Senate Bill 0386

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    Florida Senate - 1999                                   SB 386

    By Senator Kurth





    15-527-99

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to grant proposals for

  3         community centers; authorizing the Department

  4         of Community Affairs to administer a grant

  5         program for funding the acquisition,

  6         renovation, or construction of community

  7         centers; authorizing counties, municipalities,

  8         and certain nonprofit corporations to apply for

  9         such grants; requiring that a grant recipient

10         provide certain matching funds; providing for

11         preference to be given to certain projects;

12         providing requirements for grant recipients;

13         providing for a review panel to review grant

14         applications; providing for membership of the

15         review panel and terms of office; requiring the

16         review panel to annually recommend grant

17         recipients to the Secretary of Community

18         Affairs; providing that the department may not

19         allocate a project grant unless the funds are

20         appropriated by the Legislature; authorizing

21         the Department of Community Affairs to adopt

22         rules; providing an effective date.

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

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26         Section 1.  Grants for acquisition, renovation, or

27  construction of community centers; funding; approval;

28  allocation.--

29         (1)  The Department of Community Affairs may accept and

30  administer moneys appropriated to it for providing grants to

31  counties, municipalities, and qualifying nonprofit

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    Florida Senate - 1999                                   SB 386
    15-527-99




  1  corporations for the acquisition, renovation, or construction

  2  of community centers.

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

  4  corporation may apply for a grant of state funds to acquire,

  5  renovate, or construct a community center. As used in this

  6  section, the term "qualified corporation" means a corporation

  7  that is designated as a not-for-profit corporation pursuant to

  8  s. 501(c)(3) or (4) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954; is

  9  described in, and allowed to receive contributions pursuant

10  to, s. 170 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954; and is a

11  corporation not for profit incorporated under chapter 617,

12  Florida Statutes.

13         (b)  The state grant may be used to cover up to 75

14  percent of the project cost, and the county, municipality, or

15  nonprofit corporation must demonstrate to the department that

16  funds are available and committed to the project. The maximum

17  amount that may be awarded to a single project under this

18  section is 1.5 million.

19         (c)  The county, municipality, or nonprofit corporation

20  must demonstrate to the department that the community supports

21  the project and has dedicated funds to operate and maintain

22  the community center.

23         (d)  The department shall give preference to projects

24  that are located in:

25         1.  Enterprise zones, empowerment zones, and services

26  areas in which at least 75 percent of the residents are of low

27  or moderate income, as defined by the United States Department

28  of Housing and Urban Development; or

29         2.  Communities that have fewer than one community

30  center per 35,000 residents.

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    Florida Senate - 1999                                   SB 386
    15-527-99




  1         (e)  Grant funds awarded under this section may not be

  2  used for administrative purposes.

  3         (f)  Each applicant that receives a grant must

  4  continually monitor its performance under the grant-supported

  5  activities to ensure that time schedules are met, project

  6  objectives are accomplished within specified time periods, and

  7  other performance goals are achieved.

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

  9  for a grant to acquire, renovate, or construct a community

10  center which is submitted under subsection (2). The Governor,

11  the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of

12  Representatives shall each appoint two members to serve on the

13  review panel, and those six members shall jointly appoint a

14  seventh member to the panel. Members of the panel shall be

15  appointed to 3-year terms and may not be reappointed to the

16  panel within 1 year after completing a 3-year term. In order

17  to provide for staggered terms, the Governor, the President of

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

19  shall each initially appoint one member to a 1-year term. A

20  vacancy on the panel shall be filled for the unexpired portion

21  of the term in the same manner as the original appointment.

22  The review panel shall elect a chairperson from among its

23  members to serve a 1-year term and the chairperson may be

24  reelected.

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

26  Secretary of Community Affairs for approval a list of all

27  applications that the panel recommends be included by the

28  Department of Community Affairs in its legislative budget

29  request for an award of grants, arranged in order of priority.

30  The department may allocate grants only for projects for which

31  the Legislature has appropriated funds. Any project that is

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    Florida Senate - 1999                                   SB 386
    15-527-99




  1  approved and recommended by the Secretary of Community Affairs

  2  but which is not funded by the Legislature shall be retained

  3  on the project list for the subsequent grant cycle.

  4  Thereafter, the grant applicant must submit the information

  5  required by the department in compliance with the established

  6  deadline date of the latest grant cycle in order to adequately

  7  indicate the current status of the project.

  8         (4)  The Department of Community Affairs shall adopt by

  9  rule criteria to be applied by the review panel in

10  recommending applications for the award of grants and shall

11  adopt rules for administering this section.

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

13  law.

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15            *****************************************

16                          SENATE SUMMARY

17    Provides for the Department of Community Affairs to
      administer a grant program to fund the acquisition,
18    renovation, and construction of community centers.
      Provides for grants to be awarded to counties,
19    municipalities, and nonprofit corporations. Establishes a
      panel to review grant proposals and make recommendations
20    to the Secretary of Community Affairs for awarding
      grants. Provides rulemaking authority to the Department
21    of Community Affairs. (See bill for details.)

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