Senate Bill sb1834

    Florida Senate - 2005                                  SB 1834

    By Senator Siplin





    19-880-05

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to the tourist development tax;

  3         amending s. 125.0104, F.S., the "Local Option

  4         Tourist Development Act"; revising the

  5         permissible uses of proceeds from the tax;

  6         allowing a specified percentage of the tax

  7         proceeds to be used for economic development

  8         activities in the county; providing an

  9         effective date.

10  

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

12  

13         Section 1.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (5) of section

14  125.0104, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

15         125.0104  Tourist development tax; procedure for

16  levying; authorized uses; referendum; enforcement.--

17         (5)  AUTHORIZED USES OF REVENUE.--

18         (a)  All tax revenues received pursuant to this section

19  by a county imposing the tourist development tax shall be used

20  by that county for the following purposes only:

21         1.  To acquire, construct, extend, enlarge, remodel,

22  repair, improve, maintain, operate, or promote one or more

23  publicly owned and operated convention centers, sports

24  stadiums, sports arenas, coliseums, or auditoriums, or museums

25  that are publicly owned and operated or owned and operated by

26  not-for-profit organizations and open to the public, within

27  the boundaries of the county or subcounty special taxing

28  district in which the tax is levied. Tax revenues received

29  pursuant to this section may also be used for promotion of

30  zoological parks that are publicly owned and operated or owned

31  and operated by not-for-profit organizations and open to the

                                  1

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2005                                  SB 1834
    19-880-05




 1  public. However, these purposes may be implemented through

 2  service contracts and leases with lessees with sufficient

 3  expertise or financial capability to operate such facilities;

 4         2.  To promote and advertise tourism in the State of

 5  Florida and nationally and internationally; however, if tax

 6  revenues are expended for an activity, service, venue, or

 7  event, the activity, service, venue, or event shall have as

 8  one of its main purposes the attraction of tourists as

 9  evidenced by the promotion of the activity, service, venue, or

10  event to tourists;

11         3.  To fund convention bureaus, tourist bureaus,

12  tourist information centers, and news bureaus as county

13  agencies or by contract with the chambers of commerce or

14  similar associations in the county, which may include any

15  indirect administrative costs for services performed by the

16  county on behalf of the promotion agency. However, no more

17  than 2 percent of the revenues from the tourist development

18  tax may be used for county economic development activities as

19  described in s. 125.045; or

20         4.  To finance beach park facilities or beach

21  improvement, maintenance, renourishment, restoration, and

22  erosion control, including shoreline protection, enhancement,

23  cleanup, or restoration of inland lakes and rivers to which

24  there is public access as those uses relate to the physical

25  preservation of the beach, shoreline, or inland lake or river.

26  However, any funds identified by a county as the local

27  matching source for beach renourishment, restoration, or

28  erosion control projects included in the long-range budget

29  plan of the state's Beach Management Plan, pursuant to s.

30  161.091, or funds contractually obligated by a county in the

31  financial plan for a federally authorized shore protection

                                  2

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2005                                  SB 1834
    19-880-05




 1  project may not be used or loaned for any other purpose. In

 2  counties of less than 100,000 population, no more than 10

 3  percent of the revenues from the tourist development tax may

 4  be used for beach park facilities.

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

 6  

 7            *****************************************

 8                          SENATE SUMMARY

 9    Allows up to 2 percent of the proceeds from the tourist
      development tax to be used for economic development
10    activities in the county.

11  

12  

13  

14  

15  

16  

17  

18  

19  

20  

21  

22  

23  

24  

25  

26  

27  

28  

29  

30  

31  

                                  3

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.