Florida Senate - 2007 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 1778
Barcode 924788
CHAMBER ACTION
Senate House
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04/24/2007 10:38 AM .
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11 The Committee on Finance and Tax (Haridopolos) recommended the
12 following amendment:
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14 Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
15 Delete everything after the enacting clause
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17 and insert:
18 Section 1. Subsection (1), paragraph (h) of subsection
19 (2), paragraph (f) of subsection (3), paragraphs (a) and (b)
20 of subsection (4), paragraph (f) of subsection (5), and
21 paragraph (f) of subsection (7) of section 212.055, Florida
22 Statutes, are amended, and subsection (8) is added to that
23 section, to read:
24 212.055 Discretionary sales surtaxes; legislative
25 intent; authorization and use of proceeds.--It is the
26 legislative intent that any authorization for imposition of a
27 discretionary sales surtax shall be published in the Florida
28 Statutes as a subsection of this section, irrespective of the
29 duration of the levy. Each enactment shall specify the types
30 of counties authorized to levy; the rate or rates which may be
31 imposed; the maximum length of time the surtax may be imposed,
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Florida Senate - 2007 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 1778
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1 if any; the procedure which must be followed to secure voter
2 approval, if required; the purpose for which the proceeds may
3 be expended; and such other requirements as the Legislature
4 may provide. Taxable transactions and administrative
5 procedures shall be as provided in s. 212.054.
6 (1) CHARTER COUNTY TRANSPORTATION TRANSIT SYSTEM
7 SURTAX.--
8 (a) Each charter county that has which adopted a
9 charter prior to January 1, 1984, and each county the
10 government of which is consolidated with that of one or more
11 municipalities, may levy a discretionary sales surtax, subject
12 to approval by a majority vote of the electorate of the county
13 or by a charter amendment approved by a majority vote of the
14 electorate of the county.
15 (b) The rate shall be up to 1 percent.
16 (c) The proposal to adopt a discretionary sales surtax
17 is provided in this subsection and to create a trust fund
18 within the county accounts shall be placed on the ballot in
19 accordance with law at a time to be set at the discretion of
20 the governing body.
21 (d) Proceeds from the surtax shall be applied to as
22 many or as few of the uses enumerated below in whatever
23 combination the county commission deems appropriate:
24 1. Deposited by the county in the trust fund and shall
25 be used for the purposes of development, construction,
26 equipment, maintenance, operation, supportive services,
27 including a countywide bus system, and related costs of a
28 fixed guideway rapid transit system;
29 2. Remitted by the governing body of the county to an
30 expressway, transit, or transportation authority created by
31 law to be used, at the discretion of such authority, for the
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Florida Senate - 2007 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 1778
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1 development, construction, operation, or maintenance of roads
2 or bridges in the county, for the operation and maintenance of
3 a bus system, for the payment of principal and interest on
4 existing bonds issued for the construction of such roads or
5 bridges, and, upon approval by the county commission, such
6 proceeds may be pledged for bonds issued to refinance existing
7 bonds or new bonds issued for the construction of such roads
8 or bridges;
9 3. Used by the charter county for the development,
10 construction, operation, and maintenance of roads and bridges
11 in the county; for the expansion, operation, and maintenance
12 of bus and fixed guideway systems; and for the payment of
13 principal and interest on bonds issued for the construction of
14 fixed guideway rapid transit systems, bus systems, roads, or
15 bridges; and such proceeds may be pledged by the governing
16 body of the county for bonds issued to refinance existing
17 bonds or new bonds issued for the construction of such fixed
18 guideway rapid transit systems, bus systems, roads, or bridges
19 and no more than 25 percent used for nontransit uses; and
20 4. Used by the charter county for the planning,
21 development, construction, operation, and maintenance of roads
22 and bridges in the county; for the planning, development,
23 expansion, operation, and maintenance of bus and fixed
24 guideway systems; and for the payment of principal and
25 interest on bonds issued for the construction of fixed
26 guideway rapid transit systems, bus systems, roads, or
27 bridges; and such proceeds may be pledged by the governing
28 body of the county for bonds issued to refinance existing
29 bonds or new bonds issued for the construction of such fixed
30 guideway rapid transit systems, bus systems, roads, or
31 bridges. Pursuant to an interlocal agreement entered into
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Florida Senate - 2007 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 1778
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1 pursuant to chapter 163, the governing body of the charter
2 county may distribute proceeds from the tax to a municipality,
3 or an expressway or transportation authority created by law to
4 be expended for the purpose authorized by this paragraph.
5 (2) LOCAL GOVERNMENT INFRASTRUCTURE SURTAX.--
6 (h) Notwithstanding any other provision of this
7 section, a county shall not levy local option sales surtaxes
8 authorized in this subsection and subsections (3), (4), and
9 (5) in excess of a combined rate of 1 percent.
10 (3) SMALL COUNTY SURTAX.--
11 (f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this
12 section, a county shall not levy local option sales surtaxes
13 authorized in this subsection and subsections (2), (4), and
14 (5) in excess of a combined rate of 1 percent.
15 (4) INDIGENT CARE AND TRAUMA CENTER SURTAX.--
16 (a)1. The governing body in each county that the
17 government of which is not consolidated with that of one or
18 more municipalities, which has a population of at least
19 800,000 residents and is not authorized to levy a surtax under
20 subsection (5), may levy, pursuant to an ordinance either
21 approved by an extraordinary vote of the governing body or
22 conditioned to take effect only upon approval by a majority
23 vote of the electors of the county voting in a referendum, a
24 discretionary sales surtax at a rate that may not exceed 0.5
25 percent.
26 1.2. If the ordinance is conditioned on a referendum,
27 a statement that includes a brief and general description of
28 the purposes to be funded by the surtax and that conforms to
29 the requirements of s. 101.161 shall be placed on the ballot
30 by the governing body of the county. The following questions
31 shall be placed on the ballot:
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Florida Senate - 2007 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 1778
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2 FOR THE. . . .CENTS TAX
3 AGAINST THE. . . .CENTS TAX
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5 2.3. The ordinance adopted by the governing body
6 providing for the imposition of the surtax shall set forth a
7 plan for providing health care services to qualified
8 residents, as defined in subparagraph 3. 4. Such plan and
9 subsequent amendments to it must shall fund a broad range of
10 health care services for both indigent persons and the
11 medically poor, including, but not limited to, primary care
12 and preventive care as well as hospital care. The plan must
13 also address the services to be provided by a the Level I
14 trauma center. It must shall emphasize a continuity of care in
15 the most cost-effective setting, taking into consideration
16 both a high quality of care and geographic access. Where
17 consistent with these objectives, it must shall include,
18 without limitation, services rendered by physicians, clinics,
19 community hospitals, mental health centers, and alternative
20 delivery sites, as well as at least one regional referral
21 hospital where appropriate. It must shall provide that
22 agreements negotiated between the county and providers,
23 including hospitals with a Level I trauma center, will include
24 reimbursement methodologies that take into account the cost of
25 services rendered to eligible patients, recognize hospitals
26 that render a disproportionate share of indigent care, provide
27 other incentives to promote the delivery of charity care,
28 promote the advancement of technology in medical services,
29 recognize the level of responsiveness to medical needs in
30 trauma cases, and require cost containment including, but not
31 limited to, case management. It must also provide that any
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Florida Senate - 2007 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
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1 hospitals that are owned and operated by government entities
2 on May 21, 1991, must, as a condition of receiving funds under
3 this subsection, provide afford public access as equal to that
4 provided under s. 286.011 as to meetings of the governing
5 board, the subject of which is budgeting resources for the
6 rendition of charity care as that term is defined in the
7 Florida Hospital Uniform Reporting System (FHURS) manual
8 referenced in s. 408.07. The plan must shall also include
9 innovative health care programs that provide cost-effective
10 alternatives to traditional methods of service delivery and
11 funding.
12 3.4. For the purpose of this paragraph, the term
13 "qualified resident" means residents of the authorizing county
14 who are:
15 a. Qualified as indigent persons as certified by the
16 authorizing county;
17 b. Certified by the authorizing county as meeting the
18 definition of the medically poor, defined as persons having
19 insufficient income, resources, and assets to provide the
20 needed medical care without using resources required to meet
21 basic needs for shelter, food, clothing, and personal
22 expenses; or not being eligible for any other state or federal
23 program, or having medical needs that are not covered by any
24 such program; or having insufficient third-party insurance
25 coverage. In all cases, the authorizing county is intended to
26 serve as the payor of last resort; or
27 c. Participating in innovative, cost-effective
28 programs approved by the authorizing county.
29 4.5. Moneys collected pursuant to this paragraph
30 remain the property of the state and shall be distributed by
31 the Department of Revenue on a regular and periodic basis to
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Florida Senate - 2007 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 1778
Barcode 924788
1 the clerk of the circuit court as ex officio custodian of the
2 funds of the authorizing county. The clerk of the circuit
3 court shall:
4 a. Maintain the moneys in an indigent health care
5 trust fund;
6 b. Invest any funds held on deposit in the trust fund
7 pursuant to general law;
8 c. Disburse the funds, including any interest earned,
9 to any provider of health care services, as provided in
10 subparagraphs 2, 3. and 3. 4., upon directive from the
11 authorizing county. However, if a county has a population of
12 at least 800,000 residents and has levied the surtax
13 authorized in this paragraph, notwithstanding any directive
14 from the authorizing county, on October 1 of each calendar
15 year, the clerk of the court shall issue a check in the amount
16 of $6.5 million to a hospital in its jurisdiction that has a
17 Level I trauma center or shall issue a check in the amount of
18 $3.5 million to a hospital in its jurisdiction that has a
19 Level I trauma center if that county enacts and implements a
20 hospital lien law in accordance with chapter 98-499, Laws of
21 Florida. The issuance of the checks on October 1 of each year
22 is provided in recognition of the Level I trauma center status
23 and shall be in addition to the base contract amount received
24 during fiscal year 1999-2000 and any additional amount
25 negotiated to the base contract. If the hospital receiving
26 funds for its Level I trauma center status requests such funds
27 to be used to generate federal matching funds under Medicaid,
28 the clerk of the court shall instead issue a check to the
29 Agency for Health Care Administration to accomplish that
30 purpose to the extent that it is allowed through the General
31 Appropriations Act; and
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Florida Senate - 2007 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
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1 d. Prepare on a biennial basis an audit of the trust
2 fund specified in sub-subparagraph a. Commencing February 1,
3 2004, such audit shall be delivered to the governing body and
4 to the chair of the legislative delegation of each authorizing
5 county.
6 6. Notwithstanding any other provision of this
7 section, a county shall not levy local option sales surtaxes
8 authorized in this paragraph and subsections (2) and (3) in
9 excess of a combined rate of 1 percent.
10 (b) Notwithstanding any other provision of this
11 section, the governing body in each county the government of
12 which is not consolidated with that of one or more
13 municipalities and which has a population of less than 800,000
14 residents, may levy, by ordinance subject to approval by a
15 majority of the electors of the county voting in a referendum,
16 a discretionary sales surtax at a rate that may not exceed
17 0.25 percent for the sole purpose of funding trauma services
18 provided by a trauma center licensed pursuant to chapter 395.
19 1. A statement that includes a brief and general
20 description of the purposes to be funded by the surtax and
21 that conforms to the requirements of s. 101.161 shall be
22 placed on the ballot by the governing body of the county. The
23 following shall be placed on the ballot:
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25 FOR THE. . . .CENTS TAX
26 AGAINST THE. . . .CENTS TAX
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28 2. The ordinance adopted by the governing body of the
29 county providing for the imposition of the surtax shall set
30 forth a plan for providing trauma services to trauma victims
31 presenting in the trauma service area in which such county is
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Florida Senate - 2007 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
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1 located.
2 3. Moneys collected pursuant to this paragraph remain
3 the property of the state and shall be distributed by the
4 Department of Revenue on a regular and periodic basis to the
5 clerk of the circuit court as ex officio custodian of the
6 funds of the authorizing county. The clerk of the circuit
7 court shall:
8 a. Maintain the moneys in a trauma services trust
9 fund.
10 b. Invest any funds held on deposit in the trust fund
11 pursuant to general law.
12 c. Disburse the funds, including any interest earned
13 on such funds, to the trauma center in its trauma service
14 area, as provided in the plan set forth pursuant to
15 subparagraph 2., upon directive from the authorizing county.
16 If the trauma center receiving funds requests such funds be
17 used to generate federal matching funds under Medicaid, the
18 custodian of the funds shall instead issue a check to the
19 Agency for Health Care Administration to accomplish that
20 purpose to the extent that the agency is allowed through the
21 General Appropriations Act.
22 d. Prepare on a biennial basis an audit of the trauma
23 services trust fund specified in sub-subparagraph a., to be
24 delivered to the authorizing county.
25 4. A discretionary sales surtax imposed pursuant to
26 this paragraph shall expire 4 years after the effective date
27 of the surtax, unless reenacted by ordinance subject to
28 approval by a majority of the electors of the county voting in
29 a subsequent referendum.
30 5. Notwithstanding any other provision of this
31 section, a county shall not levy local option sales surtaxes
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Florida Senate - 2007 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
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1 authorized in this paragraph and subsections (2) and (3) in
2 excess of a combined rate of 1 percent.
3 (5) COUNTY PUBLIC HOSPITAL SURTAX.--Any county as
4 defined in s. 125.011(1) may levy the surtax authorized in
5 this subsection pursuant to an ordinance either approved by
6 extraordinary vote of the county commission or conditioned to
7 take effect only upon approval by a majority vote of the
8 electors of the county voting in a referendum. In a county as
9 defined in s. 125.011(1), for the purposes of this subsection,
10 "county public general hospital" means a general hospital as
11 defined in s. 395.002 which is owned, operated, maintained, or
12 governed by the county or its agency, authority, or public
13 health trust.
14 (f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this
15 section, a county may not levy local option sales surtaxes
16 authorized in this subsection and subsections (2) and (3) in
17 excess of a combined rate of 1 percent.
18 (7) VOTER-APPROVED INDIGENT CARE SURTAX.--
19 (f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this
20 section, a county may not levy local option sales surtaxes
21 authorized in this subsection and subsections (2) and (3) in
22 excess of a combined rate of 1 percent or, if a publicly
23 supported medical school is located in the county or the
24 county has a population of fewer than 50,000 residents, in
25 excess of a combined rate of 1.5 percent.
26 (8) COUNTY GOVERNMENT SALES SURTAX CAP.--The county
27 governing authority may not levy one or more discretionary
28 sales surtaxes authorized under this section that have a
29 combined rate in excess of 2 percent.
30 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2007.
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Florida Senate - 2007 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 1778
Barcode 924788
1 ================ T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ===============
2 And the title is amended as follows:
3 Delete everything before the enacting clause
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5 and insert:
6 A bill to be entitled
7 An act relating to discretionary sales
8 surtaxes; amending s. 212.055, F.S.; renaming
9 the charter county transit system surtax;
10 expanding eligibility to levy the transit
11 surtax to all charter counties; removing all
12 specific county government sales surtax caps;
13 providing for one cap to apply to all of a
14 county government's surtaxes combined;
15 providing an effective date.
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