Proposed Committee Substitute by the Committee on General

Government Appropriations

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A bill to be entitled

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An act relating to the Department of Revenue; amending s.

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195.002, F.S.; authorizing the Department of Revenue to

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incur reasonable expenses for the salaries and benefits of

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employees whose duties are directly associated with

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developing and conducting schools to upgrade assessment

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and collection skills; amending s. 195.022, F.S.;

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requiring the department to pay for aerial photographs and

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nonproperty ownership maps provided to the property

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appraisers of certain counties; providing an exception;

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authorizing the department to charge fees for procuring

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photographs and maps and deposit the proceeds into the

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Certification Program Trust Fund; amending s. 195.087,

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F.S.; authorizing property appraisers to pay the costs of

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aerial photographs and nonproperty ownership maps which

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are not paid by the department; providing an effective

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date.

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

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     Section 1.  Subsection (2) of section 195.002, Florida

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Statutes, is amended to read:

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     195.002  Supervision by Department of Revenue.--

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     (2)  In furtherance of its duty to conduct schools to

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upgrade assessment skills and collection skills, the department

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may establish by rule committees on admissions and certification.

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Additionally, the department may incur reasonable expenses for

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hiring instructors, travel, office operations, certificates of

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completion, badges or awards, and food service incidental to

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conducting such schools; for the salaries and benefits of

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department employees whose duties are directly associated with

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developing and conducting such schools; and for administering any

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certification program under s. 145.10 or s. 145.11. The

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department may charge a tuition fee and an examination fee to any

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person who attends such a school and may charge a fee to certify

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or recertify any person under such a program. The department

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shall deposit such fees into the Certification Program Trust Fund

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which is created in the State Treasury. There shall be separate

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school accounts and program accounts in the trust fund for

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property appraisers and for tax collectors. The department shall

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use money in the fund to pay such expenses.

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     Section 2.  Section 195.022, Florida Statutes, is amended to

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read:

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     195.022  Forms to be prescribed by Department of

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Revenue.--The Department of Revenue shall prescribe all forms to

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be used by property appraisers, tax collectors, clerks of the

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circuit court, and value adjustment boards in administering and

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collecting ad valorem taxes. The department shall prescribe a

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form for each purpose. For counties that have with a population

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of 100,000 or fewer, the Department of Revenue shall furnish the

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forms. For counties that have with a population greater than

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100,000, the county officer shall reproduce forms for

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distribution at the expense of his or her office. A county

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officer may use a form other than the form prescribed by the

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department upon obtaining written permission from the executive

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director of the department; however, a no county officer may not

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shall use a form the substantive content of which is at variance

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with the form prescribed by the department for the same or a

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similar purpose. If the executive director finds good cause to

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grant such permission he or she may do so. The county officer may

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continue to use such approved form until the law that which

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specifies the form is amended or repealed or until the officer

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receives written disapproval from the executive director.

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Otherwise, all such officers and their employees shall use the

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forms, and follow the instructions applicable to the forms, which

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are prescribed by the department. The department, upon request of

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any property appraiser or, in any event, at least once every 3

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years, shall prescribe and furnish such aerial photographs and

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nonproperty ownership maps to the property appraisers as are

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necessary to ensure that all real property within the state is

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properly listed on the roll. Aerial photographs and nonproperty

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ownership maps shall be procured and provided in the manner and

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form prescribed by the department. The costs of all photographs

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and maps furnished to counties that have a population of 25,000

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or fewer shall be paid by the department as provided by law. For

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counties that have a population greater than 25,000, the

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department shall furnish such items at the expense of the

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property appraiser. The department may incur reasonable expenses

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for procuring aerial photographs and nonproperty ownership maps

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and may charge a fee to the respective property appraiser equal

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to the costs incurred. The department shall deposit such fees

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into the Certification Program Trust Fund, created pursuant to s.

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195.002. There shall be a separate account in the trust fund for

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activities relating to the aid and assistance of providing aerial

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photographs and nonproperty ownership maps to property

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appraisers. The department shall use moneys in the trust fund to

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pay such expenses. All forms and maps furnished by the department

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shall be paid for by the department as provided by law. All forms

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and maps and instructions relating to their use shall be

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substantially uniform throughout the state. An officer may employ

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supplemental forms and maps, at the expense of his or her office,

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which he or she deems expedient for the purpose of administering

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and collecting ad valorem taxes. The forms required in ss.

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193.461(3)(a) and 196.011(1) for renewal purposes shall require

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sufficient information for the property appraiser to evaluate the

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changes in use since the prior year. If the property appraiser

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determines, in the case of a taxpayer, that he or she has

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insufficient current information upon which to approve the

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exemption, or if the information on the renewal form is

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inadequate for him or her to evaluate the taxable status of the

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property, he or she may require the resubmission of an original

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application.

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     Section 3.  Subsection (4) of section 195.087, Florida

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Statutes, is amended to read:

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     195.087  Property appraisers and tax collectors to submit

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budgets to Department of Revenue.--

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     (4)  The property appraisers and tax collectors of this

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state are hereby authorized to pay any fee established by the

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department for attendance by an employee at a school established

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and conducted by the department pursuant to s. 195.002. Further,

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the travel and per diem expenses of such employee may be paid as

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set forth in s. 112.061. The property appraisers are authorized

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to pay a fee established by the department for the costs of

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aerial photographs and nonproperty ownership maps that are

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provided by the department, but are not paid by the department

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pursuant to s. 195.022.

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     Section 4.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2008.