House Bill 0441
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Florida House of Representatives - 2000 HJR 441
By Representative Wallace
1 House Joint Resolution
2 A joint resolution proposing amendments to
3 Section 1 of Article VII and Section 21 of
4 Article XII of the State Constitution relating
5 to a limitation on state appropriations.
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7 Be It Resolved by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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9 That the amendments to Section 1 of Article VII and
10 Section 21 of Article XII of the State Constitution set forth
11 below are agreed to and shall be submitted to the electors of
12 Florida for approval or rejection at the general election to
13 be held in November 2000:
14 ARTICLE VII
15 FINANCE AND TAXATION
16 SECTION 1. Taxation; appropriations; state expenses;
17 state appropriations revenue limitation.--
18 (a) No tax shall be levied except in pursuance of law.
19 No state ad valorem taxes shall be levied upon real estate or
20 tangible personal property. All other forms of taxation shall
21 be preempted to the state except as provided by general law.
22 (b) Motor vehicles, boats, airplanes, trailers,
23 trailer coaches and mobile homes, as defined by law, shall be
24 subject to a license tax for their operation in the amounts
25 and for the purposes prescribed by law, but shall not be
26 subject to ad valorem taxes.
27 (c) No money shall be drawn from the treasury except
28 in pursuance of appropriation made by law.
29 (d) Provision shall be made by law for raising
30 sufficient revenue to defray the expenses of the state for
31 each fiscal period.
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Florida House of Representatives - 2000 HJR 441
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1 (e)(1) State appropriations for any fiscal year shall
2 be limited to state appropriations for the prior fiscal year
3 plus an adjustment for growth. For purposes of calculating
4 such state appropriations limitation, "state appropriations"
5 shall not include any portion of state appropriations spent or
6 to be spent from receipt of federal funds.
7 (2) The "adjustment for growth" shall be an amount
8 expressed as a percentage equal to the sum of the average
9 annual rate of growth in median household income in Florida
10 over the most recent five years plus the rate of growth of the
11 population of Florida projected for the fiscal year. Median
12 household income in Florida shall be that established and
13 published by the United States Department of Commerce or its
14 successor, and the population of Florida shall be that
15 estimated by the legislature's Office of Economic and
16 Demographic Research or its successor. State appropriations
17 for the prior fiscal year shall be multiplied by the growth
18 percentage and that product added to the prior fiscal year's
19 state appropriations to establish the state appropriations
20 limitation for the fiscal year. The state appropriations
21 limitation established under this subsection is calculated by
22 the following formula:
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24 SAL = {SAPFY x (MHIGR% + PGR%)} + SAPFY
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26 Where:
27 SAL = state appropriations limitation.
28 SAPFY = state appropriations for the prior fiscal year.
29 MHIGR% = median household income growth rate
30 percentage, averaged over the most recent five years.
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Florida House of Representatives - 2000 HJR 441
567-152D-00
1 PGR% = population growth rate percentage, projected for
2 the fiscal year.
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4 (3) State revenues collected for any fiscal year in
5 excess of the state appropriations limitation shall be
6 transferred to the budget stabilization fund until the fund
7 reaches the maximum balance specified in Section 19(g) of
8 Article III and thereafter shall be refunded to taxpayers as
9 provided by general law. For purposes of this subsection,
10 "state revenues" includes general revenue and trust fund
11 receipts, but does not include federal fund receipts.
12 (4) The state appropriations limitation required by
13 this subsection shall not apply in any fiscal year in which
14 the governor declares a state financial emergency on the order
15 of a war, a natural catastrophe, an economic depression, or
16 any event of similar magnitude. However, the legislature must
17 agree by a three-quarters vote of the membership of each house
18 in a separate bill that contains no other subject to suspend
19 the state appropriations limitation for that year. Except as
20 provided herein, state revenues collected for any fiscal year
21 shall be limited to state revenues allowed under this
22 subsection for the prior fiscal year plus an adjustment for
23 growth. As used in this subsection, "growth" means an amount
24 equal to the average annual rate of growth in Florida personal
25 income over the most recent twenty quarters times the state
26 revenues allowed under this subsection for the prior fiscal
27 year. For the 1995-1996 fiscal year, the state revenues
28 allowed under this subsection for the prior fiscal year shall
29 equal the state revenues collected for the 1994-1995 fiscal
30 year. Florida personal income shall be determined by the
31 legislature, from information available from the United States
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Florida House of Representatives - 2000 HJR 441
567-152D-00
1 Department of Commerce or its successor on the first day of
2 February prior to the beginning of the fiscal year. State
3 revenues collected for any fiscal year in excess of this
4 limitation shall be transferred to the budget stabilization
5 fund until the fund reaches the maximum balance specified in
6 Section 19(g) of Article III, and thereafter shall be refunded
7 to taxpayers as provided by general law. State revenues
8 allowed under this subsection for any fiscal year may be
9 increased by a two-thirds vote of the membership of each house
10 of the legislature in a separate bill that contains no other
11 subject and that sets forth the dollar amount by which the
12 state revenues allowed will be increased. The vote may not be
13 taken less than seventy-two hours after the third reading of
14 the bill. For purposes of this subsection, "state revenues"
15 means taxes, fees, licenses, and charges for services imposed
16 by the legislature on individuals, businesses, or agencies
17 outside state government. However, "state revenues" does not
18 include: revenues that are necessary to meet the requirements
19 set forth in documents authorizing the issuance of bonds by
20 the state; revenues that are used to provide matching funds
21 for the federal Medicaid program with the exception of the
22 revenues used to support the Public Medical Assistance Trust
23 Fund or its successor program and with the exception of state
24 matching funds used to fund elective expansions made after
25 July 1, 1994; proceeds from the state lottery returned as
26 prizes; receipts of the Florida Hurricane Catastrophe Fund;
27 balances carried forward from prior fiscal years; taxes,
28 licenses, fees, and charges for services imposed by local,
29 regional, or school district governing bodies; or revenue from
30 taxes, licenses, fees, and charges for services required to be
31 imposed by any amendment or revision to this constitution
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1 after July 1, 1994. An adjustment to the revenue limitation
2 shall be made by general law to reflect the fiscal impact of
3 transfers of responsibility for the funding of governmental
4 functions between the state and other levels of government.
5 The legislature shall, by general law, prescribe procedures
6 necessary to administer this subsection.
7 ARTICLE XII
8 SCHEDULE
9 SECTION 21. State appropriations revenue
10 limitation.--The amendment to Section 1 of Article VII
11 limiting state appropriations, if adopted at the general
12 election in November 2000, revenues shall take effect January
13 1, 2001 1995, and shall first be applicable to state fiscal
14 year 2001-2002 1995-1996.
15 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that in accordance with the
16 requirements of section 101.161, Florida Statutes, the title
17 and substance of the amendments proposed herein shall appear
18 on the ballot as follows:
19 LIMITATION ON STATE APPROPRIATIONS
20 Replaces the state's revenue limitation with an
21 appropriations limitation indexed to the growth rate in state
22 median household income and the projected growth rate in state
23 population. Transfers excess revenues to the Budget
24 Stabilization Fund, until fully funded, and refunds the rest
25 to taxpayers. Suspends the limitation in fiscal years of
26 major financial emergency declared by the Governor and
27 approved by the Legislature by extraordinary vote in a
28 separate bill containing no other subject.
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