Senate Bill sb1168e3

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    CS for CS for SB 1168                          Third Engrossed



  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to the Commission for the

  3         Transportation Disadvantaged; amending s.

  4         427.012, F.S.; revising the membership of the

  5         commission; establishing term limits; directing

  6         each member of the commission to serve without

  7         regional bias; providing qualifications for

  8         appointment to membership on the commission;

  9         providing for nonvoting advisory members;

10         requiring candidates for appointment to the

11         commission to meet certain standards for

12         background screening; requiring the Department

13         of Transportation to inform the commission if a

14         candidate fails to meet the screening

15         standards; providing that costs of screening be

16         borne by the department or the candidate for

17         appointment; authorizing the commission to

18         appoint technical advisory committees;

19         requiring the commission to present a proposed

20         funding distribution formula to the Legislative

21         Budget Commission for allocating transportation

22         disadvantaged funds the commission anticipates

23         receiving from the General Appropriations Act;

24         authorizing the Legislative Budget Commission

25         to approve, reject, or modify the proposed

26         allocation formula; requiring the commission to

27         detail the expected allocation of funding to

28         each county; prohibiting the commission from

29         altering the distribution schedule without the

30         approval of the Legislative Budget Commission

31         except in the case of a disaster; amending s.


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    CS for CS for SB 1168                          Third Engrossed



 1         427.013, F.S.; requiring the commission to

 2         develop an allocation methodology to equitably

 3         distribute transportation funds under the

 4         control of the commission to counties,

 5         community transportation coordinators, or other

 6         entities providing transportation disadvantaged

 7         services; providing an effective date.

 8  

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

10  

11         Section 1.  Section 427.012, Florida Statutes, is

12  amended to read:

13         427.012  The Commission for the Transportation

14  Disadvantaged.--There is created the Commission for the

15  Transportation Disadvantaged in the Department of

16  Transportation.

17         (1)  The commission shall consist of seven members, all

18  of whom shall be appointed by the Governor.

19         (a)  Five of the appointed members must have

20  significant experience in the operation of a business and,

21  when making an appointment, it is the intent of the

22  Legislature that the Governor select persons who reflect the

23  broad diversity of the business community in this state, as

24  well as the racial, ethnic, geographical, and gender diversity

25  of the population of this state.

26         (b)  Two of the members appointed must be persons with

27  a disability who use the transportation disadvantaged system.

28         (c)  Each member of the commission shall represent the

29  needs of the transportation disadvantaged throughout the

30  state. A member may not subordinate the needs of the

31  


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    CS for CS for SB 1168                          Third Engrossed



 1  transportation disadvantaged in general in order to favor the

 2  needs of others residing in a specific location in the state.

 3         (d)  Each person appointed to the board of the

 4  commission shall serve a term of 4 years. A member may be

 5  reappointed for one additional 4-year term.

 6         (e)  A member must be a citizen of the state and a

 7  registered voter.

 8         (f)  The Secretary of Transportation, the Secretary of

 9  Children and Family Services, the director of Workforce

10  Innovation, the executive director of the Department of

11  Veterans' Affairs, the Secretary of Elderly Affairs, the

12  Secretary of Health Care Administration, the director of the

13  Agency for Persons with Disabilities, and an elected official

14  of local government who is appointed by the Governor, or a

15  designee of each, respectively, shall serve as ex officio,

16  nonvoting advisors to the commission.

17         (g)  A person appointed to the board of the commission

18  may not, within the 5 years immediately before the

19  appointment, or during his or her term on the board, have or

20  have had a financial relationship with, or represent or have

21  represented as a lobbyist as defined in s. 11.045 the

22  following:

23         1.  A transportation operator;

24         2.  A community transportation coordinator;

25         3.  A metropolitan planning organization;

26         4.  A designated official planning agency;

27         5.  A purchaser agency;

28         6.  A local coordinating board;

29         7.  A broker of transportation; or

30         8.  A provider of transportation services.  the

31  following members:


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    CS for CS for SB 1168                          Third Engrossed



 1         (a)  The secretary of the Department of Transportation

 2  or the secretary's designee.

 3         (b)  The secretary of the Department of Children and

 4  Family Services or the secretary's designee.

 5         (c)  The Commissioner of Education or the

 6  commissioner's designee.

 7         (d)  The secretary of the Department of Labor and

 8  Employment Security or the secretary's designee.

 9         (e)  The executive director of the Department of

10  Veterans' Affairs or the executive director's designee.

11         (f)  The secretary of the Department of Elderly Affairs

12  or the secretary's designee.

13         (g)  The director of the Agency for Health Care

14  Administration or the director's designee.

15         (h)  A representative of the Florida Association for

16  Community Action, who shall serve at the pleasure of that

17  association.

18         (i)  A representative of the Florida Transit

19  Association, who shall serve at the pleasure of that

20  association.

21         (j)  A person over the age of 60 who is a member of a

22  recognized statewide organization representing elderly

23  Floridians. Such person shall be appointed by the Governor to

24  represent elderly Floridians and shall be appointed to serve a

25  term of 4 years.

26         (k)  A handicapped person who is a member of a

27  recognized statewide organization representing handicapped

28  Floridians. Such person shall be appointed by the Governor to

29  represent handicapped Floridians and shall be appointed to

30  serve a term of 4 years.

31  


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    CS for CS for SB 1168                          Third Engrossed



 1         (l)  Two citizen advocate representatives who shall be

 2  appointed by the Governor for a term of 4 years, one

 3  representing rural citizens and one representing urban

 4  citizens.

 5         (m)  A representative of the community transportation

 6  coordinators. Such person shall be appointed by the Governor

 7  to represent all community transportation coordinators and

 8  shall be appointed to serve a term of 4 years.

 9         (n)  One member of the Early Childhood Council. Such

10  person shall be appointed by the Governor to represent

11  maternal and child health care providers and shall be

12  appointed to serve a term of 4 years.

13         (o)  Two representatives of current private for-profit

14  or private not-for-profit transportation operators each of

15  which have a minimum of 5 years of continuous experience

16  operating a broad-based system of ambulatory and

17  wheelchair/stretcher type transportation, utilizing not less

18  than 50 vehicles and including dispatch and scheduling

19  responsibilities. Such persons shall be appointed by the

20  Commissioner of Agriculture to serve a term of 4 years.

21         (p)  Four representatives of current private for-profit

22  or private not-for-profit transportation operators, each of

23  which having a minimum of 5 years of continuous experience

24  operating a broad-based system of ambulatory and wheelchair or

25  stretcher-type transportation, utilizing not less than 50

26  vehicles, and including dispatch and scheduling

27  responsibilities. Such persons shall be appointed by the

28  Commissioner of Agriculture to serve a term of 4 years.

29         (q)  Six citizens representing the nontransportation

30  business community of the state, three members appointed by

31  


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    CS for CS for SB 1168                          Third Engrossed



 1  the President of the Senate and three members appointed by the

 2  Speaker of the House of Representatives.

 3         (2)  The chairperson shall be appointed by the Governor

 4  and vice chairperson of the commission shall be elected

 5  annually from the membership of the commission.

 6         (3)  Members of the commission shall serve without

 7  compensation but shall be allowed per diem and travel

 8  expenses, as provided in s. 112.061.

 9         (4)  The commission shall meet at least quarterly, or

10  more frequently at the call of the chairperson. Five Nine

11  members of the commission constitute a quorum, and a majority

12  vote of the members present is necessary for any action taken

13  by the commission.

14         (5)  The Governor may remove any member of the

15  commission for cause.

16         (6)  Each candidate for appointment to the commission

17  must, before accepting the appointment, undergo background

18  screening under s. 435.04, by filing with the Department of

19  Transportation a complete set of fingerprints taken by an

20  authorized law enforcement agency. The fingerprints must be

21  submitted to the Department of Law Enforcement for state

22  processing, and that department shall submit the fingerprints

23  to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for federal processing.

24  The Department of Transportation shall screen the background

25  results and inform the commission if any candidate failed to

26  meet level 2 screening standards. A candidate found to have

27  failed to meet level 2 screening standards may not be

28  appointed to the commission. The cost of the background

29  screening may be borne by the Department of Transportation or

30  the candidate for appointment to the commission.

31  


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    CS for CS for SB 1168                          Third Engrossed



 1         (7)(6)  The commission shall appoint an executive

 2  director who shall serve under the direction, supervision, and

 3  control of the commission. The executive director, with the

 4  consent of the commission, shall employ such personnel as may

 5  be necessary to perform adequately the functions of the

 6  commission within budgetary limitations. All employees of the

 7  commission are exempt from the Career Service System.

 8         (8)  The commission shall appoint at least four

 9  technical advisory committees to advise the commission on

10  issues of importance to the state and to regions of the state.

11         (a)  One technical advisory committee shall provide

12  information, advice, and direction to the commission on the

13  coordination of services for the transportation disadvantaged.

14  Its membership shall include, but need not be limited to,

15  representatives of community transportation coordinators and

16  private paratransit providers.

17         (b)  One technical advisory committee shall provide

18  information, advice, and direction to the commission on the

19  transportation planning issues affecting the transportation

20  disadvantaged program. Its membership may include, but need

21  not be limited to, representatives of metropolitan planning

22  organizations and regional planning councils.

23         (c)  One technical advisory committee shall provide

24  information, advice, and direction to the commission on

25  business-related issues affecting the transportation

26  disadvantaged program. Its membership may include, but need

27  not be limited to, persons with expertise in insurance,

28  marketing, economic development, or financial planning.

29         (d)  One technical advisory committee shall be a forum

30  for users of the transportation disadvantaged system. Its

31  membership may include, but need not be limited to, direct


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    CS for CS for SB 1168                          Third Engrossed



 1  users of the system and representatives of the users, such as

 2  parents and other relatives, guardians, and service

 3  professionals who tend to the needs of persons who are

 4  transportationally disadvantaged.

 5         (e)  The commission may establish the size,

 6  composition, and focus of any technical advisory committee it

 7  creates. A member appointed to a technical advisory committee

 8  shall serve without compensation and without per diem.

 9         (9)(7)  The commission is assigned to the office of the

10  secretary of the Department of Transportation for

11  administrative and fiscal accountability purposes, but it

12  shall otherwise function independently of the control,

13  supervision, and direction of the department.

14         (10)(8)  The commission shall develop a budget under

15  pursuant to chapter 216. The budget is not subject to change

16  by the department staff after it has been approved by the

17  commission, but it shall be transmitted to the Governor, as

18  head of the department, along with the budget of the

19  department.

20         (11)(a)  No later than 30 days after the Governor

21  issues his executive budget recommendations, the commission

22  shall present to the Legislative Budget Commission a proposed

23  formula for allocating the transportation funds that the

24  commission anticipates receiving from the General

25  Appropriations Act for the next fiscal year. The document must

26  specifically detail the amount of funding expected to be

27  allocated to each county for transportation disadvantaged

28  services. The Legislative Budget Commission shall approve,

29  reject, or request modifications to the formula no later than

30  60 days after receiving the proposed funding allocation

31  formula.


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    CS for CS for SB 1168                          Third Engrossed



 1         (b)  Upon the General Appropriations Act becoming law,

 2  the commission shall present to the Legislative Budget

 3  Commission the county distribution schedule, which is the

 4  approved allocation formula applied to the funds allocated to

 5  the commission.

 6         (c)  The commission may not change the transportation

 7  disadvantaged distribution schedule without the permission of

 8  the Legislative Budget Commission, except in the case of a

 9  disaster as defined in chapter 252.

10         Section 2.  Subsection (12) of section 427.013, Florida

11  Statutes, is amended to read:

12         427.013  The Commission for the Transportation

13  Disadvantaged; purpose and responsibilities.--The purpose of

14  the commission is to accomplish the coordination of

15  transportation services provided to the transportation

16  disadvantaged. The goal of this coordination shall be to

17  assure the cost-effective provision of transportation by

18  qualified community transportation coordinators or

19  transportation operators for the transportation disadvantaged

20  without any bias or presumption in favor of multioperator

21  systems or not-for-profit transportation operators over single

22  operator systems or for-profit transportation operators. In

23  carrying out this purpose, the commission shall:

24         (12)(a)  Have the authority to apply for and accept

25  funds, grants, gifts, and services from the Federal

26  Government, state government, local governments, or private

27  funding sources. Applications by the commission for local

28  government funds shall be coordinated through the appropriate

29  coordinating board. Funds acquired or accepted under this

30  subsection shall be administered by the commission and shall

31  be used to carry out the commission's responsibilities.


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    CS for CS for SB 1168                          Third Engrossed



 1         (b)  Develop an allocation methodology or formula that

 2  equitably distributes all funds, to include Medicaid

 3  nonemergency transportation funds, under the control of the

 4  commission to compensate counties, community transportation

 5  coordinators, or other entities providing transportation

 6  disadvantaged services. The formula shall take into account

 7  not only the actual costs of each transportation disadvantaged

 8  trip but also those efficiencies that a provider might adopt

 9  to reduce costs, including cost efficiencies of trips when

10  compared to the local cost of transporting the general public.

11         Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2005.

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