News Around The State

Florida Sales Tax Holiday Continues Through January 14th

Over the last couple of years, Florida lawmakers have expanded the dates of the Florida’s sales tax holidays and has increased the exemption on more items for consumers to purchase.

During this sales tax holiday period, qualifying items will be exempt from tax. These include clothing, footwear, and certain accessories with a sales price of $100 or less per item, certain school supplies with a sales price of $50 or less per item, learning aids and jigsaw puzzles with a sales price of $30 or less, personal computers and certain computer-related accessories with a sales price of $1,500 or less, when purchased for noncommercial home or personal use.

For more information see this PDF from FloridaRevenue.com and a list of qualifying items, review the Department of Revenue’s 2023-2024 Back-to-School Sales Tax Holiday Tax Information Publication (TIP) as well as their Frequently Asked Questions for consumers and businesses.

Over $33 Million In Unclaimed Property Was Returned To Floridians During December

Florida’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Jimmy Patronis announced in the month of December, over $33 million in unclaimed property was returned to Florida residents.

Since Patronis took office in 2017, more than $2.2 billion in unclaimed property has been returned to Florida citizens. His office says currently, Florida has unclaimed property accounts with a total value of nearly $2.7 billion just waiting to be claimed.

December 2023 Unclaimed Property Returns by Region:

Pensacola – $742,792

Panama City – $1.2 Million

Tallahassee – $774,347

Jacksonville – $2.2 Million

Gainesville – $658,085

Orlando – $6.2 Million

Tampa/St. Pete – $5.9 Million

Fort Myers/Naples – $1.9 Million

West Palm Beach – $4 Million

Miami – $10 Million

To search for unclaimed property or to claim an account, go online to FLTreasureHunt.gov.

Unclaimed property is a financial asset that is unknown or lost or has been left inactive, unclaimed, or abandoned by its owner. The most common types of unclaimed property are dormant bank accounts, unclaimed insurance proceeds, stocks, dividends, uncashed checks, deposits, credit balances, and refunds. Unclaimed property also includes contents from abandoned safe deposit boxes in financial institutions. Unclaimed property assets are held by business or government entities (holders) for a set period of time, usually five years. If the holder is unable to locate, re-establish contact with the owner, and return the asset, it is reported and remitted to the Florida Department of Financial Services, Division of Unclaimed Property.