LAKE COUNTY, Fla — Months after Action 9 first exposed major convenience store chains charging an extra tax on coffee drinkers, some stores are still charging the tax even though they aren’t supposed to under Florida law.
“The state cheerfully is taking our money, and there’s no repercussion, there’s no answer, there’s no concern,” said Paul Olkowski of Lake County.
But some of the major chains have stopped charging the tax. In November, Action 9 first showed many convenience stores charged sales tax on canned and bottled coffee drinks. The problem is the ready-to-drink coffees are considered a food product and aren’t subject to sales tax, but stores may have been charging the tax for decades.
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Cracking a refreshing can of cold coffee, for Paul Olkowski, it now leaves a sour taste in his mouth.
“Well, you know, I enjoyed them a lot more prior to this happening to me,” Olkowski told Action 9 Consumer Investigator Jeff Deal.
Two years ago, he realized his local Walgreens didn’t charge sales tax on ready-to-drink coffees, but the RaceTrac near Minneola did. He bought two cans for $6 and his receipt showed 42-cents tax.
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Olkowski was confused, and reached out to the Florida Department of Revenue. It eventually sent a letter confirming coffee and coffee substitutes are food products and are therefore exempt from sales tax in Florida.
The state sent Action 9 a letter that lists 44 specific coffee drinks that are not supposed to be taxed at grocery or convenience stores including Paul’s favorite, Starbuck’s Double Shot Coffee.
The list was posted on the Florida Department of Revenue website in December of 2024 to let retailers know. The state told Action 9 the best way to get a refund for the tax they were charged is to go back to the seller, but when Olkowski tried that in 2024, RaceTrac called the Lake County Sheriff’s Office.
On a body camera video, a deputy is heard warning Olkowski, “If you return, you’ll be arrested.”
Olkowski replied, “Awesome, awesome. Thank you.”
The video also showed a store manager admitted to deputies, “If you go to any gas station, we all charge tax on coffee products.”
So, in 2025, Action 9 got to work putting central Florida stores to the test.
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At an Orlando 7 Eleven, they picked up two bottled Frappuccinos. They picked one up at a Cumberland Farms in West Melbourne. Then they bought some cans of Java Monster drinks at a Circle K store in Clermont and a canned vanilla latte at Wawa in Orlando. Every single convenience store they tested charged sales tax on coffee drinks that were listed on the state paperwork as exempt from tax, except RaceTrac which had stopped charging the tax sometime after Paul’s encounter.
“Nobody would believe me, and nobody seemed to care to store level or in the management level,” Olkowski said.
When Action 9 checked again in February 2026, the team found the Wawa stores and 7 Eleven stores they visited no longer charged sales tax on the coffee drinks, but the Circle K stores they checked still charged the tax.
Paul Olkowski said, “Circle K is actually doubling down.”
He said a manager at one of his local Circle K stores got angry and forced him to leave after he called them out for still charging the tax.
Florida law separated coffee drinks from soft drinks, which are taxable, in 1983. That’s more than 40 years ago.
But aside from RaceTrac, none of the convenience stores Action 9 visited last year seemed to know that.
Jeff Deal said, “In over 40 years, it’s got to be a lot of money.” Paul Olkowski replied, “Oh, there’s hundreds of millions of dollars.”
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When Action 9 asked the Florida Department of Revenue if it had taken any action since posting the advisement in 2024 to make sure the stores are following the law, as part of an email it wrote, “In Florida, sales tax collection is built primarily on the taxpayers’ voluntary compliance with tax laws. There is no targeting of a specific industry for enforcement action.”
Even though Olkowski is happy many of the stores have stopped charging tax since Action 9 first exposed this issue, he doesn’t understand why the state can’t do anything about the stores that still aren’t following the law.
“Doesn’t sound like a mistake. It just sounds like nobody cares because the state’s getting the money,” he said.
When stores collect sales tax on any items, they send that money to the state. While the department of revenue wouldn’t say if it’s taken action against any stores, it said it does audit the taxes of thousands of businesses a year.
Action 9 reached out to Circle K last year and again this year, but so far it has not responded to explain why it charged tax on the coffee drinks.
It’s worth noting, if consumers buy the same ready-to-drink coffees from cafes or vending machines they are supposed to be taxed. The rules are complicated which could be why so many convenience stores are doing it incorrectly.
Consumers can learn more about the taxability of food products with this list from the Florida Department of Revenue: Nontaxable Medical Items and General Grocery List
Again, the Florida Department of Revenue recommends getting a refund directly from the seller. If the seller declines to issue a refund, it gets much more complicated and time consuming. The customer can ask the seller to issue what’s called an Assignment of Rights Refund of Tax form (Form DR-26A) with the amount of tax the store collected from the customer. The customer will then send that form and any supporting documentation to the state to receive a refund directly from the state. Here’s a link to more detailed instructions: DOR Instructions for Refund and here’s a link to that form: Assignment of Rights to Refund of Tax form.
RaceTrac has set up a specific email address for its customers to request that form. They can make the request at this email address: salestaxrefunds@racetrac.com