Senate Bill 0202c1
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida Senate - 2000 CS for SB 202
By the Committee on Transportation and Senators Clary,
Latvala, McKay, Brown-Waite, Casas, Cowin, Sullivan and
Saunders
306-1893A-00
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to disabled parking permits;
3 amending s. 320.0848, F.S.; eliminating fees
4 imposed on applicants for certain permits;
5 revising provisions relating to fees for
6 temporary disabled parking permits; providing
7 an effective date.
8
9 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
10
11 Section 1. Section 320.0848, Florida Statutes, is
12 amended to read:
13 320.0848 Persons who have disabilities; issuance of
14 disabled parking permits; temporary permits; permits for
15 certain providers of transportation services to persons who
16 have disabilities.--
17 (1)(a) The Department of Highway Safety and Motor
18 Vehicles or its authorized agents shall, upon application and
19 receipt of the fee, issue a disabled parking permit for a
20 period of up to 4 years, which period ends on the applicant's
21 birthday, to any person who has long-term mobility impairment,
22 or a temporary disabled parking permit not to exceed 1 year to
23 any person who has a temporary mobility impairment.
24 (b)1. The person must be currently certified as being
25 legally blind or as having any of the following disabilities
26 that render him or her unable to walk 200 feet without
27 stopping to rest:
28 a. Inability to walk without the use of or assistance
29 from a brace, cane, crutch, prosthetic device, or other
30 assistive device, or without the assistance of another person.
31 If the assistive device significantly restores the person's
1
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida Senate - 2000 CS for SB 202
306-1893A-00
1 ability to walk to the extent that the person can walk without
2 severe limitation, the person is not eligible for the
3 exemption parking permit.
4 b. The need to permanently use a wheelchair.
5 c. Restriction by lung disease to the extent that the
6 person's forced (respiratory) expiratory volume for 1 second,
7 when measured by spirometry, is less than 1 liter, or the
8 person's arterial oxygen is less than 60 mm/hg on room air at
9 rest.
10 d. Use of portable oxygen.
11 e. Restriction by cardiac condition to the extent that
12 the person's functional limitations are classified in severity
13 as Class III or Class IV according to standards set by the
14 American Heart Association.
15 f. Severe limitation in the person's ability to walk
16 due to an arthritic, neurological, or orthopedic condition.
17 2. The certification of disability which is required
18 under subparagraph 1. must be provided by a physician licensed
19 under chapter 458, chapter 459, or chapter 460, by a podiatric
20 physician licensed under chapter 461, by an optometrist
21 licensed under chapter 463, by the Adjudication Office of the
22 United States Department of Veterans Affairs or its
23 predecessor, or by a similarly licensed physician from another
24 state if the application is accompanied by documentation of
25 the physician's licensure in the other state and a form signed
26 by the out-of-state physician verifying his or her knowledge
27 of this state's eligibility guidelines, or by an advanced
28 registered nurse practitioner licensed under chapter 464 in a
29 facility operated by the United States Department of Veterans
30 Affairs under the protocol of a licensed physician as stated
31 in this subparagraph.
2
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida Senate - 2000 CS for SB 202
306-1893A-00
1 (c) The certificate of disability must include, but
2 need not be limited to:
3 1. The disability of the applicant; the certifying
4 physician's name and address; the physician's certification
5 number; the eligibility criteria for the permit; the penalty
6 for falsification by either the certifying physician or the
7 applicant; the duration of the condition that entitles the
8 person to the permit; and justification for the additional
9 placard pursuant to subsection (2).
10 2. The statement, in bold letters: "A disabled parking
11 permit may be issued only for a medical necessity that
12 severely affects mobility."
13 3. The signatures of:
14 a. The applicant's physician;
15 b. The applicant or the applicant's parent or
16 guardian; and
17 c. The employee of the department's authorized agent
18 which employee is processing the application.
19 (d) Beginning April 1, 1999, the Department of Highway
20 Safety and Motor Vehicles shall renew the disabled parking
21 permit of any person certified as permanently disabled on the
22 application.
23 (e) The Department of Highway Safety and Motor
24 Vehicles shall, in consultation with the Commission for the
25 Transportation Disadvantaged, adopt rules, in accordance with
26 chapter 120, for the issuance of a disabled parking permit to
27 any organization that can adequately demonstrate a bona fide
28 need for such a permit because the organization provides
29 regular transportation services to persons who have
30 disabilities and are certified as provided in this subsection.
31
3
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida Senate - 2000 CS for SB 202
306-1893A-00
1 (2) DISABLED PARKING PERMIT; PERSONS WITH LONG-TERM
2 MOBILITY PROBLEMS.--
3 (a) The disabled parking permit is a placard that can
4 be placed in a motor vehicle so as to be visible from the
5 front and rear of the vehicle. Each side of the placard must
6 have the international symbol of accessibility in a
7 contrasting color in the center so as to be visible. One side
8 of the placard must display the applicant's driver's license
9 number or state identification card number along with a
10 warning that the applicant must have such identification at
11 all times while using the parking permit. A validation sticker
12 must also be issued with each disabled parking permit, showing
13 the month and year of expiration on each side of the placard.
14 Validation stickers must be of the size specified by the
15 Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles and must be
16 affixed to the disabled parking permits. The disabled parking
17 permits must use the same colors as license plate validations.
18 (b) License plates issued under ss. 320.084, 320.0842,
19 320.0843, and 320.0845 are valid for the same parking
20 privileges and other privileges provided under ss. 316.1955,
21 316.1964, and 526.141(5)(a).
22 (c)1. Except as provided in subparagraph 2., the fee
23 for a disabled parking permit shall be:
24 a. Fifteen dollars for each initial 4-year permit or
25 renewal permit, of which the State Transportation Trust Fund
26 shall receive $13.50 and the tax collector of the county in
27 which the fee was collected shall receive $1.50.p> b. One
28 dollar for each additional or additional renewal 4-year
29 permit, of which the State Transportation Trust Fund shall
30 receive all funds collected.
31
4
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida Senate - 2000 CS for SB 202
306-1893A-00
1 b. One dollar for each additional or additional
2 renewal 4-year permit, of which the State Transportation Trust
3 Fund shall receive all funds collected.
4 (c) The department shall not issue an additional
5 disabled parking permit unless the applicant states that he or
6 she is they are a frequent traveler or a quadriplegic. The
7 department may not issue to any one eligible applicant more
8 than two disabled parking permits except to an organization in
9 accordance with paragraph (1)(e). Subsections (1), (5), (6),
10 and (7) apply to this subsection.
11 (d)2. If an applicant who is a disabled veteran, is a
12 resident of this state, has been honorably discharged, and
13 either has been determined by the Department of Defense or the
14 United States Department of Veterans Affairs or its
15 predecessor to have a service-connected disability rating for
16 compensation of 50 percent or greater or has been determined
17 to have a service-connected disability rating of 50 percent or
18 greater and is in receipt of both disability retirement pay
19 from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs, he or
20 she must still provide and has a signed physician's statement
21 of qualification for the disabled parking permits., the fee
22 for a disabled parking permit shall be:
23 a. One dollar and fifty cents for the initial 4-year
24 permit or renewal permit.
25 b. One dollar for each additional or additional
26 renewal 4-year permit.
27
28 The tax collector of the county in which the fee was collected
29 shall retain all funds received pursuant to this subparagraph.
30 3. If an applicant presents to the department a
31 statement from the Federal Government or the State of Florida
5
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida Senate - 2000 CS for SB 202
306-1893A-00
1 indicating the applicant is a recipient of supplemental
2 security income, the fee for the disabled parking permit shall
3 be $9 for the initial 4-year permit or renewal permit, of
4 which the State Transportation Trust Fund shall receive $6.75
5 and the tax collector of the county in which the fee was
6 collected shall receive $2.25.
7 (e)(d) To obtain a replacement for a disabled parking
8 permit that has been lost or stolen, a person must submit an
9 application on a form prescribed by the department and must
10 pay a replacement fee in the amount of $5 $1.00, to be
11 retained by the issuing agency. If the person submits with the
12 application a police report documenting that the permit was
13 stolen, there is no replacement fee.
14 (f)(e) A person who qualifies for a disabled parking
15 permit under this section may be issued an international
16 wheelchair user symbol license plate under s. 320.0843 in lieu
17 of the disabled parking permit; or, if the person qualifies
18 for a "DV" license plate under s. 320.084, such a license
19 plate may be issued to him or her in lieu of a disabled
20 parking permit.
21 (3) DISABLED PARKING PERMIT; TEMPORARY.--
22 (a) The temporary disabled parking permit is a placard
23 of a different color from the color of the long-term disabled
24 parking permit placard, and must clearly display the date of
25 expiration in large print and with color coding, but is
26 identical to the long-term disabled parking permit placard in
27 all other respects, including, but not limited to, the
28 inclusion of a state identification card number or driver's
29 license number on one side of the temporary permit. The
30 temporary disabled parking permit placard must be designed to
31
6
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida Senate - 2000 CS for SB 202
306-1893A-00
1 conspicuously display the expiration date of the permit on the
2 front and back of the placard.
3 (b) The department shall issue the temporary disabled
4 parking permit for the period of the disability as stated by
5 the certifying physician, but not to exceed 1 year.
6 (c) The fee for a temporary disabled parking permit is
7 $17.50 $15.
8 (4) From the proceeds of the temporary disabled
9 parking permit fees:
10 (a) The Department of Highway Safety and Motor
11 Vehicles must receive $3.50 for each temporary permit, to be
12 deposited into the Highway Safety Operating Trust Fund and
13 used for implementing the real-time disabled parking permit
14 database and for administering the disabled parking permit
15 program.
16 (b) The tax collector, for processing, must receive $5
17 $2.50 for each temporary permit.
18 (c) The remainder must be distributed monthly as
19 follows:
20 1. To the Florida Governor's Alliance for the
21 Employment of Disabled Citizens for the purpose of improving
22 employment and training opportunities for persons who have
23 disabilities, with special emphasis on removing transportation
24 barriers, $4. These fees must be deposited into the
25 Transportation Disadvantaged Trust Fund for transfer to the
26 Florida Governor's Alliance for Employment of Disabled
27 Citizens.
28 2. To the Transportation Disadvantaged Trust Fund to
29 be used for funding matching grants to counties for the
30 purpose of improving transportation of persons who have
31 disabilities, $5.
7
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida Senate - 2000 CS for SB 202
306-1893A-00
1 (5) The applications for disabled parking permits and
2 temporary disabled parking permits are official state
3 documents. The following statement must appear on each
4 application form immediately below the physician's signature
5 and immediately below the applicant's signature: "Knowingly
6 providing false information on this application is a
7 misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided in s.
8 775.082, Florida Statutes, or s. 775.083, Florida Statutes.
9 The penalty is up to 1 year in jail or a fine of $1,000, or
10 both."
11 (6) Any person who knowingly makes a false or
12 misleading statement in an application or certification under
13 this section commits a misdemeanor of the first degree,
14 punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
15 (7) Any person who fraudulently obtains or unlawfully
16 displays a disabled parking permit that belongs to another
17 person while occupying a disabled parking space or an access
18 aisle as defined in s. 316.1955 while the owner of the permit
19 is not being transported in the vehicle or who uses an
20 unauthorized replica of such a disabled parking permit with
21 the intent to deceive is guilty of a misdemeanor of the second
22 degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
23 (8) A law enforcement officer may confiscate the
24 disabled parking permit from any person who fraudulently
25 obtains or unlawfully uses such a permit. A law enforcement
26 officer may confiscate any disabled parking permit that is
27 expired, reported as lost or stolen, or defaced, or that does
28 not display a personal identification number.
29 (a) Beginning April 1, 1999, The permit number of each
30 confiscated permit must be submitted to the Department of
31 Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, and the fact that the
8
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida Senate - 2000 CS for SB 202
306-1893A-00
1 permit has been confiscated must be noted on the
2 permitholder's record. If two permits issued to the same
3 person have been confiscated, the Department of Highway Safety
4 and Motor Vehicles shall refer the information to the Florida
5 Abuse Hotline for an investigation of potential abuse,
6 neglect, or exploitation of the permit owner.
7 (b) A confiscated permit must be held as evidence
8 until a judicial decision about the violation has been made.
9 After a finding of guilt has been made or a plea of nolo
10 contendere has been entered, the charging agency shall destroy
11 the confiscated permit. A confiscated permit may not, under
12 any circumstances, be returned to its registered owner after a
13 finding of guilt has been made or a plea of nolo contendere
14 has been entered in court. The permit number of each destroyed
15 permit must be reported to the department, and the department
16 must record in the real-time disabled parking permit database
17 that the permit has been invalidated.
18 (9) A violation of this section is grounds for
19 disciplinary action under s. 458.331, s. 459.015, s. 460.413,
20 or s. 461.013, as applicable.
21 (10) The Department of Highway Safety and Motor
22 Vehicles shall adopt rules to administer this section.
23 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2000.
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
9
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
Florida Senate - 2000 CS for SB 202
306-1893A-00
1 STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
2 SB 202
3
4 The CS reinserts the provision authorizing DHSMV to issue
additional disabled parking permits to frequent travelers or
5 quadraplegics.
6 The CS increases the fee for a replacement permit from $1 to
$5.
7
The CS increases the fee for a temporary disabled parking
8 permit from $15 to $17.50.
9 The CS deletes the provision stating the intent of the
Legislature to provide for fees from which the revenues must
10 be used to defray the costs of providing parking permits to
persons who have permanent disabilities and to certain
11 services that provide transportation to persons who have
disabilities.
12
The CS further authorizes an advanced registered nurse
13 practitioner in a facility operated by the United States
Department of Veterans Affairs, under the protocol of a
14 licensed physician, to certify a veteran disabled for the
purposes of acquiring a disabled parking permit.
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
10