Senate Bill sb0544c1

    Florida Senate - 2007                            CS for SB 544

    By the Committee on Commerce; and Senator Garcia





    577-1902-07

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to professional sports

  3         franchises; amending s. 288.1162, F.S.;

  4         defining the term "force majeure event";

  5         providing an exception to a provision

  6         prohibiting certain persons who have previously

  7         received funding from receiving additional

  8         funds; increasing the number of facilities that

  9         may be certified as facilities for certain new

10         or retained professional sports franchises;

11         authorizing an additional certification of a

12         facility for a specified Major League Baseball

13         franchise; providing prerequisites for

14         certification; providing that a franchise that

15         continues to occupy a facility that was

16         concurrently occupied by two professional

17         sports franchises shall be deemed the franchise

18         that formed the basis of the previous

19         certification; providing an effective date.

20  

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

22  

23         Section 1.  Paragraph (h) of subsection (4) and

24  subsections (7) and (9) of section 288.1162, Florida Statutes,

25  are amended, paragraph (c) is added to subsection (3) of that

26  section, and subsections (10) and (11) are added to that

27  section, to read:

28         288.1162  Professional sports franchises; spring

29  training franchises; duties.--

30         (3)  As used in this section, the term:

31  

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    Florida Senate - 2007                            CS for SB 544
    577-1902-07




 1         (c)  "Force majeure event" means a flood, fire or other

 2  casualty, war, revolution, civil commotion, an act of a public

 3  enemy, embargo, act of government in its sovereign capacity,

 4  or labor difficulty, including, without limitation, a strike,

 5  lockout, or any circumstance beyond the reasonable control of

 6  the professional sports franchise affected.

 7         (4)  Prior to certifying an applicant as a "facility

 8  for a new professional sports franchise" or a "facility for a

 9  retained professional sports franchise," the Office of

10  Tourism, Trade, and Economic Development must determine that:

11         (h)  An No applicant previously certified under any

12  provision of this section who has received funding under such

13  certification is not shall be eligible for an additional

14  certification, except as provided in subsections (9), (10),

15  and (11).

16         (7)(a)  The Office of Tourism, Trade, and Economic

17  Development shall notify the Department of Revenue of any

18  facility certified as a facility for a new professional sports

19  franchise or a facility for a retained professional sports

20  franchise or as a facility for a retained spring training

21  franchise. The Office of Tourism, Trade, and Economic

22  Development shall certify no more than nine eight facilities

23  as facilities for a new professional sports franchise or as

24  facilities for a retained professional sports franchise,

25  including in such total any facilities certified by the

26  Department of Commerce before July 1, 1996. The number of

27  facilities certified as a retained spring training franchise

28  shall be as provided in subsection (5). The office may make no

29  more than one certification for any facility. The office may

30  not certify funding for less than the requested amount to any

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    Florida Senate - 2007                            CS for SB 544
    577-1902-07




 1  applicant certified as a facility for a retained spring

 2  training franchise.

 3         (b)  The eighth certification of an applicant under

 4  this section as a facility for a new professional sports

 5  franchise or a facility for a retained professional sports

 6  franchise shall be for a franchise that is a member of the

 7  National Basketball Association, has been located within the

 8  state since 1987, and has not been previously certified. This

 9  paragraph is repealed July 1, 2010.

10         (c)  The ninth certification of an applicant under this

11  section as a facility for a new professional sports franchise

12  or a facility for a retained professional sports franchise

13  shall be for a franchise that is a member of Major League

14  Baseball and has been located within the state since 1993.

15         (9)  An applicant is not qualified for certification

16  under this section if the franchise formed the basis for a

17  previous certification, unless:

18         (a)  The previous certification was withdrawn by the

19  facility or invalidated by the Office of Tourism, Trade, and

20  Economic Development or the Department of Commerce before any

21  funds were distributed pursuant to s. 212.20; or.

22         (b)  The applicant will be the home facility for a

23  professional sports franchise that served as the basis for

24  certifying a facility that was occupied by two franchises.

25  This subsection does not disqualify an applicant if the

26  previous certification occurred between May 23, 1993, and May

27  25, 1993; however, any funds to be distributed pursuant to s.

28  212.20 for the second certification shall be offset by the

29  amount distributed to the previous certified facility.

30  Distribution of funds for the second certification shall not

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    Florida Senate - 2007                            CS for SB 544
    577-1902-07




 1  be made until all amounts payable for the first certification

 2  have been distributed.

 3         (10)  To qualify for the ninth certification, the

 4  following conditions must be met:

 5         (a)  The Office of Tourism, Trade, and Economic

 6  Development has received a signed agreement for the benefit of

 7  and enforceable by the Department of Revenue from the

 8  applicant or current owner of the professional sports

 9  franchise that formed the basis for the applicant's

10  certification pursuant to this section which guarantees that,

11  if the professional sports franchise ceases playing all of its

12  home games in this state, including preseason, regular season,

13  and postseason games, unless the cessation is a result of a

14  force majeure event, within 60 days thereafter the guarantor

15  will provide to the Department of Revenue an annuity contract

16  issued by a person authorized to issue such contracts in this

17  state which will pay the Department of Revenue each year

18  thereafter, 125 percent of the amount distributed pursuant to

19  s. 212.20(6)(d)7.b. to the applicant under this section during

20  such year. The guarantee of the current owner of the

21  professional sports franchise shall be returned upon

22  substitution of the guarantee of any successor owner of the

23  professional sports franchise whose ownership has been

24  approved by the governing authority of the league in which the

25  professional sports franchise exists.

26         (b)  The applicant for a facility for a new

27  professional sports franchise has a verified copy of a binding

28  agreement with the new professional sports franchise that

29  requires the franchise to pay any cost overruns when the

30  franchise was used as the basis for the original certification

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    Florida Senate - 2007                            CS for SB 544
    577-1902-07




 1  of the applicant described in paragraph (9)(b) and is the

 2  basis for the current certification request.

 3         (11)  Notwithstanding any other provision of this

 4  section, a franchise continuing to use a facility that was

 5  concurrently occupied by two professional sports franchises

 6  shall be deemed the franchise forming the basis of the

 7  previous certification and the previous certification shall

 8  continue to apply for the period permitted from the original

 9  date of certification.

10         Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2007.

11  

12          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
13                         Senate Bill 544

14                                 

15  Committee Substitute for Senate Bill 544 differs from the bill
    as filed in the following ways:
16  
    -    Requires the franchise that is the basis of the new ninth
17       facility certification to pay an amount equal to 125
         percent of the state sales tax rebate if the franchise
18       does not play all of its home games at the new facility.

19  -    The only exception is if the franchise cannot play
         because of a "force majeure event," as defined.
20  
    -    Requires the franchise to pay any cost overruns
21       associated with the new certified sports facility.

22  -    Deletes language made obsolete by the new provisions.

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