The Florida Senate

201.15  Distribution of taxes collected.--All taxes collected under this chapter shall be distributed as follows and shall be subject to the service charge imposed in s. 215.20(1), except that such service charge shall not be levied against any portion of taxes pledged to debt service on bonds to the extent that the amount of the service charge is required to pay any amounts relating to the bonds:

(1)  Sixty-two and sixty-three hundredths percent of the remaining taxes collected under this chapter shall be used for the following purposes:

(a)  Amounts as shall be necessary to pay the debt service on, or fund debt service reserve funds, rebate obligations, or other amounts payable with respect to Preservation 2000 bonds issued pursuant to s. 375.051 and Florida Forever bonds issued pursuant to s. 215.618, shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the Land Acquisition Trust Fund to be used for such purposes. The amount transferred to the Land Acquisition Trust Fund for such purposes shall not exceed $300 million in fiscal year 1999-2000 and thereafter for Preservation 2000 bonds and bonds issued to refund Preservation 2000 bonds, and $300 million in fiscal year 2000-2001 and thereafter for Florida Forever bonds. The annual amount transferred to the Land Acquisition Trust Fund for Florida Forever bonds shall not exceed $30 million in the first fiscal year in which bonds are issued. The limitation on the amount transferred shall be increased by an additional $30 million in each subsequent fiscal year, but shall not exceed a total of $300 million in any fiscal year for all bonds issued. It is the intent of the Legislature that all bonds issued to fund the Florida Forever Act be retired by December 31, 2030. Except for bonds issued to refund previously issued bonds, no series of bonds may be issued pursuant to this paragraph unless such bonds are approved and the debt service for the remainder of the fiscal year in which the bonds are issued is specifically appropriated in the General Appropriations Act. For purposes of refunding Preservation 2000 bonds, amounts designated within this section for Preservation 2000 and Florida Forever bonds may be transferred between the two programs to the extent provided for in the documents authorizing the issuance of the bonds. The Preservation 2000 bonds and Florida Forever bonds shall be equally and ratably secured by moneys distributable to the Land Acquisition Trust Fund pursuant to this section, except to the extent specifically provided otherwise by the documents authorizing the issuance of the bonds. No moneys transferred to the Land Acquisition Trust Fund pursuant to this paragraph, or earnings thereon, shall be used or made available to pay debt service on the Save Our Coast revenue bonds.

(b)  The remainder of the moneys distributed under this subsection, after the required payment under paragraph (a), shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the Land Acquisition Trust Fund and may be used for any purpose for which funds deposited in the Land Acquisition Trust Fund may lawfully be used. Payments made under this paragraph shall continue until the cumulative amount credited to the Land Acquisition Trust Fund for the fiscal year under this paragraph and paragraph (2)(b) equals 70 percent of the current official forecast for distributions of taxes collected under this chapter pursuant to subsection (2). As used in this paragraph, the term "current official forecast" means the most recent forecast as determined by the Revenue Estimating Conference. If the current official forecast for a fiscal year changes after payments under this paragraph have ended during that fiscal year, no further payments are required under this paragraph during the fiscal year.

(c)  The remainder of the moneys distributed under this subsection, after the required payments under paragraph (a), shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the General Revenue Fund of the state to be used and expended for the purposes for which the General Revenue Fund was created and exists by law or to the Ecosystem Management and Restoration Trust Fund or to the Marine Resources Conservation Trust Fund as provided in subsection (11).

(2)  Seven and fifty-six hundredths percent of the remaining taxes collected under this chapter shall be used for the following purposes:

(a)  Beginning in the month following the final payment for a fiscal year under paragraph (1)(b), available moneys shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the General Revenue Fund of the state to be used and expended for the purposes for which the General Revenue Fund was created and exists by law or to the Ecosystem Management and Restoration Trust Fund or to the Marine Resources Conservation Trust Fund as provided in subsection (11). Payments made under this paragraph shall continue until the cumulative amount credited to the General Revenue Fund for the fiscal year under this paragraph equals the cumulative payments made under paragraph (1)(b) for the same fiscal year.

(b)  The remainder of the moneys distributed under this subsection shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the Land Acquisition Trust Fund. Sums deposited in the fund pursuant to this subsection may be used for any purpose for which funds deposited in the Land Acquisition Trust Fund may lawfully be used.

(3)  One and ninety-four hundredths percent of the remaining taxes collected under this chapter shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the Land Acquisition Trust Fund. Moneys deposited in the trust fund pursuant to this section shall be used for the following purposes:

(a)  Sixty percent of the moneys shall be used to acquire coastal lands or to pay debt service on bonds issued to acquire coastal lands; and

(b)  Forty percent of the moneys shall be used to develop and manage lands acquired with moneys from the Land Acquisition Trust Fund.

(4)  Four and two-tenths percent of the remaining taxes collected under this chapter shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the Water Management Lands Trust Fund. Sums deposited in that fund may be used for any purpose authorized in s. 373.59.

(5)  Four and two-tenths percent of the remaining taxes collected under this chapter shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the Conservation and Recreation Lands Trust Fund to carry out the purposes set forth in s. 259.032. Nine and one-half percent of the amount credited to the Conservation and Recreation Lands Trust Fund pursuant to this subsection shall be transferred to the State Game Trust Fund and used for land management activities.

(6)  Two and twenty-eight hundredths percent of the remaining taxes collected under this chapter shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the Aquatic Plant Control Trust Fund to carry out the purposes set forth in ss. 369.22 and 369.252.

(7)  One-half of one percent of the remaining taxes collected under this chapter shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the State Game Trust Fund to be used exclusively for the purpose of implementing the Lake Restoration 2020 Program.

(8)  One-half of one percent of the remaining taxes collected under this chapter shall be paid into the State Treasury and divided equally to the credit of the Department of Environmental Protection Water Quality Assurance Trust Fund to address water quality impacts associated with nonagricultural nonpoint sources and to the credit of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services General Inspection Trust Fund to address water quality impacts associated with agricultural nonpoint sources, respectively. These funds shall be used for research, development, demonstration, and implementation of suitable best management practices or other measures used to achieve water quality standards in surface waters and water segments identified pursuant to ss. 303(d) of the Clean Water Act, Pub. L. No. 92-500, 33 U.S.C. ss. 1251 et seq. Implementation of best management practices and other measures may include cost-share grants, technical assistance, implementation tracking, and conservation leases or other agreements for water quality improvement. The Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services may adopt rules governing the distribution of funds for implementation of best management practices. The unobligated balance of funds received from the distribution of taxes collected under this chapter to address water quality impacts associated with nonagricultural nonpoint sources will be excluded when calculating the unobligated balance of the Water Quality Assurance Trust Fund as it relates to the determination of the applicable excise tax rate.

(9)  Seven and fifty-three hundredths percent of the remaining taxes collected under this chapter shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the State Housing Trust Fund and shall be used as follows:

(a)  Half of that amount shall be used for the purposes for which the State Housing Trust Fund was created and exists by law.

(b)  Half of that amount shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the Local Government Housing Trust Fund and shall be used for the purposes for which the Local Government Housing Trust Fund was created and exists by law.

(10)  Eight and sixty-six hundredths percent of the remaining taxes collected under this chapter shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the State Housing Trust Fund and shall be used as follows:

(a)  Twelve and one-half percent of that amount shall be deposited into the State Housing Trust Fund and be expended by the Department of Community Affairs and by the Florida Housing Finance Corporation for the purposes for which the State Housing Trust Fund was created and exists by law.

(b)  Eighty-seven and one-half percent of that amount shall be distributed to the Local Government Housing Trust Fund and shall be used for the purposes for which the Local Government Housing Trust Fund was created and exists by law. Funds from this category may also be used to provide for state and local services to assist the homeless.

(11)  From the moneys specified in paragraphs (1)(c) and (2)(a) and prior to deposit of any moneys into the General Revenue Fund, $30 million shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the Ecosystem Management and Restoration Trust Fund in fiscal year 2000-2001 and each fiscal year thereafter, to be used for the preservation and repair of the state's beaches as provided in ss. 161.091-161.212, and $2 million shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the Marine Resources Conservation Trust Fund to be used for marine mammal care as provided in s. 370.0603(3).

(12)  The Department of Revenue may use the payments credited to trust funds pursuant to paragraphs (1)(b) and (2)(b) and subsections (3), (4), (5), (6), (7), (8), (9), and (10) to pay the costs of the collection and enforcement of the tax levied by this chapter. The percentage of such costs which may be assessed against a trust fund is a ratio, the numerator of which is payments credited to that trust fund under this section and the denominator of which is the sum of payments made under paragraphs (1)(b) and (2)(b) and subsections (3), (4), (5), (6), (7), (8), (9), and (10).

(13)  The distribution of proceeds deposited into the Water Management Lands Trust Fund and the Conservation and Recreation Lands Trust Fund, pursuant to subsections (4) and (5), shall not be used for land acquisition, but may be used for preacquisition costs associated with land purchases. The Legislature intends that the Florida Forever program supplant the acquisition programs formerly authorized under ss. 259.032 and 373.59. Prior to the 2005 Regular Session of the Legislature, the Acquisition and Restoration Council shall review and make recommendations to the Legislature concerning the need to repeal this provision. Based on these recommendations, the Legislature shall review the need to repeal this provision during the 2005 Regular Session.

(14)  Amounts distributed pursuant to subsections (5), (6), (7) and (8) are subject to the payment of debt service on outstanding Conservation and Recreation Lands revenue bonds.

History.--s. 6, ch. 15787, 1931; CGL 1936 Supp. 1279(117); s. 4, ch. 79-350; ss. 2, 4, ch. 81-33; s. 7, ch. 85-347; s. 35, ch. 87-6; ss. 3, 4, ch. 87-96; s. 43, ch. 87-548; s. 12, ch. 90-132; s. 3, ch. 90-217; s. 2, ch. 91-79; s. 3, ch. 91-192; ss. 3, 4, ch. 92-317; ss. 1, 2, ch. 93-74; ss. 10, 11, ch. 94-240; ss. 46, 47, ch. 94-356; s. 1, ch. 95-394; s. 5, ch. 98-311; ss. 1, 2, ch. 99-247; ss. 33, 34, ch. 2000-151; ss. 1, 2, ch. 2000-170; ss. 33, 34, ch. 2000-197; s. 5, ch. 2001-279.