SCTC News Bulletins!

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RENEW YOUR BUSINESS TAX RECEIPT ONLINE!

The office of the Seminole County Tax Collector accepts VISA, MasterCard, Discover and American Express for business owners to renew their Business Tax Receipt online. Click here to visit our online payments section. 

Vehicle and Vessel News

NEW LAWS AIMED AT BOATING SAFETY AND PROTECTING NATURAL RESOURCES ARE IN EFFECT

Any boater born on or after Jan. 1, 1988 will be required to take an approved boating safety course and possess an FWC-issued boating safety identification card. Anyone born on or after Jan. 1, 1988 and purchases a boat will have 90 days from the purchase date to obtain a boating safety identification card.

Laws regarding titling, numbering and registration apply to any vessel operated, used or stored on state waters except vessels lawfully stored at a dock or marina.

To learn more about Florida’s boating requirements, visit MyFWC.com/Boating.

SPECIALTY LICENSE PLATE GIFT CERTIFICATE PROGRAM

On behalf of the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles we are pleased to inform you about an exciting opportunity for your organization as well as for Florida motorists. The Department has authorized the issuance of specialty license plate gift certificates. This new program allows anyone to purchase a specialty license plate as a gift for a motor vehicle registrant.

This gift certificate program works much like any gift certificate. Upon payment of the statutorily authorized annual use fee, a gift certificate may be purchased at an authorized motor vehicle office (e.g., state motor vehicle office, tax collector office, or licensed private tag agency) for any of the specialty license plates currently available in Florida. At the time of purchase, a receipt will be provided and a credit will be issued in the name of the gift recipient, which can then be redeemed by the recipient at the time the specialty license plate is purchased. You do not have to purchase and redeem the certificate at the same office. The gift certificate is not required to be presented to redeem the credit, just proper identification (i.e. Florida driver’s license or ID card). Once a gift certificate is purchased, the money is given to the sponsoring plate entity as specified by Florida Statutes. Therefore, refunds are not available for gift certificates.

Specialty license plates make great gifts, and will provide an opportunity to promote the many causes and organizations represented by the plates. Remember that in Florida, most registrations are renewed on the birth date of the registrant, so these gift certificates can also be a great birthday gift.

NEED YOUR TITLE TODAY?

Just visit any one of our 5 office locations for an original title, title transfer or duplicate title while you wait. There is an additional fee of $10.00 for this special fast service.

If you are not the owner of the vehicle, a Power of Attorney form is required.

Power of Attorney Form 

TWO YEAR REGISTRATION ANNOUNCEMENT

Most Florida residents are able to purchase an extended twenty -four (24) month registration for their vehicles.

The fee is double the regular twelve (12) month fee and non-refundable for any unused portion under any circumstances.

Hunting News

DEER HUNTERS NEED PERMIT FOR SEASON

Anyone hunting deer in season in Florida will now need a deer permit. The permit costs $5 and is available for purchase in any county tax collector office.

Those with a Sportsman’s License, Gold Sportsman’s License, 64 or Older Sportsman’s License, Military Gold Sportsman’s License, Lifetime Hunting License or Lifetime Sportsman’s License do not need to purchase the deer permit, because it is already included in each of these licenses.

However, the deer permit is not included with a hunting license, combination hunting/freshwater fishing license, combination hunting/freshwater/saltwater license or a five-year hunting license. Anyone hunting deer with either of these licenses must also buy the $5 deer permit to hunt deer legally.

Funds generated by this permit fee will be earmarked to support deer management and deer research. Funds also will support ongoing efforts to monitor Florida’s deer herd for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD). The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission approved and follows a “Strategic Plan for Deer Management in Florida: 2008-2018” in February 2008. Critical to success of this plan is establishing deer management units and a harvest-reporting system; both have been identified as top priorities by the state agency and its stakeholders to better manage deer.

People can purchase all permits and related licenses from their county tax collector, retail outlets that sell fishing and hunting supplies, online at www.fl.wildlifelicense.com or by calling toll-free 888-HUNT-FLORIDA (486-8356).

SPORTSMEN

The cost of a turkey permit is $10 for Florida residents and $125 for nonresidents. Florida waterfowl permits are $5.

There are two required saltwater fishing permits. The snook permit is $10, and crawfish (lobster) permits are $5.

All permits are valid during authorized season for one year after the date of purchase.

DOVE CLUB PERMITS

Five special-opportunity dove fields are open to the public during season through the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s special-opportunity Dove Club Program.

Sportsmen can purchase Dove Club permits by submitting a completed Special-Opportunity Dove Club Permit Worksheet to any county tax collector's office or authorized license agent. Permits also are available online at www.wildlifelicense.com or by calling toll-free 1-888-HUNT-FLORIDA (486-8356). Worksheets are on the Web at MyFWC.com/hunting under “Limited Entry Hunts.”

Dove Club permits are available on a first-come, first-served basis, as long as time slots remain.

The permit allows one adult and one youth (under age 16) to participate in all scheduled hunts (up to eight days) for a designated dove field. These Saturday half-day hunts cost $150 and enable both the permit holder and youth to take daily bag limits of birds.

The five special-opportunity dove fields are:

• Allapattah Flats Wildlife Management Area (WMA) in Martin County
• Caravelle Ranch WMA (Putnam County)
• Combs Farm Public Small-Game Hunting Area (PSGHA) (Baker County)
• Hilochee WMA (Lake County)
• North Newberry PSGHA (Alachua County).

Dove hunting opportunities are in high demand, and these special hunts provide the perfect social setting for friends and family to hunt together. Interested hunters are encouraged to purchase permits early because the most popular fields sell out fast, and hunters who purchase these season-long permits save more than half the cost of buying individual daily dove permits for the season.

Daily dove permits cost $35 and enable one adult and one youth (under age 16) to hunt together on one half-day hunt but allows only one bag limit of birds between the two hunters.

For more information on these great public land dove hunting opportunities, click on MyFWC.com/dove.

RESIDENT MILITARY GOLD SPORTSMAN'S LICENSE

In appreciation of our residents who are serving or have served in the armed forces, the Resident Military Gold Sportsman's License is available for purchase at county tax collector’s offices only. It has the same privileges as the current Resident Gold Sportsman's License, but at a reduced cost.

It may only be purchased by Florida residents who are either active or retired military.This license may not be purchased by military dependents .The Resident Military Gold Sportsman's License is good for one year from the selected start date and will include the following privileges: Hunting, Saltwater and Freshwater Fishing Licenses and Wildlife Management Area, Archery, Crossbow, Muzzleloading Gun, Turkey and Florida Waterfowl, Snook and Crawfish Permits.  The cost is $20.00.

You must provide a valid Florida driver’s license or military orders showing that you are stationed in Florida  as proof of residency and one of the ID cards referenced (white, blue or red) as proof of active or retired status.

Fresh and Saltwater Fishing News 

RED GROUPER, DOLPHIN AND WAHOO RULES NOW IN EFFECT

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) reminds anglers that new rules are now in  effect to manage red grouper, dolphin and Wahoo.The daily recreational bag limit for red grouper now is two fish per person (within the five-fish aggregate  grouper limit) in Gulf of Mexico state waters. This limit also applies in Gulf federal waters. Florida state waters extend nine nautical miles offshore in the gulf, and federal waters extend beyond state waters.

The new limit on recreational red grouper harvest is intended to help rebuild red grouper stocks in the gulf.  The minimum size limit for red grouper remains at 20 inches total length, and the daily recreational bag  limit in Atlantic Ocean state waters is still five fish per person (under the five-grouper aggregate limit).

In addition, new management rules are in place for dolphin and Wahoo. These rules are intended to be consistent with recently implemented regulations for dolphin and Wahoo in Atlantic Ocean federal waters,  which were developed to prevent over-fishing of these species. The FWC has also implemented other  measures to protect dolphin and Wahoo in state waters. 

The new rules:

• Designate dolphin and Wahoo as restricted species.
• Establish a 20-inch fork length minimum size limit for all harvest of dolphin on Florida's Atlantic coast.
• Establish a statewide maximum recreational harvest limit of 60 dolphin per vessel (except 10 dolphin per paying
  passenger on for-hire vessels)
• Establish a statewide daily two-fish recreational bag limit and a 500-pound commercial daily vessel limit for Wahoo.
• Require commercial vessels, harvesting dolphin and Wahoo on the Atlantic coast, to have a federal permit.
• Prohibit the sale of recreationally caught dolphin or Wahoo (except qualified for-hire vessels may sell recreationally 
  harvested dolphin).
• Require all dolphin and Wahoo to be landed in a whole condition.

Other FWC rules that continue to apply for dolphin include prohibiting the commercial harvest and sale  of dolphin less than 20 inches fork length, a 10-fish daily bag limit for recreational harvest of dolphin and  limiting dolphin harvest to hook and line, long lines (outside of state waters) and spearing.

FWC RULES FOR STONE CRAB AND BLUE CRAB

The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) has a series of rules regarding the stone crab and blue crab fisheries.

The new rules prohibit blue crab trapping beyond three miles from shore in the area north and west of the  Suwannee River Sept. 20 - Oct. 4 each year. Commissioners approved the action to prevent use of blue crab traps to target stone crabs prior to the start of the stone crab trap season, which begins Oct. 5.

The rules also prohibit the use of all traps in the stone crab-shrimp trawl seasonal closure areas in Citrus and Hernando counties where stone crab traps are not allowed during certain times each year. These closure areas were originally developed to eliminate conflicts between shrimp and stone crab fishermen in these counties, and the new rule is intended to ensure fishermen will not be able to avoid compliance with area season closures by using trap gear for other fisheries.

Another new rule repeals an obsolete law that limits the number of stone crab traps that fishermen can use from vessels in Citrus, Dixie, Levy and Taylor counties.