| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to the Lealman Special Fire Control |
| 3 | District, Pinellas County; creating a task force to review |
| 4 | provisions governing authority over district lands annexed |
| 5 | by municipalities or other fire control districts; |
| 6 | providing for membership and meetings of the task force; |
| 7 | requiring the hiring of a professional facilitator; |
| 8 | requiring a report; amending chapter 2000-426, Laws of |
| 9 | Florida, as amended, to defer the future repeal of |
| 10 | provisions granting the district taxing, enforcement, and |
| 11 | service-providing authority over district lands annexed by |
| 12 | municipalities or other fire control districts; repealing |
| 13 | sections 3 and 4 of chapter 2002-352, Laws of Florida, to |
| 14 | conform; providing effective dates. |
| 15 |
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| 16 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 17 |
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| 18 | Section 1. Lealman Special Fire Control District Task |
| 19 | Force.-- |
| 20 | (1) There is created the Lealman Special Fire Control |
| 21 | District Task Force. The task force shall consist of four voting |
| 22 | members as follows: the chair of the Lealman Fire Control |
| 23 | District Board of Supervisors, one member appointed by the Mayor |
| 24 | of the City of Pinellas Park, one member appointed by the Mayor |
| 25 | of the City of St. Petersburg, and one member appointed by the |
| 26 | Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners. The Mayor of |
| 27 | Kenneth City and the Mayor of the City of Seminole may each |
| 28 | appoint one ex officio nonvoting member to the task force. |
| 29 | (2) The task force shall initially meet not later than 30 |
| 30 | days after the effective date of this act to organize and elect |
| 31 | a chair from its members. The task force shall meet subsequently |
| 32 | at the call of the chair but not less than twice a year. |
| 33 | (3) The task force shall review the changes to sections |
| 34 | 3(2) and 11 of section 1 of chapter 2000-426, Laws of Florida, |
| 35 | made by sections 1 and 2 of chapter 2002-352, Laws of Florida, |
| 36 | which granted the district taxing, enforcing, and service- |
| 37 | providing authority over district lands annexed by any |
| 38 | municipality or other fire control district, and shall consider |
| 39 | whether the future repeal of those changes as provided in this |
| 40 | act should be rescinded. From district funds, the task force |
| 41 | shall hire a professional facilitator who has experience with |
| 42 | local government to assist it in this review. |
| 43 | (4) The task force shall provide a report with its |
| 44 | findings and recommendations to the Pinellas County Legislative |
| 45 | Delegation no later than November 1, 2007. |
| 46 | Section 2. Effective July 1, 2008, subsection (2) of |
| 47 | section 3 of section 1 of chapter 2000-426, Laws of Florida, as |
| 48 | amended by section 1 of chapter 2002-352, Laws of Florida, is |
| 49 | amended to read: |
| 50 | Section 3. Formation; boundaries.-- |
| 51 | (2) Any lands within a municipality included in the |
| 52 | boundaries of the District, as described herein, shall be |
| 53 | excluded from the District and its jurisdiction. If any area, |
| 54 | tract, or parcel of land within the boundaries of the District |
| 55 | shall hereafter become annexed to a municipality, such area, |
| 56 | tract, or parcel of land shall be excluded from the District |
| 57 | effective the next January 1 following such annexation by a |
| 58 | municipality; however, the District shall continue to provide |
| 59 | services to the annexed area pursuant to section 11. |
| 60 | Section 3. Effective July 1, 2008, section 11 of section 1 |
| 61 | of chapter 2000-426, Laws of Florida, as amended by section 2 of |
| 62 | chapter 2002-352, Laws of Florida, is amended to read: |
| 63 | Section 11. Annexation of territories by municipalities or |
| 64 | other fire control districts.--For the purposes and requirements |
| 65 | of this Act, after the annexation by a municipality of any |
| 66 | unincorporated area within the Lealman Special Fire Control |
| 67 | District, the annexed area shall be treated as lying within the |
| 68 | corporate boundaries of the annexing municipality and shall not |
| 69 | be subject to a levy of the ad valorem tax that is authorized by |
| 70 | this Act. Notwithstanding chapter 171, Florida Statutes, or any |
| 71 | other applicable law or ordinance, if any municipality or other |
| 72 | fire control district annexes land within the District, the |
| 73 | District shall continue as the sole taxing, enforcing, and |
| 74 | service-providing authority for District purposes in the annexed |
| 75 | land. However, any municipality or other fire control district |
| 76 | that annexes such land may collect the applicable assessment or |
| 77 | tax for fire services and pay the District for such services at |
| 78 | the District's annually adopted standard rate. |
| 79 | Section 4. Sections 3 and 4 of chapter 2002-352, Laws of |
| 80 | Florida, are repealed. |
| 81 | Section 5. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this |
| 82 | act, this act shall take effect upon becoming a law. |