Senate Bill sb0526c1

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    Florida Senate - 2002                            CS for SB 526

    By the Committee on Regulated Industries; and Senator Campbell





    315-1228-02

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to land surveying and mapping;

  3         amending s. 472.003, F.S.; providing additional

  4         exemptions from regulation; amending s.

  5         472.005, F.S.; providing additional

  6         definitions; amending s. 472.008, F.S.;

  7         requiring the Board of Professional Surveyors

  8         and Mappers to adopt rules governing the use of

  9         professional titles by retired surveyors and

10         mappers; amending s. 472.013, F.S.; eliminating

11         obsolete provisions; eliminating provisions

12         relating to the approval of training provided

13         by the United States Government; amending s.

14         472.015, F.S.; revising work-experience

15         requirements for licensure by endorsement;

16         amending s. 472.029, F.S.; revising provisions

17         authorizing surveyors and mappers to enter

18         lands of third parties; providing liability

19         standards for such entries; amending s.

20         472.031, F.S.; prohibiting persons who are not

21         registered to practice surveying and mapping

22         from offering to practice such profession or

23         from using certain related professional titles;

24         amending s. 472.033, F.S.; providing as grounds

25         for discipline a plea of nolo contendere to

26         certain crimes; eliminating board authority to

27         specify which acts constitute violations;

28         eliminating a requirement for reissuance of

29         certain licenses upon board certification;

30         providing an effective date.

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    Florida Senate - 2002                            CS for SB 526
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  1  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

  2

  3         Section 1.  Subsection (5) is added to section 472.003,

  4  Florida Statutes, to read:

  5         472.003  Persons not affected by ss.

  6  472.001-472.037.--Sections 472.001-472.037 do not apply to:

  7         (5)(a)  Employees of a state, county, municipal, or

  8  other governmental unit of this state who are the subordinates

  9  of a person in responsible charge who is registered under this

10  chapter, to the extent that the supervision meets standards

11  adopted by board rule.

12         (b)  Employees of an employee leasing company licensed

13  under part XI of chapter 468 who work as subordinates of a

14  person in responsible charge who is registered under this

15  chapter, to the extent that the supervision meets standards

16  adopted by board rule.

17         (c)  Employees of a person or legal entity registered

18  or certified under this chapter who are subordinates of a

19  person in responsible charge who is registered under this

20  chapter, to the extent that the supervision meets standards

21  adopted by board rule.

22         Section 2.  Section 472.005, Florida Statutes, is

23  amended to read:

24         472.005  Definitions.--As used in ss. 472.001-472.037,

25  the term:

26         (1)  "Board" means the Board of Professional Surveyors

27  and Mappers.

28         (2)  "Department" means the Department of Business and

29  Professional Regulation.

30         (3)  "Surveyor and mapper" includes the term

31  "professional surveyor and mapper" and means a person who is

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    Florida Senate - 2002                            CS for SB 526
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  1  registered to engage in the practice of surveying and mapping

  2  under ss. 472.001-472.037. For the purposes of this statute, a

  3  surveyor and mapper means a person who determines and displays

  4  the facts of size, shape, topography, tidal datum planes,

  5  legal or geodetic location or relation, and orientation of

  6  improved or unimproved real property through direct

  7  measurement or from certifiable measurement through accepted

  8  photogrammetric procedures.

  9         (4)(a)  "Practice of surveying and mapping" means,

10  among other things, any professional service or work, the

11  adequate performance of which involves the application of

12  special knowledge of the principles of mathematics, the

13  related physical and applied sciences, and the relevant

14  requirements of law for adequate evidence of the act of

15  measuring, locating, establishing, or reestablishing lines,

16  angles, elevations, natural and manmade features in the air,

17  on the surface and immediate subsurface of the earth, within

18  underground workings, and on the beds or surface of bodies of

19  water, for the purpose of determining, establishing,

20  describing, displaying, or interpreting the facts of size,

21  shape, topography, tidal datum planes, legal or geodetic

22  location or relocation, and orientation of improved or

23  unimproved real property and appurtenances thereto, including

24  acreage and condominiums.

25         (b)  The practice of surveying and mapping also

26  includes, but is not limited to, photogrammetric control; the

27  monumentation and remonumentation of property boundaries and

28  subdivisions; the measurement of and preparation of plans

29  showing existing improvements after construction; the layout

30  of proposed improvements; the preparation of descriptions for

31  use in legal instruments of conveyance of real property and

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    Florida Senate - 2002                            CS for SB 526
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  1  property rights; the preparation of subdivision planning maps

  2  and record plats, as provided for in chapter 177; the

  3  determination of, but not the design of, grades and elevations

  4  of roads and land in connection with subdivisions or divisions

  5  of land; and the creation and perpetuation of alignments

  6  related to maps, record plats, field note records, reports,

  7  property descriptions, and plans and drawings that represent

  8  them.

  9         (5)  The term "Surveyor and mapper intern" includes the

10  term "surveyor-mapper-in-training" and means a person who

11  complies with the requirements provided by ss. 472.001-472.037

12  and who has passed an examination as provided by rules adopted

13  by the board.

14         (6)  The term "Responsible charge" means direct control

15  and personal supervision of surveying and mapping work, but

16  does not include experience as a chainperson, rodperson,

17  instrumentperson, ordinary draftsperson, digitizer, scriber,

18  photo lab technician, ordinary stereo plotter operator, aerial

19  photo pilot, photo interpreter, and other positions of routine

20  work.

21         (7)  The term "License" means the registration of

22  surveyors and mappers or the certification of businesses to

23  practice surveying and mapping in this state.

24         (8)  "Photogrammetric mapper" means any person who

25  engages in the practice of surveying and mapping using aerial

26  or terrestrial photography or other sources of images.

27         (9)  "Employee" means a person who receives

28  compensation from and is under the supervision and control of

29  an employer who regularly deducts the F.I.C.A. and withholding

30  tax and provides workers' compensation, as prescribed by law.

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    Florida Senate - 2002                            CS for SB 526
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  1         (10)  "Subordinate" means an employee who performs work

  2  under the direction, supervision, and responsible charge of a

  3  person who is registered under this chapter.

  4         (11)  "Monument" means an artificial or natural object

  5  that is permanent or semipermanent and used or presumed to

  6  occupy a real property corner, a point on a boundary line, or

  7  a reference point or other point used for horizontal or

  8  vertical control.

  9         (12)  "Legal entity" means a corporation, partnership,

10  association, or person practicing under a fictitious name who

11  is certified under this chapter.

12         (13)  "Retired Professional Surveyor and Mapper" means

13  a person who has been licensed as a professional surveyor and

14  mapper, who relinquishes or chooses not to renew his or her

15  license, and who is allowed by the board pursuant to its rules

16  to use the title "Professional Surveyor and Mapper, Retired."

17         Section 3.  Section 472.008, Florida Statutes, is

18  amended to read:

19         472.008  Rules of the board.--

20         (1)  The board may has authority to adopt rules

21  pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to implement the

22  provisions of this chapter conferring duties upon it.

23         (2)  The board shall adopt rules governing the use of

24  professional titles by retired surveyors and mappers.

25         Section 4.  Subsections (2) and (4) of section 472.013,

26  Florida Statutes, are amended to read:

27         472.013  Examinations, prerequisites.--

28         (2)  An applicant shall be entitled to take the

29  licensure examination to practice in this state as a surveyor

30  and mapper if the applicant is of good moral character and has

31  satisfied one of the following requirements:

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    Florida Senate - 2002                            CS for SB 526
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  1         (a)  The applicant is a graduate of an approved course

  2  of study in surveying and mapping from a college or university

  3  recognized by the board and has a specific experience record

  4  of 4 or more years as a subordinate to a professional surveyor

  5  and mapper in the active practice of surveying and mapping,

  6  which experience is of a nature indicating that the applicant

  7  was in responsible charge of the accuracy and correctness of

  8  the surveying and mapping work performed. The course of study

  9  in surveying and mapping must have included not fewer than 32

10  semester hours of study, or its academic equivalent, in the

11  science of surveying and mapping or in board-approved

12  surveying-and-mapping-related courses. Work experience

13  acquired as a part of the education requirement shall not be

14  construed as experience in responsible charge.

15         (b)  The applicant is a graduate of a 4-year course of

16  study, other than in surveying and mapping, at an accredited

17  college or university and has a specific experience record of

18  6 or more years as a subordinate to a registered surveyor and

19  mapper in the active practice of surveying and mapping, 5

20  years of which shall be of a nature indicating that the

21  applicant was in responsible charge of the accuracy and

22  correctness of the surveying and mapping work performed. The

23  course of study in disciplines other than surveying and

24  mapping must have included not fewer than 32 semester hours of

25  study or its academic equivalent, 25 semester hours of which

26  shall be in surveying and mapping subjects or in any

27  combination of courses in civil engineering, surveying,

28  mapping, mathematics, photogrammetry, forestry, or land law

29  and the physical sciences. Work experience acquired as a part

30  of the education requirement shall not be construed as

31  experience in responsible charge.

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    Florida Senate - 2002                            CS for SB 526
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  1         (c)  The applicant was enrolled, on October 1, 1988, in

  2  a 4-year course of study in surveying and mapping at a college

  3  or university recognized by the board and prior to October 1,

  4  1991, and both completes at least 32 semester hours, or the

  5  academic equivalent, in surveying-and-mapping-related courses

  6  and has a specific experience record of 6 or more years as a

  7  subordinate to a surveyor and mapper, 5 years of which are in

  8  the active practice of surveying and mapping of a nature

  9  indicating that the applicant was in responsible charge of the

10  accuracy and correctness of surveying and mapping work

11  performed.

12         (4)  The board shall adopt rules providing for the

13  review and approval of schools and colleges, including

14  military schools and training and apprenticeship programs

15  operated by the United States Government, and the courses of

16  study in surveying and mapping in such schools and, colleges,

17  and programs. The rules must shall be based on the educational

18  requirements for surveying and mapping as defined in s.

19  472.005. The board may adopt rules providing for the

20  acceptance of the approval and accreditation of schools and

21  courses of study by a nationally accepted accreditation

22  organization.

23         Section 5.  Subsection (3) of section 472.015, Florida

24  Statutes, is amended to read:

25         472.015  Licensure.--

26         (3)  The board shall certify as qualified for a license

27  by endorsement an applicant who:

28         (a)  Holds a valid license to practice surveying and

29  mapping issued before July 1, 1999, by another state or

30  territory Qualifies to take the examination as set forth in s.

31  472.013, who has passed a national, regional, state, or

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    Florida Senate - 2002                            CS for SB 526
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  1  territorial licensing examination that is substantially

  2  equivalent to the examination required by s. 472.013, and who

  3  has 8 or more years' work experience as a subordinate to a

  4  registered surveyor and mapper in the active practice of

  5  surveying and mapping, 6 years of which must involve work that

  6  shows that the applicant was in responsible charge of the

  7  accuracy and correctness of the surveying and mapping work

  8  performed satisfied the experience requirements set forth in

  9  s. 472.013; or

10         (b)  Holds a valid license to practice surveying and

11  mapping issued by another state or territory of the United

12  States if the criteria for issuance of the license were

13  substantially the same as the licensure criteria that existed

14  in Florida at the time the license was issued.

15

16  All applicants for licensure by endorsement must pass an

17  examination on Florida laws and rules before licensure.

18         Section 6.  Section 472.029, Florida Statutes, is

19  amended to read:

20         472.029  Surveyors and mappers authorized to enter

21  lands of third parties under certain conditions.--Surveyors

22  and mappers or their subordinates may go on, over, and upon

23  the lands of others when necessary to make surveys and maps or

24  locate or set monuments, and, in so doing, may carry with them

25  their agents and employees necessary for that purpose. Entry

26  under the right hereby granted by this section does not

27  constitute trespass, and surveyors and mappers and their duly

28  authorized agents or employees who enter in compliance with

29  all federal, state, and local regulations pertaining to

30  premises security, agricultural protections, and other health

31  and safety requirements so entering are not liable to arrest

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    Florida Senate - 2002                            CS for SB 526
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  1  or to a civil action by reason of such entry; however, this

  2  section does not give authority to registrants, subordinates,

  3  agents, or employees to destroy, injure, damage, or move any

  4  physical improvements anything on lands of another without the

  5  written permission of the landowner. A landowner is not liable

  6  to any third party for civil or criminal acts or damages that

  7  result from the negligent or intentional conduct of any person

  8  regulated by this section. If written notice is delivered to a

  9  landowner or landowner's registered agent at least 3 business

10  days prior to entry on a parcel containing more than 160 acres

11  which is classified as agricultural land, the duty of care

12  owed to those regulated by this section is that due a licensee

13  under this chapter. However, if no such notice is given, the

14  landowner's duty of care is that due an unforseen trespasser.

15         Section 7.  Section 472.031, Florida Statutes, is

16  amended to read:

17         472.031  Prohibitions; penalties.--

18         (1)  No person shall:

19         (a)  Practice or offer to practice surveying and

20  mapping unless such person is registered pursuant to ss.

21  472.001-472.037;

22         (b)  Use the name or title "registered surveyor and

23  mapper," "surveyor and mapper," "professional surveyor and

24  mapper," "land surveyor," "surveyor," or any combination of

25  such terms when such person has not registered pursuant to ss.

26  472.001-472.037;

27         (c)  Present as his or her own the registration of

28  another;

29         (d)  Knowingly give false or forged evidence to the

30  board or a member thereof; or

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  1         (e)  Use or attempt to use a registration that has been

  2  suspended or revoked.

  3         (2)  Any person who violates any provision of this

  4  section commits is guilty of a misdemeanor of the first

  5  degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.

  6         Section 8.  Section 472.033, Florida Statutes, is

  7  amended to read:

  8         472.033  Disciplinary proceedings.--

  9         (1)  The following acts constitute grounds for which

10  the disciplinary actions in subsection (2) (3) may be taken:

11         (a)  Violation of any provision of s. 472.031 or s.

12  455.227(1);

13         (b)  Attempting to procure a license to practice

14  surveying and mapping by bribery or fraudulent

15  misrepresentations;

16         (c)  Having a license to practice surveying and mapping

17  revoked, suspended, or otherwise acted against, including the

18  denial of licensure, by the licensing authority of another

19  state, territory, or country;

20         (d)  Being convicted or found guilty of, or pleading

21  nolo contendere to, regardless of adjudication, of a crime in

22  any jurisdiction which directly relates to the practice of

23  surveying and mapping or the ability to practice surveying and

24  mapping;

25         (e)  Making or filing a report or record that the

26  licensee knows to be false, willfully failing to file a report

27  or record required by state or federal law, willfully impeding

28  or obstructing such filing, or inducing another person to

29  impede or obstruct such filing. Such reports or records shall

30  include only those that are signed in the capacity of a

31  registered surveyor and mapper;

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  1         (f)  Advertising goods or services in a manner that is

  2  fraudulent, false, deceptive, or misleading in form or

  3  content;

  4         (g)  Upon proof that the licensee is guilty of fraud or

  5  deceit, or of negligence, incompetency, or misconduct, in the

  6  practice of surveying and mapping;

  7         (h)  Failing to perform any statutory or legal

  8  obligation placed upon a licensed surveyor and mapper;

  9  violating any provision of this chapter, a rule of the board

10  or department, or a lawful order of the board or department

11  previously entered in a disciplinary hearing; or failing to

12  comply with a lawfully issued subpoena of the department; or

13         (i)  Practicing on a revoked, suspended, inactive, or

14  delinquent license.

15         (2)  The board shall specify by rule the acts or

16  omissions that constitute a violation of subsection (1).

17         (2)(3)  When the board finds any surveyor and mapper

18  guilty of any of the grounds set forth in subsection (1), it

19  may enter an order imposing one or more of the following

20  penalties:

21         (a)  Denial of an application for licensure.

22         (b)  Revocation or suspension of a license.

23         (c)  Imposition of an administrative fine not to exceed

24  $1,000 for each count or separate offense.

25         (d)  Issuance of a reprimand.

26         (e)  Placement of the surveyor and mapper on probation

27  for a period of time and subject to such conditions as the

28  board may specify.

29         (f)  Restriction of the authorized scope of practice by

30  the surveyor and mapper.

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  1         (4)  The department shall reissue the license of a

  2  disciplined surveyor and mapper upon certification by the

  3  board that he or she has complied with all of the terms and

  4  conditions set forth in the final order.

  5         Section 9.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2002.

  6

  7          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
  8                              SB 526

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10  Provides rulemaking authority to the Board of Professional
    Surveyors and Mappers relating to the use of professional
11  titles by retired surveyors and mappers.

12  Prohibits persons who are not registered to practice surveying
    and mapping from offering to practice such profession and from
13  using certain related professional titles.

14  Makes certain technical changes.

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