The Florida Senate

288.980  Base closure, retention, realignment, or defense-related readjustment and diversification; legislative intent; grants program.--

(1)  It is the intent of this state to provide the necessary means to assist communities with military installations that would be adversely affected by federal base realignment or closure actions. It is further the intent to encourage communities to establish local or regional community base realignment or closure commissions to initiate a coordinated program of response and plan of action in advance of future actions of the federal Base Realignment and Closure Commission. It is critical that closure-vulnerable communities develop such a program to preserve affected military installations. The Legislature, therefore, declares that providing such assistance to support the defense-related initiatives within this section is a public purpose for which public money may be used.

(2)

(a)  The Office of Tourism, Trade, and Economic Development is authorized to award grants from funds specifically appropriated for this purpose to applicants' eligible projects. Eligible projects shall be limited to:

1.  Activities related to the retention of military installations potentially affected by federal base closure or realignment.

2.  Activities related to preventing the potential realignment or closure of a military installation officially identified by the Federal Government for potential realignment or closure.

(b)  The term "activities" as used in this section means studies, presentations, analyses, plans, and modeling. Travel and costs incidental thereto, and staff salaries, are not considered an "activity" for which grant funds may be awarded.

(c)  The amount of any grant provided to an applicant in any one year may not exceed $250,000. The Office of Tourism, Trade, and Economic Development shall require that an applicant:

1.  Represent a community with a military installation or military installations that could be adversely affected by federal base realignment or closure.

2.  Agree to match at least 25 percent of any grant awarded by the ¹department in cash or in-kind services. Such match must be directly related to the activities for which the grant is being sought.

3.  Prepare a coordinated program or plan of action delineating how the eligible project will be administered and accomplished.

4.  Provide documentation describing the potential for realignment or closure of a military installation located in the applicant's community and the adverse impacts such realignment or closure will have on the applicant's community.

(d)  In making grant awards for eligible projects, the office shall consider, at a minimum, the following factors:

1.  The relative value of the particular military installation in terms of its importance to the local and state economy relative to other military installations vulnerable to closure.

2.  The potential job displacement within the local community should the military installation be closed.

3.  The potential adverse impact on industries and technologies which service the military installation.

(e)  For purposes of base closure and realignment, "applicant" means one or more counties, or a base closure or realignment commission created by one or more counties, to oversee the potential or actual realignment or closure of a military installation within the jurisdiction of such local government.

(3)  The Florida Economic Reinvestment Initiative is established to respond to the need for this state and defense-dependent communities in this state to develop alternative economic diversification strategies to lessen reliance on national defense dollars in the wake of base closures and reduced federal defense expenditures and the need to formulate specific base reuse plans and identify any specific infrastructure needed to facilitate reuse. The initiative shall consist of the following three distinct grant programs to be administered by the ¹Department of Commerce:

(a)  The Florida Defense Planning Grant Program, through which funds shall be used to analyze the extent to which the state is dependent on defense dollars and defense infrastructure and prepare alternative economic development strategies. The state shall work in conjunction with defense-dependent communities in developing strategies and approaches that will help communities make the transition from a defense economy to a nondefense economy. Grant awards may not exceed $100,000 per applicant and shall be available on a competitive basis.

(b)  The Florida Defense Implementation Grant Program, through which funds shall be made available to defense-dependent communities to implement the diversification strategies developed pursuant to paragraph (a). Eligible applicants include defense-dependent counties and cities, and local economic development councils located within such communities. Grant awards may not exceed $100,000 per applicant and shall be available on a competitive basis. Awards shall be matched on a one-to-one basis.

(c)  The Florida Military Installation Reuse Planning and Marketing Grant Program, through which funds shall be used to help counties, cities, and local economic development councils develop and implement plans for the reuse of closed or realigned military installations, including any necessary infrastructure improvements needed to facilitate reuse and related marketing activities. Grant awards are limited to not more than $100,000 per eligible applicant and made available through a competitive process. Awards shall be matched on a one-to-one basis.

(4)

(a)  The Defense-Related Business Adjustment Program is hereby created. The Secretary of ¹Commerce shall coordinate the development of the Defense-Related Business Adjustment Program. Funds shall be available to assist defense-related companies in the creation of increased commercial technology development through investments in technology. Such technology must have a direct impact on critical state needs for the purpose of generating investment-grade technologies and encouraging the partnership of the private sector and government defense-related business adjustment. The following areas shall receive precedence in consideration for funding commercial technology development: law enforcement or corrections, environmental protection, transportation, education, and health care. Travel and costs incidental thereto, and staff salaries, are not considered an "activity" for which grant funds may be awarded.

(b)  The ¹department shall require that an applicant:

1.  Be a defense-related business that could be adversely affected by federal base realignment or closure or reduced defense expenditures.

2.  Agree to match at least 50 percent of any funds awarded by the ¹department in cash or in-kind services. Such match shall be directly related to activities for which the funds are being sought.

3.  Prepare a coordinated program or plan delineating how the funds will be administered.

4.  Provide documentation describing how defense-related realignment or closure will adversely impact defense-related companies.

(5)  The Secretary of ¹Commerce may award nonfederal matching funds specifically appropriated for construction, maintenance, and analysis of a Florida defense workforce database. Such funds will be used to create a registry of worker skills that can be used to match the worker needs of companies that are relocating to this state or to assist workers in relocating to other areas within this state where similar or related employment is available.

(6)  The Office of Tourism, Trade, and Economic Development shall establish guidelines to implement and carry out the purpose and intent of this section.

History.--s. 9, ch. 94-323; s. 117, ch. 96-320; s. 6, ch. 96-348.

¹Note.--Section 20.17, which created the Department of Commerce, was repealed effective December 31, 1996, by s. 3, ch. 96-320.