Florida Senate - 2009 CS for CS for SB 2322
By the Committees on Commerce; and Military Affairs and Domestic
Security; and Senators Gaetz, Peaden, and Altman
577-04994-09 20092322c2
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 that the Office of Tourism,
10 Trade, and Economic Development within the Executive
11 Office of the Governor provide administrative support
12 to the council; requiring that certain agency heads
13 attend council meetings and provide assistance,
14 information, and support as requested by the council;
15 providing for council workgroups and the tasks of the
16 workgroups; providing an annual report to the
17 Legislature and Governor; providing an effective date.
18
19 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
20
21 Section 1. Section 288.984, Florida Statutes, is created to
22 read:
23 288.984 Florida Council on Military Base and Mission
24 Support.—The Florida Council on Military Base and Mission
25 Support is established. The council shall provide oversight and
26 direction for initiatives, claims, and actions taken on behalf
27 of the state, its agencies, and political subdivisions under
28 this part.
29 (1) MISSION.-The mission of the council is to:
30 (a) Support and strengthen all United States Department of
31 Defense missions and bases located in the State of Florida.
32 (b) Know the capabilities of all state military
33 installations in order to understand and be supportive of future
34 military growth opportunities in Florida.
35 (c) Support local community efforts relating to the
36 realignment and closure of a military base by acting as a
37 liaison between the local communities and the Legislature.
38 (d) Enhance Florida’s defense economy.
39 (2) MEMBERSHIP.—
40 (a) The council shall be composed of nine members of which
41 the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of
42 Representatives, and the Governor shall each appoint three
43 members.
44 1. The appointments of the President of the Senate shall
45 include one member of the Senate, one community representative
46 from a community-based defense support organization, and one
47 member who is a retired military general or flag-rank officer
48 residing in this state or an executive officer of a defense
49 contracting firm doing significant business in this state.
50 2. The appointments of the Speaker of the House of
51 Representatives shall include one member of the House of
52 Representatives, one community representative from a community
53 based defense support organization, and one member who is a
54 retired military general or flag-rank officer residing in this
55 state or an executive officer of a defense contracting firm
56 doing significant business in this state.
57 3. The appointments of the Governor shall include the
58 director or designee of the Office of Tourism, Trade, and
59 Economic Development, the vice chairperson or designee of
60 Enterprise Florida, Inc., and one discretionary appointment.
61 (b) Each of the legislative members shall be appointed to a
62 term of 2 years, commencing July 1 of each odd-numbered year.
63 Each of the other members shall be appointed to a term of 4
64 years, commencing July 1 in the year of appointment. A vacancy
65 shall be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term in the
66 same manner as the initial appointment. All members of the
67 council are eligible for reappointment.
68 (c) Members of the council shall elect a chair and vice
69 chair to terms of 2 years, and the chair and vice chair may
70 succeed themselves.
71 (d) The members of the council shall serve without
72 compensation, but are entitled to reimbursement from the
73 appointing legislative chamber or the Executive Office of the
74 Governor, as appropriate, for expenses in accordance with s.
75 112.061.
76 (e) The Office of Tourism, Trade, and Economic Development
77 shall provide administrative support to the council.
78 (f) The Secretary of Community Affairs or his or her
79 designee, the Secretary of Environmental Protection or his or
80 her designee, the Secretary of Transportation or his or her
81 designee, the Adjutant General of Military Affairs or his or her
82 designee, and the Executive Director of Veterans’ Affairs or his
83 or her designee shall attend meetings held by the council and
84 provide assistance, information, and support as requested by the
85 council.
86 (3) WORKGROUPS.—The council shall establish the following
87 workgroups:
88 (a) The Intrastate Activities Workgroup.—The task of the
89 workgroup is to:
90 1. Collect information about and become familiar with the
91 concerns and activities of local communities in enhancing and
92 supporting their respective military bases.
93 2. Conduct an analysis of the strengths of each military
94 base and share that evaluation with the council and the affected
95 community.
96 3. In partnership with the Florida Defense Alliance and
97 local communities, conduct ongoing analysis of current and
98 proposed changes to Department of Defense mission and military
99 force structure and alignment.
100 4. Collect effective methods and practices used by local
101 communities to address the issue of military base support and
102 enhancement and disseminate such best practices among affected
103 communities.
104 5. Ensure that affected communities and stakeholders are
105 informed of and invited to assist and support state-level
106 efforts to affect statewide coordination of information
107 gathering, strategy development, and best-practice sharing.
108 6. Educate the Legislature on the importance of supporting
109 legislation relating to the state’s military bases.
110 (b) The Federal Activities Workgroup.—The task of the
111 workgroup is to ensure that the council has a presence at the
112 Pentagon and has ongoing dialogue with key Department of Defense
113 officials concerning the state’s military bases.
114 (c) The Competitive Advantages Workgroup.—The task of the
115 workgroup is to research and collect best practices and
116 strategies throughout the country with respect to other military
117 communities in order to leverage this state’s competitive
118 advantage.
119 (d) The Public Communications Workgroup.—The task of the
120 workgroup is to increase public awareness of federal base
121 realignment and closure activities and public investment in
122 preserving the state’s military bases.
123 (4) ANNUAL REPORT.—The council shall prepare and submit a
124 report to the Legislature and the Governor by January 1 of each
125 year. The report shall summarize the current status of the
126 state’s military bases, the council’s activities, and any
127 recommendations for legislative or executive action.
128 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2009.