HB 1207CS

CHAMBER ACTION



1The Finance & Tax Committee recommends the following:
2
3     Council/Committee Substitute
4     Remove the entire bill and insert:
5
A bill to be entitled
6An act relating to Indian River Mosquito Control District,
7Indian River County; codifying, amending, reenacting, and
8repealing special acts relating to the district; fixing
9and prescribing the boundaries of said district; providing
10for the government and administration of the district;
11providing and defining the powers and purposes of such
12district and of the board of commissioners thereof;
13authorizing and empowering said board to construct and
14maintain canals, ditches, drains, and dikes and to fill
15depressions, lakes, ponds, or marshes in order to
16eliminate breeding places of mosquitoes and sandflies and
17to control and eradicate mosquitoes and sandflies;
18providing for spraying or otherwise disbursing substances
19and materials over the area of such district for the
20purpose of controlling and eradicating mosquitoes and
21sandflies and diseases transmitted by the same;
22authorizing said board to do any and all acts or things
23necessary for the control and complete elimination of
24mosquitoes and sandflies in said district; authorizing and
25providing for the levy and collection of taxes upon all
26the real and personal taxable property in said district
27for carrying out the purposes of this act; authorizing the
28borrowing by the board of commissioners of said district
29in any one tax year of a sum not to exceed 80 percent of
30the estimated taxes to be collected on behalf of said
31district within such year and to evidence the indebtedness
32represented by any money so borrowed by written obligation
33of the district and providing for the payment of interest
34thereon and for the repayment thereof prior to the
35borrowing of any further sums in any subsequent year;
36limiting the amount of taxes that may be so levied by said
37board upon the taxable property within such district;
38prohibiting injury to any works controlled under or in
39pursuance of this act, to be punishable as provided by
40general law; legalizing and validating the acts of the
41Indian River Mosquito Control District herewith abolished
42and making all contracts of said Indian River Mosquito
43Control District so abolished binding upon the new Indian
44River Mosquito Control District; authorizing and
45prescribing generally the powers and duties of the Board
46of Commissioners of said new Indian River Mosquito Control
47District; providing for severability; providing an
48effective date.
49
50Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
51
52     Section 1.  (1)  The reenactment of existing law in this
53act shall not be construed as a grant of additional authority to
54nor to supersede the authority of the district pursuant to law.
55Exceptions to law contained in any special act that are
56reenacted pursuant to this act shall continue to apply.
57     (2)  The reenactment of existing law in this act shall not
58be construed to modify, amend, or alter any covenants,
59contracts, or other obligations of the district with respect to
60bonded indebtedness. Nothing pertaining to the reenactment of
61existing law in this act shall be construed to affect the
62ability of the district to levy and collect taxes, assessments,
63fees, or charges for the purpose of redeeming or servicing
64bonded indebtedness of the district.
65     Section 2.  Chapters 11128 (1925), 14381 (1929), 20114
66(1939), 20494 (1941), 21048 (1941), 24600 (1947), 61-2278, 63-
671433, 73-497, 76-388, 78-531, and 91-337, Laws of Florida, are
68codified, reenacted, amended, and repealed as provided in this
69act.
70     Section 3.  The Indian River Mosquito Control District is
71re-created, and the charter for such district is re-created and
72reenacted to read:
73     Section 1.  The Indian River Mosquito Control District is
74re-created, and the special taxing district now existing and
75known and designated as Indian River Mosquito Control District,
76as created and incorporated by chapter 11128 (1925), Laws of
77Florida, as amended, is hereby abolished, and a new special
78taxing district in Indian River County, to be known and
79designated as Indian River Mosquito Control District, is hereby
80created, established, and incorporated to succeed said former
81special taxing district known and designated as Indian River
82Mosquito Control District, and which new special taxing district
83hereby created and incorporated, to be known as Indian River
84Mosquito Control District, shall embrace and include all that
85territory and area situated and being in Indian River County,
86within the following territorial boundaries, to wit:
87
88All that part of Indian River County, Florida, lying
89East of the following described line:
90
91Beginning at the South one-quarter corner of Section
9236, Township 33 South, Range 36 East, said point lying
93on the South Township line and the South boundary line
94of Indian River County, a political subdivision of the
95State of Florida; thence run North along the one-
96quarter Section lines of Sections 36 and 25, Township
9733 South, Range 36 East to the North line of Section
9825, Township 33 South, Range 36 East; thence run East
99along said North line of Section 25, Township 33
100South, Range 36 East to the Northeast corner of
101Section 25, said point lying on the Range line of
102Ranges 36 and 37; thence run North along the Range
103line to the intersection of the North right-of-way of
104State Road 60; thence run East along the said North
105right-of-way a distance of 732.15 feet to the East
106right-of-way of Lateral "S" Canal as shown on the plat
107of the Fellsmere Farms Company Subdivision of the
108Unsurveyed Township 32 South, Range 37 East, as
109recorded in Plat Book 2, Page 8, St. Lucie County
110Public Records; thence run North along said East
111right-of-way of Lateral "S" Canal to the intersection
112of the North boundary line of said Indian River County
113and the point of ending.
114
115All of which lands hereinabove described and the owners thereof
116shall be entitled to all benefits and subject to all burdens and
117obligations as prescribed and set forth herein.
118     Section 2.  The governing body of said Indian River
119Mosquito Control District shall be known and designated as the
120"Board of Commissioners of Indian River Mosquito Control
121District." Said governing body shall be composed of three
122members and shall have all the powers of a body corporate,
123including the power to sue and be sued as a corporation in said
124name in any court; to contract; to adopt and use a common seal
125and alter the same at pleasure; to purchase, hold, lease, and
126convey such real estate and personal property as said board may
127deem proper to carry out the purposes of this act; to appoint a
128chief engineer, a consulting engineer, and an attorney for said
129board and such other agents and employees as said board may
130require; to borrow money and to issue negotiable promissory
131notes or bonds therefor; and to enable it to carry out the
132provisions of this act. The commissioners shall be elected in a
133nonpartisan election for 4-year terms so that one commissioner
134is elected at one general election by the highest number of
135votes cast and two commissioners are elected by the first and
136second highest number of votes cast at the next ensuing general
137election.
138     Section 3.  Each commissioner under this act, before he or
139she assumes office, shall be required to give to Indian River
140Mosquito Control District a good and sufficient surety bond in
141the sum of $5,000, conditioned for the faithful performance of
142the duties of his or her office, said bond to be approved by and
143filed with the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Indian River
144County. Said bond shall also be recorded in the minutes of said
145Board of Commissioners of said Indian River Mosquito Control
146District. The failure of any person so elected as commissioner
147of Indian River Mosquito Control District within 30 days after
148his or her election to give bond shall create a vacancy as to
149such commissioner, and such vacancy shall be filled by the
150Governor appointing a person duly qualified to hold such office,
151which manner of filling such office shall obtain in the case of
152resignation, death, or removal from said district of any
153commissioner during his or her term of office. No person shall
154be qualified to hold office as a commissioner under this act
155unless such person shall be a duly qualified elector of said
156district.
157     Section 4.  As soon as practicable after each general
158election, the commissioners of Indian River Mosquito Control
159District, after their qualification as such, shall meet and
160organize by the election, from among their number, of a chair, a
161vice chair, and a secretary. Two members of the board shall
162constitute a quorum. The vote of two members shall be necessary
163to transact business. The chair and vice chair shall vote at all
164meetings of the board.
165     Section 5.  The commissioners under this act shall be paid
166for each day's service and for each mile actually traveled in
167going to and from the office of the Board of Commissioners of
168Indian River Mosquito Control District according to per diem
169compensation expense and mileage rates established from time to
170time for officials and employees of the state. The per diem
171herein provided for shall apply to services rendered for
172inspection of work performed for the district or other services
173under this act. Additionally, commissioners shall be compensated
174for regular duties, as provided by general law or special act,
175at the rate of $400 per month or such greater amount as may be
176permitted by general law or special act.
177     Section 6.  The board is hereby authorized to invest its
178funds from time to time in interest-bearing depositories as
179prescribed by Florida law.
180     Section 7.  Said board is hereby authorized and empowered
181to do any and all things necessary for the control and complete
182elimination of all species of mosquitoes and sandflies and
183diseases transmitted by the same in said district and, for this
184purpose, is hereby authorized and empowered to construct and
185thereafter to maintain canals, ditches, drains, and dikes; to
186fill in all depressions, lakes, and ponds or marshes that are
187the breeding places of mosquitoes and sandflies, insofar as said
188work does not interfere with the water supply of any city or
189community; and to employ engineers, scientists, helpers, and all
190other servants, agents, and employees as may be necessary for
191the purpose of controlling and eliminating all species of
192mosquitoes and sandflies in said district. Said board is hereby
193authorized and empowered to spray or otherwise disburse, or
194cause to be sprayed or otherwise disbursed, chemicals,
195substances, and materials of every nature upon and over the area
196of said district as shall be deemed necessary or desirable for
197the purpose of controlling and eliminating all species of
198mosquitoes and sandflies in said district and, for such
199purposes, may contract for and purchase such chemicals,
200substances, and materials and may contract for the spraying or
201disbursing thereof over the area of said district or may employ
202such agents, servants, and employees for such purpose as the
203commissioners of said district may deem necessary or advisable;
204to do any and all things that may be necessary from the
205standpoint of public health and comfort to control or eliminate
206mosquitoes and sandflies or their larvae in said district; and
207to promulgate such rules and regulations not inconsistent with
208the provisions of this act and with any of the laws of said
209state which, in their judgment, may be necessary for the proper
210carrying into effect and enforcement of this act.
211     Section 8.  Said board shall have power and authority to
212hold, control, and acquire by gift or purchase such real or
213personal property, and to condemn such lands or easements, as
214may be necessary for the carrying out of any of the purposes of
215this act or for the material to be used for any of said purposes
216and for the preservation of the works constructed or to be
217constructed by said board under this act. Said board is
218authorized to exercise the right of eminent domain for the use
219of said district, in the manner prescribed by law, over such
220lands, easements, rights-of-way, riparian rights, and personal
221property that may be necessary for the purpose of said board in
222said construction, and the only prerequisite for the exercise of
223said power of eminent domain shall be the adoption by said board
224of a resolution specifying the property sought to be condemned
225and the purpose for which it is to be used. Said board is
226authorized to sell any real or personal property acquired or
227owned by it when the same shall be determined to be no longer
228useful to or suitable for the purposes of said board.
229     Section 9.  Said board is hereby authorized and empowered
230to purchase goods, supplies, or material for the use of said
231district without the necessity of advertising any notice or
232calling for bids regarding said purchase when the amount to be
233paid therefor by said district does not exceed $10,000 or when
234the goods, supplies, or materials to be purchased are obtainable
235from only one source or supplier.
236     Section 10.  Said board is hereby authorized and empowered
237to levy upon all the real and personal taxable property in said
238district a special tax not exceeding 10 mills on the dollar for
239the year 1947 and for each and every year thereafter, to be used
240solely in carrying out the purposes of this act. Said levy shall
241be made not later than the 15th of July of each year by
242resolution of said board, or a majority thereof, duly entered at
243large upon its minutes. A certified copy of such resolution
244executed in the name of said board by its chair and secretary
245and under its corporate seals shall be delivered or transmitted
246to the Board of County Commissioners of Indian River County, and
247a copy shall be transmitted by mail to the Chief Financial
248Officer not later than August 1 of each year. It shall be the
249duty of the Board of County Commissioners of Indian River County
250to order the property appraiser of said county to assess and the
251collector of said county to collect the amount of said tax so
252assessed by the Board of Commissioners of said district upon all
253the taxable property, real or personal, in said district at the
254rate of taxation adopted by said board for said year, but not
255exceeding 10 mills on the dollar and as specified in said
256resolution, and said levy shall be included in the warrant to
257the tax collector and the property appraiser which is attached
258to the assessment roll of taxes for said county each year. The
259property appraiser shall make such assessment and the tax
260collector shall collect such taxes so levied in the manner as
261other taxes are assessed and collected and shall pay the same
262when collected, within the time and in the manner prescribed by
263law for the payment of other taxes, to the secretary of said
264Board of Commissioners. It shall be the duty of said Chief
265Financial Officer to assess and levy on all the railroad lines
266and railroad property, telegraph lines and telegraph property,
267and telephone lines and telephone property the amount of every
268such levy herewith provided in this section, and as in the case
269of other state and county taxes, and said taxes so levied by the
270Chief Financial Officer shall be collected as provided for other
271similar taxes, and the proceeds thereof shall be remitted to the
272secretary of said board in the same manner as such remittances
273are made in the collection of other taxes. If any such taxes so
274assessed are not paid, the said property shall be sold by said
275tax collector and certificates issued and tax deeds issued in
276the same manner and under the same laws relating to the sales,
277issuance of certificates, and deeds with reference to all other
278state and county taxes. The Board of Commissioners of the Indian
279River Mosquito Control District is herewith authorized to borrow
280in any one tax year a sum not to exceed 80 percent of the
281estimated taxes to be collected on behalf of said district
282within such year and to evidence such loan made to said district
283by its tax anticipation note or notes bearing interest at a rate
284not to exceed 10 percent per annum, and which notes shall be
285payable at a time not greater than 1 year from the date of the
286borrowing of such moneys; the sums so borrowed shall be repaid
287out of the next taxes collected by said district to the extent
288necessary for the repayment thereof, together with such interest
289at a rate not to exceed 6 percent per annum; and no sums shall
290be borrowed as herewith provided in any subsequent year unless
291all moneys so borrowed in any preceding year shall have been
292entirely paid as to both principal and interest.
293     Section 11.  Said board is hereby required to secure and
294keep in force in companies duly authorized to do business in
295Florida insurance covering liability for property damage or
296bodily injury or death resulting therefrom to all persons and
297property by reason of the ownership, maintenance, operation, or
298use of any vehicle, dragline, dredge, tractor, and related
299equipment being used for and in the interest of the purpose of
300said board in amounts not less than $50,000 for bodily injury or
301death resulting therefrom to any one person, and not less than
302$100,000 for bodily injury or death resulting therefrom for any
303one accident, and not less than $25,000 for damage to property.
304     Section 12.  The title to and jurisdiction over all
305property of Indian River Mosquito Control District herewith
306abolished, of every kind, nature, or description, is herewith
307transferred to and vested in the new Indian River Mosquito
308Control District herewith created. All lawful debts or
309obligations of the old Indian River Mosquito Control District
310herewith abolished are herewith made the debts and obligations
311of the new district herewith created, and all claims, demands,
312or credits held by said old district are herewith transferred to
313and made the claims, demands, and credits of said new district.
314No obligation or contract of said old district shall be impaired
315by this act, but rather all obligations or contracts of said old
316district are herewith made the obligations and contracts of the
317new district herewith created. All acts of the Board of
318Commissioners of the old Indian River Mosquito Control District
319herewith abolished and of the agents, servants, and employees of
320said Board of Commissioners of said old district and of said
321district are herewith ratified and confirmed.
322     Section 13.  Whoever shall willfully damage any ditch,
323canal, drain, dike, or other work established or constructed
324under this act or who shall willfully interfere with or injure
325any property, work, or facility established or constructed under
326this act or who shall willfully interfere with the acts of any
327commissioner of said district or any person lawfully authorized
328or employed by the Board of Commissioners of this district in
329carrying out the provisions of this act commits a misdemeanor
330and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished as provided by
331general law.
332     Section 14.  (1)  The Board of Commissioners of the Indian
333River Mosquito Control District is hereby authorized, empowered,
334and permitted to provide for life, health, accident, and
335hospitalization insurance, or an annuity insurance, or all or
336any of such insurance for employees of said district, for the
337director or assistant director, or for members of said board, or
338for the families of such employees, for the family of the
339director or assistant director, or for the families of the
340members of the board, and to that end to enter into agreements
341with insurance companies to provide such insurance. The election
342to exercise the authority granted by this act shall be evidenced
343by resolution duly recorded in the minutes of the Board of
344Commissioners of Indian River Mosquito Control District.
345     (2)  The Board of Commissioners of Indian River Mosquito
346Control District is authorized to budget from and pay out of
347appropriate funds any portion of the cost of such insurance and
348to deduct from the wages of employees, the director and
349assistant director, and the members of the board who in writing
350make request for such insurance the balance of such cost and to
351pay or remit the same directly to the insurance company issuing
352such insurance.
353     (3)  The participation in such insurance by any employee,
354director or assistant director, or member of said board shall be
355entirely voluntary at all times. Any enrolled member of such
356insurance plan may, upon any pay day, withdraw or retire from
357such plan upon giving the Board of Commissioners written notice
358thereof and directing the discontinuance of deductions from
359wages in payment of such premiums.
360     Section 15.  In case any one or more of the sections or
361provisions of this act or the application of such sections or
362provisions to any situation, circumstance, or person shall for
363any reason be held to be unconstitutional, such
364unconstitutionality shall not affect any other sections or
365provisions to any other situation, circumstance, or person, and
366it is intended that this law shall be construed and applied as
367if such section or provision had not been included herein for
368any unconstitutional application.
369     Section 4.  Chapters 11128 (1925), 14381 (1929), 20114
370(1939), 20494 (1941), 21048 (1941), 24600 (1947), 61-2278, 63-
3711433, 73-497, 76-388, 78-531, and 91-337, Laws of Florida, are
372repealed.
373     Section 5.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2006.


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