Bill Text: FL S0218 | 2014 | Regular Session | Engrossed
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Transportation
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (? 2-1)
Status: (Passed) 2014-06-20 - Chapter No. 2014-169, companion bill(s) passed, see CS/CS/HB 1161 (Ch. 2014-215), HB 5003 (Ch. 2014-53), HB 7175 (Ch. 2014-223), SB 2514 (Ch. 2014-50) [S0218 Detail]
Download: Florida-2014-S0218-Engrossed.html
Bill Title: Transportation
Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (? 2-1)
Status: (Passed) 2014-06-20 - Chapter No. 2014-169, companion bill(s) passed, see CS/CS/HB 1161 (Ch. 2014-215), HB 5003 (Ch. 2014-53), HB 7175 (Ch. 2014-223), SB 2514 (Ch. 2014-50) [S0218 Detail]
Download: Florida-2014-S0218-Engrossed.html
CS for CS for CS for SB 218 First Engrossed 2014218e1 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to transportation; amending s. 125.42, 3 F.S.; requiring utility and television lines to be 4 removed from county roads and highways at no cost to 5 the county if the county finds the lines to be 6 unreasonably interfering with the widening, repair, or 7 reconstruction of any such road; providing certain 8 exceptions; amending s. 316.2397, F.S.; expanding the 9 types of vehicles that may show or display an amber 10 light; amending s. 335.06, F.S.; authorizing the 11 Department of Transportation to improve and maintain 12 roads that provide access to property within the state 13 park system if they are part of a county road system 14 or city street system; requiring that the appropriate 15 county or municipality maintain such a road if the 16 department does not maintain it; amending s. 335.065, 17 F.S.; authorizing the department to use appropriated 18 funds for the establishment of a statewide system of 19 interconnected multiuse trails; prioritizing projects 20 for funding; requiring funded projects to be included 21 in the department’s work program; providing that the 22 department is not responsible for or obligated to 23 provide funds for the operation and maintenance of any 24 such project; amending s. 337.403, F.S.; providing an 25 exception for payment of certain utility work 26 necessitated by a project on the State Highway System 27 for municipally owned utilities or county-owned 28 utilities located in rural areas of critical economic 29 concern; authorizing the Department of Transportation 30 to pay for such costs under certain circumstances; 31 revising certain exceptions; providing an exception 32 for certain rail service projects; creating s. 33 339.041, F.S.; providing legislative intent; 34 describing the types of department property eligible 35 for factoring future revenues received by the 36 department from leases for communication facilities on 37 department property; authorizing the department to 38 enter into agreements with investors to purchase the 39 revenue streams from department leases of wireless 40 communication facilities on such property pursuant to 41 an invitation to negotiate; prohibiting the department 42 from pledging state credit; allowing the department to 43 make certain covenants; providing for the 44 appropriation and payment of moneys received from such 45 agreements to investors; requiring the proceeds from 46 such leases to be used for capital expenditures; 47 amending s. 339.2818, F.S.; subject to the 48 appropriation of specified additional funding, 49 authorizing a municipality within a rural area of 50 critical economic concern or a rural area of critical 51 economic concern community to compete for certain 52 funding; providing criteria; amending s. 479.16, F.S.; 53 exempting certain signs from the provisions of ch. 54 479, F.S.; exempting from permitting certain signs 55 placed by tourist-oriented businesses, certain farm 56 signs placed during harvest seasons, certain 57 acknowledgment signs on publicly funded school 58 premises, and certain displays on specific sports 59 facilities; providing that certain provisions relating 60 to the regulation of signs may not be implemented or 61 continued if such actions will adversely impact the 62 allocation of federal funds to the Department of 63 Transportation; directing the department to notify a 64 sign owner that the sign must be removed within a 65 certain timeframe if federal funds are adversely 66 impacted; authorizing the department to remove the 67 sign and assess costs against the sign owner under 68 certain circumstances; amending s. 479.262, F.S.; 69 clarifying provisions relating to the tourist-oriented 70 directional sign program; limiting the placement of 71 such signs to intersections on certain rural roads; 72 prohibiting such signs in urban areas or at 73 interchanges on freeways or expressways; providing an 74 effective date. 75 76 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 77 78 Section 1. Subsection (5) of section 125.42, Florida 79 Statutes, is amended to read: 80 125.42 Water, sewage, gas, power, telephone, other utility, 81 and television lines along county roads and highways.— 82 (5) In the event of widening, repair, or reconstruction of 83 any such road, the licensee shall move or remove such water, 84 sewage, gas, power, telephone, and other utility lines and 85 television lines at no cost to the county should they be found 86 by the county to be unreasonably interfering, except as provided 87 in s. 337.403(1)(d)-(i)s. 337.403(1)(e). 88 Section 2. Subsection (4) of section 316.2397, Florida 89 Statutes, is amended to read: 90 316.2397 Certain lights prohibited; exceptions.— 91 (4) Road or street maintenance equipment, road or street 92 maintenance vehicles, road service vehicles, refuse collection 93 vehicles, petroleum tankers, and mail carrier vehicles may show 94 or display amber lights when in operation or a hazard exists. A 95 commercial motor vehicle or trailer designed to transport 96 unprocessed logs or pulpwood may show or display an amber light 97 affixed to the rearmost point of the vehicle or trailer. 98 Section 3. Section 335.06, Florida Statutes, is amended to 99 read: 100 335.06 Access roads to the state park system.—Any road that 101whichprovides access to property within the state park system 102 shall be maintained by the department if the road is a part of 103 the State Highway System; however, if such road is part of a 104 county road system or city street system, the department may 105 improve and maintain it. If the department does not maintain a 106 county or city road that provides access to the state park 107 system, the roadorshall be maintained by the appropriate 108 county or municipalityif the road is a part of the county road109system or the city street system. 110 Section 4. Subsections (4) and (5) are added to section 111 335.065, Florida Statutes, to read: 112 335.065 Bicycle and pedestrian ways along state roads and 113 transportation facilities.— 114 (4) The department may use appropriated funds to support 115 the establishment of a statewide system of interconnected 116 multiuse trails and to pay the cost of planning, land 117 acquisition, design, and construction of such trails and related 118 facilities. The department shall give funding priority to 119 projects that: 120 (a) Are identified by the Florida Greenways and Trails 121 Council as a priority within the Florida Greenways and Trails 122 System under chapter 260. 123 (b) Support the transportation needs of bicyclists and 124 pedestrians. 125 (c) Have national, statewide, or regional importance. 126 (d) Facilitate an interconnected system of trails by 127 completing gaps between existing trails. 128 (5) A project funded under subsection (4) shall: 129 (a) Be included in the department’s work program developed 130 in accordance with s. 339.135. 131 (b) Be operated and maintained by an entity other than the 132 department upon completion of construction. The department is 133 not obligated to provide funds for the operation and maintenance 134 of the project. 135 Section 5. Subsection (1) of section 337.403, Florida 136 Statutes, is amended to read: 137 337.403 Interference caused byrelocation ofutility; 138 expenses.— 139 (1) If a utility that is placed upon, under, over, or along 140 any public road or publicly owned rail corridor is found by the 141 authority to be unreasonably interfering in any way with the 142 convenient, safe, or continuous use, or the maintenance, 143 improvement, extension, or expansion, of such public road or 144 publicly owned rail corridor, the utility owner shall, upon 30 145 days’ written notice to the utility or its agent by the 146 authority, initiate the work necessary to alleviate the 147 interference at its own expense except as provided in paragraphs 148 (a)-(i)(a)-(g). The work must be completed within such 149 reasonable time as stated in the notice or such time as agreed 150 to by the authority and the utility owner. 151 (a) If the relocation of utility facilities, as referred to 152 in s. 111 of the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956, Pub. L. No. 153 84-627627 of the 84th Congress, is necessitated by the 154 construction of a project on the federal-aid interstate system, 155 including extensions thereof within urban areas, and the cost of 156 the project is eligible and approved for reimbursement by the 157 Federal Government to the extent of 90 percent or more under the 158 Federal Aid Highway Act, or any amendment thereof, then in that 159 event the utility owning or operating such facilities shall 160 perform any necessary work upon notice from the department, and 161 the state shall pay the entire expense properly attributable to 162 such work after deducting therefrom any increase in the value of 163 a new facility and any salvage value derived from an old 164 facility. 165 (b) When a joint agreement between the department and the 166 utility is executed for utility work to be accomplished as part 167 of a contract for construction of a transportation facility, the 168 department may participate in those utility work costs that 169 exceed the department’s official estimate of the cost of the 170 work by more than 10 percent. The amount of such participation 171 isshall belimited to the difference between the official 172 estimate of all the work in the joint agreement plus 10 percent 173 and the amount awarded for this work in the construction 174 contract for such work. The department may not participate in 175 any utility work costs that occur as a result of changes or 176 additions during the course of the contract. 177 (c) When an agreement between the department and utility is 178 executed for utility work to be accomplished in advance of a 179 contract for construction of a transportation facility, the 180 department may participate in the cost of clearing and grubbing 181 necessary to perform such work. 182 (d) If the utility facility was initially installed to 183 exclusively serve the authority or its tenants, or both, the 184 authority shall bear the costs of the utility work. However, the 185 authority is not responsible for the cost of utility work 186 related to any subsequent additions to that facility for the 187 purpose of serving others. For a county or municipality, if such 188 utility facility was installed in the right-of-way as a means to 189 serve a county or municipal facility on a parcel of property 190 adjacent to the right-of-way and if the intended use of the 191 county or municipal facility is for a use other than 192 transportation purposes, the obligation of the county or 193 municipality to bear the costs of the utility work shall extend 194 only to utility work on the parcel of property on which the 195 facility of the county or municipality originally served by the 196 utility facility is located. 197 (e) If, under an agreement between a utility and the 198 authority entered into after July 1, 2009, the utility conveys, 199 subordinates, or relinquishes a compensable property right to 200 the authority for the purpose of accommodating the acquisition 201 or use of the right-of-way by the authority, without the 202 agreement expressly addressing future responsibility for the 203 cost of necessary utility work, the authority shall bear the 204 cost of removal or relocation. This paragraph does not impair or 205 restrict, and may not be used to interpret, the terms of any 206 such agreement entered into before July 1, 2009. 207 (f) If the utility is an electric facility being relocated 208 underground in order to enhance vehicular, bicycle, and 209 pedestrian safety and in which ownership of the electric 210 facility to be placed underground has been transferred from a 211 private to a public utility within the past 5 years, the 212 department shall incur all costs of the necessary utility work. 213 (g) An authority may bear the costs of utility work 214 required to eliminate an unreasonable interference when the 215 utility is not able to establish that it has a compensable 216 property right in the particular property where the utility is 217 located if: 218 1. The utility was physically located on the particular 219 property before the authority acquired rights in the property; 220 2. The utility demonstrates that it has a compensable 221 property right inalladjacent properties along the alignment of 222 the utility or, after due diligence, certifies that the utility 223 does not have evidence to prove or disprove that it has a 224 compensable property right in the particular property where the 225 utility is located; and 226 3. The information available to the authority does not 227 establish the relative priorities of the authority’s and the 228 utility’s interests in the particular property. 229 (h) If a municipally owned utility or county-owned utility 230 is located in a rural area of critical economic concern, as 231 defined in s. 288.0656(2), and the department determines that 232 the utility is unable, and will not be able within the next 10 233 years, to pay for the cost of utility work necessitated by a 234 department project on the State Highway System, the department 235 may pay, in whole or in part, the cost of such utility work 236 performed by the department or its contractor. 237 (i) If the relocation of utility facilities is necessitated 238 by the construction of a commuter rail service project or an 239 intercity passenger rail service project and the cost of the 240 project is eligible and approved for reimbursement by the 241 Federal Government, then in that event the utility owning or 242 operating such facilities located by permit on a department 243 owned rail corridor shall perform any necessary utility 244 relocation work upon notice from the department, and the 245 department shall pay the expense properly attributable to such 246 utility relocation work in the same proportion as federal funds 247 are expended on the commuter rail service project or an 248 intercity passenger rail service project after deducting 249 therefrom any increase in the value of a new facility and any 250 salvage value derived from an old facility. In no event shall 251 the state be required to use state dollars for such utility 252 relocation work. This paragraph does not apply to any phase of 253 the Central Florida Commuter Rail project, known as SunRail. 254 Section 6. Section 339.041, Florida Statutes, is created to 255 read: 256 339.041 Factoring of revenues from leases for wireless 257 communication facilities.— 258 (1) The Legislature finds that efforts to increase funding 259 for capital expenditures for the transportation system are 260 necessary for the protection of the public safety and general 261 welfare and for the preservation of transportation facilities in 262 this state. It is, therefore, the intent of the Legislature: 263 (a) To create a mechanism for factoring future revenues 264 received by the department from leases for wireless 265 communication facilities on department property on a nonrecourse 266 basis; 267 (b) To fund fixed capital expenditures for the statewide 268 transportation system from proceeds generated through this 269 mechanism; and 270 (c) To maximize revenues from factoring by ensuring that 271 such revenues are exempt from income taxation under federal law 272 in order to increase funds available for capital expenditures. 273 (2) For the purposes of factoring revenues under this 274 section, department property includes real property located 275 within the department’s limited access rights-of-way, property 276 located outside the current operating right-of-way limits which 277 is not needed to support current transportation facilities, 278 other property owned by the Board of Trustees of the Internal 279 Improvement Trust Fund and leased by the department, space on 280 department telecommunications facilities, and space on 281 department structures. 282 (3) The department may solicit investors willing to enter 283 into agreements to purchase the revenue stream from one or more 284 existing department leases for wireless communication facilities 285 on property owned or controlled by the department through the 286 issuance of an invitation to negotiate. Such agreements shall be 287 structured as tax-exempt financings for federal income tax 288 purposes in order to result in the largest possible payout. 289 (4) The department may not pledge the credit, the general 290 revenues, or the taxing power of the state or of any political 291 subdivision of the state. The obligations of the department and 292 investors under the agreement do not constitute a general 293 obligation of the state or a pledge of the full faith and credit 294 or taxing power of the state. The agreement is payable from and 295 secured solely by payments received from department leases for 296 wireless communication facilities on property owned or 297 controlled by the department, and neither the state nor any of 298 its agencies has any liability beyond such payments. 299 (5) The department may make any covenant or representation 300 necessary or desirable in connection with the agreement, 301 including a commitment by the department to take whatever 302 actions are necessary on behalf of investors to enforce the 303 department’s rights to payments on property leased for wireless 304 communications facilities. However, the department may not 305 guarantee that revenues actually received in a future year will 306 be those anticipated in its leases for wireless communication 307 facilities. The department may agree to use its best efforts to 308 ensure that anticipated future-year revenues are protected. Any 309 risk that actual revenues received from department leases for 310 wireless communications facilities will be lower than 311 anticipated shall be borne exclusively by investors. 312 (6) Subject to annual appropriation, the investors shall 313 collect the lease payments on a schedule and in a manner 314 established in the agreements entered into pursuant to this 315 section between the department and the investors. The agreements 316 may provide for lease payments to be made directly to investors 317 by lessees if the lease agreements entered into by the 318 department and the lessees pursuant to s. 365.172(12)(f) allow 319 direct payment. 320 (7) Proceeds received by the department from leases for 321 wireless communication facilities shall be deposited in the 322 State Transportation Trust Fund created under s. 206.46 and used 323 for fixed capital expenditures for the statewide transportation 324 system. 325 Section 7. Subsection (7) is added to section 339.2818, 326 Florida Statutes, to read: 327 339.2818 Small County Outreach Program.— 328 (7) Subject to a specific appropriation in addition to 329 funds annually appropriated for projects under this section, a 330 municipality within a rural area of critical economic concern or 331 a rural area of critical economic concern community designated 332 under s. 288.0656(7)(a) may compete for the additional project 333 funding using the criteria listed in subsection (4) at up to 100 334 percent of project costs, excluding capacity improvement 335 projects. 336 Section 8. Section 479.16, Florida Statutes, is amended to 337 read: 338 479.16 Signs for which permits are not required.—Signs 339 placed on benches, transit shelters, modular news racks, street 340 light poles, public pay telephones, and waste disposal 341 receptacles within the right-of-way, as provided under s. 342 337.408, are exempt from this chapter. The following signs are 343 exempt from the requirement that a permitfor a signbe obtained 344 underthe provisions ofthis chapter but mustare required to345 comply withthe provisions ofs. 479.11(4)-(8): 346 (1) Signs erected on the premises of an establishment,347 whichsignsconsist primarily of the name of the establishment 348 orwhichidentify the principal or accessory merchandise, 349 services, activities, or entertainment sold, produced, 350 manufactured, or furnished on the premises of the establishment 351 and which comply with the lighting restrictions imposed under 352department rule adoptedpursuant tos. 479.11(5), or signs owned 353 by a municipality oracounty located on the premises of such 354 municipality orsuchcounty which display information regarding 355 government services, activities, events, or entertainment. For 356 purposes of this section, the following types of messages shall 357 not be considered information regarding government services, 358 activities, events, or entertainment: 359 (a) Messages thatwhichspecifically reference any 360 commercial enterprise. 361 (b) Messages thatwhichreference a commercial sponsor of 362 any event. 363 (c) Personal messages. 364 (d) Political campaign messages. 365 366 If a sign located on the premises of an establishment consists 367 principally of brand name or trade name advertising and the 368 merchandise or service is only incidental to the principal 369 activity, or if the owner of the establishment receives rental 370 income from the sign,thenthe sign is not exempt under this 371 subsection. 372 (2) Signs erected, used, or maintained on a farm by the 373 owner or lessee of such farm and relating solely to farm 374 produce, merchandise, service, or entertainment sold, produced, 375 manufactured, or furnished on such farm. 376 (3) Signs posted or displayed on real property by the owner 377 or by the authority of the owner, stating that the real property 378 is for sale or rent. However, if the sign contains any message 379 not pertaining to the sale or rental of thethatreal property, 380thenit is not exempt under this section. 381 (4) Official notices or advertisements posted or displayed 382 on private property by or under the direction of any public or 383 court officer in the performance of her or his official or 384 directed duties,or by trustees under deeds of trust or deeds of 385 assignment or other similar instruments. 386 (5) Danger or precautionary signs relating to the premises 387 on which they are located; forest fire warning signs erected 388 under the authority of the Florida Forest Service of the 389 Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; and signs, 390 notices, or symbols erected by the United States Government 391 under the direction of the United States Forestry Service. 392 (6) Notices of any railroad, bridge, ferry, or other 393 transportation or transmission company necessary for the 394 direction or safety of the public. 395 (7) Signs, notices, or symbols for the information of 396 aviators as to location, directions, and landings and conditions 397 affecting safety in aviation erected or authorized by the 398 department. 399 (8) Signs or notices measuring up to 8 square feet in area 400 which are erected or maintained upon property and statestating401 only the name of the owner, lessee, or occupant of the premises 402and not exceeding8square feet in area. 403 (9) Historical markers erected byduly constituted and404 authorized public authorities. 405 (10) Official traffic control signs and markers erected, 406 caused to be erected, or approved by the department. 407 (11) Signs erected upon property warning the public against 408 hunting and fishing or trespassingthereon. 409 (12) Signsnot in excessof up to 8 square feet whichthat410 are owned by and relate to the facilities and activities of 411 churches, civic organizations, fraternal organizations, 412 charitable organizations, or units or agencies of government. 413(13) Except thatsigns placed on benches, transit shelters,414and waste receptacles as provided for in s. 337.408 are exempt415from all provisions of this chapter.416 (13)(14)Signs relating exclusively to political campaigns. 417 (14)(15)Signs measuring up tonot in excess of16 square 418 feet placed at a road junction with the State Highway System 419 denoting only the distance or direction of a residence or farm 420 operation, or, outside an incorporatedin a ruralarea where a 421 hardship is created because a small business is not visible from 422 the road junction with the State Highway System, one sign 423 measuring up tonot in excess of16 square feet, denoting only 424 the name of the business and the distance and direction to the 425 business.The small-business-sign provision of this subsection426does not apply to charter counties and may not be implemented if427the Federal Government notifies the department that428implementation will adversely affect the allocation of federal429funds to the department.430 (15) Signs placed by a local tourist-oriented business 431 located within a rural area of critical economic concern as 432 defined in s. 288.0656(2) which are: 433 (a) Not more than 8 square feet in size or not more than 4 434 feet in height; 435 (b) Located only in rural areas on a facility that does not 436 meet the definition of a limited access facility as defined by 437 department rule; 438 (c) Located within 2 miles of the business location and at 439 least 500 feet apart; 440 (d) Located only in two directions leading to the business; 441 and 442 (e) Not located within the road right-of-way. 443 444 A business placing such signs must be at least 4 miles from any 445 other business using this exemption and may not participate in 446 any other directional signage program by the department. 447 (16) Signs measuring up to 32 square feet denoting only the 448 distance or direction of a farm operation which are erected at a 449 road junction with the State Highway System, but only during the 450 harvest season of the farm operation for a period not to exceed 451 4 months. 452 (17) Acknowledgment signs erected upon publicly funded 453 school premises which relate to a specific public school club, 454 team, or event which are placed at least 1,000 feet from any 455 other acknowledgment signs on the same side of the roadway. The 456 sponsor information on an acknowledgment sign may constitute no 457 more than 100 square feet of the sign. For purposes of this 458 subsection, the term “acknowledgment sign” means a sign that is 459 intended to inform the traveling public that a public school 460 club, team, or event has been sponsored by a person, firm, or 461 other entity. 462 (18) Displays erected upon a sports facility the content of 463 which is directly related to the facility’s activities or where 464 products or services offered on the sports facility property are 465 present. Displays must be mounted flush to the surface of the 466 sports facility and must rely upon the building facade for 467 structural support. For purposes of this subsection, the term 468 “sports facility” means an athletic complex, athletic arena, or 469 athletic stadium, including physically connected parking 470 facilities, which is open to the public and has a permanently 471 installed seating capacity of 15,000 people or more. 472 473 The exemptions in subsections (14)-(18) may not be implemented 474 or continued if the Federal Government notifies the department 475 that implementation or continuation will adversely impact the 476 allocation of federal funds to the department. If the exemptions 477 in subsections (14)-(18) are not implemented or continued due to 478 notification from the Federal Government that the allocation of 479 federal funds to the department will be adversely impacted, the 480 department shall provide notice to the sign owner that the sign 481 must be removed within 30 days. If the sign is not removed 482 within 30 days after receipt of the notice by the sign owner, 483 the department may remove the sign, and the costs incurred in 484 connection with the sign removal shall be assessed against and 485 collected from the sign owner. 486 Section 9. Section 479.262, Florida Statutes, is amended to 487 read: 488 479.262 Tourist-oriented directional sign program.— 489 (1) A tourist-oriented directional sign program to provide 490 directions to rural tourist-oriented businesses, services, and 491 activities may be established for intersections on rural and 492 conventional state, county, or municipal roads onlyin rural493counties identified by criteria and population in s. 288.0656494 when approved and permitted by county or local government 495 entities within their respective jurisdictional areasat496intersections on rural and conventional state, county, or497municipal roads. A county or local government thatwhichissues 498 permits for a tourist-oriented directional sign program isshall499beresponsible for sign construction, maintenance, and program 500 operation in compliance with subsection (3) for roads on the 501 state highway system and may establish permit fees sufficient to 502 offset associated costs. A tourist-oriented directional sign may 503 not be used on roads in urban areas or at interchanges on 504 freeways or expressways. 505 (2) This section does not create a proprietary or 506 compensable interest in any tourist-oriented directional sign 507 site or location for any permittee on any rural and conventional 508 state, county, or municipal roadroads. The department or the 509 permitting entity may terminate permits or change locations of 510 tourist-oriented directional sign sites as determined necessary 511 for construction or improvement of transportation facilities or 512 for improved traffic control or safety. 513 (3) Tourist-oriented directional signs installed on the 514 state highway system mustshallcomply with the requirements of 515 the federal Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices and rules 516 established by the department. The department may adopt rules to 517 establish requirements for participant qualification, 518 construction standards, location of sign sites, and other 519 criteria necessary to implement this program. 520 Section 10. This act shall take effect July 1, 2014.