Two Democrats in the Florida Legislature–state Sen. Annette Taddeo of Miami and state Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith of Orlando–introduced a bill to “exempt small businesses from collecting sales tax the Saturday after Thanksgiving, November 26th, 2022 — this year’s ‘Small Business Saturday.’”
Taddeo, who is running for her party’s gubernatorial nomination, and Smith showcased the bill on Monday.
“As a proud small business owner myself, I brought the concept of Small Business Saturday to Florida over a decade ago when I was the Miami-Dade County chair of the Coalition of the Chambers of Commerce,” said Taddeo. “Under the current economic hardship, small businesses have been hit particularly hard. The Small Business Saturday sales-tax holiday will give a much-needed boost to Florida small business owners.”
“Small businesses are the backbone of our state and local economies. Rather than giving hundreds of millions in tax breaks to large corporations, lawmakers should instead focus on targeted relief for those small businesses hardest hit by COVID-19. HB 439 drives much-needed revenue towards Florida’s small businesses by creating the ‘Small Business Saturday’ sales tax holiday which both encourages and rewards consumers who shop locally. A tax-free ‘Small Business Saturday’ in Florida is just common sense and I am proud to be partnering with Senator Taddeo on this legislation,” said Smith.
The legislators insisted the bill “will serve as a form of relief for many businesses that were and continue to be devastated by the COVID-19 pandemic” and “tells Floridians that their concerns for the livelihood of their businesses will not go unheard.”
Taddeo and Smith filed the bills on Monday.
