Senate Bill sb1778

    Florida Senate - 2005                                  SB 1778

    By the Committee on Transportation





    596-1055A-05

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to the Department of

  3         Transportation; amending s. 20.23, F.S.;

  4         requiring the Florida Transportation Commission

  5         to examine the department's district boundaries

  6         as they relate to the strategic planning

  7         regions established in the state's strategic

  8         plan for economic development; requiring an

  9         annual report to the Governor and the

10         Legislature; 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.  Paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of section

15  20.23, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

16         20.23  Department of Transportation.--There is created

17  a Department of Transportation which shall be a decentralized

18  agency.

19         (2)

20         (b)  The commission shall have the primary functions

21  to:

22         1.  Recommend major transportation policies for the

23  Governor's approval, and assure that approved policies and any

24  revisions thereto are properly executed.

25         2.  Periodically review the status of the state

26  transportation system including highway, transit, rail,

27  seaport, intermodal development, and aviation components of

28  the system and recommend improvements therein to the Governor

29  and the Legislature.

30         3.  Perform an in-depth evaluation of the annual

31  department budget request, the Florida Transportation Plan,

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    Florida Senate - 2005                                  SB 1778
    596-1055A-05




 1  and the tentative work program for compliance with all

 2  applicable laws and established departmental policies. Except

 3  as specifically provided in s. 339.135(4)(c)2., (d), and (f),

 4  the commission may not consider individual construction

 5  projects, but shall consider methods of accomplishing the

 6  goals of the department in the most effective, efficient, and

 7  businesslike manner.

 8         4.  Monitor the financial status of the department on a

 9  regular basis to assure that the department is managing

10  revenue and bond proceeds responsibly and in accordance with

11  law and established policy.

12         5.  Monitor on at least a quarterly basis, the

13  efficiency, productivity, and management of the department,

14  using performance and production standards developed by the

15  commission pursuant to s. 334.045.

16         6.  Perform an in-depth evaluation of the factors

17  causing disruption of project schedules in the adopted work

18  program and recommend to the Legislature and the Governor

19  methods to eliminate or reduce the disruptive effects of these

20  factors.

21         7.  Recommend to the Governor and the Legislature

22  improvements to the department's organization in order to

23  streamline and optimize the efficiency of the department. In

24  reviewing the department's organization, the commission shall

25  determine if the current district organizational structure is

26  responsive to Florida's changing economic and demographic

27  development patterns. The commission shall specifically

28  examine district boundaries relative to the strategic planning

29  regions established in Florida's strategic plan for economic

30  development developed under s. 288.905. The initial report by

31  the commission must be delivered to the Governor and

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    Florida Senate - 2005                                  SB 1778
    596-1055A-05




 1  Legislature by December 15, 2005 2000, and each year

 2  thereafter, as appropriate. The commission may retain such

 3  experts as are reasonably necessary to effectuate this

 4  subparagraph, and the department shall pay the expenses of

 5  such experts.

 6         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2005.

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 9                          SENATE SUMMARY

10    Requires that the Florida Transportation Commission
      examine the district boundaries of the Department of
11    Transportation relative to the statewide planning regions
      and report to the Governor and the Legislature.
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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.