Senate Bill sb1770

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    Florida Senate - 2002                                  SB 1770

    By Senator Laurent





    17-1630-02                                              See HB

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to rural land protection;

  3         amending s. 201.15, F.S.; providing for the

  4         distribution of certain excise taxes on

  5         documents to the Rural Lands Program Trust Fund

  6         of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer

  7         Services; creating s. 215.619, F.S.;

  8         authorizing the issuance of bonds for rural

  9         land protection; providing certain conditions;

10         providing for the deposit of proceeds; amending

11         s. 570.207, F.S.; providing uses for funds in

12         the Conservation and Recreation Lands Program

13         Trust Fund; amending s. 570.70, F.S.; providing

14         conclusions of a study by the department;

15         amending s. 570.71, F.S.; authorizing the use

16         of rural land protection bonds to implement

17         provisions relating to conservation and rural

18         land protection easements and agreements;

19         providing a contingent effective date.

20

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

22

23         Section 1.  Paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section

24  201.15, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

25         201.15  Distribution of taxes collected.--All taxes

26  collected under this chapter shall be distributed as follows

27  and shall be subject to the service charge imposed in s.

28  215.20(1), except that such service charge shall not be levied

29  against any portion of taxes pledged to debt service on bonds

30  to the extent that the amount of the service charge is

31  required to pay any amounts relating to the bonds:

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    Florida Senate - 2002                                  SB 1770
    17-1630-02                                              See HB




  1         (1)  Sixty-two and sixty-three hundredths percent of

  2  the remaining taxes collected under this chapter shall be used

  3  for the following purposes:

  4         (c)  The remainder of the moneys distributed under this

  5  subsection, after the required payments under paragraph (a),

  6  shall be paid into the State Treasury to the credit of the

  7  General Revenue Fund of the state to be used and expended for

  8  the purposes for which the General Revenue Fund was created

  9  and exists by law, or to the Ecosystem Management and

10  Restoration Trust Fund or to the Marine Resources Conservation

11  Trust Fund as provided in subsection (11), or to the Rural

12  Lands Program Trust Fund of the Department of Agriculture and

13  Consumer Services pursuant to s. 215.619. Moneys available

14  under this paragraph shall first be used to pay debt service

15  due on any rural land protection bond or to make any other

16  payments required pursuant to the bond documents authorizing

17  the issuance before such moneys are used for other purposes

18  authorized by this paragraph.

19         Section 2.  Section 215.619, Florida Statutes, is

20  created to read:

21         215.619  Bonds for rural land protection.--

22         (1)  The issuance of rural land protection bonds not

23  exceeding $1 billion is hereby authorized. Such rural land

24  protection bonds may be issued over the next 10 fiscal years

25  commencing on July 1, 2002, in an amount not exceeding $100

26  million in any fiscal year, subject to the provisions of s.

27  570.71 and pursuant to s. 11(e), Art. VII of the State

28  Constitution. The duration of each series of bonds issued may

29  not exceed 20 annual maturities.

30         (2)  The state covenants with the holders of rural land

31  protection bonds that it will not take any action that will

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    Florida Senate - 2002                                  SB 1770
    17-1630-02                                              See HB




  1  materially and adversely affect the rights of such holders so

  2  long as such bonds are outstanding, including, but not limited

  3  to, a reduction in the portion of documentary stamp taxes

  4  distributable to the Rural Lands Program Trust Fund of the

  5  Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services for payment of

  6  debt service.

  7         (3)  Bonds issued pursuant to this section shall be

  8  payable from taxes distributable to the Rural Lands Program

  9  Trust Fund of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer

10  Services pursuant to s. 201.15(1)(c). Bonds issued pursuant to

11  this section shall not constitute a general obligation of, or

12  a pledge of the full faith and credit of, the state.

13         (4)  The Department of Agriculture and Consumer

14  Services shall request the Division of Bond Finance of the

15  State Board of Administration to issue the rural land

16  protection bonds authorized by this section. The Division of

17  Bond Finance shall issue such bonds pursuant to the State Bond

18  Act.

19         (5)  The proceeds from the sale of bonds issued

20  pursuant to this section, less the costs of issuance, the

21  costs of funding reserve accounts, and other costs with

22  respect to the bonds, shall be deposited into the Conservation

23  and Recreation Lands Program Trust Fund of the Department of

24  Agriculture and Consumer Services as provided in s. 570.71.

25         (6)  There shall be no sale, disposition, lease,

26  easement, license, or other use of any land, water areas, or

27  related property interests acquired or improved with proceeds

28  of rural land protection bonds which would cause all or any

29  portion of the interest of such bonds to lose the exclusion

30  from gross income for federal income tax purposes.

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    Florida Senate - 2002                                  SB 1770
    17-1630-02                                              See HB




  1         (7)  The initial series of rural land protection bonds

  2  shall be validated in addition to any other bonds required to

  3  be validated pursuant to s. 215.82. Any complaint for

  4  validation of bonds issued pursuant to this section shall be

  5  filed only in the circuit court of the county where the seat

  6  of state government is situated; the notice required to be

  7  published by s. 75.06 shall be published only in the county

  8  where the complaint is filed; and the complaint and order of

  9  the circuit court shall be served only on the state attorney

10  of the circuit in which the action is pending.

11         Section 3.  Subsection (1) of section 570.207, Florida

12  Statutes, is amended to read:

13         570.207  Conservation and Recreation Lands Program

14  Trust Fund of the Department of Agriculture and Consumer

15  Services.--

16         (1)  There is created a Conservation and Recreation

17  Lands Program Trust Fund within the Department of Agriculture

18  and Consumer Services. The purpose of the trust fund is to

19  provide for the management of conservation and recreation

20  lands by the department. Funds may be appropriated to the

21  trust fund from the Conservation and Recreation Lands Trust

22  Fund in the Department of Environmental Protection, as created

23  by s. 259.032(2), or from such other sources as the

24  Legislature may determine for the management of conservation

25  and recreation lands by the department. Additionally, subject

26  to the provisions of s. 11(e), Art. VII of the State

27  Constitution, the department may use bond proceeds deposited

28  pursuant to s. 215.619 and funds from such other sources as

29  the Legislature determines for the acquisition of conservation

30  easements and rural land protection easements and for funding

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    Florida Senate - 2002                                  SB 1770
    17-1630-02                                              See HB




  1  agricultural protection agreements and resource conservation

  2  agreements pursuant to s. 570.71.

  3         Section 4.  Section 570.70, Florida Statutes, is

  4  amended to read:

  5         570.70  Legislative findings; study.--

  6         (1)  The Legislature finds and declares that:

  7         (a)(1)  A thriving rural economy with a strong

  8  agricultural base, healthy natural environment, and viable

  9  rural communities is an essential part of Florida. Rural areas

10  also include the largest remaining intact ecosystems and best

11  examples of remaining wildlife habitats as well as a majority

12  of privately owned land targeted by local, state, and federal

13  agencies for natural resource protection.

14         (b)(2)  The growth of Florida's population can result

15  in agricultural and rural lands being converted into

16  residential or commercial development.

17         (c)(3)  The agricultural, rural, natural resource, and

18  commodity values of rural lands are vital to the state's

19  economy, productivity, rural heritage, and quality of life.

20         (d)(4)  There is The Legislature further recognizes the

21  need for enhancing the ability of rural landowners to obtain

22  economic value from their property, protecting rural

23  character, controlling urban sprawl, and providing necessary

24  open space for agriculture and the natural environment, and

25  the importance of maintaining and protecting Florida's rural

26  economy through innovative planning and development strategies

27  in rural areas and the use of incentives that reward

28  landowners for good stewardship of land and natural resources.

29         (e)(5)  The purpose of this act is to bring under

30  public protection lands that serve to limit subdivision and

31  conversion of agricultural and natural areas that provide

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    Florida Senate - 2002                                  SB 1770
    17-1630-02                                              See HB




  1  economic, open space, water, and wildlife benefits by

  2  acquiring land or related interests in land such as perpetual,

  3  less-than-fee acquisitions, agricultural protection

  4  agreements, and resource conservation agreements and

  5  innovative planning and development strategies in rural areas.

  6         (2)  A study conducted by the department to determine

  7  and prioritize needs for implementing the provisions of this

  8  section and s. 570.71 concluded the following:

  9         (a)  Between 1964 and 1997, Florida lost nearly 5

10  million acres of valuable agricultural land, with most of the

11  loss involving ranch and forest lands.

12         (b)  Florida currently has 9,114,000 acres of

13  agricultural land with natural resource attributes, including

14  groundwater recharge, natural floodplain, and significant

15  species habitat, and more than 900,000 acres of this land will

16  be converted to other uses within a decade.

17         (c)  The objective of a program to protect agricultural

18  land with natural resource value through conservation

19  easements and other tools should be protection of 1 acre for

20  every acre lost.

21         Section 5.  Subsection (12) of section 570.71, Florida

22  Statutes, is amended to read:

23         570.71  Conservation easements and agreements.--

24         (12)  The department is authorized to use funds from

25  the following sources to implement this act:

26         (a)  State funds;

27         (b)  Rural land protection bonds as authorized by s.

28  215.619;

29         (c)(b)  Federal funds;

30         (d)(c)  Other governmental entities;

31         (e)(d)  Nongovernmental organizations; or

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    Florida Senate - 2002                                  SB 1770
    17-1630-02                                              See HB




  1         (f)(e)  Private individuals.

  2

  3  Any such funds provided shall be deposited into the

  4  Conservation and Recreation Lands Program Trust Fund within

  5  the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services and used

  6  for the purposes of this act.

  7         Section 6.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2002, if

  8  Senate Bill _____ or similar legislation creating the Rural

  9  Lands Program Trust Fund is adopted in the same legislative

10  session or an extension thereof and becomes law.

11

12            *****************************************

13                       LEGISLATIVE SUMMARY

14
      Provides for the distribution of certain excise taxes on
15    documents to the Rural Lands Program Trust Fund of the
      Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
16    Authorizes the issuance of bonds for rural land
      protection and provides certain conditions. Provides for
17    the deposit of proceeds. Provides uses for funds in the
      Conservation and Recreation Lands Program Trust Fund.
18    Provides conclusions of a study by the department.
      Authorizes the use of rural land protection bonds to
19    implement provisions relating to conservation and rural
      land protection easements and agreements.
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