only to gasoline that powers motor vehicles; and (3) the
Department’s decision to deny a refund violates the Equal Protection Clause....
...The phrase “used to
propel motor vehicles,” as a result, applies to the “equivalent tax upon other sources
of energy,” not to the tax “upon gasoline and other like products of petroleum.” Art.
XII, §9(c)(1), Fla. Const.
Second, we conclude, for similar reasons, that § 206.41(1)(a) does not restrict
the Second Gas Tax to fuel powering motor vehicles on public highways....
...nveys a clear and
definite meaning.” Haddock v. Carmody,
1 So. 3d 1133, 1137 (Fla. 1st DCA 2009).
Again, the plain language applies to all gasoline and there is no use-based exemption
for landscaping equipment. Indeed, ValleyCrest concedes that §
206.41(4)(c) does
not offer a tax refund for motor fuel purchased for use in its lawn maintenance
equipment, whereas the statute makes refunds available for other uses.
Third, the Department’s decision to deny ValleyCrest a tax refund d...
...Here, the Department offers non-arbitrary reasons why the Legislature might
have exempted some industries from the gasoline tax, but not the landscaping
businesses. The work of the agricultural, aquacultural, and commercial fishing
industries, for example, feed people. See § 206.41(4)(c), Fla....
CopyAgo (Fla. Att'y Gen. 2000).
Published | Florida Attorney General Reports
the municipal fuel tax imposed pursuant to section
206.41(1)(c), Florida Statutes, for general operating
CopyAgo (Fla. Att'y Gen. 1985).
Published | Florida Attorney General Reports
to and description of the "first gas tax." Section
206.41, F.S., for purposes of clarity, designates
CopyPublished | Florida 1st District Court of Appeal | 1995 Fla. App. LEXIS 147, 1995 WL 13428
...The constitutional gas tax is created by article XII, section 9, Florida Constitution (1968), which incorporates article IX, section 16, Florida Constitution (1885, as amended). Described therein as the “second gas tax,” and denominated as the “constitutional gas tax” in section
206.41, Florida Statutes, these proceeds are collected by the Department of Revenue (DOR) and placed in the Gas Tax Collection Trust Fund as provided by section
206.45, Florida Statutes, for eventual allocation and distribution by the State Board of Administration (the Board) on behalf of the various counties....
...emarks the permissible use of such gas tax proceeds. Section 16(d) prohibits the legislature from authorizing any other use of these proceeds. State v. Florida State Improvement Comm’n,
160 Fla. 230 ,
34 So.2d 443 (1948). Despite the suggestion in section
206.41(1), Florida Statutes, that the collected proceeds become state funds, the constitutional gas tax is.actually levied as a county tax which produces county funds....
CopyPublished | Florida 1st District Court of Appeal
...February 14, 2024
OSTERHAUS, C.J.
Appellant SEI Fuel Services, Inc. appeals the Department of
Revenue’s final order denying its request for a partial refund of
double-paid motor fuel taxes. The Department concluded that
§ 206.414(3), Florida Statutes, barred it from refunding either of
Appellant’s overpayments....
...Sometime between 2011 and 2014, Appellant, a supplier of
motor fuel to 7-Eleven stores, purchased a certain amount of fuel
from its upstream supplier, Sunshine Gasoline Distributors, Inc.
Florida law requires the payment of a fuel tax on the purchase or
sale of such motor fuel. See § 206.41, Fla....
...A reviewing court may not
defer to an agency’s interpretation of a statute. Art. V, § 21, Fla.
Const. The taxpayer has the burden of proving by a preponderance
of the evidence that it is entitled to a refund. 1701 Collins,
321 So.
3d at 880.
2
Section
206.41 sets forth the taxes payable on sales of motor
fuel. This section specifies that, generally, motor fuel taxes are
imposed on the “removal of motor fuel in this state from a terminal
if the motor fuel is removed at the rack.” §
206.41(6)(a), Fla. Stat.
But, relevant here, §
206.414 requires a different collection
methodology for fuel taxes imposed under §
206.41(1)(d), (e), and
(f) that are above the annual minimum tax. These taxes above the
annual minimum must be collected and remitted directly by
purchasing suppliers like Appellant upon selling, delivering, or
consigning fuel to their customers. §
206.414(2)-(3), Fla. Stat.
Where a midstream supplier like Appellant fails to follow this
directive and pays the taxes to an upstream supplier then “no”
refunds are available for the above-the-annual-minimum taxes
imposed under §
206.41(1)(d), (e), and (f) paid to the supplier.
§
206.414(3), Fla. Stat.
In this case, the parties don’t dispute that the motor fuel taxes
applicable here fall within §
206.414’s requirement for payment
directly by Appellant to the Department. This meant Appellant’s
first tax payment through Sunshine was not made via a lawful
channel. But the Department nonetheless received and accepted
the tax payment made through Appellant’s supplier. According to
§
206.414(3), Appellant couldn’t now receive a refund for this tax
payment made through Sunshine....
...additional penalties and forfeitures for the taxpayer, or windfalls
for the state.”). Since the second payment was made directly, and
nothing bars refunds for direct tax payments mistakenly made to
the Department, Appellant should not have been disqualified
under § 206.414(3) from receiving a refund of the $3,179,675.11
payment made directly to the Department.
We therefore REVERSE and REMAND for the issuance of a
refund of Appellant’s direct payment because no tax remained due
in addition to the full...
CopyAgo (Fla. Att'y Gen. 1979).
Published | Florida Attorney General Reports
...d bridge projects, when such road and bridge work is done in part by the county in conjunction with work let on contract to a private contractor. The second gas tax was originally levied by s. 16, Art. IX of the Constitution of 1885, as amended. See s. 206.41 (4)(b), F....
...and twenty (20%) per cent [sic] to the Board of County Commissioners of such county for use on roads and bridges therein. The second gas tax, as levied by s. 16, Art. IX of the Constitution of 1885, was continued by s. 9(c), Art. XII of the 1968 Revision of the State Constitution. Section 206.41 (4)(b), F....
...9(c)(1), Art. XII of the 1968 Revision of the State Constitution, and, insofar as is material to this opinion, the purposes for which the proceeds of the tax may be used are limited by s. 9(c)(5) to expenditures for the `construction of roads.' See also ss.
206.41 (4)(b),
206.45 (2), and
206.47 (7), F....
CopyPublished | District Court of Appeal of Florida | 1990 Fla. App. LEXIS 2791, 1990 WL 48658
...Collection Trust Fund. We agree with the trial court that the Florida Constitution prohibits this deduction. Pursuant to Article IX, Section 16, 1885 Florida Constitution as amended, Article XII, Section 9, 1968 Florida Constitution as amended, and Section 206.41, Florida Statutes (1983), the state imposes upon the sale of motor fuel a two cent per gallon tax (the constitutional gas tax)....
...It follows that the trial court correctly held that Ch. 83-339(1) is partially unconstitutional. AFFIRMED. BARFIELD and MINER, JJ., concur. . This tax, referred to in the Constitution as the "second gas tax,” is designated the "constitutional gas tax” in Section 206.41, the implementing legislation....
