Hillsborough residents could be eligible for refund stemming from defunct transportation sales tax

Hillsborough taxpayers get sales tax refund notices

Aaron Mesmer reports

TAMPA, Fla. - Hillsborough County residents could be eligible for a refund stemming from the defunct one-cent transportation sales tax that was passed in 2018 before being declared unconstitutional.

Notices about potential $100 refunds are now appearing in mailboxes. Anyone who lived in Hillsborough County between January 1, 2019, and March 15, 2021, could be eligible.

Hillsborough County voters passed the one-cent sales tax in 2018 with the revenue earmarked for transportation projects. The tax was challenged in court and the Florida Supreme Court ruled the tax unconstitutional in 2021. By then, however, the county had collected almost $570 million.

READ: Gov. DeSantis directs funds from defunct Hillsborough sales tax to go towards transportation projects

It took about three years to determine what to do with the money. The first step includes offering Hillsborough taxpayers $100 refunds.

Because this was a one-cent sales tax, it would have taken $10,000 in purchases to reach $100 in sales taxes. Families who spent more than that could be eligible for a larger refund, but they would need to provide the receipts.

About $256 million of the funds collected through the tax will still go to county-wide transportation and road projects.

More information is available at www.fltaxrefund.com.

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