HOUSE AMENDMENT Bill No. HB 1319 CS
1	CHAMBER ACTION
2	Senate House
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12	Representative Harrington offered the following:
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14	Amendment (with title amendment)
15	Remove everything after the enacting clause, and insert:
16	Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (4) of section
17	370.12, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
18	370.12 Marine animals; regulation.--
19	(4) ANNUAL FUNDING OF PROGRAMS FOR MARINE ANIMALS.--
20	(a) Each fiscal year the Save the Manatee Trust Fund shall
21	be available to fund an impartial scientific benchmark census of
22	the manatee population in the state. Weather permitting, the
23	study shall be conducted annually by the Fish and Wildlife
24	Conservation Commission and the results shall be made available
25	to the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of
26	Representatives, and the Governor and Cabinet for use in the
27	evaluation and development of manatee protection measures. In
28	addition, the Save the Manatee Trust Fund shall be available for
29	annual funding of activities of public and private organizations
30	and those of the commission intended to provide manatee and
31	marine mammal protection and recovery effort; manufacture and
32	erection of informational and regulatory signs; production,
33	publication, and distribution of educational materials;
34	participation in manatee and marine mammal research programs,
35	including carcass salvage and other programs; programs intended
36	to assist the recovery of the manatee as an endangered species,
37	assist the recovery of the endangered or threatened marine
38	mammals, and prevent the endangerment of other species of marine
39	mammals; and other similar programs intended to protect and
40	enhance the recovery of the manatee and other species of marine
41	mammals. The commission shall annually solicit advisory
42	recommendations from the Save the Manatee Committee affiliated
43	with the Save the Manatee Club, as identified and recognized in
44	Executive Order 85-19, on the use of funds from the Save the
45	Manatee Trust Fund.
46	Section 2. Subsection (3) of section 20.331, Florida
47	Statutes, is amended, and paragraph (e) is added to subsection
48	(5) of said section, to read:
49	20.331 Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.--
50	(3) The following administrative units are established
51	within the commission:
52	(a) Division of Administrative Services.
53	(b) Division of Law Enforcement.
54	(c) Division of Freshwater Fisheries.
55	(d) Division of Marine Fisheries.
56	(e) Division of Wildlife.
57	(f) Florida Marine Research Institute.
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59	The bureaus and offices of the Game and Fresh Water Fish
60	Commission existing on February 1, 1999, are established within
61	the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Effective July 1,
62	2003, there is created within the commission an Office of
63	Boating and Waterways with duties and responsibilities as
64	provided in subsection (5).
65	(5) In further exercise of its duties, the Fish and
66	Wildlife Conservation Commission:
67	(e) Shall assign to the Office of Boating and Waterways
68	such powers, duties, responsibilities, and functions as are
69	necessary to manage and promote the use of state waterways for
70	safe and enjoyable boating. Duties and responsibilities include,
71	but are not limited to, oversight and coordination of waterway
72	markers on state waters, providing boating education and boating
73	safety programs, improving boating access, coordinating the
74	removal of derelict vessels from state waters, economic
75	development initiatives to promote boating in the state, and
76	coordinating the submission of state comments on marine events.
77	Section 3. Paragraph (d) is added to subsection (1) of
78	section 206.606, Florida Statutes, to read:
79	206.606 Distribution of certain proceeds.--
80	(1) Moneys collected pursuant to ss. 206.41(1)(g) and
81	206.87(1)(e) shall be deposited in the Fuel Tax Collection Trust
82	Fund. Such moneys, after deducting the service charges imposed
83	by s. 215.20, the refunds granted pursuant to s. 206.41, and the
84	administrative costs incurred by the department in collecting,
85	administering, enforcing, and distributing the tax, which
86	administrative costs may not exceed 2 percent of collections,
87	shall be distributed monthly to the State Transportation Trust
88	Fund, except that:
89	(d) A portion of the moneys attributable to the sale of
90	motor diesel fuel at marinas shall be transferred from the Fuel
91	Tax Collection Trust Fund to the Marine Resources Conservation
92	Trust Fund within the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
93	as follows:
94	1. $2.5 million in fiscal year 2003-2004.
95	2. $5.0 million in fiscal year 2004-2005.
96	3. $8.5 million in fiscal year 2005-2006.
97	4. $10.9 million in fiscal year 2006-2007.
98	5. $13.4 million in fiscal year 2007-2008 and each fiscal
99	year thereafter.
100	Section 4. Subsection (1) of section 370.0603, Florida
101	Statutes, is amended, and subsection (4) is added to said
102	section, to read:
103	370.0603 Marine Resources Conservation Trust Fund;
104	purposes.--
105	(1) The Marine Resources Conservation Trust Fund within
106	the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission shall serve as a
107	broad-based depository for funds from various marine-related and
108	boating-relatedactivities and shall be administered by the
109	commission for the purposes of:
110	(a) Funding for marine research.
111	(b) Funding for fishery enhancement, including, but not
112	limited to, fishery statistics development, artificial reefs,
113	and fish hatcheries.
114	(c) Funding for marine law enforcement.
115	(d) Funding for administration of licensing programs for
116	recreational fishing, saltwater products sales, and related
117	information and education activities.
118	(e) Funding for the operations of the Fish and Wildlife
119	Conservation Commission.
120	(f) Funding for titling and registration of vessels.
121	(g) Funding for marine turtle protection, research, and
122	recovery activities from revenues that are specifically credited
123	to the trust fund for these purposes.
124	(h) Funding activities for rehabilitation of oyster
125	harvesting areas from which special oyster surcharge fees are
126	collected, including relaying and transplanting live oysters.
127	(i) Funding for boating research, boating-related programs
128	and activities, and law enforcement on state waters.
129	(4) Funds transferred to the Marine Resources Conservation
130	Trust Fund from the Fuel Tax Collection Trust Fund pursuant to
131	s. 206.606 shall be used for the following purposes:
132	(a) To provide additional water-related law enforcement,
133	including enforcement of laws and regulations related to the
134	protection of manatees.
135	(b) For the placement of uniform waterway markers on state
136	waters.
137	(c) To provide funding for construction and maintenance of
138	publicly owned boat ramps, piers, and docks, directly and
139	through grants to counties and municipalities.
140	(d) To implement and administer programs related to
141	boating safety and education, manatee technical avoidance
142	technology, and economic development initiatives to promote
143	boating in the state, including competitive grant programs as
144	provided in s. 327.47.
145	(e) For other activities of the Office of Boating and
146	Waterways such as coordinating the submission of state comments
147	on boating-related events.
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149	Funds not used in one fiscal year must be carried over for use
150	in subsequent fiscal years.
151	Section 5. Section 327.47, Florida Statutes, is created to
152	read:
153	327.47 Competitive grant program.--The commission shall
154	develop and administer competitive grant programs funded with
155	moneys transferred pursuant to s. 206.606(1)(d). Grants may be
156	awarded for the construction and maintenance of publicly owned
157	boat ramps, piers, and docks, boater education, deployment of
158	manatee technical avoidance technology, and economic development
159	initiatives that promote boating in the state. The commission
160	may adopt rules pursuant to chapter 120 to administer this
161	section.
162	Section 6. From the $2.5 million in marina fuel tax
163	revenue transferred to the Marine Resources Conservation Trust
164	Fund within the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission under
165	the provisions of this act, 10 additional sworn law enforcement
166	FTEs are authorized and $1.8 million is appropriated to fund
167	equipment, training, expenses, and 5 months of salaries and
168	benefits beginning in fiscal year 2003-2004, and $700,000 is
169	appropriated to fund the activities specified in s. 370.0603(4),
170	Florida Statutes.
171	Section 7. This act shall take effect July 1, 2003.
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173	================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T =================
174	Remove the entire title, and insert:
175	A bill to be entitled
176	An act relating to the Fish and Wildlife Conservation
177	Commission; amending s. 370.12, F.S.; deleting a
178	requirement that the commission solicit advisory
179	recommendations from the Save the Manatee Committee;
180	amending s. 20.331, F.S.; creating the Office of Boating
181	and Waterways within the commission; providing powers and
182	duties of the office; amending s. 206.606, F.S.; providing
183	for the transfer of moneys from the Fuel Tax Collection
184	Trust Fund to the Marine Resources Conservation Trust
185	Fund; amending s. 370.0603, F.S.; adding additional
186	purposes and providing for the use of funds transferred
187	from the Fuel Tax Collection Trust Fund; creating s.
188	327.47, F.S.; providing for competitive grant programs
189	developed and administered by the commission; authorizing
190	the commission to adopt rules; authorizing additional
191	positions and providing appropriations; providing an
192	effective date.