Fla. Stat. § 550.0951 — Florida Code / Title XXXIII / Chapter 550 / Section 550.0951
550.0951 Payment of daily license fee and taxes; penalties.
Status: in_force

(1) DAILY LICENSE FEE. — (a) Each person engaged in the business of conducting race meetings or jai alai games under this chapter, hereinafter referred to as the “permitholder,” “licensee,” or “permittee,” shall pay to the commission, for the use of the commission, a daily license fee on each live or simulcast pari-mutuel event of $100 for each horserace and $80 for each dograce and $40 for each jai alai game conducted at a racetrack or fronton licensed under this chapter. In addition to the tax exemption specified in s. 550.09514(1) of $360,000 or $500,000 per greyhound permitholder per state fiscal year, each greyhound permitholder shall receive in the current state fiscal year a tax credit equal to the number of live greyhound races conducted in the previous state fiscal year times the daily license fee specified for each dograce in this subsection applicable for the previous state fiscal year. This tax credit and the exemption in s. 550.09514(1) apply to any tax imposed by this chapter or the daily license fees imposed by this chapter except during any charity or scholarship performances conducted pursuant to s. 550.0351. Each permitholder shall pay daily license fees not to exceed $500 per day on any simulcast races or games on which such permitholder accepts wagers regardless of the number of out-of-state events taken or the number of out-of-state locations from which such events are taken. This license fee shall be deposited with the Chief Financial Officer to the credit of the Pari-mutuel Wagering Trust Fund. (b) Each permitholder that cannot utilize the full amount of the exemption of $360,000 or $500,000 provided in s. 550.09514(1) or the daily license fee credit provided in this section may, after notifying the commission in writing, elect once per state fiscal year on a form provided by the commission to transfer such exemption or credit or any portion thereof to any greyhound permitholder which acts as a host track to such permitholder for the purpose of intertrack wagering. Once an election to transfer such exemption or credit is filed with the commission, it may not be rescinded. The commission shall disapprove the transfer when the amount of the exemption or credit or portion thereof is unavailable to the transferring permitholder or when the permitholder who is entitled to transfer the exemption or credit or who is entitled to receive the exemption or credit owes taxes to the state pursuant to a deficiency letter or administrative complaint issued by the commission. Upon approval of the transfer by the commission, the transferred tax exemption or credit is effective for the next payment period as specified in subsection (5). The exemption or credit transferred to such host track may be applied by such host track against any taxes imposed by this chapter or daily license fees imposed by this chapter. The greyhound permitholder host track to which such exemption or credit is transferred shall reimburse such permitholder the exact monetary value of such transferred exemption or credit as actually applied against the taxes and daily license fees of the host track. The commission shall ensure that all transfers of exemption or credit are made in accordance with this subsection and has the authority to adopt rules to ensure the implementation of this section.

(2) ADMISSION TAX. — (a) An admission tax equal to 15 percent of the admission charge for entrance to the permitholder’s facility and grandstand area, or 10 cents, whichever is greater, is imposed on each person attending a horserace, dograce, or jai alai game. The permitholder shall be responsible for collecting the admission tax. (b) No admission tax under this chapter or chapter 212 shall be imposed on any free passes or complimentary cards issued to persons for which there is no cost to the person for admission to pari-mutuel events. (c) A permitholder may issue tax-free passes to its officers, officials, and employees or other persons actually engaged in working at the racetrack, including accredited press representatives such as reporters and editors, and may also issue tax-free passes to other permitholders for the use of their officers and officials. The permitholder shall file with the commission a list of all persons to whom tax-free passes are issued under this paragraph.

(3) TAX ON HANDLE. — Each permitholder shall pay a tax on contributions to pari-mutuel pools, the aggregate of which is hereinafter referred to as “handle,” on races or games conducted by the permitholder. The tax is imposed daily and is based on the total contributions to all pari-mutuel pools conducted during the daily performance. If a permitholder conducts more than one performance daily, the tax is imposed on each performance separately. (a) The tax on handle for quarter horse racing is 1.0 percent of the handle. (b)1. The tax on handle for dogracing is 5.5 percent of the handle, except that for live charity performances held pursuant to s. 550.0351, and for intertrack wagering on such charity performances at a guest greyhound track within the market area of the host, the tax is 7.6 percent of the handle. 2. The tax on handle for jai alai is 7.1 percent of the handle. (c)1. The tax on handle for intertrack wagering is 2.0 percent of the handle if the host track is a horse track, 3.3 percent if the host track is a harness track, 5.5 percent if the host track is a dog track, and 7.1 percent if the host track is a jai alai fronton. The tax on handle for intertrack wagering is 0.5 percent if the host track and the guest track are thoroughbred permitholders or if the guest track is located outside the market area of the host track and within the market area of a thoroughbred permitholder that conducted a full schedule of live racing the preceding fiscal year. The tax on handle for intertrack wagering on rebroadcasts of simulcast thoroughbred horseraces is 2.4 percent of the handle and 1.5 percent of the handle for intertrack wagering on rebroadcasts of simulcast harness horseraces. The tax shall be deposited into the Pari-mutuel Wagering Trust Fund. 2. The tax on handle for intertrack wagers accepted by any dog track located in an area of the state in which there are only three permitholders, all of which are greyhound permitholders, located in three contiguous counties, from any greyhound permitholder also located within such area or any dog track or jai alai fronton located as specified in s. 550.615(6) or (9), on races or games received from the same class of permitholder located within the same market area is 3.9 percent if the host facility is a greyhound permitholder and, if the host facility is a jai alai permitholder, the rate shall be 6.1 percent except that it shall be 2.3 percent on handle at such time as the total tax on intertrack handle paid to the commission by the permitholder during the current state fiscal year exceeds the total tax on intertrack handle paid to the commission by the permitholder during the 1992-1993 state fiscal year. (d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, in order to protect the Florida jai alai industry, effective July 1, 2000, a jai alai permitholder may not be taxed on live handle at a rate higher than 2 percent.

(4) BREAKS TAX. — Effective October 1, 1996, each permitholder conducting jai alai performances shall pay a tax equal to the breaks. The “breaks” represents that portion of each pari-mutuel pool which is not redistributed to the contributors or withheld by the permitholder as commission.

(5) PAYMENT AND DISPOSITION OF FEES AND TAXES. — Payments imposed by this section must be paid to the commission. The commission shall deposit these sums with the Chief Financial Officer, to the credit of the Pari-mutuel Wagering Trust Fund, hereby established. The permitholder shall remit to the commission payment for the daily license fee, the admission tax, the tax on handle, and the breaks tax. Such payments must be remitted by 3 p.m. on the 5th day of each calendar month for taxes imposed and collected for the preceding calendar month. If the 5th day of the calendar month falls on a weekend, payments must be remitted by 3 p.m. the first Monday following the weekend. Permitholders shall file a report under oath by the 5th day of each calendar month for all taxes remitted during the preceding calendar month. Such payments must be accompanied by a report under oath showing the total of all admissions, the pari-mutuel wagering activities for the preceding calendar month, and such other information as may be prescribed by the commission.

(6) PENALTIES. — (a) The failure of any permitholder to make payments as prescribed in subsection (5) is a violation of this section, and the permitholder may be subjected by the commission to a civil penalty of up to $1,000 for each day the tax payment is not remitted. All penalties imposed and collected shall be deposited in the General Revenue Fund. If a permitholder fails to pay penalties imposed by order of the commission under this subsection, the commission may suspend or revoke the license of the permitholder, cancel the permit of the permitholder, or deny issuance of any further license or permit to the permitholder. (b) In addition to the civil penalty prescribed in paragraph (a), any willful or wanton failure by any permitholder to make payments of the daily license fee, admission tax, tax on handle, or breaks tax constitutes sufficient grounds for the commission to suspend or revoke the license of the permitholder, to cancel the permit of the permitholder, or to deny issuance of any further license or permit to the permitholder.

History: s. 15, ch. 92-348; s. 2, ch. 94-328; ss. 4, 26, ch. 96-364; s. 2, ch. 98-190; ss. 5, 6, ch. 98-217; s. 6, ch. 2000-354; s. 654, ch. 2003-261; s. 7, ch. 2009-170; ss. 4, 5, ch. 2010-29; s. 15, ch. 2022-7; s. 6, ch. 2024-115; s. 81, ch. 2025-208.