HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY, Fla. — Three years after the Florida Supreme Court struck down Hillsborough County's transportation sales tax, the funds collected are ready to be redistributed back into the community.
A judge has officially approved the settlement, allowing the court-appointed administrator to begin sending payments to eligible taxpayers.
Although the refund process began in August 2024 with notices being sent to eligible taxpayers, the ability to send payments out depended on the judge's final order.
What was the transportation sales tax?
Hillsborough County voters passed the one-cent sales tax in 2018 to fund transportation projects. However, it was challenged in court and declared unconstitutional by the Florida Supreme Court in 2021.
By then, the county had collected about $589 million from taxpayers.
After the tax was struck down, state lawmakers made a plan to divvy the money up between county road improvement projects, a county tax holiday in the county, reimbursing legal fees and a settlement fund so taxpayers could get refunded.
The plan was included in the state budget and Governor Ron DeSantis signed off on it in June 2024. It directs $170 million of the tax revenue to a settlement fund.
What do I need to get a refund?
If you can provide receipts or other proof of purchases, you may receive a refund equal to the amount of your surtax payments — whether you live in Hillsborough County or not, the settlement website says.
Without receipts, you can claim up to $100 by proving residency in the county during the tax period (Jan. 1, 2019 – March 15, 2021).
The transportation sales tax was applied to most transactions that were already subject to the state-wide sales and use tax. For many transactions, including retail purchases, this tax only applied to the first $5,000 of the sales amount, according to the settlement website.
As is the case in all class action settlements, ultimate payout amounts will depend on how many people file claims and qualify.
Any leftover money will be used to extend the sales surtax holiday.
How do I file a claim?
Any eligible person can file a claim through the official settlement website, FLTaxRefund.com, regardless of whether they got an email or postcard about it.
The deadline to apply is Dec. 31, 2024.
People who’ve already received a refund or have a pending request through the Florida Department of Revenue are not eligible.
If you have more questions, a call center can also be reached at 1-888-715-9373.
When will I get paid?
There's no exact date on when eligible claims will be paid out. One of the attorneys involved in the case told VERIFY claims will start to be paid out in the new year on a rolling basis, with the first round of payments expected to go out in the first quarter of the year.