| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to Brevard County; authorizing Brevard |
| 3 | County to cap, through a provision in its charter, the |
| 4 | annual growth in ad valorem tax revenue; providing for |
| 5 | exceptions to the limitation; requiring a referendum; |
| 6 | providing a ballot statement; providing a definition; |
| 7 | providing an effective date. |
| 8 |
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| 9 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 10 |
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| 11 | Section 1. Brevard County may cap, through a provision in |
| 12 | its charter, the annual growth in ad valorem tax revenues. Any |
| 13 | such cap may not restrict the annual growth at a rate below the |
| 14 | lesser of 3 percent or the percentage change in the Consumer |
| 15 | Price Index as provided in section 193.155(1)(b), Florida |
| 16 | Statutes. Any such cap specified in a county charter must allow |
| 17 | for the cap to be overcome by a finding of necessity due to |
| 18 | emergency or critical need by a super majority vote of the |
| 19 | county commission. In applying the increase or growth cap, the |
| 20 | county shall compute a millage rate that, exclusive of new |
| 21 | construction, additions to structures, deletions, increases in |
| 22 | the value of improvements that have undergone a substantial |
| 23 | rehabilitation which increased the assessed value of such |
| 24 | improvements by at least 100 percent, and property added due to |
| 25 | geographic boundary changes, will provide the same ad valorem |
| 26 | tax revenue for each taxing authority as was levied during the |
| 27 | prior year. It is the rate that shall be subject to any cap in |
| 28 | growth or increase in ad valorem revenues established by county |
| 29 | charter. |
| 30 | Section 2. (1) In conjunction with the next countywide |
| 31 | election held in Brevard County, and in accordance with the |
| 32 | general laws governing elections, the Brevard County Supervisor |
| 33 | of Elections shall conduct a referendum of qualified electors of |
| 34 | the county for the purpose of posing the following question: |
| 35 |
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| 36 | Shall Brevard County be authorized to cap, through a provision |
| 37 | in its charter, the annual growth in ad valorem tax revenue? |
| 38 | ___Yes |
| 39 | ___No |
| 40 | (2) "Qualified elector" means a person who is registered |
| 41 | to vote in a general election held in Brevard County. |
| 42 | Section 3. This act shall take effect only upon its |
| 43 | approval by a majority vote of those qualified electors of |
| 44 | Brevard County voting in a referendum held in accordance with |
| 45 | section 2, except that this section and section 2 shall take |
| 46 | effect upon this act becoming a law. |