Bill Text: FL S1194 | 2022 | Regular Session | Comm Sub
Bill Title: Local Tax Referenda Requirements
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-03-02 - Laid on Table, refer to CS/CS/HB 777 [S1194 Detail]
Download: Florida-2022-S1194-Comm_Sub.html
Florida Senate - 2022 CS for CS for SB 1194 By the Committees on Appropriations; and Community Affairs; and Senators Boyd and Rodrigues 576-03390-22 20221194c2 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to local tax referenda requirements; 3 amending ss. 125.0104, 125.0108, and 125.901, F.S.; 4 requiring referenda elections related to tourist 5 development taxes, tourist impact taxes, and 6 children’s services and independent special district 7 property taxes to be held on the day of a general 8 election; amending ss. 200.091 and 200.101, F.S.; 9 requiring referenda elections related to increases in 10 county and municipal ad valorem tax millages to be 11 held on the day of a general election; amending s. 12 336.021, F.S.; requiring referenda elections related 13 to the ninth-cent fuel tax to be held on the day of a 14 general election; amending s. 336.025, F.S.; requiring 15 referenda elections related to local option fuel taxes 16 to be held on the day of a general election; amending 17 s. 1011.73, F.S.; requiring referenda elections 18 related to certain school district millage elections 19 to be held on the day of a general election; providing 20 an effective date. 21 22 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 23 24 Section 1. Paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (6) of 25 section 125.0104, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 26 125.0104 Tourist development tax; procedure for levying; 27 authorized uses; referendum; enforcement.— 28 (6) REFERENDUM.— 29 (a) No ordinance enacted by any county levying the tax 30 authorized by paragraphs (3)(b) and (c) shall take effect until 31 the ordinance levying and imposing the tax has been approved in 32 a referendum held at a general election, as defined in s. 33 97.021, by a majority of the electors voting in such election in 34 the county or by a majority of the electors voting in the 35 subcounty special tax district affected by the tax. 36 (b) The governing board of the county levying the tax shall 37 arrange to place a question on the ballot at a generalthe next38regular or specialelection, as defined in s. 97.021, to be held 39 within the county, which question shall be in substantially the 40 following formas follows: 41 ....FOR the Tourist Development Tax 42 ....AGAINST the Tourist Development Tax. 43 Section 2. Subsection (5) of section 125.0108, Florida 44 Statutes, is amended to read: 45 125.0108 Areas of critical state concern; tourist impact 46 tax.— 47 (5) The tourist impact tax authorized by this section shall 48 take effect only upon express approval by a majority vote of 49 those qualified electors in the area or areas of critical state 50 concern in the county seeking to levy such tax, voting in a 51 referendum to be heldby the governing board of such countyin 52 conjunction with a generalor specialelection, as defined in s. 53 97.021, in accordance with the provisions of law relating to54elections currently in force. However, if the area or areas of 55 critical state concern are greater than 50 percent of the land 56 area of the county and the tax is to be imposed throughout the 57 entire county, the tax shall take effect only upon express 58 approval of a majority of the qualified electors of the county 59 voting in such a referendum. 60 Section 3. Subsection (1) of section 125.901, Florida 61 Statutes, is amended to read: 62 125.901 Children’s services; independent special district; 63 council; powers, duties, and functions; public records 64 exemption.— 65 (1) Each county may by ordinance create an independent 66 special district, as defined in ss. 189.012 and 200.001(8)(e), 67 to provide funding for children’s services throughout the county 68 in accordance with this section. The boundaries of such district 69 shall be coterminous with the boundaries of the county. The 70 county governing body shall obtain approval at a general 71 election, as defined in s. 97.021, by a majority vote of those 72 electors voting on the question, to annually levy ad valorem 73 taxes which shall not exceed the maximum millage rate authorized 74 by this section. Any district created pursuant to the provisions 75 of this subsection shall be required to levy and fix millage 76 subject to the provisions of s. 200.065. Once such millage is 77 approved by the electorate, the district shall not be required 78 to seek approval of the electorate in future years to levy the 79 previously approved millage. 80 (a) The governing body of the district shall be a council 81 on children’s services, which may also be known as a juvenile 82 welfare board or similar name as established in the ordinance by 83 the county governing body. Such council shall consist of 10 84 members, including: the superintendent of schools; a local 85 school board member; the district administrator from the 86 appropriate district of the Department of Children and Families, 87 or his or her designee who is a member of the Senior Management 88 Service or of the Selected Exempt Service; one member of the 89 county governing body; and the judge assigned to juvenile cases 90 who shall sit as a voting member of the board, except that said 91 judge shall not vote or participate in the setting of ad valorem 92 taxes under this section. If there is more than one judge 93 assigned to juvenile cases in a county, the chief judge shall 94 designate one of said juvenile judges to serve on the board. The 95 remaining five members shall be appointed by the Governor, and 96 shall, to the extent possible, represent the demographic 97 diversity of the population of the county. After soliciting 98 recommendations from the public, the county governing body shall 99 submit to the Governor the names of at least three persons for 100 each vacancy occurring among the five members appointed by the 101 Governor, and the Governor shall appoint members to the council 102 from the candidates nominated by the county governing body. The 103 Governor shall make a selection within a 45-day period or 104 request a new list of candidates. All members appointed by the 105 Governor shall have been residents of the county for the 106 previous 24-month period. Such members shall be appointed for 4 107 year terms, except that the length of the terms of the initial 108 appointees shall be adjusted to stagger the terms. The Governor 109 may remove a member for cause or upon the written petition of 110 the county governing body. If any of the members of the council 111 required to be appointed by the Governor under the provisions of 112 this subsection shall resign, die, or be removed from office, 113 the vacancy thereby created shall, as soon as practicable, be 114 filled by appointment by the Governor, using the same method as 115 the original appointment, and such appointment to fill a vacancy 116 shall be for the unexpired term of the person who resigns, dies, 117 or is removed from office. 118 (b) However, any county as defined in s. 125.011(1) may 119 instead have a governing body consisting of 33 members, 120 including: the superintendent of schools, or his or her 121 designee; two representatives of public postsecondary education 122 institutions located in the county; the county manager or the 123 equivalent county officer; the district administrator from the 124 appropriate district of the Department of Children and Families, 125 or the administrator’s designee who is a member of the Senior 126 Management Service or the Selected Exempt Service; the director 127 of the county health department or the director’s designee; the 128 state attorney for the county or the state attorney’s designee; 129 the chief judge assigned to juvenile cases, or another juvenile 130 judge who is the chief judge’s designee and who shall sit as a 131 voting member of the board, except that the judge may not vote 132 or participate in setting ad valorem taxes under this section; 133 an individual who is selected by the board of the local United 134 Way or its equivalent; a member of a locally recognized faith 135 based coalition, selected by that coalition; a member of the 136 local chamber of commerce, selected by that chamber or, if more 137 than one chamber exists within the county, a person selected by 138 a coalition of the local chambers; a member of the early 139 learning coalition, selected by that coalition; a representative 140 of a labor organization or union active in the county; a member 141 of a local alliance or coalition engaged in cross-system 142 planning for health and social service delivery in the county, 143 selected by that alliance or coalition; a member of the local 144 Parent-Teachers Association/Parent-Teacher-Student Association, 145 selected by that association; a youth representative selected by 146 the local school system’s student government; a local school 147 board member appointed by the chair of the school board; the 148 mayor of the county or the mayor’s designee; one member of the 149 county governing body, appointed by the chair of that body; a 150 member of the state Legislature who represents residents of the 151 county, selected by the chair of the local legislative 152 delegation; an elected official representing the residents of a 153 municipality in the county, selected by the county municipal 154 league; and 4 members-at-large, appointed to the council by the 155 majority of sitting council members. The remaining 7 members 156 shall be appointed by the Governor in accordance with procedures 157 set forth in paragraph (a), except that the Governor may remove 158 a member for cause or upon the written petition of the council. 159 Appointments by the Governor must, to the extent reasonably 160 possible, represent the geographic and demographic diversity of 161 the population of the county. Members who are appointed to the 162 council by reason of their position are not subject to the 163 length of terms and limits on consecutive terms as provided in 164 this section. The remaining appointed members of the governing 165 body shall be appointed to serve 2-year terms, except that those 166 members appointed by the Governor shall be appointed to serve 4 167 year terms, and the youth representative and the legislative 168 delegate shall be appointed to serve 1-year terms. A member may 169 be reappointed; however, a member may not serve for more than 170 three consecutive terms. A member is eligible to be appointed 171 again after a 2-year hiatus from the council. 172 (c) This subsection does not prohibit a county from 173 exercising such power as is provided by general or special law 174 to provide children’s services or to create a special district 175 to provide such services. 176 Section 4. Section 200.091, Florida Statutes, is amended to 177 read: 178 200.091 Referendum to increase millage.—The millage 179 authorized to be levied in s. 200.071 for county purposes, 180 including dependent districts therein, may be increased for 181 periods not exceeding 2 years, provided such levy has been 182 approved by majority vote of the qualified electors in the 183 county or district voting in a generalanelection, as defined 184 in s. 97.021, called for such purpose. Such an election may be 185 called by the governing body of any such county or district on 186 its own motion and shall be called upon submission of a petition 187 specifying the amount of millage sought to be levied and the 188 purpose for which the proceeds will be expended and containing 189 the signatures of at least 10 percent of the persons qualified 190 to vote in such election, signed within 60 days prior to the 191 date the petition is filed. 192 Section 5. Section 200.101, Florida Statutes, is amended to 193 read: 194 200.101 Referendum for millage in excess of limits.—The 195 qualified electors of a municipality may, by majority vote at a 196 general election, as defined in s. 97.021,of those voting197approve anincreaseofmillage above those limits imposed by s. 198 200.081 in a referendum called for such purpose by the governing 199 body of the municipality, but the period of such increase may 200 not exceed 2 years. Such referendum also may be initiated by 201 submission of a petition to the governing body of the 202 municipality containing the signatures of 10 percent of those 203 persons eligible to vote in such referendum, which signatures 204 were affixed to the petition within 60 days prior to its 205 submission. 206 Section 6. Paragraph (a) of subsection (4) of section 207 336.021, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 208 336.021 County transportation system; levy of ninth-cent 209 fuel tax on motor fuel and diesel fuel.— 210 (4)(a)1. A certified copy of the ordinance proposing to 211 levy the tax pursuant to referendum shall be furnished by the 212 county to the department within 10 days after approval of such 213 ordinance. 214 2. A referendum under this subsection shall be held only at 215 a general election, as defined in s. 97.021. 216 3.Furthermore,The county levying the tax pursuant to 217 referendum shall notify the department within 10 days after the 218 passage of the referendum of such passage and of the time period 219 during which the tax will be levied. The failure to furnish the 220 certified copy will not invalidate the passage of the ordinance. 221 Section 7. Paragraph (b) of subsection (1) and paragraph 222 (b) of subsection (3) of section 336.025, Florida Statutes, are 223 amended to read: 224 336.025 County transportation system; levy of local option 225 fuel tax on motor fuel and diesel fuel.— 226 (1) 227 (b) In addition to other taxes allowed by law, there may be 228 levied as provided in s. 206.41(1)(e) a 1-cent, 2-cent, 3-cent, 229 4-cent, or 5-cent local option fuel tax upon every gallon of 230 motor fuel sold in a county and taxed under the provisions of 231 part I of chapter 206. The tax shall be levied by an ordinance 232 adopted by a majority plus one vote of the membership of the 233 governing body of the county or by referendum. A referendum 234 under this subsection shall be held only at a general election, 235 as defined in s. 97.021. 236 1. All impositions and rate changes of the tax shall be 237 levied before October 1, to be effective January 1 of the 238 following year. However, levies of the tax which were in effect 239 on July 1, 2002, and which expire on August 31 of any year may 240 be reimposed at the current authorized rate provided the tax is 241 levied before July 1 and is effective September 1 of the year of 242 expiration. 243 2. The county may, prior to levy of the tax, establish by 244 interlocal agreement with one or more municipalities located 245 therein, representing a majority of the population of the 246 incorporated area within the county, a distribution formula for 247 dividing the entire proceeds of the tax among county government 248 and all eligible municipalities within the county. If no 249 interlocal agreement is adopted before the effective date of the 250 tax, tax revenues shall be distributed pursuant to the 251 provisions of subsection (4). If no interlocal agreement exists, 252 a new interlocal agreement may be established prior to June 1 of 253 any year pursuant to this subparagraph. However, any interlocal 254 agreement agreed to under this subparagraph after the initial 255 levy of the tax or change in the tax rate authorized in this 256 section shall under no circumstances materially or adversely 257 affect the rights of holders of outstanding bonds which are 258 backed by taxes authorized by this paragraph, and the amounts 259 distributed to the county government and each municipality shall 260 not be reduced below the amount necessary for the payment of 261 principal and interest and reserves for principal and interest 262 as required under the covenants of any bond resolution 263 outstanding on the date of establishment of the new interlocal 264 agreement. 265 3. County and municipal governments shall use moneys 266 received pursuant to this paragraph for transportation 267 expenditures needed to meet the requirements of the capital 268 improvements element of an adopted comprehensive plan or for 269 expenditures needed to meet immediate local transportation 270 problems and for other transportation-related expenditures that 271 are critical for building comprehensive roadway networks by 272 local governments. For purposes of this paragraph, expenditures 273 for the construction of new roads, the reconstruction or 274 resurfacing of existing paved roads, or the paving of existing 275 graded roads shall be deemed to increase capacity and such 276 projects shall be included in the capital improvements element 277 of an adopted comprehensive plan. Expenditures for purposes of 278 this paragraph shall not include routine maintenance of roads. 279 (3) The tax authorized pursuant to paragraph (1)(a) shall 280 be levied using either of the following procedures: 281 (b) If no interlocal agreement or resolution is adopted 282 pursuant to subparagraph (a)1. or subparagraph (a)2., 283 municipalities representing more than 50 percent of the county 284 population may, prior to June 20, adopt uniform resolutions 285 approving the local option tax, establishing the duration of the 286 levy and the rate authorized in paragraph (1)(a), and setting 287 the date for a countywide referendum on whether to levy the tax. 288 A referendum under this subsection shall be held only at a 289 general election, as defined in s. 97.021shall be held in290accordance with the provisions of such resolution and applicable291state law, provided that the county shall bear the costs292thereof. The tax shall be levied and collected countywide on 293 January 1 following 30 days after voter approval. 294 Section 8. Subsection (3) of section 1011.73, Florida 295 Statutes, is amended to read: 296 1011.73 District millage elections.— 297 (3) HOLDING ELECTIONS.—All school district millage 298 elections shall be held and conducted in the manner prescribed 299 by law for holding general elections, except as provided in this 300 chapter. A referendum under this part shall be held only at a 301 general election, as defined in s. 97.021. 302 Section 9. This act shall take effect October 1, 2022.