House Bill 0465c1
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida House of Representatives - 1999 CS/HB 465
By the Committee on Community Affairs and Representatives
Minton and Boyd
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to grants for community
3 centers; authorizing the Department of
4 Community Affairs to administer a grant program
5 for funding the acquisition, renovation, or
6 construction of community centers; providing
7 definitions; authorizing counties,
8 municipalities, and certain qualified
9 corporations to apply for such grants;
10 requiring that a grant recipient provide
11 certain matching funds; providing for
12 preference to be given to certain projects;
13 providing limitations; providing duties of
14 grant recipients; providing for a review panel
15 to review grant applications; providing for
16 membership of the review panel and terms of
17 office; requiring the review panel to annually
18 recommend grant recipients to the Secretary of
19 Community Affairs; providing that the
20 department may not allocate a project grant
21 unless the funds are appropriated by the
22 Legislature; authorizing the department to
23 adopt rules; providing an effective date.
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25 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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27 Section 1. Grants for acquisition, renovation, or
28 construction of community centers; funding; approval;
29 allocation.--
30 (1) The Department of Community Affairs may accept and
31 administer moneys appropriated to it for providing grants to
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Florida House of Representatives - 1999 CS/HB 465
171-615-99
1 counties, municipalities, and qualified corporations for the
2 acquisition, renovation, or construction of community centers.
3 (2) As used in this section:
4 (a) "Community centers" means freestanding facilities
5 owned or managed by a county, municipality, or qualified
6 corporation that provide recreational opportunities,
7 educational programs, and meeting rooms for the community. The
8 term also includes recreational centers or other similar
9 facilities to the extent they comply with these criteria.
10 (b) "Qualified corporation" means a corporation that
11 is designated as a not-for-profit corporation pursuant to s.
12 501(c)(3) or (4) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954; that is
13 described in, and allowed to receive contributions pursuant
14 to, s. 170 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954; and that is a
15 corporation not for profit incorporated under chapter 617,
16 Florida Statutes.
17 (3)(a) A county, municipality, or qualified
18 corporation may apply for a grant of state funds to acquire,
19 renovate, or construct a community center.
20 (b) The state grant may be used to cover up to 75
21 percent of the project cost, and the county, municipality, or
22 qualified corporation must demonstrate to the department that
23 funds are available and committed to the project. The maximum
24 amount that may be awarded to a single project under this
25 section is $1.5 million.
26 (c) The county, municipality, or qualified corporation
27 must demonstrate to the department that the community supports
28 the project and has dedicated funds to operate and maintain
29 the community center.
30 (d) The department shall give preference to projects
31 that are located in:
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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida House of Representatives - 1999 CS/HB 465
171-615-99
1 1. Enterprise zones, empowerment zones, and areas in
2 which at least 75 percent of the residents are of low or
3 moderate income, as defined by the United States Department of
4 Housing and Urban Development; or
5 2. Communities that have fewer than one community
6 center per 35,000 residents.
7 (e) Up to 10 percent of the grant funds awarded under
8 this section may be used for administrative purposes.
9 (f) Each applicant that receives a grant must
10 continually monitor its performance under the grant-supported
11 activities to ensure that time schedules are met, project
12 objectives are accomplished within specified time periods, and
13 other performance goals are achieved.
14 (g) Such grants may not exceed 36 months.
15 (4)(a) A review panel shall review each application
16 for a grant to acquire, renovate, or construct a community
17 center which is submitted under this section. The Governor,
18 the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of
19 Representatives shall each appoint two members to serve on the
20 review panel, and those six members shall jointly appoint a
21 seventh member to the panel. Members of the panel shall be
22 appointed to 3-year terms and may not be reappointed to the
23 panel within 1 year after completing a 3-year term. In order
24 to provide for staggered terms, the Governor, the President of
25 the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives
26 shall each initially appoint one member to a 1-year term. A
27 vacancy on the panel shall be filled for the unexpired portion
28 of the term in the same manner as the original appointment.
29 The review panel shall elect a chairperson from among its
30 members to serve a 1-year term and the chairperson may be
31 reelected.
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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida House of Representatives - 1999 CS/HB 465
171-615-99
1 (b) Beginning with fiscal year 2001-2002, the review
2 panel shall annually submit to the Secretary of Community
3 Affairs for approval a list of all applications that the panel
4 recommends be included by the Department of Community Affairs
5 in its legislative budget request for an award of grants,
6 arranged in order of priority. For fiscal year 2000-2001, the
7 review panel must submit the list to the Speaker of the House
8 of Representatives and President of the Senate by December 31,
9 1999. The department may allocate grants only for projects
10 for which the Legislature has appropriated funds. Any project
11 that is approved and recommended by the Secretary of Community
12 Affairs but which is not funded by the Legislature shall be
13 retained on the project list for the subsequent grant cycle.
14 Thereafter, the grant applicant must submit the information
15 required by the department in compliance with the established
16 deadline date of the latest grant cycle in order to adequately
17 indicate the current status of the project.
18 (5) The Department of Community Affairs shall adopt by
19 rule criteria to be applied by the review panel in
20 recommending applications for the award of grants and shall
21 adopt rules for administering this section.
22 Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a
23 law.
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