| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to charter travel to terrorist states; |
| 3 | creating s. 288.857, F.S.; creating the "Commerce With |
| 4 | Terrorist States Act"; providing a popular name; providing |
| 5 | legislative intent; providing definitions; providing for |
| 6 | the levy of a security assessment on charter |
| 7 | transportation for trips originating in this state and |
| 8 | arriving in an identified terrorist state; providing for |
| 9 | the rate of the assessment; providing requirements and |
| 10 | procedures with respect thereto; requiring any university |
| 11 | or community college within the State University System or |
| 12 | the Florida Community College System that organizes or |
| 13 | directs the organization of a cultural or educational trip |
| 14 | utilizing charter transportation to any terrorist state to |
| 15 | provide the Department of Education and the Department of |
| 16 | Law Enforcement with specified information; specifying |
| 17 | exemptions to the act; providing for the adoption of |
| 18 | rules; providing severability; providing an effective |
| 19 | date. |
| 20 |
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| 21 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 22 |
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| 23 | Section 1. Section 288.857, Florida Statutes, is created |
| 24 | to read: |
| 25 | 288.857 Security assessment for chartered transportation |
| 26 | to terrorist states.-- |
| 27 | (1) POPULAR NAME.--This act may be known by the popular |
| 28 | name the ?Commerce with Terrorist States Act.? |
| 29 | (2) LEGISLATIVE INTENT.-- |
| 30 | (a) The Legislature finds that there are increased safety |
| 31 | concerns and costs associated with transportation between this |
| 32 | state and terrorist states and that travel to terrorist states |
| 33 | generates significant expenditures related to security issues |
| 34 | and to the prevention of and response to possible terrorist |
| 35 | acts. The Legislature further finds that persons or entities who |
| 36 | transport persons to terrorist states may directly impact the |
| 37 | economic stability and public security of this state. Therefore, |
| 38 | it is the intent of the Legislature to offset costs related to |
| 39 | transportation to terrorist states that originates in this |
| 40 | state. It is not the intent of the Legislature to impact the |
| 41 | official business of government employees or the duties of any |
| 42 | personnel of the United States Armed Services. |
| 43 | (3) DEFINITIONS.--As used in this section: |
| 44 | (a) ?Terrorist state? means any state, country, or nation |
| 45 | presently deemed a state sponsor of terrorism by the United |
| 46 | States Department of State. For the purposes of this act, the |
| 47 | Department of Revenue shall be charged with the duty of |
| 48 | documenting those states or nations identified as terrorist |
| 49 | states by the United States Department of State, shall specify |
| 50 | in rule those states or nations deemed terrorist states by the |
| 51 | State of Florida, and shall periodically update the list of |
| 52 | countries recognized by the state as terrorist states. |
| 53 | (b) ?Directly carries or transports? means to conduct a |
| 54 | single continuous charter flight or charter vessel voyage that |
| 55 | originates from any location in this state and arrives in a |
| 56 | terrorist state identified pursuant to paragraph (a). For |
| 57 | purposes of this definition, temporary stops of less than 8 |
| 58 | hours shall not disqualify a charter flight or charter vessel |
| 59 | voyage from being considered a continuous flight or voyage. |
| 60 | (c) ?Charter aircraft? means any form of aircraft hired |
| 61 | for exclusive temporary use by a single traveler or group of |
| 62 | travelers. |
| 63 | (d) ?Charter vessel? means any form of watercraft hired |
| 64 | for exclusive temporary use by a single traveler or group of |
| 65 | travelers. |
| 66 | (e) "Charter transportation" means travel via charter |
| 67 | aircraft or charter vessel when such aircraft or vessel is hired |
| 68 | for exclusive temporary use by a single traveler or group of |
| 69 | travelers. |
| 70 | (4) SECURITY ASSESSMENT.-- |
| 71 | (a) It is the intent of the Legislature that every person |
| 72 | or entity who directly transports persons via charter plane or |
| 73 | charter boat from this state to a terrorist state is exercising |
| 74 | an assessable privilege. |
| 75 | (b) For exercising such privilege, a security assessment |
| 76 | is levied on each assessable transaction or incident, which |
| 77 | assessment is due and payable at the rate of 10 percent on the |
| 78 | total consideration received or to be received by any person for |
| 79 | performing such service. |
| 80 | (c) Such security assessment shall be in addition to the |
| 81 | total amount of the consideration for the service, shall be |
| 82 | charged by the person receiving such consideration, and shall be |
| 83 | payable by such person at the time he or she receives such |
| 84 | consideration. Such person shall remit the assessment to the |
| 85 | Department of Revenue. The department shall deposit such funds |
| 86 | in the State Homeland Security Trust Fund. |
| 87 | (d) This security assessment is in addition to other taxes |
| 88 | or assessments, whether levied in the form of excise, license, |
| 89 | or privilege taxes, and is in addition to all other fees and |
| 90 | taxes levied. |
| 91 | (e) This security assessment shall be due and payable |
| 92 | according to the brackets set forth in s. 212.12. |
| 93 | (5) MANDATORY TRAVEL INFORMATION.--Any university or |
| 94 | community college within the State University System or the |
| 95 | Florida Community College System that organizes or directs the |
| 96 | organization of a cultural or educational trip utilizing charter |
| 97 | transportation to any terrorist state, as defined in this act, |
| 98 | shall provide the Department of Education and the Department of |
| 99 | Law Enforcement, no later than 50 days prior to the commencement |
| 100 | of such trip, the following information: |
| 101 | (a) A passenger list of individuals participating in the |
| 102 | trip, including the name and address of each individual and the |
| 103 | enrollment or employment status of each individual in the |
| 104 | applicable state university or community college. |
| 105 | (b) A detailed itinerary of the trip being organized, |
| 106 | including hotel and restaurant accommodations, planned |
| 107 | excursions, and scheduled meetings with governmental authorities |
| 108 | or individuals or organizations not affiliated with the |
| 109 | government of the host nation. |
| 110 | (c) A complete accounting of all costs associated with the |
| 111 | trip and a complete accounting of the use or deposit of all |
| 112 | moneys received in payment for the trip. |
| 113 | (d) The certificates of incorporation of any entity or |
| 114 | entities contracted to organize or facilitate the trip or the |
| 115 | names and other pertinent identifying information with respect |
| 116 | to any third party entity or entities being contracted to |
| 117 | organize or facilitate the trip. |
| 118 | (6) EXEMPTIONS.--The provisions of this act shall not |
| 119 | apply to: |
| 120 | (a) Any person operating by contract with a federal |
| 121 | authority or an authority of the State of Florida. |
| 122 | (b) Any person in performance of active military duty. |
| 123 | (10) RULEMAKING AUTHORITY.--The Department of Business |
| 124 | and Professional Regulation, the Department of Education, and |
| 125 | the Department of Revenue may adopt rules necessary to |
| 126 | administer this section. |
| 127 | Section 2. If any provision of this act or its application |
| 128 | to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity |
| 129 | does not affect other provisions or applications of the act |
| 130 | which can be given effect without the invalid provision or |
| 131 | application, and to this end the provisions of this act are |
| 132 | severable. |
| 133 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2004. |