| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to governmental services telephone |
| 3 | systems; creating s. 365.180, F.S.; providing legislative |
| 4 | findings; defining the term "coordinated 311 nonemergency |
| 5 | and other governmental services telephone system"; |
| 6 | authorizing the Department of Community Affairs to accept |
| 7 | and administer funds to provide grants for certain |
| 8 | governmental services telephone systems; authorizing |
| 9 | counties and municipalities to apply for grants; requiring |
| 10 | a county or municipality to provide matching funds; |
| 11 | providing procedures for approval of grant awards; |
| 12 | requiring approval by the Secretary of Community Affairs |
| 13 | or appropriation by the Legislature; providing for certain |
| 14 | limitations on grant funds amounts; requiring a report to |
| 15 | the Governor and the Legislature detailing expenditures; |
| 16 | authorizing the department to adopt rules; providing |
| 17 | application evaluation criteria; providing an |
| 18 | appropriation; providing an effective date. |
| 19 |
|
| 20 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 21 |
|
| 22 | Section 1. Section 365.180, Florida Statutes, is created |
| 23 | to read: |
| 24 | 365.180 Coordinated 311 nonemergency and other |
| 25 | governmental services telephone system grant program; grants for |
| 26 | operation; funding; approval; allocation.-- |
| 27 | (1) The Legislature finds that a 311 telephone system for |
| 28 | nonemergency and other governmental services may reduce the |
| 29 | volume of nonemergency calls to 911 public safety answering |
| 30 | points, particularly in times of a disaster. The Legislature |
| 31 | further finds that 311 systems improve public access to |
| 32 | government by providing seamless access to various governmental |
| 33 | entities, enhancing coordination among state and various local |
| 34 | jurisdictions, and improving service delivery. |
| 35 | (2) As used in this section, the term "coordinated 311 |
| 36 | nonemergency and other governmental services telephone system" |
| 37 | means a 311 system that is multijurisdictional in nature such |
| 38 | that it is designed to provide seamless access to nonemergency |
| 39 | and other governmental services. |
| 40 | (3) The Department of Community Affairs may accept and |
| 41 | administer funds that are appropriated to it for providing |
| 42 | grants to counties and municipalities for operating a |
| 43 | coordinated 311 nonemergency and other governmental services |
| 44 | telephone system. |
| 45 | (4) A county or municipality may apply for a grant of |
| 46 | state funds to support the implementation and operation of a |
| 47 | coordinated 311 nonemergency and other governmental services |
| 48 | telephone system. |
| 49 | (5) A state grant awarded under this section must be |
| 50 | matched by a contribution from the county or municipality in an |
| 51 | amount equal to $1 for each $1 awarded under this section. |
| 52 | (6) The Department of Community Affairs shall review each |
| 53 | application submitted under subsection (4) for a grant to |
| 54 | implement a coordinated 311 nonemergency and other governmental |
| 55 | services telephone system and, annually, shall submit a list of |
| 56 | all applications received and a list of the systems that are |
| 57 | recommended for the award of grants, arranged in order of |
| 58 | priority, to the Secretary of Community Affairs for the |
| 59 | secretary's approval. The Department of Community Affairs may |
| 60 | allocate grants only for coordinated 311 nonemergency and other |
| 61 | governmental services telephone systems that are approved by the |
| 62 | secretary or for which funds are appropriated by the |
| 63 | Legislature. |
| 64 | (7) The annual amount of any one grant made under this |
| 65 | section may not exceed the lesser of $2.5 million or 50 percent |
| 66 | of the total annual cost of operating the coordinated 311 |
| 67 | nonemergency and other governmental services telephone system. |
| 68 | The total amount of the grants awarded to a coordinated 311 |
| 69 | nonemergency and other governmental services telephone system in |
| 70 | a 5-year period may not exceed $10 million. |
| 71 | (8) Each 311 system receiving state matching funds shall |
| 72 | submit a report to the Governor, the President of the Senate, |
| 73 | and the Speaker of the House of Representatives by December 15, |
| 74 | 2008, detailing how the funds appropriated for the 311 system |
| 75 | were spent. |
| 76 | (9) The Department of Community Affairs may adopt rules |
| 77 | pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 prescribing the criteria |
| 78 | to be applied to applications for grants and rules providing for |
| 79 | the administration of this section. The application evaluation |
| 80 | criteria shall, at a minimum, include the following: |
| 81 | (a) The population of the applicant county or |
| 82 | municipality. |
| 83 | (b) Prior establishment of a 311 number by the applicant |
| 84 | county or municipality. |
| 85 | (c) The interoperability between the proposed 311 system |
| 86 | and the existing 911 public safety answering points within the |
| 87 | applicant county or municipality. |
| 88 | (d) The commitment of funds by the applicant county or |
| 89 | municipality beyond the minimum match contribution. |
| 90 | (e) The long-range plan for sustainability of the proposed |
| 91 | 311 system submitted by the applicant county or municipality. |
| 92 | Section 2. The sum of $10 million is appropriated from the |
| 93 | General Revenue Fund to the Department of Community Affairs for |
| 94 | the purpose of funding the coordinated 311 nonemergency and |
| 95 | other governmental services telephone system grant program |
| 96 | created by this act for the 2007-2008 fiscal year. |
| 97 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2007. |