Stan Musial & Biggie's, Inc. v. State, Department of Revenue

363 So. 2d 375, 1978 Fla. App. LEXIS 16789
CourtDistrict Court of Appeal of Florida
DecidedSeptember 25, 1978
DocketNo. II-391
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 363 So. 2d 375 (Stan Musial & Biggie's, Inc. v. State, Department of Revenue) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court of Appeal of Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Stan Musial & Biggie's, Inc. v. State, Department of Revenue, 363 So. 2d 375, 1978 Fla. App. LEXIS 16789 (Fla. Ct. App. 1978).

Opinion

MILLS, Judge.

Stan Musial & Biggies, Inc. (SM & B) seeks review of a final order of the Department of Revenue (Department) upholding a deficiency assessment of corporate income taxes alleged to be due the State from SM & B for the calendar year 1972.

SM & B contends that the apportionment formula set forth in Section 214.17, Florida Statutes (1971), and applied by the Department in arriving at the deficiency assessment was not applicable to it because it was not a unitary business.

SM & B was a foreign corporation subject to the Florida Corporate Income Tax imposed by Chapter 220, Florida Statutes (1971), for the calendar year 1972.

In 1964, SM & B acquired a one-third interest in the Bal Harbour Joint Venture which owned and operated the Ivanhoe Hotel and Restaurant in Bal Harbour, Florida. By 1967, SM & B’s interest in the hotel and restaurant had increased to 95 percent, and by 15 December 1972, had increased to 100 percent.

On 31 December 1972, SM & B was the sole owner of the Ivanhoe Hotel and Restaurant.

On 16 November 1972, SM & B acquired, by merger, a 100 percent interest in the Clearwater Beach Hilton, a motel and restaurant business located in Clearwater, Florida, and on 31 December 1972, continued to own 100 percent of the Clearwater Beach Hilton.

On 2 November 1972, SM & B sold certain securities which resulted in a realized gain to it for federal income tax purposes of $941,418.00. Eighty-five percent of the securities that were sold on 2 November 1972 and are the subject of the Department’s assessment, were purchased before 1 August 1964 or received as stock dividends from stock purchased prior to that date. All purchases were made with money earned from its Missouri restaurant. SM & B did not have any interest in any Florida business when this stock was purchased. At all times the securities remained in Missouri and all dividends were received in Missouri. The securities were sold in Missouri. At the time of the sale, SM & B had no interest in the Clearwater Hilton, it merely held an interest in the partnership which owned the Ivanhoe Hotel and Restaurant.

SM & B timely filed its Florida Corporation Income Tax Return for 1972 on which it subtracted from its federal taxable income the gain from the sale of the securities and thus reported its “Florida Net Income” and its “Total Tax Due” as “None”.

On or about 8 May 1974, the Department advised SM & B of a proposed deficiency in SM & B’s 1972 Florida Corporation Income Tax in the amount of $29,392.00.

On or about 7 June 1974, SM & B timely filed with the Department its protest of the proposed deficiency assessment in accordance with the provisions of Section 214.71, Florida Statutes (1971).

On or about 13 August 1974, after a hearing held by the Department in accordance with the provisions of Section 214.71, the Department issued to SM & B its Notice of Decision in which the proposed deficiency was reduced to $25,712.80.

On or about 8 October 1974, SM & B filed with the Department its written request for reconsideration of the Department’s Notice of Decision. The parties stipulated that further proceedings in this cause would be processed under the Florida Administrative Procedure Act.

[377]*377The Ivanhoe and Clearwater Beach Hilton Hotel and Restaurant businesses in Florida and SM & B’s restaurant business in Missouri had separate, individual general managers.

One SM & B vice president was in charge of the two Florida businesses, and another vice president was in charge of the Missouri business. The actions of the two vice presidents were subject to review concerning policy matters by SM & B’s board of directors, whose chairman was Stan Musial.' The Florida businesses furnished information and reports concerning business activities to SM & B’s main office on a semiweekly basis. There was no central purchasing by the hotels. There were no central reservation services available between the hotels, and the hotels advertised separately and unilaterally in local publications in the cities in which they were located. No standardized product lines existed.

After a hearing, the hearing officer recommended that the deficiency assessment be vacated and that Musial be permitted to file an amended 1972 return using a method of apportionment approved by the Department which would effectuate an equitable apportionment of Musial’s income in Florida. The Department rejected the hearing officer’s recommendations. It upheld the deficiency assessment because in its judgment the three factor formula specified in Section 214.71 fairly apportioned Musial’s tax base.

The Florida Corporate Income Tax Code imposes upon corporations an excise or privilege tax measured by net income. Section 220.11(2). A taxpayer’s net income is defined to be that share of its adjusted federal income which is apportioned to Florida under the provisions of Section 220.-15, less the annual exemption allowed by Section 220.14. Section 220.12(1). Section 220.15 provides that adjusted federal income shall be apportioned to the State in accordance with Part IV of Ch. 214, as the apportionment fraction described in Section 214.71 is modified in Section 220.15(4).

Part IV of Chapter 214 sets forth the methods of determining the extent of the taxpayer’s tax base attributable to Florida. Section 214.71, as modified by Section 220.-15, sets forth the general method of apportionment except as otherwise provided in Sections 214.72 and 214.73, and includes a three-factor formula.

The three factors are (1) property, (2) payroll, and (3) sales. Each of these factors is determined by dividing the property (payroll or sales) of the taxpayer owned, located or used in Florida by the taxpayer’s property (payroll or sales) owned, located or used elsewhere. Property and payroll factors are then multiplied by 25 percent, the sales factor is multiplied by 50 percent, and the sum of the three is the apportionment factor. The apportionment factor is, in turn, multiplied by the taxpayer’s adjusted federal income to yield the taxpayer’s tax base, or net income for the taxable year. The amount of tax liability is 5 percent of the net income for the taxable year less the $5,000 exemption provided by Section 220.-14.

Fla.Admin.Code Rule 12C — 1.15(4), which implements Section 214.71, provides in pertinent part:

“(4) General Method
(a) Taxpayers who have income from sources within and without Florida are taxable upon the adjusted federal income apportioned to Florida in accordance with Part IV of Chapter 214, F.S.
Where the Florida activities are a part of a unitary business carried on within and without Florida, the portion of the taxpayer’s income subject to tax in Florida will generally be determined by a three-factor formula of property, payroll and sales.
The activities of the taxpayer will generally be considered a unitary business if the segments under consideration are integrated with, dependent upon, or contribute to each other and the operations of the taxpayer as a whole, although the facts of each case will be the major determinant. A strong presumption of a unitary business is created by the presence of any of the following factors:
1. Same type of business.
[378]*3782.

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Related

Stan Musial & Biggie's, Inc. v. State, Department of Revenue
402 So. 2d 1330 (District Court of Appeal of Florida, 1981)
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393 N.E.2d 330 (Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, 1979)

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Bluebook (online)
363 So. 2d 375, 1978 Fla. App. LEXIS 16789, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/stan-musial-biggies-inc-v-state-department-of-revenue-fladistctapp-1978.