-
Editorials
- Bradenton Herald
- Daytona Beach News-Journal
- Florida Times-Union
- Florida Today
- Ft. Myers News-Press
- Gainesville Sun
- Lakeland Ledger
- Miami Herald
- Naples Daily News
- NWF Daily News
- Ocala Star-Banner
- Orlando Sentinel
- Palm Beach Post
- Pensacola News Journal
- Sarasota Herald-Tribune
- TCPalm
- Sun-Sentinel
- Tallahassee Democrat
- Tampa Bay Times
- Columnists
- Cartoons
-
Press Releases
- Sayfie Review
- Jose Oliva
- Nikki Fried
- Bill Galvano
- Ron DeSantis
- Marco Rubio
- Ashley Moody
- Rick Scott
- Jimmy Patronis
- Congressional Delegation ≻
- Matt Gaetz
- Neal Dunn
- Kat Cammack
- Aaron Bean
- John Rutherford
- Michael Waltz
- Cory Mills
- Bill Posey
- Darren Soto
- Maxwell Frost
- Daniel Webster
- Gus Bilirakis
- Anna Paulina Luna
- Kathy Castor
- Laurel Lee
- Vern Buchanan
- Greg Steube
- Scott Franklin
- Byron Donalds
- Sheila Cherfilus McCormick
- Brian Mast
- Lois Frankel
- Jared Moskowitz
- Frederica Wilson
- Debbie Wasserman Schultz
- Mario Diaz-Balart
- Maria Elvira Salazar
- Carlos Gimenez
- Political Links
-
News Links
- Drudge Report
- NewsMax.com
- AP Florida News
- ABC News' The Note
- NBC News' First Read
- Florida Channel
- Florida TV Stations
- Florida Radio Stations
- Capitol Update
- Florida Newspapers
- Florida Trend
- South Florida Business Journal
- Tampa Bay Business Journal
- Orlando Business Journal
- Jacksonville Business Journal
- News Service of Florida
- Politico Playbook
- Washington Post The Daily 202
-
Research
- Florida Fiscal Portal
- Search Florida Laws
- Search House Bills
- Search Senate Bills
- Search County, City Laws
- Search County Clerks' Records
- Cabinet Agendas, Transcripts
- Search Executive Orders
- Search Atty. General Opinions
- Search Supreme Court Docket
- Florida Supreme Court Rulings
- Search Florida Corporations
- Search Administrative Rules
- Proposed Administrative Rules
- View Advertised Contracts
- Refdesk.com
- Government Services Guide
- Electoral Vote Map
-
Reference
- Florida House
- Florida Senate
- Find Your Congressman
- Find Your State Legislator
- Find Your Local Officials
- Find Government Phone #'s
- Florida Agencies
- Florida Cities
- Florida Counties
- Florida Universities
- County Tax Collectors
- County Property Appraisers
- County Clerks of Court
- County Elections Supervisors
- MyFlorida.com
- OPPAGA
- Advertise with us
Sun-Sentinel: Putting country over party and democracy over tyranny | Editorial
Times: In Trump immunity case, Supreme Court doesn't need a rule for the ages, but one for right now
Times: Here's what Shakespeare said about how to treat immigrants
Times: Trump's ego, white anxiety and don't become a doctor of humanities
Times: To fight climate change, the young and the old are leading the way
Times: I sponsored Florida's ethics bill, and here's what it does
Times: Why market demand doesn't capture the value of the liberal arts | Letters
Times: Editorial Cartoons for Friday from Times Wire Services
Sun-Sentinel: A basic case of truth and justice in Delray Beach | Editorial
U.S. Supreme Court delivers win to Florida in flower tax fight
By JIM SAUNDERS
THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA
THE CAPITAL, TALLAHASSEE, February 21, 2017......... The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to take up a constitutional challenge to Florida collecting sales taxes on flowers that are ordered online from a Palm Beach County company but are delivered out of state.
The Supreme Court, as is common, did not give reasons for turning down the appeal by American Business USA Corp., a Wellington firm. But the move effectively kept in place a ruling last year by the Florida Supreme Court in favor of the state Department of Revenue.
American Business USA argued that it should not be subject to Florida sales taxes, as it did not have an inventory of flowers in the state and used out-of-state florists to fill orders that had been placed online.
The state 4th District Court of Appeal in 2014 sided with the firm, finding that Florida "impermissibly burdened interstate commerce" when it tried to collect taxes on flowers and other items delivered out of state. But the Florida Supreme Court overturned that decision.
In asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case, attorneys for American Business USA warned of potentially broad ramifications of the ruling by the Florida high court.
"The present case is important because the Florida Supreme Court's newly announced power has no limiting principle," the attorneys wrote in an October brief. "If a state may tax flower sales based only on the state's connection to the internet retailer who accepts the order, then nothing will constrain the spread of this power to all e-commerce transactions. As a category, flowers are indistinguishable from other types of tangible personal property."
But Attorney General Pam Bondi's office argued the U.S. Supreme Court should turn down the case and described the issues in much-narrower terms.
"As the Florida Supreme Court recognized, Florida's unremarkable imposition of sales tax liability on a business incorporated in Florida, residing in Florida, headquartered in Florida, and conducting sales operations in Florida fits well within the scope of state taxing authority, regardless whether the goods in question originate in or are delivered out of state," attorneys in Bondi's office wrote in a January brief.
One of the legal issues in the case involved whether there was a "nexus" between the company's sales and the state. The Florida Supreme Court found that such a nexus existed.
"(The) record shows that American Business does have a physical presence in Florida --- it is headquartered in Wellington, Florida, and has been doing business in Florida since 2001," Florida Chief Justice Jorge Labarga wrote. "From its Florida location, American Business accepts internet orders and arranges for delivery of out-of-state flowers and tangible personal property. Based on the facts of this case, we find that the 'substantial nexus' test is met."