Florida Administrative Code
12 - DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE
12D - Property Tax Oversight Program
Chapter 12D-17 - TRUTH IN MILLAGE ("TRIM") COMPLIANCE
Section 12D-17.002 - Definitions

(a) "Adjacent to, " when used in reference to newspaper advertisements, means next to, touching or contiguous either at the sides or at the corners. This term includes advertisements placed adjacent either on the same page or adjoining pages with a crease separating them, so that the advertisements may be seen to be adjacent with the newspaper laid open upon a flat surface. The term shall not include advertisements placed on opposite sides of the same page with the edge of a page separating them.

(b) "Certification date" means the date of certification by the property appraiser to each taxing authority within the county of the taxable value within each taxing authority on Form DR-420 or Form DR-420S, or July 1, whichever is later. The certification date shall be day 1, the day from which other significant dates regarding TRIM compliance are calculated.

(c) "Current year millage" means the millage for current year operating purposes exclusive of debt service and other voted millage, and inclusive of surplus debt service used for operations and maintenance.

(d) "Debt service millage" means millage revenues to be allocated to debt service and not operating purposes.

(e) "Final millage" or "finally adopted millage" means the millage adopted by a taxing authority pursuant to Section 200.065(2)(d), F.S.

(f) "Final budget" means the budget adopted by a taxing authority pursuant to Section 200.065(2)(d), F.S.

(g) "Filing, " "filed, " or "file" means mailing and postmark or actual delivery to the following address:

Mailing or Overnight Delivery

Department of Revenue Department of Revenue

TRIM Compliance TRIM Compliance

Post Office Box 3000 2450 Shumard Oak Boulevard, Room 2-3200

Tallahassee, Florida 32315-3000 Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0126

(850)617-8919

(h) "Operating expenditures" means all moneys of the taxing authority, including dependent special districts, which were or could be either expended during the applicable fiscal year, or retained as a balance for future spending in the fiscal year. The term shall not include those moneys held in or used in trust, agency, or internal service funds, or expenditures of bond proceeds for capital outlay or for advanced refunded debt principal.

(i) "Operating millage" means millage revenues to be allocated to operating expenditures and not debt service purposes or other voted millage.

(j) "Proof of publication" means proof, provided by a newspaper in the form provided in Sections 50.041 and 50.051, F.S., showing the dates that the information or notice was published.

(k) "Proposed millage" means the millage considered by a taxing authority pursuant to Sections 200.065(2)(a)1. and (2)(b), F.S., to fulfill the tentative budget.

(l) "Rolled-back rate" means that millage rate which, exclusive of new construction, additions to structures, deletions, rehabilitative improvements increasing assessed value of the improvements by at least 100 percent, and property added due to geographic boundary changes, will provide the same ad valorem tax revenue for each taxing authority as was levied during the prior year. "Rehabilitative improvements" are any improvements which rebuild, renovate, or replace a structure.

(m) "Taxable value" means the taxable value of all property subject to taxation by the taxing authority.

(n) "Taxing authority" includes, but is not limited to, any county, municipality, authority, special district as defined in Section 165.031(5), F.S., or other public body of the state, any school district, library district, neighborhood improvement district created pursuant to the Safe Neighborhoods Act, metropolitan transportation authority, municipal service taxing or benefit unit (MSTU or MSBU), or water management district created under Section 373.069, F.S.

(o) "Tentative budget" means the budget used to determine the proposed millage for placement on the TRIM notice, and the budget adopted pursuant to Section 200.065(2)(c), F.S.

(p) "Tentative millage, " "recomputed proposed millage, " or "tentatively adopted millage" means the millage adopted at the tentative millage and budget hearing pursuant to Section 200.065(2)(c), F.S. It also includes proposed millage referred to in Section 129.03(3)(b), F.S.

(q) "TRIM notice" means the Notice of Proposed Property Taxes, Form DR-474, required by Sections 200.069 and 200.065(2)(b), F.S., to be mailed by a property appraiser within 55 days of the certification date.

(r) "Unit of local government" means a county or municipal government, but shall not include any special districts as defined by Section 165.031(5) or Chapters 189 and 218, F.S.