Bill Text: FL S0936 | 2017 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Regional Rural Development Grants
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Failed) 2017-05-05 - Died in Appropriations [S0936 Detail]
Download: Florida-2017-S0936-Introduced.html
Florida Senate - 2017 SB 936 By Senator Montford 3-00814A-17 2017936__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to regional rural development grants; 3 amending s. 288.018, F.S.; revising the purpose of the 4 Regional Rural Development Grants Program; revising 5 the entities an economic development organization may 6 assist with a grant; providing a maximum amount for 7 grants received by specified economic development 8 organizations; deleting a provision authorizing the 9 Department of Economic Opportunity to contract for the 10 development of certain enterprise zone web portals or 11 websites; increasing the maximum amount the department 12 may expend from funds appropriated to the Rural 13 Community Development Revolving Loan Fund for certain 14 expenses; providing an effective date. 15 16 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 17 18 Section 1. Subsections (1), (3), and (4) of section 19 288.018, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 20 288.018 Regional Rural Development Grants Program.— 21 (1) The department shall establish amatchinggrant program 22 to provide funding to regionally based economic development 23 organizations representing rural counties and communities for 24 the purpose of building the professional capacity of the 25 regional economic developmenttheirorganizations. Building the 26 professional capacity of these organizations shall include the 27 hiring and compensating of professional staff to develop, 28 directly provide, or facilitate the delivery of necessary 29 economic development services, including technical assistance, 30 education and leadership development, marketing and project 31 recruitment, and other professional services deemed important 32 for rural economic development. Suchmatchinggrants may also be 33 used by an economic development organization to provide 34 technical assistance to local governments, local economic 35 development organizations, and existing and prospective 36 businesses within the rural counties and communities that it 37 serves. The department is authorized to approve, on an annual 38 basis, grants to such regionally based economic development 39 organizations. The maximum amount an organization may receive in 40 any year iswill be$50,000, or $250,000 for each of the three 41 regional economic development organizations serving the rural 42 areas of opportunity as defined by executive order of the 43 Governor. The three organizations include the North Florida 44 Economic Development Partnership, Opportunity Florida, and 45 Florida’s Heartland$150,000 in a rural area of opportunity46recommended by theRural Economic Development Initiative, Inc 47and designated by the Governor, and must be matched each year by48an equivalent amount of nonstate resources. 49(3)The department may also contract for the development of50an enterprise zone web portal or websites for each enterprise51zone which will be used to market the program for job creation52in disadvantaged urban and rural enterprise zones. Each53enterprise zone web page should include downloadable links to54state forms and information, as well as local message boards55that help businesses and residents receive information56concerning zone boundaries, job openings, zone programs, and57neighborhood improvement activities.58 (3)(4)The department may expend up to $1 million$750,00059 each fiscal year from funds appropriated to the Rural Community 60 Development Revolving Loan Fund for the purposes outlined in 61 this section. The department may contract with Enterprise 62 Florida, Inc., for the administration of the purposes specified 63 in this section. Funds released to Enterprise Florida, Inc., for 64 this purpose shall be released quarterly and shall be calculated 65 based on the applications in process. 66 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2017.