House Bill 3967

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    Florida House of Representatives - 1998                HB 3967

        By Representative Spratt






  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to Central County Water Control

  3         District in Hendry County; amending chapter

  4         70-702, Laws of Florida, as amended; requiring

  5         that two of the five supervisors of the

  6         district be elected by a vote of qualified

  7         electors residing in the district and

  8         establishing qualifications and procedures

  9         therefor; changing the annual meeting date;

10         requiring payment of special assessments as a

11         condition for voting at an annual meeting;

12         providing for a referendum; providing an

13         effective date.

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15  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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17         Section 1.  Section 9 is added to chapter 70-702, Laws

18  of Florida, as amended, to read:

19         Section 9.  Election of Supervisors.--

20         (1)  DEFINITIONS.--As used in this section, the term:

21         (a)  "Qualified elector" means any person at least 18

22  years of age who is a citizen of the United States, a

23  permanent resident of Florida, and a resident of the district

24  who registers with the supervisor of elections of Hendry

25  County when the registration books are open.

26         (b)  "Governing board member" means any duly elected

27  member of the Board of Supervisors of Central County Water

28  Control District elected pursuant to this section, provided

29  that any board member elected by popular vote shall be a

30  district elector and any board member elected on a

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    Florida House of Representatives - 1998                HB 3967

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  1  one-acre/one-vote basis shall meet the requirements of s.

  2  298.11, Florida Statutes, for election to the board.

  3         (2)  BOARD OF SUPERVISORS.--

  4         (a)  Composition of board.--

  5         1.  The number of members of the governing board of the

  6  Central County Water Control District shall be five, two of

  7  whom shall be elected by the qualified electors residing in

  8  the district and three of whom shall be elected at the annual

  9  meeting in accordance with the requirements and procedures set

10  forth in s. 298.11, Florida Statutes, except that no voting by

11  proxy shall be allowed.

12         2.  All governing board members elected by qualified

13  electors shall be elected at large.

14         (b)  Term of office.--

15         1.  All governing board members elected by qualified

16  electors shall have a term of 4 years except for governing

17  board members elected at the first election following the

18  referendum prescribed in subsection (3). The candidate

19  receiving the highest number of votes at such election shall

20  have a term of 4 years and the candidate receiving the second

21  highest number of votes shall have a term of 2 years.

22         2.  All governing board members elected at the annual

23  meeting in accordance with s. 298.11, Florida Statutes, shall

24  have a term of 3 years.

25         3.  If a vacancy occurs in a seat occupied by a

26  governing board member, the remaining members of the governing

27  board shall, within 60 days after receipt of a resignation or

28  notice of that member's death or other disqualification,

29  appoint a person who would be eligible to hold the office for

30  the unexpired term of the vacating member.

31         (c)  Landowners' meetings.--

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    Florida House of Representatives - 1998                HB 3967

    587-112-98






  1         1.  The annual landowners' meeting shall be held

  2  pursuant to s. 298.11, Florida Statutes, in October of each

  3  year, commencing in October 1999, and at least one governing

  4  board member shall be elected at each annual meeting.

  5         2.  At any landowners' meeting called pursuant to this

  6  section, 50 percent of the district acreage shall not be

  7  required to constitute a quorum and each governing board

  8  member shall be elected by a majority of the acreage

  9  represented by owners present and voting at said meeting or

10  having voted prior to the meeting by absentee under procedures

11  adopted by the governing board.

12         (d)  Qualifications.--

13         1.  Elections for governing board members elected by

14  qualified electors shall be nonpartisan. Qualifications shall

15  be pursuant to the Florida Election Code and shall occur

16  during the qualifying period established by s. 99.061, Florida

17  Statutes. Qualification requirements under this subsection

18  shall apply to only those governing board member candidates

19  elected by qualified electors, which members shall be

20  qualified electors residing in the district at the time of

21  qualification and during the term of their office. Following

22  the first election pursuant to this section, elections to the

23  governing board by qualified electors shall occur at the next

24  regularly scheduled election closest in time to the expiration

25  date of the term of the elected governing board member. If the

26  next regularly scheduled election is beyond the normal

27  expiration time for the term of an elected governing board

28  member, the governing board member shall hold office until the

29  election of a successor.

30         2.  Qualification and election of members of the

31  governing board elected at the annual meeting shall be in

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    Florida House of Representatives - 1998                HB 3967

    587-112-98






  1  accordance with this act and chapter 298, Florida Statutes. No

  2  proxy voting shall be permitted.

  3         3.  In addition to any other qualification requirements

  4  set forth in this or any other special act relating to Central

  5  County Water Control District and in chapter 298, Florida

  6  Statutes, it shall be a requirement for voting at an annual

  7  meeting on a one-acre/one-vote basis that the special

  8  assessments levied by the district for the year preceding the

  9  annual meeting shall have been paid on the parcel of land for

10  each vote cast. The board of supervisors shall establish

11  procedures to implement this subparagraph, which procedures

12  shall, among other things, allow a vote to be cast upon the

13  showing of a receipt for the required assessment, or for the

14  relevant tax statement, from the county tax collector.

15         4.  The two supervisor terms which expire in 1999 shall

16  be filled by the election held at the 1999 annual meeting. The

17  candidate receiving the highest number of votes shall be

18  elected to a 3-year term and the candidate receiving the

19  second highest number of votes shall be elected to a 2-year

20  term. Thereafter, supervisors elected at an annual meeting to

21  replace a supervisor whose term has expired shall have a term

22  of 3 years.

23         Section 2.  (1)  The election of supervisors at the

24  1998 annual meeting of the Central County Water Control

25  District, to be held at the annual meeting in April 1998, is

26  postponed in accordance with the provisions of this section.

27         (2)  In the event that section 1 of this act becomes

28  law after the referendum required by section 3, there shall be

29  no election of supervisors at the 1998 annual meeting of the

30  district, and the new governing board members for the two

31  terms expiring in 1998 shall be elected by the qualified

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    Florida House of Representatives - 1998                HB 3967

    587-112-98






  1  electors at the November 1998 general election in accordance

  2  with this act.

  3         (3)  In the event that section 1 does not take effect

  4  after the referendum required by section 3, the 1998 annual

  5  meeting shall be recessed at the time the referendum results

  6  are announced until a date in September 1998, at which time

  7  the annual election of supervisors shall be held and the terms

  8  of the members of the governing board elected at such meeting

  9  shall run until the annual meeting held in the year such term

10  would have expired had this act not been enacted.

11         (4)  All terms for members of the governing board are

12  extended until their successors are elected and qualified

13  according to the provisions of this act and chapter 298,

14  Florida Statutes.

15         Section 3.  (1)  Section 1 of this act shall take

16  effect only upon its approval by a majority vote of those

17  voting in a referendum to be held at the district's annual

18  meeting in April 1998, in accordance with the provisions of

19  law and voting procedures currently in effect for the

20  district.

21         (2)  Sections 2 and 3 of this act shall take effect

22  upon becoming a law.

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