Surety Bond Encyclopedia

Fuel Tax - Pollutants Tax Bond - Statewide in Florida

Brief Summary

There is no flat amount for this bond. Florida sizes it to your own pollutants tax, at three times the average monthly tax paid or due, capped at $300,000, and drops it entirely when that average is under $50. A surety bond covers the requirement without parking cash or a time deposit with the Department of Revenue.

Anyone who produces or imports pollutants in Florida, including petroleum products, pesticides, ammonia, chlorine, solvents and lead-acid batteries, must hold a pollutants tax license from the Florida Department of Revenue and post security under section 206.05, Florida Statutes. The Department sets the bond at three times the average monthly pollutants tax paid or due during the past 12 calendar months, not to exceed $300,000. No bond is required when that average is less than $50.

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How to Apply for a Fuel Tax - Pollutants Tax Bond:

Register with the Florida Department of Revenue on Form DR-156 before producing or importing pollutants.
Complete the FDLE, Department of Revenue and FBI background check for each owner, officer and controlling person.
Figure the bond with the DR-157W worksheet instructions: three times average monthly pollutants tax, capped at $300,000.
New registrants base the amount on a reasonable estimate of monthly pollutants tax.
Have the surety execute Form DR-157 and file it with the Department.
Pay pollutants tax by the 20th of the month after each collection period and renew the license each year.

Detailed Information About the Florida Fuel Tax - Pollutants Tax Bond:

How the amount is figured

The Department of Revenue's pollutants tax brochure (GT-800032) states that registrants must be bonded at three times the average monthly pollutants tax paid or due during the past 12 calendar months, not to exceed $300,000. A new registrant with no tax history bases the bond on a reasonable estimate. If the average tax paid or due is less than $50, a bond is not required.

The figure can move. Section 206.05(3) lets the Department demand an additional bond when the one on file no longer secures the tax.

Where the requirement comes from

Section 206.9943 requires a pollutants tax license from anyone not otherwise licensed under the chapter who produces, imports or causes pollutants to be imported, or who is entitled to a refund under section 206.9942. The license is renewed annually. Section 206.9931(1) then makes these registrants subject to sections 206.02, 206.025, 206.03, 206.04 and 206.05, and 206.05 is the bond statute.

Who does not post it

Section 206.05 exempts a municipality, county, school board, state agency, federal agency or special district. Any registrant whose average monthly pollutants tax is under $50 is also excused from the bond, though it still needs the license.

Forms and substitutes

Rule 12B-5.150, F.A.C., adopts Form DR-157 (Fuel or Pollutants Tax Surety Bond), DR-157A (Assignment of Time Deposit), DR-157B (Fuel or Pollutants Tax Cash Bond) and DR-157W (Bond Worksheet Instructions). Section 206.05 also allows an irrevocable letter of credit in place of a surety bond. The license application is Form DR-156.

Background check

Before licensing, the license holder and its owners, officers, directors, partners and other controlling persons go through a background check by FDLE, the Department of Revenue and the FBI. Publicly held corporations traded on a national securities exchange and local governments are exempt from the check. That exemption does not remove the bond.

If the surety cancels

A surety that wants off the bond files a written request with the Department, and its release takes effect 60 days later. If replacement security is not filed, the license is canceled.

Eligibility and Requirements for a Florida Fuel Tax - Pollutants Tax Bond:

Florida Department of Revenue as obligee.
Bond equal to three times average monthly pollutants tax paid or due over the past 12 calendar months, not to exceed $300,000.
No bond when average monthly tax paid or due is less than $50.
Surety bond on Form DR-157, or a cash bond, assigned time deposit or irrevocable letter of credit instead.
Additional bond on demand if the Department finds the existing bond insufficient.

Florida Fuel Tax - Pollutants Tax Bond FAQs:

We only bring in a small amount of pollutants. Do we still need a bond?

Possibly not. The Department's brochure says no bond is required if the average tax paid or due is less than $50. You still need the pollutants tax license and still file returns.

We are a new company with no tax history. How big should the bond be?

The Department tells new registrants to base the bond on a reasonable estimate. Estimate your monthly pollutants tax, multiply by three, and cap the result at $300,000. The Department can ask for more later if the bond proves too small.

Is there a ceiling on the bond?

Yes. Section 206.05 caps the bond at $300,000, and the brochure states the same limit for pollutants registrants.

We are a publicly traded corporation. Are we exempt?

Publicly held corporations traded on a national securities exchange are exempt from the background check, not from the bond. The bond exemption in section 206.05 covers a municipality, county, school board, state agency, federal agency or special district.

Can we put up cash instead of a surety bond?

Yes. The Department has a cash bond form (DR-157B) and an assignment of time deposit form (DR-157A), and section 206.05 also accepts an irrevocable letter of credit. A surety bond leaves that money in the business.