Senate Bill sb0308c1

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    Florida Senate - 2003                            CS for SB 308

    By the Committee on Appropriations; and Senators Smith,
    Atwater, Lynn and Pruitt




    309-2324-03

  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; providing an appropriation;

  6         repealing s. 370.12(1)(h), F.S., which provides

  7         for the Fish and Wildlife Conservation

  8         Commission to provide grants to conduct marine

  9         turtle research, conservation, and education

10         activities; providing an 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                            CS for SB 308
    309-2324-03




 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. Two of the members shall be selected from the Fish

13  and Wildlife Conservation Commission; one member shall be

14  selected on a rotating biennial basis from a county bordering

15  on the Atlantic Coast with sea turtle nesting sites; one

16  member shall be selected on a rotating biennial basis from a

17  county bordering on the Gulf Coast with sea turtle nesting

18  sites; one member shall be the executive director of the

19  Caribbean Conservation Corporation; and two members shall be

20  selected at large. Any additional annual revenue shall be

21  distributed as follows:  70 percent shall be deposited in the

22  Marine Resources Conservation Trust Fund and used by the

23  Florida Marine Turtle Protection Program for sea turtle

24  conservation activities and 30 percent shall be assigned to

25  the Caribbean Conservation Corporation for distribution

26  through the Sea Turtle Grants Program. A maximum of 15 percent

27  of the funds distributed to the Caribbean Conservation

28  Corporation may be expended for administrative costs directly

29  associated with the grants program, and a maximum of 10

30  percent may be used to promote and market the Sea Turtle

31  license plate. Funds received by the Caribbean Conservation

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    Florida Senate - 2003                            CS for SB 308
    309-2324-03




 1  Corporation from the Sea Turtle license plate or the Sea

 2  Turtle Grants Program and funds received by any grant

 3  recipient of the Sea Turtle Grants Program may not be used for

 4  litigation. Additional license plate revenue, up to an amount

 5  not exceeding 30 percent of the total annual revenue, shall be

 6  dispersed annually through the marine turtle grants program as

 7  provided in s. 370.12(1)(h). The remaining annual use proceeds

 8  shall be used by the Florida Marine Turtle Protection Program

 9  for sea turtle conservation activities.

10         Section 2.  For fiscal year 2003-2004 there is

11  appropriated to the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

12  from the accumulated sea turtle grant moneys in the Marine

13  Resources Conservation Trust Fund the amount of $350,000. That

14  amount shall be transferred to the Caribbean Conservation

15  Corporation to fund the sea turtle grant program subject to

16  the limitations and provisions of section 320.08058(19)(b),

17  Florida Statutes. For fiscal year 2003-2004, any remaining sea

18  turtle license plate funds in the Marine Resources

19  Conservation Trust Fund shall be used by the Fish and Wildlife

20  Conservation Commission for sea turtle research and management

21  activities.

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

23  370.12, Florida Statutes, is repealed.

24         Section 4.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2003.

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    Florida Senate - 2003                            CS for SB 308
    309-2324-03




 1          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
 2                              SB 308

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    1.   Establishes a technical advisory committee composed of
 5       two members from the Fish & Wildlife Conservation
         Commission, one member from a county bordering the
 6       Atlantic Coast with a sea turtle nesting site (rotated on
         a biennial basis), one member from a county bordering the
 7       Gulf Coast with a sea turtle nesting site (rotated on a
         biennial basis), the executive director of the Caribbean
 8       Conservation Commission, and two members selected at
         large.
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    2.   Appropriates $350,000 from the Marine Resources
10       Conservation Trust Fund from funds collected in FY
         2002-03 for transfer to the Caribbean Conservation
11       Corporation to fund sea turtle grants.

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