Florida Senate - 2019                                     SB 726
       
       
        
       By Senator Stewart
       
       
       
       
       
       13-00807A-19                                           2019726__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to the tourist development tax;
    3         amending s. 125.0104, F.S.; authorizing counties
    4         imposing the tax to use the tax revenues to promote or
    5         incentivize film or television productions in this
    6         state; defining the term “production”; requiring such
    7         counties to require certain productions to include a
    8         specified statement in the production’s credits;
    9         providing an effective date.
   10          
   11  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   12  
   13         Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (5) of section
   14  125.0104, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   15         125.0104 Tourist development tax; procedure for levying;
   16  authorized uses; referendum; enforcement.—
   17         (5) AUTHORIZED USES OF REVENUE.—
   18         (a) All tax revenues received pursuant to this section by a
   19  county imposing the tourist development tax shall be used by
   20  that county for the following purposes only:
   21         1. To acquire, construct, extend, enlarge, remodel, repair,
   22  improve, maintain, operate, or promote one or more:
   23         a. Publicly owned and operated convention centers, sports
   24  stadiums, sports arenas, coliseums, or auditoriums within the
   25  boundaries of the county or subcounty special taxing district in
   26  which the tax is levied;
   27         b. Auditoriums that are publicly owned but are operated by
   28  organizations that are exempt from federal taxation pursuant to
   29  26 U.S.C. s. 501(c)(3) and open to the public, within the
   30  boundaries of the county or subcounty special taxing district in
   31  which the tax is levied; or
   32         c. Aquariums or museums that are publicly owned and
   33  operated or owned and operated by not-for-profit organizations
   34  and open to the public, within the boundaries of the county or
   35  subcounty special taxing district in which the tax is levied;
   36         2. To promote zoological parks that are publicly owned and
   37  operated or owned and operated by not-for-profit organizations
   38  and open to the public;
   39         3. To promote and advertise tourism in this state and
   40  nationally and internationally; however, if tax revenues are
   41  expended for an activity, service, venue, or event, the
   42  activity, service, venue, or event must have as one of its main
   43  purposes the attraction of tourists as evidenced by the
   44  promotion of the activity, service, venue, or event to tourists;
   45         4. To fund convention bureaus, tourist bureaus, tourist
   46  information centers, and news bureaus as county agencies or by
   47  contract with the chambers of commerce or similar associations
   48  in the county, which may include any indirect administrative
   49  costs for services performed by the county on behalf of the
   50  promotion agency;
   51         5. To finance beach park facilities, or beach, channel,
   52  estuary, or lagoon improvement, maintenance, renourishment,
   53  restoration, and erosion control, including construction of
   54  beach groins and shoreline protection, enhancement, cleanup, or
   55  restoration of inland lakes and rivers to which there is public
   56  access as those uses relate to the physical preservation of the
   57  beach, shoreline, channel, estuary, lagoon, or inland lake or
   58  river. However, any funds identified by a county as the local
   59  matching source for beach renourishment, restoration, or erosion
   60  control projects included in the long-range budget plan of the
   61  state’s Beach Management Plan, pursuant to s. 161.091, or funds
   62  contractually obligated by a county in the financial plan for a
   63  federally authorized shore protection project may not be used or
   64  loaned for any other purpose. In counties of fewer than 100,000
   65  population, up to 10 percent of the revenues from the tourist
   66  development tax may be used for beach park facilities; or
   67         6. To acquire, construct, extend, enlarge, remodel, repair,
   68  improve, maintain, operate, or finance public facilities within
   69  the boundaries of the county or subcounty special taxing
   70  district in which the tax is levied, if the public facilities
   71  are needed to increase tourist-related business activities in
   72  the county or subcounty special district and are recommended by
   73  the county tourist development council created pursuant to
   74  paragraph (4)(e). Tax revenues may be used for any related land
   75  acquisition, land improvement, design and engineering costs, and
   76  all other professional and related costs required to bring the
   77  public facilities into service. As used in this subparagraph,
   78  the term “public facilities” means major capital improvements
   79  that have a life expectancy of 5 or more years, including, but
   80  not limited to, transportation, sanitary sewer, solid waste,
   81  drainage, potable water, and pedestrian facilities. Tax revenues
   82  may be used for these purposes only if the following conditions
   83  are satisfied:
   84         a. In the county fiscal year immediately preceding the
   85  fiscal year in which the tax revenues were initially used for
   86  such purposes, at least $10 million in tourist development tax
   87  revenue was received;
   88         b. The county governing board approves the use for the
   89  proposed public facilities by a vote of at least two-thirds of
   90  its membership;
   91         c. No more than 70 percent of the cost of the proposed
   92  public facilities will be paid for with tourist development tax
   93  revenues, and sources of funding for the remaining cost are
   94  identified and confirmed by the county governing board;
   95         d. At least 40 percent of all tourist development tax
   96  revenues collected in the county are spent to promote and
   97  advertise tourism as provided by this subsection; and
   98         e. An independent professional analysis, performed at the
   99  expense of the county tourist development council, demonstrates
  100  the positive impact of the infrastructure project on tourist
  101  related businesses in the county; or
  102         7. To promote or incentivize film or television productions
  103  in this state. As used in this subparagraph, the term
  104  “production” has the same meaning as provided in s. 288.1254(1).
  105  If tax revenues are used for a production, the county must
  106  require that the production include in its credits the statement
  107  “Created in Florida” or “Filmed in Florida,” as applicable.
  108  
  109  Subparagraphs 1. and 2. may be implemented through service
  110  contracts and leases with lessees that have sufficient expertise
  111  or financial capability to operate such facilities.
  112         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019.