Bill Text: FL S7026 | 2023 | Regular Session | Engrossed
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Higher Education Finances
Spectrum: Committee Bill
Status: (Passed) 2023-05-18 - Chapter No. 2023-95 [S7026 Detail]
Download: Florida-2023-S7026-Engrossed.html
Bill Title: Higher Education Finances
Spectrum: Committee Bill
Status: (Passed) 2023-05-18 - Chapter No. 2023-95 [S7026 Detail]
Download: Florida-2023-S7026-Engrossed.html
CS for SB 7026 First Engrossed 20237026e1 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to higher education finances; amending 3 s. 1001.706, F.S.; requiring the Board of Governors to 4 develop regulations for university boards of trustees 5 relating to contracting for the construction of new 6 facilities or for work on existing facilities; 7 providing requirements for certain contracts executed 8 or amended before a specified date; amending s. 9 1009.26, F.S.; providing that certain fee waivers 10 apply to Florida College System institutions in 11 addition to state universities; authorizing a state 12 university or Florida College System institution to 13 waive the out-of-state fee for a student who is an 14 intercollegiate athlete receiving a scholarship; 15 amending s. 1011.45, F.S.; revising the list of 16 authorized expenditures that may be included in a 17 carry forward spending plan for state universities; 18 amending s. 1012.886, F.S.; revising the amount a 19 Florida College System administrative employee may 20 receive in remuneration; amending s. 1012.978, F.S.; 21 requiring university boards of trustees to submit an 22 annual report to the Board of Governors when awarding 23 bonuses; specifying a limit on the use of state funds 24 in a bonus that may be awarded; requiring the board to 25 develop a regulation; amending s. 1013.841, F.S.; 26 revising the list of authorized expenditures that may 27 be included in a carry forward spending plan for 28 Florida College System institutions; amending s. 29 1012.976, F.S.; revising definitions; defining the 30 term “public funds”; revising a limitation on 31 compensation for state university employees; amending 32 s. 1013.45, F.S.; providing that certain educational 33 facility contracting and construction techniques 34 applicable to school districts also apply to Florida 35 College System institutions; amending s. 1013.64, 36 F.S.; deleting cost and size limitations applicable to 37 minor facilities; providing an effective date. 38 39 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 40 41 Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (7) of section 42 1001.706, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 43 1001.706 Powers and duties of the Board of Governors.— 44 (7) POWERS AND DUTIES RELATING TO PROPERTY.— 45 (a) The Board of Governors shall develop guidelines for 46 university boards of trustees relating to the acquisition of 47 real and personal property and the sale and disposal thereof and 48 the approval and execution of contracts for the purchase, sale, 49 lease, license, or acquisition of commodities, goods, equipment, 50 contractual services, leases of real and personal property, and 51 construction. The acquisition may include purchase by 52 installment or lease-purchase. Such contracts may provide for 53 payment of interest on the unpaid portion of the purchase price. 54 Title to all real property acquired beforeprior toJanuary 7, 55 2003, and to all real property acquired with funds appropriated 56 by the Legislature shall be vested in the Board of Trustees of 57 the Internal Improvement Trust Fund and shall be transferred and 58 conveyed by it. 59 1. No later than October 1, 2023, the Board of Governors 60 shall develop regulations for university boards of trustees 61 relating to the procedures for contracting for professional 62 services as defined in s. 287.055 and for the construction of 63 new facilities or for the remodeling, renovation, or maintenance 64 of or additions or repairs to existing facilities. The 65 regulations must include, but are not limited to, competitive 66 bids, design-build, and selection of a construction management 67 entity. Contracts executed, extended, or amended on or before 68 September 30, 2023, must comply with the requirements of s. 69 287.055. 70 2. Notwithstandingany other provisions ofthis subsection, 71each board of trustees shall comply with the provisions of s.72287.055 for the procurement of professional services as defined73therein.any acquisition pursuant to this paragraph is subject 74 tothe provisions ofs. 1010.62. 75 Section 2. Subsections (2) and (4) of section 1009.26, 76 Florida Statutes, are amended, and subsection (21) is added to 77 that section, to read: 78 1009.26 Fee waivers.— 79 (2) A state university or Florida College System 80 institution may waive anyor allapplication, tuition, orand81 related fees for persons who supervise student interns for a 82 state university. 83 (4) A state university or Florida College System 84 institution may waive anyor allapplication, tuition, orand85 related fees for persons 60 years of age or older who are 86 residents of this state and who attend classes for credit.No87 Academic credit may notshallbe awarded for attendance in 88 classes for which fees are waived under this subsection. This 89 privilege may be granted only on a space-available basis,if 90 such classes are not filled as of the close of registration. A 91 university may limit or deny the privilege for courses that 92whichare in programs for which the Board of Governors has 93 established selective admissions criteria. Persons paying full 94 fees and state employees taking courses on a space-available 95 basis shall have priority over those persons whose fees are 96 waived in all cases where classroom spaces are limited. 97 (21) A state university or Florida College System 98 institution may waive the out-of-state fee for a student who is 99 an intercollegiate athlete receiving an athletic scholarship. 100 Section 3. Subsection (3) of section 1011.45, Florida 101 Statutes, is amended to read: 102 1011.45 End of year balance of funds.—Unexpended amounts in 103 any fund in a university current year operating budget shall be 104 carried forward and included as the balance forward for that 105 fund in the approved operating budget for the following year. 106 (3) A university’s carry forward spending plan mustshall107 include the estimated cost per planned expenditure and a 108 timeline for completion of the expenditure. Authorized 109 expenditures in a carry forward spending plan may include: 110 (a) Commitment of funds to a public education capital 111 outlay project for which an appropriation has previously been 112 provided that requires additional funds for completion and which 113 is included in the list required by s. 1001.706(12)(d); 114 (b) Completion of a renovation, repair, or maintenance 115 project that is consistent withthe provisions ofs. 1013.64(1) 116 or, up to $5 million per project andreplacement of a minor 117 facilitythat does not exceed 10,000 gross square feet in size118up to $2 million; 119 (c) Completion of a remodeling or infrastructure project, 120 including a project for a developmental research school,up to121$10 million per project,if such project is survey recommended 122 pursuant to s. 1013.31; 123 (d) Completion of a repair or replacement project necessary 124 due to damage caused by a natural disaster for buildings 125 included in the inventory required pursuant to s. 1013.31; 126 (e) Operating expenditures that support the university’s 127universitymissionand that are nonrecurring; 128 (f) Any purpose specified by the board or in the General 129 Appropriations Act, including the requirements in s. 130 1001.706(12)(c) or similar requirements pursuant to Board of 131 Governors regulations; and 132 (g) A commitment of funds to a contingency reserve for 133 expenses incurred as a result of a state of emergency declared 134 by the Governor pursuant to s. 252.36. 135 Section 4. Subsection (2) of section 1012.886, Florida 136 Statutes, is amended to read: 137 1012.886 Remuneration of Florida College System institution 138 administrative employees; limitations.— 139 (2) LIMITATION ON COMPENSATION.—Notwithstanding any other 140 law, resolution, or rule to the contrary, a Florida College 141 System institution administrative employee may not receive more 142 than $250,000$200,000in remuneration annually from 143 appropriated state funds. Only compensation, as such term is 144 defined in s. 121.021(22), provided to a Florida College System 145 institution administrative employee may be used in calculating 146 benefits under chapter 121. 147 Section 5. Section 1012.978, Florida Statutes, is amended 148 to read: 149 1012.978 Bonuses for state university system employees. 150 Notwithstanding s. 215.425(3), a university board of trustees 151 may implement a bonus scheme based on awards for work 152 performance or employee recruitment and retention. The board of 153 trustees must submit an annual report to the Board of Governors 154 when awarding bonusesthe bonus scheme, including the evaluation155criteria by which a bonus will be awarded. The use of state 156 funds for the award of a bonus may not exceed 5 percent of the 157 employee’s salary. The Board of Governors shall develop a 158 regulation to ensure consistency in the implementation of this 159 sectionmust approve any bonus scheme created under this section160before its implementation. 161 Section 6. Subsection (4) of section 1013.841, Florida 162 Statutes, is amended to read: 163 1013.841 End of year balance of Florida College System 164 institution funds.— 165 (4) A Florida College System institution identified in 166 paragraph (3)(b) must include in its carry forward spending plan 167 the estimated cost per planned expenditure and a timeline for 168 completion of the expenditure. Authorized expenditures in a 169 carry forward spending plan may include: 170 (a) Commitment of funds to a public education capital 171 outlay project for which an appropriation was previously 172 provided, which requires additional funds for completion, and 173 which is included in the list required by s. 1001.03(18)(d); 174 (b) Completion of a renovation, repair, or maintenance 175 project that is consistent withthe provisions ofs. 1013.64(1) 176 or replacement of a minor facility,up to $5 million per177project;178 (c) Completion of a remodeling or infrastructure project, 179up to $10 million per project,if such project is survey 180 recommended pursuant to s. 1013.31; 181 (d) Completion of a repair or replacement project necessary 182 due to damage caused by a natural disaster for buildings 183 included in the inventory required pursuant to s. 1013.31; 184 (e) Operating expenditures that support the Florida College 185 System institution’s missionwhich are nonrecurring; 186 (f) Any purpose approved by the state board or specified in 187 the General Appropriations Act; and 188 (g) A commitment of funds to a contingency reserve for 189 expenses incurred as a result of a state of emergency declared 190 by the Governor pursuant to s. 252.36. 191 Section 7. Section 1012.976, Florida Statutes, is amended 192 to read: 193 1012.976 Remuneration of state university employees; 194 limitations.— 195 (1) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term: 196 (a)“Appropriated state funds” means funds appropriated197from the General Revenue Fund or funds appropriated from state198trust funds.199(b)“Cash-equivalent compensation” means any benefit that 200 may be assigned an equivalent cash value. 201 (b) “Public funds” means funds appropriated from the 202 General Revenue Fund, funds appropriated from state trust funds, 203 or tuition and fees. 204 (c) “Remuneration” means salary, bonuses, and cash 205 equivalent compensation paid to a state university employee by 206 his or her employer for work performed, excluding health 207 insurance benefits and retirement benefits. 208 (2) LIMITATION ON COMPENSATION.—Notwithstanding any other 209 law, resolution, or rule to the contrary, a state university 210 employee may not receive more than $250,000$200,000in 211 remuneration annually from publicappropriated statefunds. Only 212 compensation, as such term is defined in s. 121.021(22), 213 provided to a state university employee may be used in 214 calculating benefits under chapter 121. 215 (3) EXCEPTIONS.—This section does not prohibit any party 216 from providing cash or cash-equivalent compensation from funds 217 that are not publicappropriated statefunds to a state 218 university employee in excess of the limit in subsection (2). If 219 a party is unable or unwilling to fulfill an obligation to 220 provide cash or cash-equivalent compensation to a state 221 university employee as permitted under this subsection, public 222appropriated statefunds may not be used to fulfill such 223 obligation. This section does not apply to university teaching 224 faculty in instructional programs classified as Computer 225 Information Sciences and Support Services; Engineering; 226 Engineering Technologies and Engineering-Related Fields; Florida 227 Mental Health Institute; Health Professions and Related 228 Programs; Homeland Security, Law Enforcement, Firefighting, and 229 Related Fields; Mathematics; Nursing; or Physical Sciences; or 230 to medical school faculty or staff. 231 Section 8. Section 1013.45, Florida Statutes, is amended to 232 read: 233 1013.45 Educational facilities contracting and construction 234 techniques for school districts and Florida College System 235 institutions.— 236 (1) District school boards and boards of trustees of 237 Florida College System institutions may employ procedures to 238 contract for construction of new facilities, or for additions, 239 remodeling, renovation, maintenance, or repairs to existing 240 facilities, whichthat willinclude, but are notbelimited to: 241 (a) Competitive bids. 242 (b) Design-build pursuant to s. 287.055. 243 (c) Selecting a construction management entity, pursuant to 244 s. 255.103 or the process provided by s. 287.055, that would be 245 responsible for all scheduling and coordination in both design 246 and construction phases and is generally responsible for the 247 successful, timely, and economical completion of the 248 construction project. The construction management entity must 249 consist of or contract with licensed or registered professionals 250 for the specific fields or areas of construction to be 251 performed, as required by law. At the option of the board, the 252 construction management entity, after having been selected, may 253 be required to offer a guaranteed maximum price or a guaranteed 254 completion date; in which case, the construction management 255 entity must secure an appropriate surety bond pursuant to s. 256 255.05 and must hold construction subcontracts. The criteria for 257 selecting a construction management entity mayshallnot 258 unfairly penalize an entity that has relevant experience in the 259 delivery of construction projects of similar size and complexity 260 by methods of delivery other than construction management. 261 (d) Selecting a program management entity, pursuant to s. 262 255.103 or the process provided by s. 287.055, that would act as 263 the agent of the board and would be responsible for schedule 264 control, cost control, and coordination in providing or 265 procuring planning, design, and construction services. The 266 program management entity must consist of or contract with 267 licensed or registered professionals for the specific areas of 268 design or construction to be performed as required by law. The 269 program management entity may retain necessary design 270 professionals selected under the process provided in s. 287.055. 271 At the option of the board, the program management entity, after 272 having been selected, may be required to offer a guaranteed 273 maximum price or a guaranteed completion date, in which case the 274 program management entity must secure an appropriate surety bond 275 pursuant to s. 255.05 and must hold design and construction 276 subcontracts. The criteria for selecting a program management 277 entity mayshallnot unfairly penalize an entity that has 278 relevant experience in the delivery of construction programs of 279 similar size and complexity by methods of delivery other than 280 program management. 281 (e) Day-labor contracts not exceeding $280,000 for 282 construction, renovation, remodeling, or maintenance of existing 283 facilities. This amount shall be adjusted annually based upon 284 changes in the Consumer Price Index. 285 (2) For the purposes of this section, “day-labor contract” 286 means a project constructed using persons employed directly by a 287 board or by contracted labor. 288 (3) Contractors, design-build firms, contract management 289 entities, program management entities, or any other person under 290 contract to construct facilities or major additions to 291 facilities may use any construction techniques allowed by 292 contract and not prohibited by law, including, but not limited 293 to, those techniques known as fast-track construction 294 scheduling, use of components, and systems building process. 295 (4) Except as otherwise provided in this section and s. 296 481.229, the services of a registered architect must be used for 297 the development of plans for the erection, enlargement, or 298 alteration of any educational facility. The services of a 299 registered architect are not required for a minor renovation 300 project for which the construction cost is less than $50,000 or 301 for the placement or hookup of relocatable educational 302 facilities that conform towithstandards adopted under s. 303 1013.37. However, boards must provide compliance with building 304 code requirements and ensure that these structures are 305 adequately anchored for wind resistance as required by law. A 306 district school board shall reuse existing construction 307 documents or design criteria packages if such reuse is feasible 308 and practical. If a school district’s 5-year educational 309 facilities work plan includes the construction of two or more 310 new schools for students in the same grade group and program, 311 such as elementary, middle, or high school, the district school 312 board mustshallrequire that prototype design and construction 313 be used for the construction of these schools. Notwithstanding 314 s. 287.055, a board may purchase the architectural services for 315 the design of educational or ancillary facilities under an 316 existing contract agreement for professional services held by a 317 district school board in the State of Florida, provided that the 318 purchase is to the economic advantage of the purchasing board, 319 the services conform to the standards prescribed by rules of the 320 State Board of Education, and such reuse is not without notice 321 to, and permission from, the architect of record whose plans or 322 design criteria are being reused. Plans mustshallbe reviewed 323 for compliance with the State Requirements for Educational 324 Facilities. Rules adopted under this section must establish 325 uniform prequalification, selection, bidding, and negotiation 326 procedures applicable to construction management contracts and 327 the design-build process. This section does not supersede any 328 small, woman-owned, or minority-owned business enterprise 329 preference program adopted by a board. Except as otherwise 330 provided in this section, the negotiation procedures applicable 331 to construction management contracts and the design-build 332 process must conform to the requirements of s. 287.055. A board 333 may not modify any rules regarding construction management 334 contracts or the design-build process. 335 Section 9. Paragraph (h) of subsection (1) of section 336 1013.64, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 337 1013.64 Funds for comprehensive educational plant needs; 338 construction cost maximums for school district capital 339 projects.—Allocations from the Public Education Capital Outlay 340 and Debt Service Trust Fund to the various boards for capital 341 outlay projects shall be determined as follows: 342 (1) 343 (h) University boards of trustees may utilize funds 344 appropriated pursuant to this section for replacement of minor 345 facilitiesprovided that such projects do not exceed $1 million346in cost or 10,000 gross square feet in size. Minor facilities 347 may not be replaced from funds provided pursuant to this section 348 unless the board determines that the cost of repair or 349 renovation is greater than or equal to the cost of replacement. 350 Section 10. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023.