ENROLLED HB 0355 2003 Legislature
   
1 A bill to be entitled
2          An act relating to the Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas
3    County; providing legislative intent; amending, codifying,
4    and reenacting chapters 23483 (1945), 24826 (1947), 25500
5    (1949), 26356 (1949), 61-2675, 65-2101, 70-894, 79-555,
6    92-228, 93-311, 95-473, and 2000-427, Laws of Florida;
7    repealing all prior special acts relating to the Juvenile
8    Welfare Board of Pinellas County; providing an effective
9    date.
10         
11          Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
12         
13          Section 1. Pursuant to section 189.429, Florida Statutes,
14    this act constitutes the codification of all special acts
15    relating to the Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas County. It is
16    the intent of the Legislature in enacting this law to provide a
17    single, comprehensive special act charter for the board,
18    including all current legislative authority granted to the board
19    by its several legislative enactments and any additional
20    authority granted by this act. It is further the intent of this
21    act to preserve all board authority in addition to any authority
22    contained in chapter 298, Florida Statutes, as amended from time
23    to time.
24          Section 2. Chapters 23483 (1945), 24826 (1947), 25500
25    (1949), 26356 (1949), 61-2675, 65-2101, 70-894, 79-555, 92-228,
26    93-311, 95-473, and 2000-427, Laws of Florida, are amended,
27    codified, reenacted, and repealed as herein provided.
28          Section 3. The charter for the Juvenile Welfare Board of
29    Pinellas County is re-created and reenacted to read:
30 PART I.
31          There is hereby created for Pinellas County, Florida, the
32    Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas County, which shall consist
33    of eleven (11) members. One (1) member shall be the county
34    superintendent of public instruction, and the second member
35    shall be a judge in the juvenile division of the Sixth Circuit
36    Court, who each shall hold office on the board during the term
37    of office in the official capacity stated. The third and fourth
38    members shall be the state attorney and the public defender for
39    the county, and the fifth member shall be an appointed member of
40    the Board of County Commissioners of Pinellas County, Florida,
41    who each shall hold office on the board during the term of
42    office in the official capacity stated. The other six (6)
43    members shall be appointed by the Governor of the State of
44    Florida and confirmed by the Senate. All appointments of
45    members of the board required to be made by the Governor shall
46    be for the term of four (4) years each. If any of the members
47    of the board required to be appointed by the Governor under the
48    provisions of this section shall resign, die, or be removed from
49    office, the vacancy thereby created shall, as soon as
50    practicable, be filled by appointment by the Governor, and such
51    appointment to fill a vacancy shall be for the unexpired term of
52    the person who resigns, dies, or is removed from office.
53 PART 2.
54          (a) The board hereby created shall have the following
55    powers and duties:
56          1. To provide and maintain in the county such preventive,
57    developmental, treatment, and rehabilitative services for
58    children as the Board determines are needed for the general
59    welfare of the county.
60          2. To provide such other services for children as the
61    Board determines are needed for the general welfare of the
62    county.
63          3. To allocate and provide funds for other agencies in the
64    county which are operated for the benefit of juveniles, provided
65    they are not under the exclusive jurisdiction of the public
66    school system.
67          4. To collect information and statistical data which will
68    be helpful to the board in deciding the needs of juveniles in
69    the county and to consult with other agencies dedicated to the
70    welfare of juveniles to the end that the overlapping of services
71    will be prevented.
72          5. To lease or buy such real estate, equipment, and
73    personal property and to construct such buildings as are needed
74    to execute the foregoing powers and duties, provided that no
75    such purchases shall be made or building done except for cash
76    with funds on hand, and to employ and pay on a part or full-time
77    basis personnel needed to execute the foregoing powers and
78    duties.
79          6. Books of account shall be kept by the Board or its
80    staff, and the fiscal affairs of such Board shall be audited
81    annually by certified public accountants selected by the Board
82    for such purposes.
83          (b) The Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas County shall be
84    exempt from the payment of any fees, taxes, or increment
85    revenues to community redevelopment agencies established
86    pursuant to part III of chapter 163, Florida Statutes, except to
87    the extent that such fees, taxes, or increment revenues have
88    previously been pledged to bonds, notes, or other forms of
89    indebtedness authorized and issued by the governing body of a
90    municipality or a community redevelopment agency before May 5,
91    1993. With respect to the fees, taxes, or increment revenues
92    that, before May 5, 1993, have previously been pledged to bonds,
93    notes, or other forms of indebtedness, the Juvenile Welfare
94    Board of Pinellas County shall be exempt from the payment of any
95    further fees, taxes, or increment revenues to community
96    redevelopment agencies, upon the payment or other defeasance of
97    such bonds, notes, or other forms of indebtedness.
98 PART 3.
99          Section 1.
100          (a) After this act becomes a law, the Juvenile Welfare
101    Board of Pinellas County shall adopt an annual fiscal year which
102    shall be the same as that of the Board of County Commissioners
103    of Pinellas County.
104          (b) On or before July 1st of each year hereafter, the
105    Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas County shall prepare and
106    adopt an annual written budget of its expected income and
107    expenditures, including a contingency fund. The said written
108    budget shall be certified and delivered to the Board of County
109    Commissioners of Pinellas County on or before the first day of
110    July each year. Included in each certified budget shall be an
111    estimate of the millage rate necessary to be applied to raise
112    the funds budgeted for expenditures, which millage rate shall
113    not exceed a maximum of $1.00 for each $1,000.00 of assessed
114    valuation of all properties within Pinellas County which are
115    subject to county taxes.
116          (c) Said budget of the Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas
117    County so certified and delivered to the Board of County
118    Commissioners of Pinellas County shall not be subject to change
119    or modification by the said Board of County Commissioners, or
120    any other authority.
121          Section 2.
122          (a) In order to provide funds for the board, there shall
123    be levied annually on all property in Pinellas County which is
124    subject to county taxes an additional tax of up to one dollar
125    ($1.00) for each one thousand dollars ($1,000.00) of assessed
126    valuation of said property for the year 1990 and each subsequent
127    year.
128          (b) The Board of County Commissioners shall direct the
129    levy of said additional tax at the millage rate so certified by
130    the Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas County, up to a maximum
131    of one dollar ($1.00) for each one thousand dollars ($1,000.00)
132    of the assessed valuation of all property in the county which is
133    subject to county tax.
134          (c) The additional tax above provided shall be assessed,
135    levied, and collected in the same manner and at the same time,
136    and its collection shall be enforced in the same manner and at
137    the same time, as is provided by law for the levy, collection,
138    and enforcement of collection of other county taxes. All tax
139    money collected under the terms of this act, as soon after the
140    collection thereof as is reasonably practical, shall be paid
141    directly to the Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas County by the
142    tax collector of the county or the clerk of the circuit court if
143    he or she collects delinquent taxes. The moneys so received by
144    the Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas County shall be deposited
145    in a special bank account and shall be withdrawn only by checks
146    signed by the chair of said board, and countersigned by one
147    other member of the juvenile welfare board who shall be so
148    authorized by the board.
149          (d) No funds of the Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas
150    County shall be expended except by check or an appropriate
151    electronic transfer method as aforesaid, except expenditures
152    from a petty cash account which shall not at any time exceed one
153    hundred dollars ($100.00). All expenditures from petty cash
154    shall be recorded on the books and records of the juvenile
155    welfare board.
156          (e) No funds of the Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas
157    County excepting expenditures from petty cash shall be expended
158    without prior approval of the board, in addition to the
159    budgeting thereof.
160          (f) It is the intent of the Legislature that the funds
161    collected pursuant to the provisions of this act shall be used
162    to support improvements in children’s services and that such
163    funds not be used as a substitute for existing resources or for
164    resources that would otherwise be available for children’s
165    services.
166          Section 3. Within ten (10) days after the expiration of
167    each quarter annual period, the Juvenile Welfare Board of
168    Pinellas County shall cause to be prepared and filed with the
169    Board of County Commissioners of Pinellas County a financial
170    report which shall include the following:
171          (a) The total expenditures of the Board for said quarter
172    annual period.
173          (b) The total receipts of the Board during said quarter
174    annual period.
175          (c) A statement of the funds the Board has on hand or in
176    banks at the end of said quarter annual period.
177 PART 4.
178          If in the judgment of the Board of County Commissioners of
179    Pinellas County the Juvenile Welfare Board of Pinellas County
180    needs additional funds to further its purposes and its work,
181    then said Board of County Commissioners is hereby authorized to
182    furnish such additional funds to the Juvenile Welfare Board of
183    Pinellas County from its contingency or other reserves.
184          Section 4. If any provision of this act or the application
185    thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the
186    invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of
187    the act which can be given effect without the invalid provision
188    or application, and to this end the provisions of this act are
189    declared severable.
190          Section 5. In the event of a conflict between the
191    provisions of this act and the provisions of any other act, the
192    provisions of this act shall control to the extent of such
193    conflict.
194          Section 6. This act shall be construed as a remedial act
195    and shall be liberally construed to promote the purpose for
196    which it is intended.
197          Section 7. Chapters 23483 (1945), 24826 (1947), 25500
198    (1949), 26356 (1949), 61-2675, 65-2101, 70-894, 79-555, 92-228,
199    93-311, 95-473, and 2000-427, Laws of Florida, are repealed.
200          Section 8. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.