Senate Bill sb0308

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                   SB 308

    By Senator Smith





    14-254-03

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to specialty license plates;

  3         amending s. 320.08058, F.S.; revising the use

  4         of annual use fees from the sale of Sea Turtle

  5         license plates; repealing s. 370.12(1)(h),

  6         F.S., which provides for the Fish and Wildlife

  7         Conservation Commission to provide grants to

  8         conduct marine turtle research, conservation,

  9         and education activities; providing an

10         effective date.

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

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14         Section 1.  Subsection (19) of section 320.08058,

15  Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

16         320.08058  Specialty license plates.--

17         (19)  SEA TURTLE LICENSE PLATES.--

18         (a)  The department shall develop a Sea Turtle license

19  plate as provided in this section. The word "Florida" must

20  appear at the top of the plate, the words "Helping Sea Turtles

21  Survive" must appear at the bottom of the plate, and the image

22  of a sea turtle must appear in the center of the plate.

23         (b)  The first $500,000 of annual use fees shall be

24  deposited in the Marine Resources Conservation Trust Fund in

25  the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and. The first

26  $500,000 in annual revenue shall be used by the Florida Marine

27  Turtle Protection Program to conduct sea turtle protection,

28  research, and recovery programs. The next $215,000 in annual

29  use fees shall be distributed to the Caribbean Conservation

30  Corporation to fund sea turtle research and education

31  programs. The Caribbean Conservation Corporation shall

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                   SB 308
    14-254-03




 1  annually distribute assigned funds through a Sea Turtle Grants

 2  Program that supports sea turtle research and education

 3  activities of Florida-based nonprofit groups, education and

 4  research institutions, and coastal counties in this state. The

 5  Caribbean Conservation Corporation shall write and publish

 6  procedures for submitting grant applications and criteria for

 7  allocating available funds, and shall appoint a technical

 8  advisory committee, composed of at least five members,

 9  including two representatives from the Fish and Wildlife

10  Conservation Commission, to establish funding priorities and

11  select grant recipients from proposals submitted by eligible

12  entities. Any additional annual revenue shall be distributed

13  as follows:  70 percent shall be deposited in the Marine

14  Resources Conservation Trust Fund and used by the Florida

15  Marine Turtle Protection Program for sea turtle conservation

16  activities and 30 percent shall be assigned to the Caribbean

17  Conservation Corporation for distribution through the Sea

18  Turtle Grants Program. A maximum of 15 percent of the funds

19  distributed to the Caribbean Conservation Corporation may be

20  expended for administrative costs directly associated with the

21  grants program, and a maximum of 10 percent may be used to

22  promote and market the Sea Turtle license plate. Funds

23  received by the Caribbean Conservation Corporation from the

24  Sea Turtle license plate or the Sea Turtle Grants Program and

25  funds received by any grant recipient of the Sea Turtle Grants

26  Program may not be used for litigation. Additional license

27  plate revenue, up to an amount not exceeding 30 percent of the

28  total annual revenue, shall be dispersed annually through the

29  marine turtle grants program as provided in s. 370.12(1)(h).

30  The remaining annual use proceeds shall be used by the Florida

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    Florida Senate - 2003                                   SB 308
    14-254-03




 1  Marine Turtle Protection Program for sea turtle conservation

 2  activities.

 3         Section 2.  Paragraph (h) of subsection (1) of section

 4  370.12, Florida Statutes, is repealed on June 30, 2004.

 5         Section 3.  Except as otherwise expressly provided in

 6  this act, this act shall take effect July 1, 2003.

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 9                          SENATE SUMMARY

10    Revises the distribution of annual use fees received from
      sales of the Sea Turtle license plate and provides for
11    the use of such funds. (See bill for details.)

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