Transcript Legislative Issues Forum - Florida League of Cities, Inc.

2012 Legislative Review:
What Passed and Failed this Session?
FLC Webinar
May 24, 2012
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HB 7051 allows the Legislature to exempt from
legislative ratification the Florida Department of
Environmental Protection’s (DEP) numeric
nutrient criteria program.
Under current law, any rule that exceeds a
specified dollar threshold must be ratified by the
legislature.
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CS/HB 639 (Young) revises the definition of
reclaimed water to ensure that it is not subject to
regulation by a water management district
(WMD) until it has been discharged into “waters
of the state” as defined in Florida statute.
reclaimed water projects are eligible for
alternative water supply funding
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Prohibits a WMD from specifying, in a
Consumptive Use Permit (CUP), any user to
whom a reuse utility must provide reclaimed
water or restricting the use of reclaimed water
provided to a utility’s customers.
If a proposed use of water includes surface water
or groundwater, a CUP for those water sources
may include conditions that govern their use in
relation to the feasibility or use of reclaimed
water.
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CS/HB 809 (Grant) makes numerous changes to
the communication services tax (CST)
Amends definition of “sales price” to allow a
communication’s dealer to bundle together
goods and services that are subject to various
taxes (e.g., CST and sales tax) and only identify
the portion subject to CST in their “books and
records.”
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removes the liability of a dealer, who incorrectly
assigns a customer to a local CST taxing jurisdiction,
to pay the underpayment and any interest or
penalties unless certain conditions are met
removes the ability of the department to deny the
dealer’s collection allowance because of incorrectly
assigned customers if the dealer has used one of the
methods described in FL statutes, regardless of due
diligence
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creates the nine-member CST Working Group.
Tasked with reviewing tax policy, historical
revenue trends, usage of the revenue stream by
local governments, fairness of the tax structure
and administrative burdens
working group is to identify options for removing
competitive advantages within the industry and
submit a report to the governor, Senate
President and Speaker of the House by February
1, 2013
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FLC appointees to CST Working Group
Mayor Gary Resnick, Wilton Manors
Sharon Fox, Internal Auditor, Tampa
First meeting is June 11 in Tallahassee
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HB 7125 exempts real estate sales associates and
broker associates licensed under Chapter 475,
Florida Statutes, from paying the local business
tax or obtaining a local business tax receipt
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CS/HJR 1003 (Eisnaugle) is a proposed
constitutional amendment dealing with the ad
valorem taxation of tangible personal property
(TPP)
Amendment would provide an additional
exemption (current law is $25,000) from ad
valorem on TPP valued between $25,000 and
$50,000
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Includes a local option component that allows
municipalities to offer additional tax relief for
tangible personal property at their discretion
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CS/HJR 93 (Harrison) is a proposed constitutional
amendment that would give ad valorem tax relief
to a surviving spouse of a military veteran who
died from service-connected causes while on
active duty or a surviving spouse of a first
responder who died in the line of duty
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CS/CS/SB 922 (Bennett) provides an exemption
for service members who are deployed outside
the continental United States, Alaska or Hawaii
in support of certain named military operations
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CS/CS/HB 937 (Workman) addresses legal notice
requirements for local govts - FLC priority
requires legal notices published in the newspaper
to also be placed on the newspaper’s website.
requires the Florida Press Association to create a
website on which legal notices from every paper
in the state must be published.
limits the amount that can be charged for legal
notices under certain conditions
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FLC priority
CS/HB 1227 (Drake) exempts sworn law
enforcement officers from the public safety
telecommunicator certification course provided
the officer can pass the certification exam
allows cities to use sworn law enforcement
officers as temporary public safety
telecommunicators once they have passed the
certification exam
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CS/HB 1197 (Horner) preempts local govt. from
adopting ordinances dealing with beekeeping
and farm signs
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prohibits municipalities from collecting
stormwater fees on a bona fide farming
operation if that farm has a National Pollution
Discharge Elimination System (NPDES),
environmental resource permit or follows the
best management practices authorized by the
Department of Environmental Protection and
the Department of Agriculture and Consumer
Services
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CS/HB HB 691 (Frishe) streamlines the permitting
process for coastal construction permits, including
beach restoration and nourishment projects
reduces the number of permits required for such
projects
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CS/CS/HB 7117 (Plakon) is the 2012 energy
package supported by the House/Senate
leadership as well as Commissioner of Agriculture
Adam Putnam and the Florida League of Cities
requires utilities to address existing and
proposed renewable energy production and
purchases in their 10-year site plan
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allows local governments, by referendum, to
issue rebates to residential or commercial
property owners who make energy efficiency
improvements to their residential or commercial
property from the local government
infrastructure surtax
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CS/CS/CS/CS/HB 503 (Patronis) is a
comprehensive regulatory streamlining bill
prohibits a municipality from requiring, as a
condition of processing a development permit,
that an applicant obtain a state or federal permit
prior to obtaining the local permit
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prohibits local governments from charging fees
on development orders or permits that were
extended under the Community Planning Act of
2011. The permit extensions are valid for a period
of two years after their previously scheduled date
of expiration for any permit issued by the DEP or
by a water management district that has an
expiration date from January 1, 2012, through
January 1, 2014.
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CS/CS/CS/HB 1263 (Hudson), is a comprehensive
Department of Health reorganization bill
repeals the statewide septic tank inspection
program administered by the Department of
Health
allows cities to adopt septic tank inspection
programs, provided the program complies with
certain restrictions set forth in the bill.
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CS/CS/HB 959 (Bileca) prohibits a state agency or
local governmental entity from contracting for
goods and services of $1 million or more with a
company that has business operations in Cuba or
Syria.
contracts entered into after July 1, 2012, must
contain a provision that allows for termination of
the contract if the company is found to have
business operations in Cuba or Syria.
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requires a company to provide a certification
upon submission of a bid or proposal for a
contract, or before a company enters into or
renews a contract, with an agency or
governmental entity that the company is not
engaged in business operations in Cuba or Syria
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HB 7087 (Precourt) is a comprehensive economic
development bill that increases the current
corporate income tax exemption from $25,000 to
$50,000 of net income
modifies the number of qualified employees
businesses must have in certain circumstances to
be eligible for tax credits
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creates back-to-school sales tax holiday for
August 3-5
requires a local vendor preference for printing
services but excludes local governments from
this requirement
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SB 368 (Gaetz) provides that specified governing
board members who fail to resolve a financial
emergency may be suspended from office by the
governor.
allows municipalities in a state of financial
emergency to consult with other local
governments regarding the consolidation of
administrative and support services
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requires a plan to end a financial emergency to
include the implementation of consolidation or
discontinuance of specific services
requires local governments to respond to request
from the Governor within 45 days and establishes
consequences for their failure to respond
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CS/CS/HB 1223 (Albritton) prohibits swamp
buggies from operating on public roads other
than the state highway system, unless
specifically allowed to do so and posted
accordingly by the local government
authorizes municipalities to use golf carts and
utility vehicles to cross the State Highway
System and operate on sidewalks adjacent to
state highways under specified circumstances
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provides for the dismissal of a traffic citation for
failure to stop at a red light when the motor
vehicle owner is deceased at the time of the
violation and an affidavit with specified
supporting documents is filed with the issuing
governmental entity (YES, we really actually
needed a law for this!!)
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CS/CS/CS/HB 599 (Pilon) is the Florida
Department of Transportation’s (DOT)
comprehensive legislative package
imposes more stringent rules and responsibilities
on local govts for bus benches and transit
shelters on state rights-of-way that are not in
compliance with ADA standards
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as of July 1, 2012, a local govt authorizing an
installation must require the supplier or installer
to indemnify, defend and hold harmless DOT
from any liability and costs relating to the
installation, and annually certify to DOT that this
requirement has been met
under current law, utility owner is required to pay
for relocation to alleviate the interference
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if the utility facility is one that was initially
installed to exclusively serve the authority (state
or local government), and the authority directs
the utility owner to relocate it to alleviate an
interference, then the authority will be required
to pay for the utility work
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limits the application of the statutory 1.5 percent
landscaping earmark from a per project to a
statewide basis and limits the expenditure of
landscaping funds to new highway construction
projects (thus no landscaping dollars would be
spent on repaving or similar maintenance
projects);
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addresses other issues onsite or offsite
stormwater treatment for seaports
broadens the permissible uses of local option gas
tax revenues
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Requires that only one metropolitan planning
organization (MPO) be designated for each
urbanized area or group of contiguous urbanized
areas
where more than one MPO exists in an urbanized
area, the MPOs must coordinate in the
development of regionally significant project
priorities
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authorizes, under specified conditions, a motor
vehicle to be operated with “autonomous
technology,” without the active control or
monitoring by a human operator
authorizes local govts to regulate the use of
personal mobility devices (Segways) on
sidewalks
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Environmental mitigation standards and
requirements:
prohibits a govt entity from creating or providing
environmental mitigation for a project other
than its own unless govt entity uses land that
was not previously purchased for conservation
and unless the govt entity provides the same
financial assurances as required for mitigation
banks and regional offsite mitigation areas
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CS/CS/HB 979 (Diaz) addresses DRIs
In local govt jurisdictions that are not designated
as dense urban land areas, certain proposed
developments which are the subject of a
qualified target industry business tax refund
agreement are exempt from the DRI review
process
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allows certain agricultural enclaves between 500
and 640 acres to change to the zoning
designation that surrounds it, without approval
from local govt
limits the reviewing agencies’ ability to comment
on a DRI, under certain conditions
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CS/HB 7081 (Workman) addresses technical
glitches from last session’s comprehensive
growth management legislation
authorizes local govt to retain certain initiative or
referendum processes in regard to any
development order or to any local
comprehensive plan amendment or map
amendment that was in effect as of June 1, 2011
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prohibits regional planning council from
providing consulting services to a private
developer if the council will serve in a reviewing
capacity in the future
allows military base commanders to provide
“advisory” comments to any comprehensive plan
amendments of land that surrounds military
installations
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removes criteria that exempts certain
municipalities from being signatories to the
school interlocal agreement as a prerequisite to
implementing school concurrency because
school concurrency is now optional
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HB 7075 (Workman) amends s. 163.3175, F.S., to
clarify provisions relating to military
commanding officer comments on proposed
land use changes that may have an impact on the
mission of a military installation
commanding officer comments on proposed
land use changes are advisory to the local govt,
advisory comments must be based upon
appropriate data and analyses
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HB 5201 (O’Toole) allows universities to enter
into local development agreements to identify
and negotiate plans to mitigate the effects of
specific projects and the corresponding effects
on local govts
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CS/CS/CS/HB 107 (Caldwell) creates a new
procedure that allows two or more contiguous
independent special districts with similar
functions and governing bodies to voluntarily
merge
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CS/CS/SB 704 (Bennett) is a comprehensive
building construction package which:
modifies how local govt code enforcement
boards serve notices on property owners
requires public bodies to open sealed bids for
construction and repairs to public buildings at a
public meeting
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authorizes building and fire code administrators
to accept electronically transmitted construction
plans and related documents for permit approval
purposes
when denying a building permit, the bill requires
local enforcing agencies and local building code
administrators and inspectors to provide denied
applicants with the specific building codes or
sections that were out-of-compliance
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CS/CS/HB 521 (Artiles) preempts local ordinances
that pertain to the regulation of hoisting
equipment and hoisting equipment operators
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CS/CS/HB 897 (Moraitis) revises the time frames
for recording liens
Requires additional information in lien
documents
Requires govt entities to open sealed bids for
public works projects at a public meeting
Modifies process for attachment of liens
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HB 5005 revises the required employer
retirement contribution rates for members of
each membership class and sub-class of the
Florida Retirement System (FRS)
reduces allocations to investment plan member
accounts of the FRS
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CS/CS/HB 885 (Ford) preempts local ordinances
adopted after March 1, 2012, regulating
secondary metals recyclers
grandfathers existing ordinances in existence as
of March 1, 2012, but does not allow cities to
amend those ordinances in a manner more
stringent than state law
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CS/CS/CS/HB 711 (Hooper) requires the
governing board of a municipal, county or district
hospital to evaluate the possible benefits to an
affected community from the sale or lease of the
hospital facility to a not-for-profit or for-profit
entity within a specified time period
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HB 7087 requires state agencies, universities and
school districts to grant a state vendor
preference when procuring printing services and
personal property (commodities)
Cities and counties are exempted from this
requirement
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CS/HB 365 (Costello) and CS/SB 910 (Hays) would
have provided several reforms to city police and
firefighter pensions – TOP FLC Priority
provide that the provisions of an agreement
relating to retirement benefits or use of
insurance premium tax revenues were deemed to
comply with Chapters 175 or 185
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clarified the 2011 law that police may use only up
to 300 hours of overtime for pension purposes as
is provided in the pension plan or collective
bargaining agreement
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HB 1063 (O'Toole), HB 4025 (O’Toole) and SB 760
(Hays) would have repealed the authority of
municipalities to levy the Local Business Tax
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CS/CS/HB 421 (Smith) and CS/SB 604 (Dean)
would have preempted local govt authority
relating to enacting seasonal bans of fertilizer for
professional applicators
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SB 1460 (Simmons) and CS/CS/HB 673 (Brodeur)
would have preempted and superseded the
application of local vendor preference ordinances
in a competitive solicitation for personal property
or construction services when the property or
services were paid for with state funds
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CS/CS/HB 373 (Glorioso) and CS/CS/CS/SB 602
(Storms) would have allowed municipalities to
adopt stormwater management plans for urban
infill and blighted areas in order to encourage
redevelopment projects
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CS/CS/CS/SB 1626 (Gaetz) and CS/HB 1409
(Albritton) would have created additional
transparency requirements of all executed local
govt contracts.
original bills required all local govts to report all
executed contracts, despite the funding source,
to a state contract tracking system
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CS/CS/CS/SB 206 (Negron) and CS/CS/HB 355
(Kiar) would have required local govts to provide
members of the public with an opportunity to be
heard on a proposition before the board or
commission
allowed local govts to adopt policies or rules to
ensure the orderly conduct of the meeting, while
putting into place criteria that these policies
must meet
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HB 4177 (Plakon) and SB 1542 (Evers) would have
repealed all statutes mentioning traffic
enforcement detectors
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CS/CS/CS/HB 157 (Porter) and CS/CS/SB 560
(Dean) would have required water management
districts to adopt minimum flows and levels
established by the FL Department of
Environmental Protection
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SB 1026 (Bogdanoff) would have designated a
“sober house transitional living home” as a type
of community residential home providing a peersupported and managed alcohol-free and drugfree living environment
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Funding for Infrastructure Projects
SB 1472 (Richter) and HB 1491 (Eisnaugle) would
have created the Florida Infrastructure Fund
Partnership
provided for a different way to bring private
capital to FL in order to build much-needed
infrastructure around the state that both local
governments and the state cannot afford
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SB 912 (Bennett) and HB 603 (Weinstein) would
have prohibited local govts from applying
transportation, school concurrency, and new or
existing impact fees for new development until
July 1, 2015, unless authorized by two-thirds of
the local government’s governing authority.
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SB 840 (Diaz de la Portilla) and HB 547 (Fresen)
would have provided for the termination of
community redevelopment agencies (CRAs) by
the Board of County Commissioners of MiamiDade County
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CS/SB 1852 (Wise) and CS/CS/CS/HB 903 (Adkins)
would have authorized district school boards to
share the revenue generated by their capital
outlay millage levy with charter schools in the
school district on a per-student basis
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CS/CS/HB 3 (Plakon) and SB 428 (Oelrich) would
have prohibited the operation of Internet
sweepstakes cafes in the state
CS/SB 380 (Diaz de la Portilla) and HB 467
(Gonzalez) would have allowed local govts to
regulate these establishments in any way they
deemed appropriate including prohibiting them
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HB 1499 (Brandes) would have required local
govts with defined benefit pension plans funded
below a threshold amount to take specified
actions.
would have provided that local govt pensions
with a funded ratio (defined in bill) of 80 percent
or less had to be put on a pension watch list and
had to develop a strategy for the pension plan to
obtain a funded ratio greater than 80 percent
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CS/SB 1580 (Latvala) and CS/CS/HB 1443 (Frishe)
would have authorized local administrative
boards to declare a place to be a public nuisance
if it was used on more than two occasions within
a six-month period as a site for the storage of
controlled substances
Thank You
For Additional Information Contact:
Legislative Affairs
(800) 342-8112
or visit our web site at:
www.flcities.com