Our Sales Tax Restitution program supports our community and our state by bringing business owners who have fallen behind in their required sales tax payments back into compliance with the law. This problem-solving approach allows business owners to stay in business—still providing jobs to their employees and selling their products to the community—while holding them accountable and collecting the tax revenue they owe to the State of Florida.
In partnership with the Florida Department of Revenue, selected businesses are offered an informal hearing on their debt and how to resolve it. If the business owners sign an agreement and commit to the Sales Tax Restitution program, they make an initial deposit and are then placed on a payment plan to pay the amount they owe over a set period of time. Business owners who successfully complete the program are not prosecuted and the matter remains confidential. Owners who fail to comply may be prosecuted under Florida Statutes 212.14 and 212.15.
Launched in the 2003–04 fiscal year, our office is one of only eight in Florida to offer this alternative to prosecution as part of Florida’s Tax Collection Enforcement Diversion Program. To date, the Hillsborough State Attorney’s Office has collected more than $15 million in owed sales tax revenue, delivering the funds to the State of Florida.
A portion of the recovered revenue supports a Florida program that helps adults with significant disabilities get jobs and earn the income and satisfaction that come with working in a job they love. The James Patrick Memorial Work Incentive – Personal Attendant Services & Employment Assistance (JP-PAS) Program provides a monthly stipend for disabled adults so they can get professional assistance with personal care needs, allowing them to get and keep a job in the community.
For more information on the program, contact Cari Taylor, the Hillsborough State Attorney’s Office Sales Tax Restitution Coordinator, at [email protected] or (813) 274-1769.