Public Service Taxes are levied and collected under
F.S. 166.231, and Chapters
790 and
792 of the City of Jacksonville Municipal Ordinance Code, as amended and supplemented for the sale of electricity, water, gas and fuel/oil.
The public service tax, also known as the municipal utility tax or ‘fuel tax’, is levied on the purchase of public services and paid by the ultimate consumer of the service.
- This is not a tax on the seller of the service.
- It is to be paid by, and collected from, the purchaser at the time of the sale of taxable services within the City of Jacksonville.
- The seller is responsible for the collection of taxes due on taxable services, regardless of whether the seller collected the tax from the purchaser or not.
All sellers of municipal utilities or fuel/oil are responsible for collecting the PST at the time of sale on all taxable services. The sellers are responsible for filing and remitting the collected taxes and returns to the Duval County Tax Collector (DCTC) every month.
A return must be filed every month, even when no taxes are collected, in order to avoid a failure to file penalty.
The taxes are due on the first of the month following the collection period and become delinquent if not postmarked or transmitted by the 20th of that month.
(e.g., A January tax return is due February 1st and delinquent February 21st)
If the 20th falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or a recognized federal/state holiday, returns will be accepted as timely if postmarked or transmitted on the next business day.
The following rates apply:
- Electricity 10%
- Metered or bottled gas 10%
- Water 10%
- Fuel oil, $0.04/gallon (as defined in Sec. 792.101)
Sales on the above utilities and fuel/oil within the municipalities of Jacksonville Beach, Atlantic Beach, Neptune Beach, and the Town of Baldwin should not be remitted to DCTC but directly to those specific municipalities as applicable.
If the return is filed delinquent or noncompliant, penalties will be assed at the rate of 5% of the tax due for each month delinquent.
- Penalties cannot exceed 25% of the total taxes due (Line 5 or Line 10)
- Penalties cannot be less than $15.00
- Interest is assessed at the rate of 1% of the total taxes due per month delinquent, accrued daily.
- There is no maximum interest amount on delinquent PST returns.
All PST returns are subject to audit by the Duval County Tax Collector’s Office.
A 60-day notice of intent to audit will be provided to the entity prior to audit commencement.
To register for submission, please fill out the
Public Service Tax Application and mail to the address listed below. For a blank Public Service Tax Return, click
here and remit with payment (if applicable) to the following:
Duval County Tax Collector
Attn: Public Service Tax
231 E. Forsyth St., Room 212
Jacksonville, FL 32202
For additional information or clarification please email:
TouristTax@coj.net