Just audited a county government complex in Tallahassee — 4 buildings, 6 meters. Every single meter was being charged state sales tax. Counties are exempt from Florida sales tax under 212.08(6). The county had never filed exemption certificates with the utility because the facilities director assumed government entities were automatically exempt. Wrong — in Florida you have to file a DR-14 form with the utility. Total refund across all meters was $28,500 going back 3 years.
Government buildings paying sales tax — happens more than you think
I see this constantly in Alabama. Municipal buildings, county offices, school board properties — they all assume they are automatically exempt. Alabama Power requires a specific exemption letter on file. I have a whole sub-practice built around auditing government accounts. The refunds are not huge per meter but when you have a county with 30-40 meters it adds up fast.
Same deal in Louisiana with CLECO and Entergy accounts. Government entities need to provide a resale or exemption certificate and most of them never bother. The accounts payable people just pay whatever comes in. I audited the Caddo Parish school system and found sales tax charges on 17 of 22 meters. Combined refund was $41K.
Randy is right about the procurement issue. Leon County made me go through their vendor registration process which took about 3 weeks. But once you are in the system it is easy to get additional work. The facilities director referred me to two neighboring counties.