The Florida Senate

292.04  Florida Commission on Veterans' Affairs.--

(1)(a)  There is created a Florida Commission on Veterans' Affairs to be composed of nine commissioners who shall be appointed by the Governor, subject to confirmation by the Senate. Eight commissioners shall be appointed from various regions of the state, with consideration given to proportional representation of the veterans in the state based on population. One commissioner shall be appointed from the state at large. The Governor may suspend a member of the commission only for cause, subject to removal or reinstatement of the member by the Senate.

(b)  Commissioners must be veterans of a war in which the United States was or is a participant, and they must have been separated from the Armed Forces of the United States under honorable conditions. Each member of the commission must be a resident of the state. Commissioners shall be appointed to serve for terms of 4 years. A vacancy shall be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term in the same manner as the original appointment. A member of the commission is eligible for reappointment.

(2)(a)  The commission is assigned to the Department of Veterans' Affairs and shall serve as an advisory body to that department. The department shall provide administrative staff support for the commission and shall cooperate fully with the commission in matters related to the duties of the commission and shall endeavor to implement the recommendations of the commission. However, the commission, in the performance of its duties under this section, shall not be subject to control, supervision, or direction by the department.

(b)  The commission shall biennially elect a chair, vice chair, and secretary to serve for terms of 2 years. The commission shall meet four times annually at any place within the state upon the call of the chair. Members of the commission shall serve without compensation, but they shall be reimbursed for per diem and travel expenses in accordance with s. 112.061

(3)(a)  It is the duty of the commission to conduct a biennial survey of possible contributions that veterans or state organizations of veterans and their auxiliaries could make to the state and to report the results of the survey to the department together with recommendations for encouraging such contributions.

(b)  The commission shall work with the various veterans' organizations and their auxiliaries within the state and shall function as a liaison between such organizations and the department on matters pertaining to veterans.

History.--s. 1, ch. 22695, 1945; s. 1, ch. 57-133; s. 19, ch. 63-400; s. 23, ch. 63-572; ss. 18, 35, ch. 69-106; s. 4, ch. 78-323; ss. 1, 3, 4, ch. 81-122; ss. 1, 4, ch. 82-46; ss. 2, 9, ch. 82-387; s. 138, ch. 83-217; s. 2, ch. 83-265; s. 4, ch. 87-172; ss. 1, 2, 3, ch. 87-356; s. 17, ch. 88-290; s. 5, ch. 91-429; s. 240, ch. 95-148.