| 1 | The Committee on Local Government & Veterans' Affairs recommends |
| 2 | the following: |
| 3 |
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| 4 | Committee Substitute |
| 5 | Remove the entire bill and insert: |
| 6 | A bill to be entitled |
| 7 | An act relating to seniors' services; creating s. 125.903, |
| 8 | F.S.; authorizing each county to create an independent |
| 9 | special district to provide funding for seniors' services; |
| 10 | requiring approval by a majority vote of electors to |
| 11 | annually levy ad valorem taxes not to exceed a certain |
| 12 | maximum; creating a governing board for the special |
| 13 | district; specifying criteria for membership to the |
| 14 | governing board; providing terms of office; clarifying |
| 15 | that a county may provide seniors' services as provided by |
| 16 | general or special law or may create a special district by |
| 17 | ordinance to provide such services; specifying the powers |
| 18 | and functions of a council on seniors' services; requiring |
| 19 | each council to appoint a chair and a vice chair and to |
| 20 | elect officers; providing duties and responsibilities of |
| 21 | the council; requiring the council to serve without |
| 22 | compensation; specifying expenditures of funds; providing |
| 23 | that a district may be dissolved by a special act of the |
| 24 | Legislature or by ordinance of the governing body of the |
| 25 | county; specifying obligations of the county if a district |
| 26 | is dissolved; providing that the governing body of a |
| 27 | county may fund the budget of the council on seniors' |
| 28 | services from its own funds after or during the council's |
| 29 | first year of operation; requiring a special district to |
| 30 | comply with statutory requirements related to the filing |
| 31 | of a financial or compliance report; authorizing a county |
| 32 | to create a dependent special district to provide certain |
| 33 | services for seniors; authorizing the district to seek |
| 34 | grants from several sources and to accept donations from |
| 35 | public and private sources; providing legislative intent |
| 36 | with respect to the use of funds collected by a council on |
| 37 | seniors' services; providing that two or more councils on |
| 38 | seniors' services may enter into a cooperative agreement |
| 39 | to share administrative costs, staff, and office space and |
| 40 | to seek grants, accept donations, or jointly fund programs |
| 41 | serving multicounty areas; redesignating pt. V of ch. 125, |
| 42 | F.S., as "Children's and Seniors' Services"; amending s. |
| 43 | 189.404, F.S., relating to authority to create an |
| 44 | independent special district, to conform; providing an |
| 45 | effective date. |
| 46 |
|
| 47 | Be It Enacted By the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 48 |
|
| 49 | Section 1. Section 125.903, Florida Statutes, is created |
| 50 | to read: |
| 51 | 125.903 Seniors' services; independent special district; |
| 52 | council; powers, duties, and functions.-- |
| 53 | (1) Each county may by ordinance create an independent |
| 54 | special district, as defined in ss. 189.403(3) and |
| 55 | 200.001(8)(e), to provide funding for seniors' services |
| 56 | throughout the county. The boundaries of such district shall be |
| 57 | coterminous with the boundaries of the county. The county |
| 58 | governing body shall obtain approval, by a majority vote of |
| 59 | those electors voting on the question, to annually levy ad |
| 60 | valorem taxes that may not exceed the maximum millage rate |
| 61 | authorized by this section. Any district created pursuant to |
| 62 | this subsection shall levy and fix millage as provided in s. |
| 63 | 200.065. Once the millage is approved by the electorate, the |
| 64 | district is not required to seek approval of the electorate in |
| 65 | future years to levy the previously approved millage. |
| 66 | (a) The governing board of the district shall be a council |
| 67 | on seniors' services, which may also be known as an elderly |
| 68 | advocacy board or similar name as established in the ordinance |
| 69 | by the county governing body. The council shall consist of 10 |
| 70 | members, including the executive director of the area agency on |
| 71 | aging or his or her designee who is a director of senior |
| 72 | programs; the county director of human services or his or her |
| 73 | designee who is a director of elderly services; one member of |
| 74 | the county governing board; one nonvoting member of the |
| 75 | legislative delegation for the county appointed by the |
| 76 | delegation chair; and one county representative of the Florida |
| 77 | League of Cities. The executive director of the area agency on |
| 78 | aging and his or her designee and the county director of human |
| 79 | services and his or her designee are permanent positions. The |
| 80 | members from the county governing board, the legislative |
| 81 | delegation, and the Florida League of Cities shall serve 2-year |
| 82 | terms. The other five members shall be appointed by the Governor |
| 83 | and shall represent, to the greatest extent possible, the |
| 84 | cultural diversity of the county's population. A minimum of two |
| 85 | of the five gubernatorial designees shall be 60 years of age or |
| 86 | older. Recommendations for these memberships shall be provided |
| 87 | by the county governing board. Three names shall be submitted |
| 88 | for each vacancy, determined by category. The gubernatorial |
| 89 | appointments shall be for a 4-year term and may be reappointed |
| 90 | for one additional term of office. The Governor shall make a |
| 91 | selection within a 45-day period or request a new list of |
| 92 | candidates. All members appointed by the Governor must have been |
| 93 | residents of the county for the previous 24-month period. The |
| 94 | length of the terms of the initial appointees shall be adjusted |
| 95 | to stagger the terms. The Governor may remove a member for cause |
| 96 | or upon the written petition of the county governing body. If |
| 97 | any of the members of the council required to be appointed by |
| 98 | the Governor resign, die, or are removed from office, the |
| 99 | vacancy shall be filled by appointment by the Governor, using |
| 100 | the same method as the original appointment, and such |
| 101 | appointment to fill a vacancy shall be for the unexpired term of |
| 102 | the person who resigns, dies, or is removed from office. |
| 103 | (b) This subsection does not prohibit a county from |
| 104 | exercising such power as is provided by general or special law |
| 105 | to provide seniors' services or to create a special district to |
| 106 | provide such services. |
| 107 | (2)(a) Each council on seniors' services may: |
| 108 | 1. Provide and maintain in the county such preventive, |
| 109 | developmental, treatment, and rehabilitative services for |
| 110 | seniors as the council determines are needed for the general |
| 111 | welfare of the county. |
| 112 | 2. Provide such other services for all seniors as the |
| 113 | council determines are needed for the general welfare of the |
| 114 | county. |
| 115 | 3. Allocate and provide funds for other agencies in the |
| 116 | county which are operated for the benefit of seniors. |
| 117 | 4. Collect information and statistical data and conduct |
| 118 | research that will be helpful to the council and the county in |
| 119 | deciding the needs of seniors in the county. |
| 120 | 5. Consult and coordinate with other agencies dedicated to |
| 121 | the welfare of seniors to the end that the overlapping of |
| 122 | services will be prevented. |
| 123 | 6. Lease or buy real estate, equipment, and personal |
| 124 | property and construct buildings as needed to execute the |
| 125 | foregoing powers and functions, except that such purchases may |
| 126 | not be made or building done unless paid for with cash on hand |
| 127 | or secured by funds deposited in financial institutions. This |
| 128 | subparagraph does not authorize a district to issue bonds of any |
| 129 | nature and a district does not have the power to require the |
| 130 | imposition of any bond by the governing body of the county. |
| 131 | 7. Employ, pay, and provide benefits for any part-time or |
| 132 | full-time personnel needed to execute the foregoing powers and |
| 133 | functions. |
| 134 | (b) Each council on seniors' services shall: |
| 135 | 1. Elect a chair and a vice chair from among its members, |
| 136 | and elect other officers as deemed necessary by the council. |
| 137 | 2. Identify and assess the needs of the seniors in the |
| 138 | county served by the council and submit to the governing body of |
| 139 | each county a written description of: |
| 140 | a. The activities, services, and opportunities that will |
| 141 | be provided to seniors. |
| 142 | b. The anticipated schedule for providing those |
| 143 | activities, services, and opportunities. |
| 144 | c. The manner in which seniors will be served, including a |
| 145 | description of arrangements and agreements which will be made |
| 146 | with community organizations, state and local educational |
| 147 | agencies, federal agencies, public assistance agencies, the |
| 148 | court system, guardianship groups, and other applicable public |
| 149 | and private agencies and organizations. |
| 150 | d. The special outreach efforts that will be undertaken to |
| 151 | provide services to at-risk, abused, or neglected seniors. |
| 152 | e. The manner in which the council will seek and provide |
| 153 | funding for unmet needs. |
| 154 | f. The strategy that will be used for interagency |
| 155 | coordination to maximize existing human and fiscal resources. |
| 156 | 3. Provide training and orientation to all new members |
| 157 | sufficient to allow them to perform their duties. |
| 158 | 4. Make and adopt bylaws and rules for the council's |
| 159 | guidance, operation, governance, and maintenance, if such rules |
| 160 | are not inconsistent with federal or state laws or county |
| 161 | ordinances. |
| 162 | 5. Provide an annual written report, to be presented no |
| 163 | later than January 1 of each year, beginning in 2005, to the |
| 164 | governing body of the county. The annual report must contain, |
| 165 | but need not be limited to: |
| 166 | a. Information on the effectiveness of activities, |
| 167 | services, and programs offered by the council, including cost- |
| 168 | effectiveness. |
| 169 | b. A detailed anticipated budget for continuation of |
| 170 | activities, services, and programs offered by the council and a |
| 171 | list of all sources of requested funding, both public and |
| 172 | private. |
| 173 | c. Procedures used for early identification of at-risk |
| 174 | seniors who need additional or continued services and methods |
| 175 | for ensuring that the additional or continued services are |
| 176 | received. |
| 177 | d. A description of the degree to which the council's |
| 178 | objectives and activities are consistent with the goals of this |
| 179 | section. |
| 180 | e. Detailed information on the various programs, services, |
| 181 | and activities available to participants and the degree to which |
| 182 | the activities, services, and programs have been successfully |
| 183 | used by seniors. |
| 184 | f. Information on activities, services, and programs that |
| 185 | should be eliminated; activities, services, and programs that |
| 186 | should be continued; and activities, services, and programs that |
| 187 | should be added to the basic format of the seniors' services |
| 188 | council. |
| 189 | (c) The council shall maintain minutes of each meeting, |
| 190 | including a record of all votes cast, and shall make such |
| 191 | minutes available to any interested person. |
| 192 | (d) Members of the council shall serve without |
| 193 | compensation, but are entitled to receive reimbursement for per |
| 194 | diem and travel expenses consistent with s. 112.061. |
| 195 | (3)(a) The fiscal year of the district shall be the same |
| 196 | as that of the county. |
| 197 | (b) On or before July 1 of each year, the council on |
| 198 | seniors' services shall prepare a tentative annual written |
| 199 | budget of the district's expected income and expenditures, |
| 200 | including a contingency fund. The council shall, in addition, |
| 201 | compute a proposed millage rate within the voter-approved cap |
| 202 | necessary to fund the tentative budget; shall, prior to adopting |
| 203 | a final budget, comply with the provisions of s. 200.065 |
| 204 | relating to the method of fixing millage; and shall fix the |
| 205 | final millage rate by resolution of the council. The adopted |
| 206 | budget and final millage rate shall be certified and delivered |
| 207 | to the governing body of the county as soon as possible |
| 208 | following the council's adoption of the final budget and millage |
| 209 | rate pursuant to chapter 200. Included in each certified budget |
| 210 | shall be the millage rate, adopted by resolution of the council, |
| 211 | necessary to be applied to raise the funds budgeted for district |
| 212 | operations and expenditures. Any district millage may not exceed |
| 213 | 0.5 mills of assessed valuation of all properties within the |
| 214 | county which are subject to ad valorem county taxes. |
| 215 | (c) After the budget of the district is certified and |
| 216 | delivered to the governing body of the county, the budget may |
| 217 | not be changed or modified by the governing body of the county |
| 218 | or any other authority. |
| 219 | (d) All tax moneys collected under this section, as soon |
| 220 | after collection as is reasonably practicable, shall be paid |
| 221 | directly to the council on seniors' services by the tax |
| 222 | collector of the county or the clerk of the circuit court, if |
| 223 | the clerk collects delinquent taxes. |
| 224 | (e)1. All moneys received by the council on seniors' |
| 225 | services shall be deposited in qualified public depositories, as |
| 226 | defined in s. 280.02, with separate and distinguishable accounts |
| 227 | established specifically for the council, and shall be withdrawn |
| 228 | only by checks signed by the chair of the council and |
| 229 | countersigned by one other member of the council on seniors' |
| 230 | services or by a chief executive officer authorized by the |
| 231 | council. |
| 232 | 2. Upon entering the duties of office, the chair and the |
| 233 | other member of the council or chief executive officer who signs |
| 234 | council checks shall each give a surety bond in the sum of at |
| 235 | least $1,000 for each $1 million or portion thereof of the |
| 236 | council's annual budget, which bond shall be conditioned that |
| 237 | each shall faithfully discharge the duties of his or her office. |
| 238 | The premium on such bond may be paid by the district as part of |
| 239 | the expense of the council. No other member of the council shall |
| 240 | be required to give bond or other security. |
| 241 | 3. Funds of the district may not be expended except by |
| 242 | check, except expenditures made from a petty cash account, which |
| 243 | may not at any time exceed $100. All expenditures from petty |
| 244 | cash must be recorded on the books and records of the council on |
| 245 | seniors' services. Funds of the council on seniors' services, |
| 246 | excepting expenditures from petty cash, may not be expended |
| 247 | without prior approval of the council, in addition to the |
| 248 | budgeting thereof. |
| 249 | (f) Within 10 days, exclusive of weekends and legal |
| 250 | holidays, after the expiration of each quarter-annual period, |
| 251 | the council on seniors' services shall prepare and file with the |
| 252 | governing body of the county a financial report that includes: |
| 253 | 1. The total expenditures of the council for the quarter- |
| 254 | annual period. |
| 255 | 2. The total receipts of the council during the quarter- |
| 256 | annual period. |
| 257 | 3. A statement of the funds the council has on hand, has |
| 258 | invested, or has deposited with qualified public depositories at |
| 259 | the end of the quarter-annual period. |
| 260 | 4. The total administrative costs of the council for the |
| 261 | quarter-annual period. |
| 262 | (4) Any district created pursuant to this section may be |
| 263 | dissolved by a special act of the Legislature, or the county |
| 264 | governing body may by ordinance dissolve the district subject to |
| 265 | the approval of the electorate. If any district is dissolved |
| 266 | pursuant to this subsection, each county shall first obligate |
| 267 | itself to assume the debts, liabilities, contracts, and |
| 268 | outstanding obligations of the district within the total millage |
| 269 | available to the county governing body for all county and |
| 270 | municipal purposes as provided for under s. 9, Art. VII of the |
| 271 | State Constitution. Any district may also be dissolved pursuant |
| 272 | to s. 189.4042. |
| 273 | (5) After or during the first year of operation of the |
| 274 | council on seniors' services, the governing body of the county, |
| 275 | at its option, may fund in whole or in part the budget of the |
| 276 | council on seniors' services from its own funds. |
| 277 | (6) Any district created pursuant to this section shall |
| 278 | comply with all other statutory requirements of general |
| 279 | application which relate to the filing of any financial reports |
| 280 | or compliance reports required under part III of chapter 218 or |
| 281 | any other report or documentation required by law, including the |
| 282 | requirements of ss. 189.415, 189.417, and 189.418. |
| 283 | (7)(a) Each county may by ordinance create a dependent |
| 284 | special district within the boundaries of the county for the |
| 285 | purpose of providing preventive, developmental, treatment, and |
| 286 | rehabilitative services for seniors. The district may seek |
| 287 | grants from state, federal, and local agencies and accept |
| 288 | donations from public and private sources, if the district |
| 289 | complies with paragraphs (1)(a) and (2)(b) and has a budget that |
| 290 | requires approval through an affirmative vote of the governing |
| 291 | body of the county or that may be vetoed by the governing body |
| 292 | of the county. |
| 293 | (b) If the provisions of a county charter relating to the |
| 294 | membership of the governing board of a dependent special |
| 295 | district conflict with paragraph (1)(a), a county may by |
| 296 | ordinance create a dependent special district within the |
| 297 | boundaries of the county for the purpose of providing |
| 298 | preventive, developmental, treatment, and rehabilitative |
| 299 | services for seniors, and the district may seek grants from |
| 300 | state, federal, and local agencies and accept donations from |
| 301 | public and private sources, if the district complies with |
| 302 | paragraph (2)(b) and has a budget that requires approval through |
| 303 | an affirmative vote of the governing body of the county or that |
| 304 | may be vetoed by the governing body of the county. |
| 305 | (8) It is the intent of the Legislature that the funds |
| 306 | collected pursuant to this section be used to support |
| 307 | improvements in seniors' services and that such funds not be |
| 308 | used as a substitute for existing resources or for resources |
| 309 | that would otherwise be available for seniors' services. |
| 310 | (9) Two or more councils on seniors' services may enter |
| 311 | into a cooperative agreement to share administrative costs, |
| 312 | including, but not limited to, staff and office space, if a more |
| 313 | efficient or effective operation will result. The cooperative |
| 314 | agreement must include provisions on apportioning costs between |
| 315 | the councils, keeping separate and distinct financial records |
| 316 | for each council, and resolving any conflicts that might arise |
| 317 | under the cooperative agreement. |
| 318 | (10) Two or more councils on seniors' services may enter |
| 319 | into a cooperative agreement to seek grants, to accept |
| 320 | donations, or to jointly fund programs serving multicounty |
| 321 | areas. The cooperative agreement must include provisions for the |
| 322 | adequate accounting of separate and joint funds. |
| 323 | Section 2. Part V of chapter 125, Florida Statutes, |
| 324 | consisting of sections 125.901, 125.902, and 125.903, Florida |
| 325 | Statutes, and entitled "Children's Services," is redesignated as |
| 326 | "Children's and Seniors' Services." |
| 327 | Section 3. Paragraph (b) of subsection (4) of section |
| 328 | 189.404, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 329 | 189.404 Legislative intent for the creation of independent |
| 330 | special districts; special act prohibitions; model elements and |
| 331 | other requirements; general-purpose local government/Governor |
| 332 | and Cabinet creation authorizations.-- |
| 333 | (4) LOCAL GOVERNMENT/GOVERNOR AND CABINET CREATION |
| 334 | AUTHORIZATIONS.--Except as otherwise authorized by general law, |
| 335 | only the Legislature may create independent special districts. |
| 336 | (b) A county may create an independent special district |
| 337 | which shall be adopted by a charter in accordance with s. |
| 338 | 125.901, s. 125.903, or s. 154.331, or chapter 155, or which |
| 339 | shall be established by ordinance in accordance with s. 190.005, |
| 340 | or as otherwise authorized by general law. |
| 341 | Section 4. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. |