For Immediate Release: Wednesday, February 8, 2023

Contact: Office of Communications, Communications@MyFloridaCFO.com, 850.413.2842

CFO Jimmy Patronis: Biden’s ‘Tip Tax’ is a Disgrace

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Today, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Jimmy Patronis issued a statement following the IRS’s announcement of a new tip reporting program proposal between the IRS and employers in the service industries. The IRS proposed the new revenue procedure this week to target tips earned by service industry employees.

CFO Jimmy Patronis said, “Biden’s ridiculous new tip tax is a disgrace and puts a bullseye on the backs of hard-working service industry professionals who base their living off of the tips they receive for their great work. The Biden Administration said they were only going after billionaires with these 87,000 new IRS agents, but last time I checked, Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk don’t get paid in tips. No, this new proposal will go after the waiters, waitresses, hostesses and service professionals at your local restaurant or coffee shop that keep our small businesses running and work their tails off every day. I’ve spent my entire life in the restaurant industry, and these men and women work long hours to put food on the table for their patrons and their families, but these heartless bureaucrats in Washington are trying to shake them down. Just more proof that DC is full of a bunch of teenagers who just can’t put the credit card down and the only way they can pay for the government’s garbage items is by shaking down poor and middle-class Americans. Florida is fighting back against IRS overreach and it is my top priority to protect our small businesses and service industries to keep our economy open and Keep Florida Free.”

CFO Patronis is working with lawmakers ahead of the 2023 Florida Legislative Session to fight back against the IRS, which is expected to grow by 87,000 personnel through an $80 billion appropriation of taxpayer money from the Inflation Reduction Act that President Biden signed into law last August. Senate Bill 372 and House Bill 507 were filed recently in association with the CFO’s Four Pillars of IRS Protection to establish protections in Florida law and empower families and small businesses to defend themselves from targeting by the IRS.

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About CFO Jimmy Patronis  
Chief Financial Officer and State Fire Marshal Jimmy Patronis is a statewide elected official and a member of Florida’s Cabinet who oversees the Department of Financial Services. CFO Patronis works each day to fight insurance fraud, support Florida’s firefighters, and ensure the state’s finances are stable to support economic growth in the state. Follow the activities of the Department on Facebook (FLDFS) and Twitter (@FLDFS).