STATE OF FLORIDA

DIVISION OF ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS

DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE, )

)

Petitioner, )

)

vs. ) CASE NO. 95-1800

)

PINELLAS REBOS CLUB, INC., )

)

Respondent. )

)

RECOMMENDED ORDER

A hearing was held in this case in St. Petersburg, Florida on November 16, 1995, before Arnold H. Pollock, a Hearing Officer with the Division of Administrative Hearings.

APPEARANCES

For Petitioner: Nancy Francillon, Esquire

Olivia P. Klein, Esquire Department of Legal Affairs The Capitol

Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1050

For Respondent: Carl A. Schuh, Esquire

256 Third Street North

St. Petersburg, Florida 337091 STATEMENT OF THE ISSUES

The issue for consideration in this hearing is whether the Pinellas Rebos Club's tax exempt certificate should be granted or denied because of the matters set forth in the Department of Revenue's Administrative Complaint filed herein on March 15, 1995.

PRELIMINARY MATTERS

By Administrative Complaint dated March 15, 1995, David K. Sands, Agency Official for the Department of Revenue, indicated the Department's intention to revoke the Pinellas Rebos Club's Consumer Certificate of Exemption because the Club allegedly did not meet the agency's criteria for issuance of such a certificate in that it was not a charitable institution as defined in Section 212.08(7), Florida Statutes. Respondent requested formal hearing on the agency's proposed action and this hearing ensued.

At the hearing, Petitioner presented the testimony of David K. Sands, a Revenue Specialist Supervisor and formerly a Revenue Examiner II in the Consumer Exemptions subsection of the Department of Revenue; and Michael Clark, an Investigation Manager I with the Department's Tampa Investigations Unit. It also introduced Petitioner's Exhibits 1 and 3. Petitioner's Exhibit 2 was

identified but not admitted. Respondent presented the testimony of John Halligan, Chairman of the Board of Pinellas Rebos Club, Inc.; Dr. Eugene Crone, Director of Addiction Services at the National Mental Health Institute of Deafness and formerly Director of Addiction Services at Horizon Hospital in Clearwater for 17 years and an expert in the field of alcoholic abuse and rehabilitation; Nancy Hamilton, Vice President of Women, Children and Juvenile Services for Operation PAR in Tarpon Springs; and Loline Murphy, Treasurer of the Pinellas Rebos Club, Inc. It also introduced Respondent's Exhibits 1 and 2. The parties together introduced Joint Exhibits 1 through 6.

A transcript of the proceedings was furnished. Prior to the date Proposed Findings of Fact were due to the Hearing Officer, counsel for the Department filed an Agreed Motion To Extend Time to File Proposed Recommended Order.

Thereafter, both counsel submitted Proposed Findings of Fact which have been ruled upon in the Appendix to this Recommended Order. Respondent's Proposed Findings of Fact were not numbered by paragraph but were numbered by the Hearing Officer for rulings.

FINDINGS OF FACT

1. At all times pertinent to the issues herein, the Department of Revenue, (Department), was the state agency in Florida responsible for the collection of sales tax on all non-exempt sales transactions taking place in this state. The Pinellas Rebos Club, Inc., (Club), is a private association located in St. Petersburg, Florida, which held a Consumer's Certificate of Exemption which exempted it from the payment of Florida sales tax on items purchased in this state for club use. It is also recognized as exempt from Federal income taxation as a charity by the Internal Revenue Service.

   
   

2. The Club was chartered in the State of Florida in 1979 and operates out of the facility owned by it located at the intersection of 54th Avenue and 66th Street in St. Petersburg. It operates a coffee bar and several social rooms, one of which holds a pool table, and also has a meeting room and several small storage areas. It currently holds a charitable property tax exemption on the Club property issued by Pinellas County and carries liability insurance in the Club name. The name REBOS is "sober" spelled backwards. The club initiation fee is $10.00 and the monthly dues are $6.00. The club has approximately 220 members.

   
   

3. The Club's facility is open from 9:00 AM to 11:00 PM every day of the year and its primary purpose is to help people stay sober. It is open to anyone who has a desire to stay sober. The Club's services are not restricted to its dues-paying members, but to be a member, one must pay monthly dues. Club management tries to create a sober environment so that those with an alcohol problem may "learn to think soberly." It offers individuals an opportunity to be around sober people in a sober social and support group, and it supports the program of Alcohol Anonymous, (AA). Alcohol is prohibited on the Club premises. Rebos does not, itself, conduct formal counseling sessions or conduct classes, nor does it control or support the local AA or other groups using its facility with funding.

   
   

4. Activities conducted at the Club include meetings of individual AA groups, social activities such as dances and get-togethers, and conversation and a sharing of experiences. Transportation to detoxification and rehabilitation centers is also provided. The Club's coffee bar is manned by a paid employee, one of 7 individuals who are on the Club's payroll. All of the Club's employees are in recovery from alcoholism. Mr. Halligan, the Club's Chairman of the

   Board, held a paid job at the Club at one time and found that it helped his self-esteem.

   
   

5. The Club also operates a "hot line" 14 hours per day which provides addicts an opportunity to talk to someone who understands their situation and to receive help as necessary. This "hot-line" is not controlled by the Rebos Club but is staffed on a volunteer basis by Club members. According to Mr. Halligan, this has helped recovering addicts stay sober. The calls made within the program are known as "12th step" calls. The AA program is operated in a series of steps recovery. The 12th step is defined as helping yourself while helping someone else.

   
   

6. Staying sober is the basis of all classic alcoholic rehabilitation. The Pinellas Rebos Club supports that concept in that it gives alcoholics an alternative way of spending time than drinking. As was indicated, several AA

   groups meet at the club facility per week. These groups take up a collection at each meeting and thereafter contribute what they can to the Club. If, however, the group is unable to make any donation, they are not denied permission to meet in the Club facility. In August 1995, income from the use of meeting rooms amounted to approximately $1,200.

   
   

7. In addition to the organized AA meetings the Club offers non-drinking fellowship to anyone needing it - a place to go where the addict can do things without drinking. Many individuals come to the Club who are new to the area or who just want to go somewhere where others are not drinking or talking about drinking.

   
   

8. The Club does not advertise in the papers or through other media nor is its telephone number listed in the phone book under Pinellas Rebos Club or Rebos Club. Individuals are referred by the AA hot-line, by word of mouth, and by referral from recognized treatment centers. Many of the people who use the Club's services are not members, yet they are served without the charge of any fee. Rebos Club members are encouraged to participate in AA sponsorship and 12th step work.

   
   

9. The dances mentioned previously are held once a week in conjunction with a pot luck free dinner, all of which are open to the public. A small admission fee is charged for the dances, but that fee is waived in the event the individual cannot pay. Mostly non-members attend these dances to which some treatment facilities send their clients to show that one can have fun while sober. The treatment facility attendees are normally admitted without charge. These dances have been found to help and are considered an important Club function. In addition, the Club sponsors meetings every hour on holiday times which are the most difficult for alcoholics. These meetings are without charge. The Club members are all non-drinkers.

   
   

10. Approximately 10 agencies in the area send clients to the Club, including Suncoast and other hospitals, the Salvation Army, the Mustard Seed and PAR. The majority of these individuals are provided Club services without charge. All the money which comes into the Club coffers is spent on providing services. The loss of the sales tax exemption and the resultant need to pay the sales tax on purchases would, in John Halligan, the Club Chairman's opinion, have a serious effect on the operation.

    
    

11. Dr. Eugene Crome, himself a recovering alcoholic, and an expert in the field of alcohol abuse and rehabilitation, described AA as a lifetime fellowship of autonomous individuals, all alcoholics. According to Dr. Crone, alcoholism

    is a disease for which there is no cure. It can only be arrested. Dr. Crone owes his sobriety to a club where, at one point, he practically lived, night and day, bonding with other sober people in a sober environment. That facility was much like the Pinellas Rebos Club.

    
    

12. While addicts were enrolled in the rehabilitation programs run by Dr. Crone, they were required to go to the Rebos Club three times a week to have their socialization in a sober environment outside AA. AA is used as a method of rehabilitation outside the medical environment. An AA sponsor is available to addicts 24 hours per day and is the basic support system. The ability to internet and bond with other sober, recovering alcoholics is important, and Rebos Club gives those who have no place else to go a safe and sober environment. The fact that the Rebos Club does not have formalized counselors is, to him, irrelevant. Rebos stands in loco familias to many addicts and provides a rehabilitative benefit.

    
    

13. Isolation is not good for an alcoholic. Merely being sober is not enough. The addict must have interrelationships with other sober people to help get through the next minute, the next hour and the next day. The Rebos Club was an integral part of Crowe's rehabilitation program when he was at Horizon Hospital. It is not just a building. It is more than just a place to hold AA meetings. It is a way of life, as he sees it. It has a good reputation in the rehabilitation community. It is an institution which facilitates detoxification. Many people who need detoxification go to the Rebos Club and are then picked up there and taken for treatment.

    
    

14. Much the same was the position taken by Nancy Hamilton, the Vice- President of a comprehensive day treatment program which deals with alcoholics. Ms. Hamilton has been familiar with the Rebos Club's program for more than 18 years. Her office is located next door to the Club and she is familiar with the way it operates. She considers it to be an important link in the recovery process and not only refers clients to the Rebos Club but also takes them there. She sees the Club as providing the lifelong relationships necessary to recovery and the necessary supportive environment, not just a formal treatment program, and she considers it an extremely important resource for rehabilitation.

    
    

15. Ms. Murphy, a member of the Rebos Club since its inception and the organization's Treasurer, indicated that none of the Club's income is spent on anything other than the Club operation providing a support function to recovering alcoholics. The loss of the tax exemption, in her opinion, would have an adverse impact on the Club's ability to perform its function.

    
    

16. The Club's income is derived from membership dues, fees for the use of club facilities, donations and dances. Membership income was approximately

    $17,600 in 1990; $15,600 in 1991, $14,900 in 1992 and $14,700 in 1993. Income from sales and room donations was approximately $87,500 in 1990; $83,140 in 1991; $87,146 in 1992 and $95,775 in 1993.

    
    

17. On the other hand, Club expenses in 1993 consisted primarily of cost of goods sold in the snack bar, $10,040; cost of goods sold in vending machines,

$6,585; salaries, $33,445; general expense, $3,300; insurance, $4,940; mortgage interest, $7,465; mortgage principal; $1,897; maintenance, $2,225; taxes and licenses, $7,920; utilities, $10,780 and petty cash disbursements of $7,099. In 1994, the expense figures were basically comparable.

18 Mr. Sands, the Department's Revenue Specialist Supervisor, reviewed and acted on the Club's re-application for consumer exemption. Over the years, he

has processed between 9,000 and 10,000 of them. When he received the Club's application, he initially decided to deny it because, he concluded, the Club did not provide all of the charitable services defined by the Department's rule, and also because it did not meet the sole primary function test. When he reviewed the documents later submitted by the Club in response to discovery, he found nothing therein which would cause him to change his mind. It was then that the Intent to Revoke was issued.

1. Mr. Clark, the Department's investigation manager for the past 9 years, has attended 12 step meetings and regular AA meetings for approximately 5 years. At the meetings he has attended, the 12 step booklet is given out and the meeting is basically a sharing of experiences by members. A collection is taken and the meeting is then adjourned. A social may follow.

   
   

2. One becomes a member of AA because of a desire to become sober. Then one finds a group and attends the group's meetings. Alcoholics are referred to various groups by hot-line, by listings in the telephone book, by advertisements in the media, and by other like sources. Help to the alcoholic comes from the dynamics of the group. The sharing of experiences reveals the common bond between people trying to recover and stay sober. Therapy is separate and different. Meetings are held in various places such as churches, clubs like the Rebos Club, and in members' homes.

   
   

3. At the request of the Department, Mr. Clark reviewed the Club's Answer to the Administrative Complaint and the Request for Hearing, and he investigated the claims contained therein. He went to the Club's facility on 54th Avenue the first time about 2:00 in the afternoon. While there he saw soft drink vending machines and tables, a television set, a ball room with tables, and an attended snack bar with food and drink for sale. Several people were there watching television and eating, and the atmosphere appeared to him to be much like that of a social club. No one approached him, offered him help, or did anything else in his support. He saw no signs advertising counseling services or for a hot- line.

   
   

4. Mr. Clark went back on a subsequent Friday evening. On that visit he saw a lot of people, mainly young, who appeared to be attending a meeting. He and his fiance attended a dance at the club the next night. Admission was $5.00 for non-members and $3.00 for members. He and his date stayed for 45 minutes and then, due to the smoke, left. Before leaving he bought a lemonade at the snack bar and watched some people playing pool.

   
   

5. Several day later, Mr. Clark went back to the Club for an AA meeting. When he got there he was welcomed by someone who did not identify himself. During the meeting no counseling on alcohol was given by anyone from the Club nor did anyone from the Club give out any information about its services.

   
   

   CONCLUSIONS OF LAW

   
   

6. The Division of Administrative Hearings has jurisdiction over the parties and the subject matter in this case. Section 120.57(1), Florida Statutes.

   
   

7. The Department of Revenue has declined to reissue the Rebos Club's exemption from state sales tax on the basis that the organization does not have an exclusive charitable purpose which falls within one of the seven categories outlined in Section 212.08(7)(o)2.b., Florida Statutes.

8. To demonstrate it is entitled to a sales tax exemption certificate, the Pinellas Rebos Club must demonstrate that it meets all the criteria of one of the definitions listed in Section 212.08(7)(o)2.b., supra, Since in the instant case, the Rebos Club claims its exemption as a charitable institution, it must show that it is a nonprofit entity whose sole or primary purpose is either to provide one of the seven services listed in the statute and described below, or to provide funds to other organizations which provide one of the seven services.

   
   

9. Section 212.08(7), Florida Statutes, defines "charitable institutions"

   as:

   
   

   ... only nonprofit corporations qualified as nonprofit pursuant to s. 501(c)(3), United States Internal Revenue Code, 1954, as amended, and any other nonprofit entities, the sole or primary function of which is to provide, or to raise funds for organizations which provide, one or more of the following services if a reasonable percentage of such service is provided free of charge, or at a substantially reduced cost, to persons, animals, or organiza- tions that are unable to pay for such services:

   * * *

   (III) Services for the prevention of or rehabilitation of persons from alcoholism or drug abuse; the prevention of suicide; or the alleviation of mental, physical, or sensory health problems;

   
   

10. Rule 12A-1.001(3)(g), F.A.C. provides, with respect to the term "sole

    or primary function":

    
    

    1. charitable organization, excluding hospitals, must establish and support its function as providing or raising funds for services as outlined in subparagraphs 1 and

       2 above, by expending in excess of 50 percent of the charitable organization's expenditures towards referenced charitable concerns, within

       the charitable organization's most recent fiscal year.

       
       

11. Within the parameters of that definition, the charitable organization must show that more than 50 percent of its total expenditure is used to directly provide the statutory service described above, or donated to other charitable organizations that directly provide that service.

    
    

12. Section 212.08(7)(o)2.b., Florida Statutes, in relevant part, provides that Section 212.08(7)(o)2.b. is to be "strictly defined, limited, and applied in each category." The law is well settled that tax exemptions are strictly construed against taxpayers and in favor of the state. State, Department of Revenue v. Anderson, 402 So.2d 397, 399 (Fla. 1981); Asphalt Pavers, Inc. v. Department of Revenue, 584 So.2d 55. 57 (Fla. 1st DCA 1991). Therefore, Pinellas Rebos Club has the burden to show, by a preponderance of the evidence, that it is entitled to the sales tax exemption.

13. The Pinellas Rebos Club is qualified as a nonprofit organization pursuant to s. 501(c)(3) United States Internal Revenue Code. The question remaining for determination, then, is whether it has as its sole or primary function one of the seven classifications defined by statute at 212.08(7)(o)2.b., Florida Statutes, and whether it meets all the criteria outlined in one of those definitions. Gainesville Amateur Radio Society, Inc. v. DOR, DOAH Case 94-1200.

    
    

14. The Rebos Club does not provide counseling services to alcoholics or their families, nor does it have its telephone number listed in the phone book for that purpose. It does not offer seminars, classes or active intervention. The Rebos Club does not donate all or a major part of its funds in direct support of recognized activities. Yet, the evidence is clear that the funds raised from dues, meeting fees, fund raisers and sales of food and drink, are used, almost exclusively, to meet the operational expenses of the organization. Without the expenditure of these funds, the facility, so frequently used by recognized alcohol rehabilitative and treatment organizations as an adjunct to their activities, would not exist.

    
    

15. The Pinellas Rebos Club offers a wholesome, alcohol-free place for members and non-members to meet and participate in activities in which alcohol is not involved. Though these activities may not be varied or advertised as free, the fact remains that they exist as an alternative to drinking. The Club provides a place where alcoholics may go to talk with people who are not drinking, and if the participant cannot pay to participate he or she need not do so. The organizations which use the Club premises for meetings pay, when and what they can, for the use if the facilities. If a group cannot pay, it is not turned away.

    
    

16. The evidence of record establishes that though the Pinellas Rebos Club does not provide the direct services required, and though it does not spend more than 50 percent of its expenditures directly toward referenced charitable concerns, the Club's operation is in direct support of alcohol rehabilitation activity, and were it not for the expenditure of Club funds to operate, it would not exist as the non-alcoholic alternative to the alcoholic which all the experts who testified herein indicated is so necessary to the alcoholic's recovery and continued sobriety.

    
    

17. The Department's legal citations to the effect that an agency's interpretations of statutes pertaining to it is entitled to great weight is an accurate statment of the law but one which is applied in appellate situations. In this case, the issue is one of the formulation of agency position, not whether the agency position is correct.

    
    

18. It is clear that the agency seeks to apply too strict an interpretation for the requirements of the statute. A more reasonable approach, and that taken here, is that since the sole function of the Club is in support of alcohol rehabilitation, the expenditures of more than 50 percent of the Club's income on Club operation is an exclusive charitable purpose falling within the provisions of Section 212.08(7)(o)2.b.III, Florida Statutes, and the exemption sought should be granted.

RECOMMENDATION

Based on the foregoing Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, it is, therefore:

RECOMMENDED that the Pinellas Rebos Club's application for reissue of a sales tax exemption certificate be granted.

RECOMMENDED this 8th day of February, 1996, in Tallahassee, Florida.

ARNOLD H. POLLOCK, Hearing Officer Division of Administrative Hearings The DeSoto Building

1230 Apalachee Parkway

Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1550

(904) 488-9675

Filed with the Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings this 8th day of February, 1996.

APPENDIX TO RECOMMENDED ORDER IN CASE NO. 95-1800

The following constitutes my specific rulings pursuant to Section 120.59(2), Florida Statutes, on all of the Proposed Findings of Fact submitted by the parties to this case.

FOR THE PETITIONER:

1. Accepted and incorporated herein.

2. Accepted.

3. - 8. Accepted and incorporated herein.

1. Accepted.

2. - 12. Accepted and incorporated herein.

14. - 17. Accepted and incorporated herein.

18. - 22. Accepted and incorporated herein.

1. First clause rejected. Balance accepted.

2. Accepted and incorporated herein.

3. - 28. Accepted and incorporated herein.

1. Accepted and incorporated herein.

2. Not a proper Finding of Fact. More a statement of agency rule interpretation.

FOR THE RESPONDENT:

1. Accepted and incorporated but also a statement of the law.

2. & 3. Accepted and incorporated herein.

1. Not a proper Finding of fact but more a comment on the nature of the evidence.

2. Accepted and incorporated herein.

3. & 7. Accepted and incorporated herein.

1. Accepted but not of major evidentiary import.

2. & 10. Accepted and incorporated herein.

1. Accepted and incorporated herein.

2. & 13. Accepted and incorporated herein.

14. & 15. Accepted.

COPIES FURNISHED:

Nancy Francillon, Esquire Olivia P. Klein, Esquire Office of the Attorney General The Capitol - Tax Section

Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1050

Carl A. Schuh, Esquire

256 3rd Street North

St. Petersburg, Florida 33701

Larry Fuchs Executive Director

Department of Revenue

104 Carlton Building Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0100

Linda Lettera General Counsel

Department of Revenue

204 Carlton Building Tallahassee, Florida 32399-0100

NOTICE OF RIGHT TO SUBMIT EXCEPTIONS

All parties have the right to submit written exceptions to this Recommended Order. All agencies allow each party at least 10 days in which to submit written exceptions. Some agencies allow a larger period within which to submit written exceptions. You should consult with the agency which will issue the Final Order in this case concerning its rules on the deadline for filing exceptions to this Recommended Order. Any exceptions to this Recommended Order should be filed with the agency which will issue the Final Order in this case.

================================================================= AGENCY FINAL ORDER

=================================================================

STATE OF FLORIDA, DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA

DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE

Petitioner,

Case No. 95-1800

vs. DOR 96-9-FOF

PINELLAS REBOS CLUB, INC.

Respondent.

/

FINAL ORDER

This cause came on before the Department of Revenue for the purpose of issuing a final order. The hearing officer assigned by the Division of Administrative Hearings heard this cause and issued a Recommended Order. A copy of the Recommended Order is attached to this Final Order. Respondent timely filed exceptions to the Recommended Order, copies of which are attached hereto. In accordance with Rule 12-3.009, F.A.C., rulings on these exceptions are set forth below. The Department has jurisdiction of this cause.

STATEMENT OF THE ISSUES

The Department adopts and incorporates in this Final Order the Statement of Issues contained in the Recommended Order.

PRELIMINARY MATTERS

The Department adopts and incorporates by reference the Hearing Officer's statement as to Preliminary Matters of the Recommended Order as if fully set forth herein.

FINDINGS OF FACT

1. through 17. Findings of Fact 1. through 17. set forth in the Recommended Order are adopted and are specifically incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.

1. Finding of Fact Number 18 is adopted except for the portion which states that Mr. Sands testified that he denied Rebos Club's application for exemption on the grounds that Rebos Club did not provide all of the charitable services defined by the Department's rule. This portion is not supported by competent substantial evidence. Mr. Sands testified Rebos Club did not provide any of the charitable services defined by statute. (Transcript, Pages 31 and 32)

   
   

2. through 23. Findings of Fact 19. through 23. set forth in the Recommended Order are adopted and are specifically incorporated by reference as if fully set forth herein.

CONCLUSIONS OF LAW

24. through 31. The Department hereby adopts and incorporates by reference the conclusions of law set forth in paragraphs 24 through 31, Conclusions of Law of the Recommended Order. The remaining Conclusions of Law in the Recommended Order are rejected and modified to read as follows:

1. The Rebos Club does not provide formal counseling services to alcoholics or their families, nor does it have its telephone number listed in the phone book for that purpose. It does not offer seminars or classes. The Rebos Club does not donate all or a major part of its funds in direct support of organizations which provide statutorily-specified charitable services. However, each and every one of its activities are specifically targeted towards helping people, both members and non-members, stay sober. Its sole purpose is to create a social environment and to facilitate support activities which contribute to the alcoholic's recovery and continued sobriety. Since the activities of Rebos Club are specifically directed to assist in the rehabilitation of recovering alcoholics, Rebos Club provides a statutorily-specified service.

2. In order to qualify as a charitable institution, in addition to providing a statutorily-specified service, Rebos Club needs to show that in excess of 50 percent of its total expenditures is used: (a) in the direct provision of one or more of the statutory services or (b) by being donated to other charitable institutions that directly provide one or more of the statutory services. See David Ben Gurion Culture Club, Inc. v. Department of Revenue, DOAH Case No. 94-1741 (Final Order entered February 23, 1996).

   
   

3. The evidence shows that Rebos Club is a nonprofit entity which expends all of its funds on creating a support environment which specifically targets recovering alcoholics and is an integral part of their rehabilitation. Expert testimony demonstrated that the environment created by Rebos Club, as well as the activities occurring therein, are necessary to the alcoholic's recovery and continued sobriety. Thus, Rebos Club satisfies the "50 percent test."

   
   

4. The evidence demonstrates that Rebos Club meets the third criteria for exemption as a charitable institution, as it provides a reasonable percentage of its services free of charge or at a substantially reduced rate, to persons or organizations unable to pay for its services. If an individual wants to go to Rebos Club to talk with people who are not drinking, but cannot pay to participate, fees are waived. The organizations which use the Club premises for meetings pay, when and what they can, for the use of the facility. If a group cannot pay, it is not turned away.

   
   

5. Since Rebos Club does meet all the criteria for exemption as a charitable institution, Rebos Club has satisfied its burden of demonstrating its entitlement to the requested exemption.

RULINGS ON EXCEPTIONS TO FINDINGS OF FACT

Respondent has submitted two (2) exceptions to the Hearing Officer's Findings of Fact in the Recommended Order. These two exceptions are rejected for the reasons set forth below.

1. Respondent's First Exception-- Finding of Fact No. 5: The Hearing Officer's finding that Rebos Club does not control the hot-line is supported by substantial competent evidence. Testimony indicated that Rebos Club does not provide counseling training to the employees or volunteers that answer the phone. Volunteers or employees handle each call using their own discretion-- they do not follow procedures or guidelines established by Rebos Club. This exception is therefore rejected.

   
   

2. Respondent's Second Exception-- Finding of Fact No. 5: The statement as to the nature of "12th step calls" is not relevant, and is therefore rejected.

RULINGS ON EXCEPTIONS TO CONCLUSIONS OF LAW

Respondent has submitted two (2) exceptions to the Hearing Officer's Conclusions of Law in the Recommended Order. These two exceptions are rejected for the reasons set forth below.

1. Respondent's First Exception-- Conclusion of Law No. 32: The Hearing Officer's findings that Rebos Club itself does not provide counseling services to alcoholics or their families, and that it does not offer active intervention has been revised in this Final Order's modification of the Hearing Officer's Conclusion of Law Number 32. This exception therefore, now is not relevant.

2. Respondent's Second Exception- Conclusion of Law No. 34: The Hearing Officer's findings that Rebos Club does not provide the direct services required by statute and does not spend in excess of 50 percent of its expenditures directly towards a referenced charitable concern has been revised in this Final Order's modification of the Hearing Officer's Conclusion of Law Number 34. This exception is now, therefore, not relevant.

CONCLUSION

Therefore, on review of the record in this matter, it is ORDERED:

That the application of Respondent for renewal of its consumer certificate of exemption be approved, and that Respondent be issued a consumer certificate of exemption as a charitable institution.

ENTERED in Tallahassee, Leon County, Florida this 8th day of May, 1996.

State of Florida DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE

L. H. FUCHS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing FINAL ORDER in DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE v. Pinellas Rebos Club, Inc.,, Case No. 95-1800, has been filed in the official records of the Florida Department of Revenue this 8th day of May, 1996.

COPIES FURNISHED:

Carl A. Shuh, Esquire

256 Third Street North

St. Petersburg, Florida 33701

Arnold Pollock, Hearing Officer Division of Administrative Hearings The DeSoto Building

1230 Apalachee Parkway

Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1550

Nancy Francillon Olivia Klein

Office of the Attorney General The Capitol- Tax Section Tallahassee, Florida 32399-1050

Linda Lettera, General Counsel

Ruth Ann Smith, Assistant General Counsel Department of Revenue

Post Office Box 6668 Tallahassee, Florida 32314-6668

NOTICE OF RIGHT TO JUDICIAL REVIEW

A party who is adversely affected by this final order is entitled to judicial review pursuant to Section 120.68, Florida Statutes. Review proceedings are governed by the Florida Rules of Appellate Procedure. Such proceedings are commenced by filing one copy of a notice of appeal with the Agency Clerk of the Division of Administrative Hearings and a second copy, accompanied by filing fees prescribed by law, with the District Court of Appeal, First District, or with the District Court of Appeal in the appellate District where the party resides. The Notice of appeal must be filed within 30 days of rendition of the order to be reviewed.

Docket for Case No: 95-001800

Orders for Case No: 95-001800