Business and a taxpayer-rights group are urging Gov. Ron DeSantis to veto a bill on his desk that critics say would increase the difficulties small businesses face in defending themselves when they are audited by the Florida Department of Revenue (DOR).
Groups such as the National Federation of Independent Business’s Florida chapter and Florida TaxWatch oppose Senate Bill 1382, which they say would tip the balance too far in favor of tax enforcement authority over taxpayer rights. The bill would allow the DOR to presume willful negligence or fraud in the event a taxpayer overlooks submitting a tax document during audits, critics say.
“Government tax collection agencies already wield substantial power, enough to put a company out of business,” Dominic Calabro, president and CEO of Florida TaxWatch, said in comments emailed to the Florida Record. “This legislation further increases DOR’s power and ability to suspend sales tax certificates, revoke alcoholic beverage licenses and assess up to 50% penalties, all of which would be crippling for many small businesses, which are the backbone of Florida’s economy and free-enterprise system.”
TaxWatch supports giving DOR the tools needed to administer state tax laws, but the research institute says SB 1382 goes too far in restricting small businesses’ ability to challenge DOR assessments.
The bill would prevent a business from presenting additional records in its defense to a judge after an audit, according to Florida NFIB state executive director Bill Herrle.
“On top of that, the bill automatically assumes a business owner acted with willful neglect if their records are incomplete, triggering a 50% fine on top of any tax debt the Florida Department of Revenue had already estimated,” Herrle said in a prepared statement.
More generally, the bill assumes a business is guilty without giving it an adequate chance to prove its innocence, he said.
The bill would also expand the DOR’s authority to serve subpoenas in some situations, according to an analysis of the bill by the legislative staff. SB 1382 would take effect on July 1 if it is signed by DeSantis.