NO NEW TAXES – BUT NEW FEES

Florida lawmakers approved numerous new fees this year but not new taxes. Still, landlords will now pay $265 to file eviction actions against tenants, marking a 400-percent jump from $75. Florida Association of Realtors lobbyist Trey Price says the group opposes the dramatic increase, noting that renters will pay the price in the end. “The landlords will have to take into consideration the inevitable bad tenant when they’re looking at their rents,” Price says. “It has to be factored in and spread out over everyone else.” However, Senate Criminal and Civil Justice Appropriations Committee Chairman Victor Crist (R-Tampa) says the increases in various legal fees were necessary to meet higher demand for court services. “And the fee hasn’t increased in about 20 years,” Price adds, “including 2003’s Article 5 that raised most other court fees.”

Source: Sarasota Herald-Tribune (FL) (05/01/08) Dunkelberger, Lloyd
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