Thanks for taking the time to speak with me today. Here are the
details of my situation as requested:
I purchased a brand new aircraft at the end of October 2007. I
previously made plans for a vacation in Florida and the Bahamas starting
April 2nd of this year. I was just recently informed by several pilots
that Florida will levy a use tax amounting to 6% of the purchase price
of my aircraft if I visit Florida within 6 months of delivery. My
Cirrus SR22 GTS Turbo cost almost $600,000.00 new so this tax would
amount to $36,000.00. My aircraft is registered, licensed, titled, and
hangared in the State of Wisconsin. Wisconsin does not charge a sales
tax on this aircraft as it is owned by my business and rented back to
me. Wisconsin collects sales tax on the hourly rental and not the
initial sale. This is a common arrangement for many aircraft owners in
many states.
My original plans were to meet a group of 40 other Cirrus aircraft in
Fort Pierce the night before the flight to the Bahamas. This involved
one night in Fort Pierce. We would then spend three days in the
Bahamas. My wife and I also thought it would be nice to spend some time
in sunny Florida on the way back. We made arrangements for 3 Nights in
Orlando and then 4 nights in Marco Island. We were looking forward to
this trip very much. This trip was to coincide with our Wedding
Anniversary.
I called the Florida Dept of Revenue today because, frankly, I could
not believe this warning and wondered how anyone could possibly justify
this. I spoke with the following individuals at Florida DOR:
Rebecca Burdick: 850-922-2650
Curt Cook: 850-921-2518
They quite politely, and without apology, confirmed this information.
What I had heard from several other pilots was apparently true! If you
own a new airplane, you simply do not fly into Florida for the first 6
months! ...and other pilots apparently know this (this is my first
airplane purchase so I was somewhat ignorant of the situation). Folks
even know their "Florida Clearance Date". In one pilot's response
"Yeah, I have to stay out of Florida until at least May..."
So I have canceled all my Orlando and Marco Island reservations. (We
had an especially nice ocean view suite booked at the Marco Island
Marriott Resort). All said and done we canceled a Florida vacation
worth well over $5000.00 (Hotels, Cars, Meals, Airport FBO Services,
Fuel, Disney/MGM/Islands of Adventure, etc).
This all leaves a very bad taste in my mouth. My first thought of
Florida will no longer be a warm and inviting place for some sun and
fun, but rather all the grief I have had trying to quantify, understand,
and contain this nasty experience.
It seems to me that Florida could only be trying to levy this tax for
one of two reasons. The first possibility is that Florida must somehow
believe that I actually owe them this money. I am not a resident of
Florida. My plane was not purchased, delivered, registered, titled,
insured, or hangared in Florida. All details of this aircraft ownership
are set up in a perfectly normal manner. I report all financial details
and pay all my local, state, and federal taxes and I am not a criminal.
If Florida truly, honestly, and morally believes I somehow owe them
$36,000.00 in taxes, I would really like to hear the explanation.
The other option is that the Florida Dept of Revenue is shamelessly
exploiting an exceptionally bad error in the state tax code. It's not
really that I owe Florida anything, its just that Florida ***CAN*** levy
the taxes anyway. Many pilots already know about this and stay out of
Florida with a new airplane. Is this outrageous tax burden squarely
aimed at the unsuspecting pilot who simply visits the state? This is
surely not what the spirit of the law intended. The fact that Florida
D.O.R. employees state that they are "just doing their job" doesn't make
this situation fair. "Sorry Sir, you'll have to take this up with the
legislature, we're just doing our job." How does the State of Florida
justify this?
So, I've canceled all my Florida vacation plans and now I am faced with
how to proceed regarding the remainder of the trip to the Bahamas which
I've already partially paid for. I'm currently committed to $2000.00 to
the Atlantis resort. This only covers two of the three nights
accommodations but is non-refundable. (Pilots tend to spend more money
than the average tourist when on vacation - A fact that obviously
escapes the State of Florida). So, if I cancel my trip I lose $2,000.00
straight away. If I wasn't already committed to this portion of the
trip I would just cancel completely and go to some other region
altogether.
The only other option (other than a risky overnight stay at Fort
Pierce), is to fly to the Bahamas directly from Georgia and skip Florida
all together. The south-eastern-most Airport of entry is in Brunswick
Georgia. This is approximately 01:20 from Fort Pierce in an SR22 with
no wind. If I want to join up with the other 40 aircraft on this trip,
I would have to get up an hour and a half earlier and fly through an
hour and a half of unknown weather conditions. This doesn't account for
the additional time to land at Fort Pierce, get fuel, and get all the
organizational information for the flight. Cirrus is sponsoring a
dinner the night before in Fort Pierce which I won't be able to attend.
I won't be able to take advantage of the free transportation to/from the
airport provided by the hotel. I won't be able to take advantage of the
discount life raft rentals being arranged. I won't be able to sit in on
the flight briefing the night before for Questions and Answers (this is
my first flight to the Bahamas). I won't be able to get up fresh and
relaxed with the rest of the pilots. ...and if I can't land at Fort
Pierce, I will have to proceed out over the Atlantic with an hour and a
half less fuel in my tanks. Why is it I have to do this again? No
Really - "Why?"
So its just not that the State of Florida is inhibiting pilots from
visiting the state and eliminating a fat source of tourism income, this
also provides unnecessary negative influences in the aeronautical
decision making process. This can adversely effect flight safety. I
would rather spend the night in Fort Pierce and get up fresh, rested,
and with a full tank of fuel. I would rather start out early and fly
directly to the Bahamas with the rest of our group. I would rather not
try to fly through 280 miles of unknown weather that morning in order to
try and meet up with the rest of the flight group before the trip out
over the Atlantic. So if Florida can not understand the negative effect
on the tourism industry, can the State accept the negative impact on
flight planning and safety?
Is it possible to get special dispensation from Florida DOR to stay at
Fort Pierce the night before my trip? I promise not to stay in Florida
any longer than necessary! I won't stop anywhere else to refuel. I
won't go to Disney, Seaworld, MGM, or any other attractions. I promise
not to stay at any other hotels or rent any cars. I promise only to eat
what is necessary and I certainly won't have any drinks. I would just
like to be able to travel safely with the rest of my group. Who do I
have to speak with to get this permission? I'm not a bad person - I'm
just a new aircraft owner from Wisconsin looking to safely arrive for a
warm and welcome vacation in the Bahamas! If Florida doesn't want me to
visit, can I please just get permission to stay one night without
harassment on my way through?
Per your request, my tail number is N719ED and I had plans to meet up
with 39 other Cirrus aircraft in Fort Pierce on the night of April 2nd.
The group of 85 people is staying at the Holiday Inn in Fort Pierce.
Although I have canceled all my Florida vacation plans, I still have a
room reserved at the Fort Pierce Holiday Inn. At this point, this is
simply a safety concern. I will cancel that as well if I can not get
written dispensation for the one night.
Additionally, DOR has told me that I will not be targeted if the
aircraft does not stay in Florida overnight. I have also been told that
Florida DOR does not target "travelers in distress". Since "normal and
reasonable" does not seem to apply here, Who can provide written
confirmation that a 6% Use Tax will not be levied on my aircraft under
the following circumstances:
1, Aircraft does not remain in Florida Overnight
2. Aircraft is forced to land and stay overnight due to equipment
failure
3. Aircraft is forced to land and stay overnight to avoid
hazardous weather conditions
So if Florida truly believes that I somehow owe them some money - ask
them to send me an explanation and a bill right now and stop hiding
behind this loophole in the tax code! If Florida is trying to raise
more money to provide services to its residents, why not tax the people
who live there rather than ambushing out-of-state tourists with
outrageous and unjustified tax bills.
What are my Options? Can you get me the assurances I need to travel
safely and without harassment through your state?
Thanks for any help you can provide,
Edward C. Van Every, CNE, MCSE
Chief Executive Officer
Digital Intelligence, Inc
http://www.digitalintelligence.com
262-782-3332
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