Senate Bill 0220

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.



    Florida Senate - 1999                                   SB 220

    By the Committee on Fiscal Policy





    301-339A-99

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to grant proposals for county

  3         courthouse facilities; authorizing the State

  4         Courts Administrator to administer a grant

  5         program for funding the acquisition,

  6         renovation, or construction of county

  7         courthouse facilities; authorizing counties,

  8         municipalities, and certain nonprofit

  9         corporations to apply for such grants;

10         requiring that the recipient provide certain

11         matching funds; providing for a review panel to

12         review grant applications; providing for

13         membership of the review panel and terms of

14         office; requiring the review panel to annually

15         recommend grant recipients to the State Courts

16         Administrator; providing that the State Courts

17         Administrator may not allocate a project grant

18         unless the project is approved by the

19         Legislature; authorizing the State Courts

20         Administrator to adopt rules; providing an

21         effective date.

22

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

24

25         Section 1.  County courthouse facilities; grants for

26  acquisition, renovation, or construction; funding; approval;

27  allocation.--

28         (1)  The State Courts Administrator may accept and

29  administer moneys appropriated to it for providing grants to

30  counties, municipalities, and qualifying nonprofit

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    Florida Senate - 1999                                   SB 220
    301-339A-99




  1  corporations for the acquisition, renovation, or construction

  2  of county courthouse facilities.

  3         (2)  A county, municipality, or qualified corporation

  4  may apply for a grant of state funds for the acquisition,

  5  renovation, or construction of a county courthouse facility.

  6  As used in this section, the term "qualified corporation"

  7  means a corporation that is designated as a not-for-profit

  8  corporation pursuant to s. 501(c)(3) or (4) of the Internal

  9  Revenue Code of 1954; is described in, and allowed to receive

10  contributions pursuant to, s. 170 of the Internal Revenue Code

11  of 1954; and is a corporation not for profit incorporated

12  under chapter 617, Florida Statutes. The state grant must be

13  matched by a contribution from the county, municipality, or

14  nonprofit corporation in the amount required by rule of the

15  State Courts Administrator or as otherwise specified by law.

16         (3)(a)  A review panel shall review each application

17  for a grant to acquire, renovate, or construct a county

18  courthouse facility which is submitted under subsection (2).

19  The President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of

20  Representatives, and the Florida Association of Counties shall

21  each appoint two members to serve on the review panel and the

22  Supreme Court shall appoint one member. Members of the panel

23  shall be appointed to 3-year terms and may not be reappointed

24  to the panel within 1 year after completing a 3-year term. In

25  order to provide for staggered terms, the President of the

26  Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the

27  Florida Association of Counties shall each initially appoint

28  one member to a 1-year term. A vacancy on the panel shall be

29  filled for the unexpired portion of the term in the same

30  manner as the original appointment. The review panel shall

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    Florida Senate - 1999                                   SB 220
    301-339A-99




  1  elect a chairperson from among its members to serve a 1-year

  2  term and the chairperson may be reelected.

  3         (b)  The review panel shall annually submit to the

  4  State Courts Administrator for approval a list of all

  5  applications that the panel recommends be included by the

  6  Supreme Court in its legislative budget request for an award

  7  of grants, arranged in order of priority. In making its

  8  recommendation, the review panel shall give preference to

  9  small counties that have a population of fewer than 75,000

10  persons. The State Courts Administrator may allocate grants

11  only for projects for which the Legislature has appropriated

12  funds. Any project that is approved and recommended by the

13  State Courts Administrator but which is not funded by the

14  Legislature shall be retained on the project list for the

15  subsequent grant cycle. Thereafter, the grant applicant must

16  submit the required information in compliance with the

17  established deadline date of the latest grant cycle in order

18  to adequately indicate the current status of the project.

19         (4)  The State Courts Administrator shall adopt by rule

20  criteria to be applied by the review panel in recommending

21  applications for the award of grants and shall adopt rules for

22  administering this section.

23         Section 2.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

24  law.

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26            *****************************************

27                          SENATE SUMMARY

28    Provides for the State Courts Administrator to administer
      a grant program to fund the acquisition, renovation, and
29    construction of county courthouse facilities. Provides
      for grants to be awarded to counties, municipalities, and
30    nonprofit corporations. Establishes a panel to review
      grant proposals and make recommendations to the State
31    Courts Administrator for awarding grants. Provides
      rulemaking authority to the State Courts Administrator.
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