Florida Senate - 2009 CS for SB 2322 By the Committee on Military Affairs and Domestic Security; and Senators Gaetz and Peaden 583-03505A-09 20092322c1 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to military base closures; creating s. 3 288.984, F.S.; establishing the Florida Council on 4 Military Base and Mission Support; providing the 5 council’s mission; providing for membership; providing 6 for terms of appointment; providing for reappointment 7 of members; providing for election of a council chair 8 and vice chair; providing for members to be reimbursed 9 for expenses; requiring Enterprise Florida, Inc., to 10 provide administrative support; providing for council 11 workgroups and the tasks of the workgroups; providing 12 an annual report to the Legislature and Governor; 13 providing an effective date. 14 15 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 16 17 Section 1. Section 288.984, Florida Statutes, is created to 18 read: 19 288.984 Florida Council on Military Base and Mission 20 Support.—The Florida Council on Military Base and Mission 21 Support is established. The council shall provide oversight and 22 direction for initiatives, claims, and actions taken on behalf 23 of the state, its agencies, and political subdivisions under 24 this part. 25 (1) MISSION.-The mission of the council is to: 26 (a) Support and strengthen all United States Department of 27 Defense missions and bases located in the State of Florida. 28 (b) Know the capabilities of all state military 29 installations in order to understand and be supportive of future 30 military growth opportunities in Florida. 31 (c) Support local community efforts relating to the 32 realignment and closure of a military base by acting as a 33 liaison between the local communities and the Legislature. 34 (2) MEMBERSHIP.— 35 (a) The council shall be composed of nine members of which 36 the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of 37 Representatives, and the Governor shall each appoint three 38 members. 39 1. The appointments of the President of the Senate shall 40 include one member of the Senate, one community representative 41 from a community-based defense support organization, and one 42 member who is a retired military general or flag-rank officer 43 residing in this state or an executive officer of a defense 44 contracting firm doing significant business in this state. 45 2. The appointments of the Speaker of the House of 46 Representatives shall include one member of the House of 47 Representatives, one community representative from a community 48 based defense support organization, and one member who is a 49 retired military general or flag-rank officer residing in this 50 state or an executive officer of a defense contracting firm 51 doing significant business in this state. 52 3. The appointments of the Governor shall include the 53 director or designee of the Office of Tourism, Trade, and 54 Economic Development, the vice chairperson or designee of 55 Enterprise Florida, Inc., and one discretionary appointment. 56 (b) Each of the legislative members shall be appointed to a 57 term of 2 years, commencing July 1 of each odd-numbered year. 58 Each of the other members shall be appointed to a term of 4 59 years, commencing July 1 in the year of appointment. A vacancy 60 shall be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term in the 61 same manner as the initial appointment. All members of the 62 council are eligible for reappointment. 63 (c) Members of the council shall elect a chair and vice 64 chair to terms of 2 years, and the chair and vice chair may 65 succeed themselves. 66 (d) The members of the council shall serve without 67 compensation, but are entitled to reimbursement from the 68 appointing legislative chamber or the Executive Office of the 69 Governor, as appropriate, for expenses in accordance with s. 70 112.061. 71 (e) Enterprise Florida, Inc., shall provide administrative 72 support to the council. 73 (3) WORKGROUPS.—The council shall establish the following 74 workgroups: 75 (a) The Intrastate Activities Workgroup.—The task of the 76 workgroup is to: 77 1. Collect information about and become familiar with the 78 concerns and activities of local communities in enhancing and 79 supporting their respective military bases. 80 2. Conduct an analysis of the strengths of each military 81 base and share that evaluation with the council and the affected 82 community. 83 3. In partnership with the Florida Defense Alliance and 84 local communities, conduct ongoing analysis of current and 85 proposed changes to Department of Defense mission and military 86 force structure and alignment. 87 4. Collect effective methods and practices used by local 88 communities to address the issue of military base support and 89 enhancement and disseminate such best practices among affected 90 communities. 91 5. Ensure that affected communities and stakeholders are 92 informed of and invited to assist and support state-level 93 efforts to affect statewide coordination of information 94 gathering, strategy development, and best-practice sharing. 95 6. Educate the Legislature on the importance of supporting 96 legislation relating to the state’s military bases. 97 (b) The Federal Activities Workgroup.—The task of the 98 workgroup is to ensure that the council has a presence at the 99 Pentagon and has ongoing dialogue with key Department of Defense 100 officials concerning the state’s military bases. 101 (c) The Competitive Advantages Workgroup.—The task of the 102 workgroup is to research and collect best practices and 103 strategies throughout the country with respect to other military 104 communities in order to leverage this state’s competitive 105 advantage. 106 (d) The Public Communications Workgroup.—The task of the 107 workgroup is to increase public awareness of federal base 108 realignment and closure activities and public investment in 109 preserving the state’s military bases. 110 (4) REPORT.—The council shall prepare and submit an annual 111 report to the Legislature and Governor summarizing the current 112 status of the state’s military bases, the council’s activities, 113 and any recommendations for legislative or executive action. 114 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2009.