Another rehearing denied, this involves beach tax case

The First District Court of Appeals released a ruling Wednesday rejecting an attempt by the Escambia County Property Appraiser Chris Jones and Tax Collector Janet Holley to rehear a case holding that land at Pensacola Beach is owned by Escambia County, and thus is not subject to ad valorem taxation.

Jones and Holley had asked a three-judge panel rehear reconsider their its unanimous opinion that it was improper to tax leased land at Pensacola Beach as if it were owned by the tenants. In the alternative, Jones and Holley asked that the issue be certified to the Florida Supreme Court as an issue of great public importance. Both requests were summarily denied.

They also asked that if the three-judge panel denied rehearing, that the matter be heard “en banc,” – but by all 15 judges of the First District Court of Appeal. That Motion also was denied in the ruling released Wednesday.

Ed Fleming and Todd Harris, attorneys for Island Resorts, said Wednesday that they were pleased by the First District Court of Appeals rulings.

“The First District’s ruling was well founded in law and fact, and no basis was shown for rehearing the case,” Fleming said.

Jones and Holley will have 10 days to petition the Florida Supreme Court to review the decision, Harris said, adding that there is a very limited basis for high court review.

“We do not believe there to be see any reason for the Florida Supreme Court to grant discretionary review,” Harris said. “The First District’s opinion is consistent with the legal analysis applied by the Florida Supreme Court in the recent decision of Accardo v. Brown. There is no conflict.”

Fleming said the ruling in the Island Resorts case constitutes controlling law as to taxation of leasehold interests at Pensacola Beach, and will have broad application to thousands of leases at Pensacola Beach. As a result of a different title history, Fleming said, most of the leases at Navarre Beach do not qualify as true leases under Florida law, as they are leases in perpetuity.

Fleming said the ruling in the Island Resorts case constitutes controlling law as to taxation of leasehold interests at Pensacola Beach and will have broad application to thousands of leases at Pensacola Beach. As a result of a different title history, Fleming said, all of the leases on Navarre Beach flow from the same perpetual master lease.

“A lease without an end is treated as a conveyance,” Fleming said. “That is the distinction recognized by the Florida Supreme Court and is the distinction that controlled in the Island Resorts case.”