Florida Senate - 2009 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. SB 1996
Barcode 166412
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
Comm: RCS .
03/25/2009 .
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The Committee on Higher Education (Lynn) recommended the
following:
1 Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
2
3 Delete everything after the enacting clause
4 and insert:
5 Section 1. Subsection (2) of section 1001.74, Florida
6 Statutes, is amended to read:
7 1001.74 Powers and duties of university boards of
8 trustees.—
9 (2) POWERS AND DUTIES RELATING TO ORGANIZATION AND
10 OPERATION OF STATE UNIVERSITIES.—
11 (a) Each board of trustees constitutes the contracting
12 agent of the university. Each university shall comply with the
13 provisions of s. 287.055 for the procurement of professional
14 services and may approve and execute all contracts for planning,
15 construction, and equipment. For the purpose of a university’s
16 contracting authority, a “continuing contract” for professional
17 services under the provisions of s. 287.055 is one in which
18 construction costs do not exceed $2 $1 million or the fee for
19 study activity does not exceed $200,000 $100,000. Contracts
20 executed pursuant to this paragraph are subject to the
21 requirements of s. 1010.62.
22 Section 2. Present subsections (14) through (18) of section
23 1009.24, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (15)
24 through (19), respectively, and a new subsection (14) is added
25 to that section, to read:
26 1009.24 State university student fees.—
27 (14)(a) Each university board of trustees may establish a
28 renewable energy fee to be paid by all students if the fee is
29 approved by the student body of each university that seeks to
30 establish the fee. In order to establish the fee, a referendum
31 of the university’s student body must be requested by the
32 student legislative body and conducted by the student
33 government. The referendum must include the proposed amount of
34 the fee and an explanation of its purpose. A university’s board
35 of trustees may not establish the fee without the approval of a
36 majority of students participating in the referendum.
37 (b) A renewable energy fee established under this
38 subsection may not exceed $5 per credit hour during its first
39 year of implementation. The initial amount of the fee must be in
40 accordance with the referendum described in paragraph (a) and
41 may be changed only if approved by a referendum of the student
42 body. The fee may not be included in any award under ss. 1009.53
43 and 1009.531.
44 (c) The renewable energy fee shall be expended only for
45 establishing or improving the use of renewable energy
46 technologies or energy efficiencies that directly lower the
47 university’s greenhouse gas emissions, waste, or energy costs. A
48 renewable energy fee committee shall be established and shall
49 vote to determine how the revenue from the fee is spent. The
50 committee shall consist of no more than 12 members, to be
51 appointed as follows:
52 1. Half of the members shall be appointed by the
53 university’s student body president and confirmed by the
54 university’s student legislative body. Appointees shall be
55 confirmed within 6 months after their appointment date. However,
56 an appointee who has not been confirmed or has been rejected by
57 the legislative body shall serve for no more than 45 days, at
58 which time a replacement must be appointed.
59 2. Half of the members shall be appointed by the university
60 president or his or her designee.
61
62 Members shall be appointed to 1-year terms and shall hold office
63 until his or her successor is appointed and qualified. A
64 majority of the committee members constitutes a quorum. A
65 chairperson, who is elected by the committee, shall vote only in
66 the case of a tie. The revenue from the fee which remains at the
67 end of a fiscal year shall be carried over and made available
68 for renewable energy expenditures consistent with this paragraph
69 during the next fiscal year.
70 (d) After the renewable energy fee is implemented for 5
71 years, the university’s student government shall conduct a
72 referendum to assess the student body’s interest in continuing
73 the fee. If a majority of students participating in the
74 referendum vote to dissolve the fee, the fee may not be
75 collected, and any remaining revenue shall be dispensed by the
76 renewable energy fee committee within 2 fiscal years after the
77 referendum. The university may reestablish the fee as provided
78 in paragraph (a) no sooner than 1 year after the referendum
79 dissolving the fee.
80 Section 3. Subsection (3) of section 1009.01, Florida
81 Statutes, is amended to read:
82 1009.01 Definitions.—The term:
83 (3) “Tuition differential” means the supplemental fee
84 charged to a student for instruction provided by a public
85 university in this state pursuant to s. 1009.24(17) s.
86 1009.24(16).
87 Section 4. Paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of section
88 1009.98, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
89 1009.98 Stanley G. Tate Florida Prepaid College Program.—
90 (2) PREPAID COLLEGE PLANS.—At a minimum, the board shall
91 make advance payment contracts available for two independent
92 plans to be known as the community college plan and the
93 university plan. The board may also make advance payment
94 contracts available for a dormitory residence plan. The board
95 may restrict the number of participants in the community college
96 plan, university plan, and dormitory residence plan,
97 respectively. However, any person denied participation solely on
98 the basis of such restriction shall be granted priority for
99 participation during the succeeding year.
100 (b)1. Through the university plan, the advance payment
101 contract shall provide prepaid registration fees for a specified
102 number of undergraduate semester credit hours not to exceed the
103 average number of hours required for the conference of a
104 baccalaureate degree. Qualified beneficiaries shall bear the
105 cost of any laboratory fees associated with enrollment in
106 specific courses. Each qualified beneficiary shall be classified
107 as a resident for tuition purposes pursuant to s. 1009.21,
108 regardless of his or her actual legal residence.
109 2. Effective July 1, 1998, the board may provide advance
110 payment contracts for additional fees delineated in s.
111 1009.24(9)-(12), for a specified number of undergraduate
112 semester credit hours not to exceed the average number of hours
113 required for the conference of a baccalaureate degree, in
114 conjunction with advance payment contracts for registration
115 fees. Such contracts shall provide prepaid coverage for the sum
116 of such fees, to a maximum of 45 percent of the cost of
117 registration fees. University plan contracts purchased prior to
118 July 1, 1998, shall be limited to the payment of registration
119 fees as defined in s. 1009.97.
120 3. Effective July 1, 2007, the board may provide advance
121 payment contracts for the tuition differential authorized in s.
122 1009.24(17) s. 1009.24(16) for a specified number of
123 undergraduate semester credit hours, which may not exceed the
124 average number of hours required for the conference of a
125 baccalaureate degree, in conjunction with advance payment
126 contracts for registration fees.
127 Section 5. Paragraph (h) of subsection (1) of section
128 1013.64, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
129 1013.64 Funds for comprehensive educational plant needs;
130 construction cost maximums for school district capital
131 projects.—Allocations from the Public Education Capital Outlay
132 and Debt Service Trust Fund to the various boards for capital
133 outlay projects shall be determined as follows:
134 (1)
135 (h) University boards of trustees may utilize funds
136 appropriated pursuant to this section for replacement of minor
137 facilities provided that such projects do not exceed $2 $1
138 million in cost or 10,000 gross square feet in size. Minor
139 facilities may not be replaced from funds provided pursuant to
140 this section unless the board determines that the cost of repair
141 or renovation is greater than or equal to the cost of
142 replacement.
143 Section 6. Subsection (2) of section 1013.78, Florida
144 Statutes, is amended to read:
145 1013.78 Approval required for certain university-related
146 facility acquisitions.—
147 (2) Legislative approval shall not be required for
148 renovations, remodeling, replacement of existing facilities, or
149 construction of minor facilities projects as defined in s.
150 1013.64, except to the extent required pursuant to s. 1010.62.
151 Section 7. Subsection (5) of section 1013.79, Florida
152 Statutes, is amended to read:
153 1013.79 University Facility Enhancement Challenge Grant
154 Program.—
155 (5) A project may not be initiated unless all private funds
156 for planning, construction, and equipping the facility have been
157 received and deposited in the separate university program
158 account designated for this purpose. However, a university is
159 not precluded from spending funds from private sources to
160 develop a prospectus, including preliminary architectural
161 schematics or models, for use in raising private funds for a
162 facility or site preparation or initial planning and
163 construction. Private funds spent for planning, construction,
164 and equipping the facility are eligible for state matching funds
165 but do not create a financial obligation of the state and the
166 state’s share for the minimum amount of funds needed to begin
167 the project has been appropriated by the Legislature. The Board
168 of Governors shall establish a method for validating the receipt
169 and deposit of private matching funds. The Legislature may
170 appropriate the state’s matching funds in one or more fiscal
171 years for the planning, construction, and equipping of an
172 eligible facility. However, these requirements shall not
173 preclude the university from expending available funds from
174 private sources to develop a prospectus, including preliminary
175 architectural schematics or models, for use in its efforts to
176 raise private funds for a facility. Additionally, any private
177 sources of funds expended for this purpose are eligible for
178 state matching funds should the project materialize as provided
179 for in this section.
180 Section 8. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.
181
182 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
183 And the title is amended as follows:
184 Delete everything before the enacting clause
185 and insert:
186 A bill to be entitled
187 An act relating to state universities; amending s.
188 1001.74, F.S.; redefining the term “continuing
189 contract” relating to construction costs to increase
190 certain cost thresholds; amending s. 1009.24, F.S.;
191 authorizing university boards of trustees to establish
192 a renewable energy fee under certain circumstances;
193 providing that the fee not exceed a certain amount;
194 limiting the use of such fee; establishing a renewable
195 energy fee committee; providing for membership;
196 providing terms; providing for a referendum on
197 continuing or dissolving the fee; authorizing the
198 university to reestablish the fee; amending ss.
199 1009.01 and 1009.98, F.S.; conforming cross
200 references; amending s. 1013.64, F.S.; increasing the
201 threshold amount used to replace minor facility
202 projects; amending s. 1013.78, F.S.; conforming
203 provisions to changes made by the act; amending s.
204 1013.79, F.S.; revising provisions relating to the
205 University Facility Enhancement Challenge Grant
206 Program; authorizing a university to expend funds from
207 private sources to develop a prospectus for a facility
208 or site preparation or initial planning and
209 construction; providing an effective date.