Latest news with #BryanAvila
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Florida Senate tees up $1.83 billion tax cut proposal amid economic uncertainty
Despite vastly divergent approaches with the House on tax cuts amid global economic uncertainty, a Senate leader said April 15 he remains optimistic an agreement can be reached before the end of the legislative session. The Senate Finance and Tax Committee on April 15 voted 3-1 to advance a wide-ranging proposal (SPB 7034) that would reduce state and local government tax revenue by $1.83 billion next fiscal year. 'The important part is us being in conferencing (formal negotiations with the House) and sharing ideas and really just having those discussions and going over each of the individual points,' Finance and Tax Chairman Sen. Bryan Avila, R-Miami Springs, said after the meeting. 'I think that also by the time we get there we're going to have probably a little bit more clarity as it relates to the federal picture.' Lawmakers are working on a new state budget and a tax package amid broader economic uncertainty, at least in part fueled by President Donald Trump's decisions to impose tariffs. The legislative session is scheduled to end May 2. The Senate proposal calls for permanently eliminating sales taxes on clothes and shoes that cost $75 or less. It also would provide a one-time credit on annual vehicle registration fees and offer a series of sales-tax 'holidays,' including a new one on hunting equipment. The House has proposed a $5.43 billion package that is built on cutting the state sales-tax rate from 6% to 5.25%. The House also would shave a commercial-lease tax from 2% to 1.25%. Gov. Ron DeSantis has pushed to reduce or eliminate property taxes. The Senate bill would require a study on the options and potential impacts of cutting property taxes. But in voting against the Senate bill, Sen. Mack Bernard, D-West Palm Beach, joined a group of Florida State University students in expressing concerns about the hunting-related tax holiday, which would run from mid-September until the end of the year. During the period, shoppers could buy such things as guns and ammunition without paying sales taxes. The students raised issues about the hunting holiday being about politics, while Bernard said it was, in part, 'too long.' The House proposal does not include sales-tax holidays. In addition to the hunting-related holiday, the Senate bill includes holidays that would last for a little more than two weeks in May on disaster-preparedness supplies; for all of June and July on recreational items and activities; for 10 days in August on back-to-school supplies; and a little more than a week on tools around Labor Day. House Speaker Daniel Perez, R-Miami, has been critical of tax holidays. When he announced his proposal for an overall cut in the sales-tax rate, for example, he said it 'will not be a temporary measure; a stunt or a tax holiday.' The House package also calls for the sales-tax rate on electricity to be reduced from 4.35% to 3.6%, the tax rate on sales of new mobile homes to go from 3% to 2.25% and the rate on coin-operated amusement machines, such as pinball machines, to fall from 4% to 3.25%. The House Ways & Means Committee on April 16 will consider an additional bill (PCB WMC 25-02) that would make $37.9 million in cuts next year. That proposal would match part of the Senate tax package by extending until Jan. 1, 2023, a freeze on cell-phone and cable-TV tax rates that are set to expire at the end of this year and expand a sales-tax exemption on gold, silver and platinum transactions. The state already provides tax exemptions on such transactions topping $500. The Senate proposal would also provide exemptions when sales are $500 or lower. The House Ways & Means proposal also includes reducing a tax rate on pari-mutuel cardroom operators from 10% to 8% and redirecting $5 million from a trust fund to promote the horse industry. Instead of the money going to the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders' Association, $1 million would go to Tampa Bay Downs and $4 million to Gulfstream Park Racing Association. Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Proposed Senate Tax Bill could limit required funding to Visit Orlando
Florida lawmakers could slash the amount of funding Visit Orlando is required to receive yearly from Orange County's Tourist Development Tax dollars. It could also give Orange County more freedom on how they spend the remaining money. 'It limits the tourist development tax revenue that has to be spent to promote and advertise tourism to $50 million before revenues can be used for public facilities,' said Finance and Tax Committee chair Sen. Bryan Avila. Senate leaders formally introduced their yearly tax relief package in committee Tuesday. This year's bill includes proposed new guidelines on how counties can use tourist development tax dollars. Visit Orlando depends on tax revenue to market the area, from Orlando's many theme parks and venues to restaurants and small businesses. In 2023, Visit Orlando received roughly a third of what Orange County collected from taxes on hotel stays and short-term rentals-- about $107 million out of the roughly $360 million. 'It's my opinion that $100 million in public money for Visit Orlando every year is excessive, and it's kind of corporate welfare,' said state Senator Carlos Smith, who has pushed for giving Orange County more freedom on how they can use the money. The proposed bill caps required funding for 'promoting and advertising tourism' at $50 million before TDT can be spent for other uses. The bill would also allow the TDT fund to be used for 'public facilities,' including transportation. 'Namely, to connect the SunRail train to the Orlando airport and potentially expand the Lynx bus system countywide with TDT revenue,' Smith said. Smith says Orange County is currently prohibited from spending TDT funds on transit if it doesn't spend at least 40% of its overall revenue on Visit Orlando. Based on 2023′s revenue, Orange County would have had to spend $140 million on Visit Orlando in order to fund other projects. Smith says if this passes, his hope is that Visit Orlando will receive the required $50 million and another $50 million will go toward SunRail. Smith says he's confident the proposal will pass because the guidelines originally proposed by Smith, who is a Democrat, made it into a tax package written by the Republican supermajority. 'I think it's because of the conservative mindset right now which is very DOGE,' Smith said 'You know the argument I made is that we engage in a lot of wasteful spending of public money via Visit Orlando, and part of the reason why is the state law is so restrictive in what Orange County is allowed to use hotel taxes for.' Eyewitness News reached out to Visit Orlando but did not hear back by time of publish. Orange County Government responded to our inquiry stating, 'We typically don't speculate about bills that are working their way through the legislature and have not yet become law.' Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Political polls would have to disclose sponsors under a GOP senator's bill
SB 528 would require pollsters to disclose their sponsors. (Stock photo by) Miami-Dade Republican Sen. Bryan Avila filed a bill Thursday requiring political pollsters to inform people who sponsored the poll before collecting responses. The bill, SB 528, would punish pollsters who don't disclose who is paying for the poll with a fine of up to $1,000 or up to a year in jail. Pollsters must include the disclosure at the beginning of polls conducted over text, at the beginning of a phone call, and in bold font of at least 12 points in emails. Polling operations out Florida Atlantic University and the University of North Florida wouldn't see much of a change if the bill passed, their directors told the Florida Phoenix. '[The bill] didn't faze me too much,' Kevin Wagner, co-director of the Florida Atlantic University Political Communication and Public Opinion Research Lab, said in a phone interview. 'As a matter of course, in both our intro and our outro, which is when we introduce a poll and when we leave, we always say Main Street research on behalf of Florida Atlantic University, so we do this anyway.' Michael Binder, who leads UNF's Public Opinion Research Lab, said the proposal wasn't likely to increase transparency. 'If you're trying to root out nefarious actors, I'm not sure how much this is going to help because they're just going say, 'This poll is paid for by the Democracy Fund or America Fund,' or whatever made-up name that given organization sticks on itself, so it's not gonna necessarily be super transparent about who is actually doing it anyway,' Binder said. Both polling experts said it could be harder for political parties and some candidates with fewer resources to conduct polls if the bill passed. 'Let's say you're polling for a political party and if you say, 'I'm doing this for the Republicans or the Democrats.' It may bias the people who are likely to respond to it or they may respond differently, and that could affect the kind of data that you could collect,' Wagner said. Avila's office did not respond to the Phoenix's requests for comment. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
