HB 0297 2003
1	CHAMBER ACTION
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6	The Committee on Local Government & Veterans' Affairs recommends
7	the following:
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9	Committee Substitute
10	Remove the entire bill and insert:
11	A bill to be entitled
12	An act relating to the Greater Boca Raton Beach and Park
13	District, Palm Beach County, an independent special
14	district of the state; codifying, amending, and reenacting
15	special laws relating to the district; providing
16	legislative intent; repealing chapters 74-423, 75-330, 76-
17	323, 82-350, 85-481, and 97-330, Laws of Florida, relating
18	to the district; providing for liberal construction;
19	providing for severability; providing an effective date.
20
21	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
22
23	Section 1. Pursuant to section 189.429, Florida Statutes,
24	this act constitutes the codification of all special acts
25	relating to the Greater Boca Raton Beach and Park District. It
26	is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this law to provide
27	a single, comprehensive special act charter for the district,
28	including all current legislative authority granted to the
29	district by its several legislative enactments and any
30	additional authority granted by this act. It is further the
31	intent of this act to preserve all district authority, including
32	the authority to annually assess and levy against the taxable
33	property in the district a tax not to exceed 2 mills on the
34	dollar of assessed valuation.
35	Section 2. Chapters 74-423, 75-330, 76-323, 82-350, 85-
36	481, and 97-330, Laws of Florida, relating to the Greater Boca
37	Raton Beach and Park District, are codified, reenacted, amended,
38	and repealed as herein provided.
39	Section 3. The Greater Boca Raton Beach and Park District
40	is re-created, and the charter for the district is re-created
41	and reenacted to read:
42	Section 1. Independent special district.--The Greater Boca
43	Raton Beach and Park District for the purposes of this act is
44	created into an independent special district of the State of
45	Florida. Which said district shall embrace and include the
46	following described property lying in Township 46 and 47 South,
47	Ranges 42 and 43 East, Palm Beach County, Florida:
48
49	Begin at the intersection of the Mean High Water Line
50	of the Atlantic Ocean and the Broward County – Palm
51	Beach County Line; thence run Westerly along said
52	Broward County – Palm Beach County Line to a point of
53	intersection with the Easterly Right-of-Way Line of
54	the Florida State Turnpike, according to the Right-of-
55	Way maps as recorded in the Public Records of Palm
56	Beach County, Florida; thence run Northerly along the
57	Eastern Right-of-Way Line of said Turnpike through
58	Section 33, 28, 21, 16, 9 and 4 to a point on the
59	Township line between Townships 46 and 47 South, said
60	point located where the Township line intersects the
61	Easterly Right-of-Way of Florida State Turnpike;
62	thence run Easterly along said Township line to a
63	point of intersection with the Westerly corporate
64	limit boundary of the City of Boca Raton which lies in
65	Section 31, Township 46 South, Range 43 East; thence
66	run Northerly along the West line of said corporate
67	limit boundary which lies in Section 31, to a point of
68	intersection with the North boundary of Sections 31,
69	said point also being on the center line of the
70	Central and Southern Florida Flood Control District C-
71	15 Canal; thence Easterly along the center line of
72	said C-15 Canal through the Easterly part of Section
73	31, and Sections 32 and 33, Township 46 South, Range
74	43 East to the intersectionwith the center line of
75	the Right-of-Way of the Intracoastal Waterway; thence
76	run Southerly along the center line of the Right-of-
77	Way of the Intracoastal Waterway through Section 33,
78	Township 46 South, Range 43 East and Sections 4 and 9,
79	Township 47 South, Range 43 East to a point of
80	intersection with the center line of the Right-of-Way
81	of the Intracoastal Waterway and a line at 1333.86
82	feet South of and parallel to the North line of
83	Section 9, Township 47 South, Range 43 East; thence
84	run Easterly along a line which is 1333.86 feet South
85	of and parallel to the North line of Section 9 to the
86	Mean High Water Line of the Atlantic Ocean; thence run
87	Southerly along the Mean High Water Line of the
88	Atlantic Ocean to a point to intersection with the
89	County Line between Palm Beach County and Broward
90	County, said point being the Point of Beginning.
91
92	Section 2. Board of commissioners; elections; bond
93	required.--
94	(1) The district shall be governed by a board of five
95	commissioners. Three of the commissioners shall reside within
96	the corporate boundary of the City of Boca Raton and the
97	remaining two commissioners shall reside within the remainder of
98	the district. All of the commissioners shall be elected at
99	large by the qualified electors of the district as follows: The
100	commission seats shall be numbered one through five with seats
101	one through three for commissioners residing within the City of
102	Boca Raton and seats four and five for commissioners residing
103	within the remainder of the district. Odd-numbered seats shall
104	be filled for 4-year terms by those commissioners elected in
105	2000 and even-numbered seats shall be filled for 4-year terms by
106	the commissioners elected in 2002. Thereafter, all terms shall
107	be of 4 years in length. The commissioners shall be electors
108	qualified to vote in order to be eligible for election to the
109	board of commissioners. The commissioners shall be known and
110	designated as the Board of Commissioners of the Greater Boca
111	Raton Beach and Park District. The terms of commissioners
112	serving on the effective date of this act shall expire upon the
113	assumption of office of commissioners elected pursuant to this
114	section.
115	(2) A majority of the members of the board of
116	commissioners shall constitute a quorum. On any vote of the
117	board to set the annual millage, set the annual budget, or carry
118	out any of the purposes of this act as enumerated in Section 3,
119	a minimum of three affirmative votes shall be necessary. The
120	board shall cause true and accurate minutes and records to be
121	kept of all business transacted by it and shall keep full, true,
122	and complete books of account and minutes, which shall at all
123	reasonable times be open and subject to the inspection of the
124	public.
125	(3) The terms of office of each commissioner shall begin
126	on January 1 following the election at which the commissioner is
127	elected. The Governor shall have the power to remove any member
128	of the board for cause and shall fill any vacancies that may at
129	any time occur thereon. Should the City of Boca Raton municipal
130	boundaries be changed through annexation to include the area
131	wherein any elected commissioner of seat four or seat five
132	resides, said commissioner shall serve only until the next
133	election, at which time said seat shall be filled by a
134	commissioner residing in the area outside of the City of Boca
135	Raton municipal boundaries and elected at large by the qualified
136	electors of the district.
137	(4) Commissioners shall be elected at the first and second
138	nonpartisan elections. The first nonpartisan election shall be
139	held at the time of the first primary election provided for by
140	section 100.061, Florida Statutes. The second nonpartisan
141	election shall be held at the time of the second primary
142	election provided for by section 100.091, Florida Statutes. No
143	reference to political party affiliation shall appear on any
144	ballot with respect to any candidate for the board. The board
145	shall be elected on separate nonpartisan ballots in a form
146	similar to that for the nonpartisan election of judicial
147	officers. Candidates shall qualify with the Palm Beach County
148	Supervisor of Elections no earlier than noon of the 50th day,
149	and no later than noon of the 46th day, prior to the date of the
150	election upon filing an oath or affirmation substantially the
151	same as that required of judicial candidates by section
152	105.031(4), Florida Statutes.
153	(5) The board shall convene as soon as practicable after
154	January 1 each year and shall elect a chair and such other
155	officers as it determines necessary for the efficient management
156	of the affairs of the district. Such officers shall hold office
157	subject to an annual election by the board in January of each
158	year.
159	(6) Each commissioner shall be required to give bond to
160	the Governor for faithful performance of his or her duties in
161	the sum of $5,000 with a surety company qualified to do business
162	in the state as surety, which bond shall be approved and kept by
163	the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Palm Beach County. The
164	premium on the bond shall be paid as part of the expenses of the
165	district.
166	(7) Commissioners shall receive a compensation for
167	attendance at a meeting of the board or a meeting attended by
168	any commissioner at which the purposes, obligations, or business
169	of the district is discussed or transacted. The amount of said
170	compensation shall be equal to the dollar amount set forth in
171	section 112.061(6)(a)1., Florida Statutes, as may be amended.
172	In no event shall any commissioner receive compensation for more
173	than one meeting per day.
174	Section 3. Purposes and obligations.--The purposes and
175	obligations of the district shall be:
176	(1) To first reimburse the City of Boca Raton the actual
177	costs of debt service of acquisition, maintenance, operation,
178	and debt service of improvements of the real property commonly
179	known as the Schine and Butler Tracts, more fully described as
180	follows:
181
182	Parcel No. 1
183	That part of the South 1181.65 feet of the North
184	2571.65 feet of Government Lot 1, Section 21, Township
185	47 South, Range 43 East Palm Beach County, Florida,
186	lying East of State Road A-1-A, together with riparian
187	and littoral rights, if any, appurtenant thereto.
188	Parcel No. 2
189	Parcel B-1 and the South 200 feet of parcel B-3 as
190	measured at right angles to the South Boundary thereof
191	of Sun and Surf Club Community, a subdivision in Boca
192	Raton, Florida, according to the plat thereof recorded
193	in the Public Records of Palm Beach County, Florida,
194	in Plat Book 27, beginning at Page 114, together with
195	the riparian and littoral rights, if any, appurtenant
196	thereto.
197	Parcel No. 3
198	That part of the South 618.35 feet of the North 1590
199	feet of Government Lot 1, Section 21, Township 47
200	South, Range 43 East, Palm Beach County, Florida,
201	lying East of State Road A-1-A, together with all
202	riparian and littoral rights, if any, appurtenant
203	thereto.
204	Parcel No. 3A
205	The East 300 feet of Parcel B-3 in Sun and Surf Club
206	Community, less the South 200 feet as measured at
207	right angles to the South Boundary thereof of Sun and
208	Surf Club Community, a subdivision in Boca Raton,
209	Florida, according to the plat thereof recorded in the
210	Public Records of Palm Beach County, Florida, in Plat
211	Book 27, beginning at Page 114, together with riparian
212	and littoral rights, if any, appurtenant thereto.
213	Parcel No. 3B
214	Parcel B-3 (except the East 300 feet thereof) in Sun
215	and Surf Club Community, a subdivision in Boca Raton,
216	Florida, according to the plat thereof recorded in the
217	Public Records of Palm Beach County, Florida, in Plat
218	Book 27, beginning at Page 114, together with riparian
219	and littoral rights, if any, appurtenant thereto.
220	Parcel No. 4
221	The South 150 feet of the North 771.65 feet of Section
222	21, Township 47 South, Range 43 East, as the same is
223	located by the boundary agreement and the plat
224	recorded in the office of the Clerk of the Circuit
225	Court in and for Palm Beach County, Florida, in Plat
226	Book 18, at Page 1, together with riparian rights and
227	littoral rights, if any, appurtenant thereto.
228	Parcel No. 5
229	The South 142.98 feet of the North 621.65 feet of
230	Government Lot 1, Section 21, Township 47 South, Range
231	43 East, Palm Beach County, Florida, together with
232	riparian and littoral rights, if any, appurtenant
233	thereto.
234	Parcel No. 6
235	The South 271.20 feet of Government Lot 4, Section 16,
236	Township 47 South, Range 43 East, and the North 478.67
237	feet of Government Lot 1, Section 21, Township 47
238	South, Range 43 East; begin a parcel 749.87 feet in
239	width extending from the ocean on the east to Lake
240	Wyman and the Intracoastal Waterway on the west and
241	being the parcel designated as Parcel No. 2 on the
242	plat recorded in plat Book 18, at Page 1, Palm Beach
243	County Public Records, together with riparian and
244	littoral rights, if any, appurtenant thereto.
245	Parcel No. 7
246	All that part of the North 699.83 feet of the South
247	971.03 feet of Section 16, Township 47 South, Range 43
248	East, lying between the waters of the Atlantic Ocean
249	on the East and the waters of Lake Wyman on the West,
250	together with riparian and littoral rights, if any,
251	appurtenant thereto.
252	Parcel No. 8
253	That tract of land in Section 21, Township 47 South,
254	Range 43 East, bounded as follows: On the East by the
255	Atlantic Ocean; on the West by State Road No. A-1-A
256	(formerly No. 140) as the same is now laid out and in
257	use; on the North by a line parallel to and 2571.65
258	feet South of (measured at right angles) the North
259	line of said Section 21; and on the South by a line
260	parallel to and 2771.65 feet South of (measured at
261	right angles) the North line of said Section 21, Palm
262	Beach County, Florida.
263	Parcel No. 9
264	A tract of land in Section 21, Township 47 South,
265	Range 43 East bounded as follows: On the East by the
266	Atlantic Ocean; on the West by State Road A-1-A as the
267	same is now laid out and in use; on the North by a
268	line parallel to and 2,771.65 feet South of (measured
269	at right angles) the North line of said Section 21 and
270	on the South by a line parallel to and 2,871.65 feet
271	South of (measured at right angles) the North line of
272	said Section 21. Said tract of land lying in Boca
273	Raton, Palm Beach County, Florida.
274
275	(2) To reimburse the City of Boca Raton from other
276	available revenues of the district the actual costs of debt
277	service of acquisition, maintenance, operation, and debt service
278	of improvements on existing or future beach or park properties,
279	or to acquire, maintain, operate, or improve beach or park
280	properties as provided in Section 4.
281	Section 4. Powers.--The board shall have all the powers as
282	a body corporate, including the power to sue and be sued under
283	the name of the Greater Boca Raton Beach and Park District; to
284	contract and be contracted with; to borrow money; to adopt and
285	use a corporate seal; to purchase or lease such real and
286	personal property as is necessary and proper to maintain office
287	space required to accomplish the purpose of this act; to
288	purchase, lease, or acquire through exercise of the power of
289	eminent domain real property for beach or park purposes, subject
290	to the concurrence of the City Council of the City of Boca Raton
291	or to the approval of the district electorate by referendum, and
292	to maintain, operate, or improve such property; and to carry out
293	the provisions of this act in the manner hereinafter provided.
294	Section 5. Duties.--
295	(1) The board shall be authorized, empowered, and directed
296	annually to levy upon all of the nonexempt real property and
297	nonexempt tangible personal property and inventory in the
298	district a sufficient tax necessary for the purposes and needs
299	of said district incurred in the exercise of the powers and
300	purposes herein granted. However, the tax levied shall not
301	exceed, in any event, 2 mills unless approved by the electors
302	residing within the district at a referendum election held for
303	such purpose.
304	(2) The board shall also be authorized to accept donations
305	from either private or governmental sources of any kind.
306	(3) If, in the sole judgment of the board, the purposes of
307	this act have been undertaken and carried out by some other
308	public or private body or corporation, then, in such event, the
309	board is directed to withhold, reduce, or eliminate its
310	expenditures, taking into consideration the expenditures that
311	the other public or private body or corporation is obligated to
312	expend in carrying out the same purposes of this act.
313	(4) Should the boundaries of the City of Boca Raton, by
314	annexation, encompass the same boundaries as the district, then
315	the district, upon retiring and satisfying all of its
316	obligations and liabilities, shall cease to function and its
317	assets shall be assigned and transferred to the City of Boca
318	Raton or its corporate successor.
319	Section 6. Procedure for payment of funds.--The funds of
320	the district shall be paid out only upon warrant signed by the
321	chair of the board or a majority of the commissioners, and no
322	warrant shall be drawn or issued against funds of the district
323	except for a purpose authorized by this act.
324	Section 7. Purchases.--All purchases or leases of
325	supplies, equipment, materials, or office space for use in the
326	operation and maintenance of the district in excess of $5,000
327	shall be approved by the board only after competitive bids have
328	been sought from at last three different sources of supply.
329	However, if less than three different sources are available,
330	competitive bids shall be accepted from whatever sources are
331	available. During emergencies, the board may, by resolution,
332	authorize the purchase or lease of designated supplies and
333	equipment in excess of the above-mentioned limitations without
334	competitive bidding.
335	Section 8. Levy and collections of taxes; procedure.--The
336	levy of taxes authorized by this act shall be by resolution duly
337	entered upon the minutes of the board. Certified copies of such
338	resolutions executed in the name of the board by its chair,
339	under its corporate seal, shall be made and delivered to the
340	Board of County Commissioners of Palm Beach County within a
341	reasonable time and as is necessary to meet the legal
342	requirements for the levying of taxes by the county
343	commissioners. It shall be the duty of the Tax Collector of
344	Palm Beach County to collect the amount of taxes so levied by
345	the Board of Commissioners of the Greater Boca Raton Beach and
346	Park District upon the nonexempt taxable property in the
347	district for said year in the same manner as other taxes are
348	collected and to pay the same over to the district board within
349	the time and in the manner prescribed by law for the payment by
350	the tax collector of county taxes to the county depository. The
351	taxes shall be levied upon the assessed value of taxable
352	property in the district as is determined by the county property
353	appraiser. All such taxes shall be held by the district board
354	and paid out by it as provided in this act. The board is
355	authorized to pay necessary expenses to the county property
356	appraiser and tax collector for the assessment and collection of
357	taxes on a reasonable basis as required.
358	Section 9. Payment of expenses.--The board is authorized
359	to pay all expenses necessarily incurred in the organization of
360	the board and in the formation of the district and all other
361	reasonable and necessary expenses, costs, and fees incurred in
362	accomplishing the purposes of this act.
363	Section 4. It is intended that the provisions of this act
364	be liberally construed for accomplishing the work authorized and
365	provided for or intended to be provided for in this act and,
366	where strict construction would result in the defeat of the
367	accomplishment of any part of the work authorized by this act
368	and a liberal construction would permit or assist in the
369	accomplishment thereof, the liberal construction shall be
370	chosen. During the existence of the district, this act shall be
371	construed so as to give effect to the intent of providing equal
372	application of the act and all provisions hereunder to all
373	persons residing within the geographical boundaries of the
374	district so that all benefits derived and detriments incurred
375	shall be apportioned equitably among such residents.
376	Section 5. Any clause or section of this act that for any
377	reason may be held or declared invalid may be eliminated, and
378	the remaining portion or portions thereof shall be and remain in
379	full force and be valid as if such invalid clause or section had
380	not been incorporated therein.
381	Section 6. Chapters 74-423, 75-330, 76-323, 82-350, 85-
382	481, and 97-330, Laws of Florida, are repealed.
383	Section 7. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.