Florida Senate - 2020 SB 996
By Senator Albritton
26-01431-20 2020996__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to the displacement of private waste
3 companies; amending s. 403.70605, F.S.; revising the
4 process for a local government to displace a private
5 waste collection company in a county or municipality;
6 requiring a local government to announce its intent to
7 adopt an ordinance or a resolution for organized
8 collection service through a resolution of intent;
9 specifying requirements for the resolution of intent;
10 specifying requirements for a local government’s plan
11 for organized collection service; prohibiting a local
12 government from commencing organized collection
13 service for a specified time after adoption of a
14 certain ordinance or resolution; requiring a local
15 government to restart the notification and planning
16 process under certain circumstances; defining the term
17 “organized collection service”; providing an effective
18 date.
19
20 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
21
22 Section 1. Subsection (3) of section 403.70605, Florida
23 Statutes, is amended to read:
24 403.70605 Solid waste collection services in competition
25 with private companies.—
26 (3) DISPLACEMENT OF PRIVATE WASTE COMPANIES.—
27 (a) A local government may displace a private company that
28 provides garbage, trash, or refuse collection service only by
29 adopting an ordinance or a resolution. Before adopting the
30 ordinance or resolution, the local government must do all of the
31 following:
32 1. At least 180 days before adopting the ordinance or
33 resolution under this subsection, announce its intent to
34 consider the adoption of an organized collection service by a
35 resolution of intent. The resolution of intent must:
36 a. Include specific goals to be achieved, a detailed
37 justification for any franchise fees, and all other reasons the
38 local government has for considering an organized collection
39 service;
40 b. Be published once in a newspaper of general circulation
41 in the county or municipality;
42 c. Give notice of a public hearing to be held at least 30
43 days before consideration of the adoption of the resolution of
44 intent; and
45 d. Invite interested persons to participate in the planning
46 and establishing of the organized collection service, including
47 all licensees and other persons operating solid waste or
48 recyclables collection services in the county or municipality as
49 of the date of announcement of its intent to establish an
50 organized collection service in the county or municipality.
51 2. Within 90 days after adopting the resolution of intent
52 required under subparagraph 1., develop a plan for organized
53 collection service. The local government shall invite and employ
54 the assistance of all licensees and other persons operating
55 solid waste or recyclables collection services in the county or
56 municipality. All licensees and other persons operating solid
57 waste or recyclables collection in the county or municipality
58 must be allowed to participate in the planning meetings.
59 3. Provide at least 30 days’ notice before a hearing on the
60 proposed plan to all licensees or other persons operating solid
61 waste or recyclables collection services in the county or
62 municipality.
63 (b) A local government’s plan for organized collection
64 service must:
65 1. Describe in detail the procedures used for development
66 of the plan;
67 2. Include evidence of compliance with all notice
68 provisions required under paragraph (a);
69 3. Evaluate the proposed plan in regard to achieving the
70 stated goals, to minimizing displacement and economic impact to
71 current solid waste collectors, to ensuring participation of all
72 interested parties in the decisionmaking process, and to
73 maximizing efficiency in solid waste collection; and
74 4. Provide detailed justification for any proposed tax,
75 franchise fee, or similar fee.
76 (c) A local government may not commence an organized
77 collection service pursuant to this subsection for at least 5
78 years after the adoption of an ordinance or resolution
79 establishing the service. During this period, the local
80 government may not displace any person licensed to operate solid
81 waste collection services in the county or municipality.
82 (d) If for any reason a local government does not implement
83 an organized collection service by adoption of an ordinance or
84 resolution within 1 year after the passage of a resolution of
85 intent, the process, as provided in this section, must be
86 restarted.
87 (e) As used in this subsection, the term “organized
88 collection service” means a system for collecting solid waste,
89 recyclables, or both. The term includes a franchise, an
90 organized collection, or a process in which a county or
91 municipality goes from multiple haulers to one single contract
92 under which a specified collector, or a member of a collectors’
93 organization, is authorized to collect from a defined geographic
94 service area some or all of the solid waste or recyclables from
95 households or other generators.
96 (a) As used in this subsection, the term “displacement”
97 means a local government’s provision of a collection service
98 which prohibits a private company from continuing to provide the
99 same service that it was providing when the decision to displace
100 was made. The term does not include:
101 1. Competition between the public sector and private
102 companies for individual contracts;
103 2. Actions by which a local government, at the end of a
104 contract with a private company, refuses to renew the contract
105 and either awards the contract to another private company or
106 decides for any reason to provide the collection service itself;
107 3. Actions taken against a private company because the
108 company has acted in a manner threatening to the public health
109 or safety or resulting in a substantial public nuisance;
110 4. Actions taken against a private company because the
111 company has materially breached its contract with the local
112 government;
113 5. Refusal by a private company to continue operations
114 under the terms and conditions of its existing agreement during
115 the 3-year notice period;
116 6. Entering into a contract with a private company to
117 provide garbage, trash, or refuse collection which contract is
118 not entered into under an ordinance that displaces or authorizes
119 the displacement of another private company providing garbage,
120 trash, or refuse collection;
121 7. Situations in which a majority of the property owners in
122 the displacement area petition the governing body to take over
123 the collection service;
124 8. Situations in which the private companies are licensed
125 or permitted to do business within the local government for a
126 limited time and such license or permit expires and is not
127 renewed by the local government. This subparagraph does not
128 apply to licensing or permitting processes enacted after May 1,
129 1999, or to occupational licenses; or
130 9. Annexations, but only to the extent that the provisions
131 of s. 171.062(4) apply.
132 (b) A local government or combination of local governments
133 may not displace a private company that provides garbage, trash,
134 or refuse collection service without first:
135 1. Holding at least one public hearing seeking comment on
136 the advisability of the local government or combination of local
137 governments providing the service.
138 2. Providing at least 45 days’ written notice of the
139 hearing, delivered by first-class mail to all private companies
140 that provide the service within the jurisdiction.
141 3. Providing public notice of the hearing.
142 (c) Following the final public hearing held under paragraph
143 (b), but not later than 1 year after the hearing, the local
144 government may proceed to take those measures necessary to
145 provide the service. A local government shall provide 3 years’
146 notice to a private company before it engages in the actual
147 provision of the service that displaces the company. As an
148 alternative to delaying displacement 3 years, a local government
149 may pay a displaced company an amount equal to the company’s
150 preceding 15 months’ gross receipts for the displaced service in
151 the displacement area. The 3-year notice period shall lapse as
152 to any private company being displaced when the company ceases
153 to provide service within the displacement area. Nothing in this
154 paragraph prohibits the local government and the company from
155 voluntarily negotiating a different notice period or amount of
156 compensation.
157 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2020.