HB 1169

1
A bill to be entitled
2An act relating to Florida ports investments; creating s.
3311.23, F.S.; providing a short title; providing a
4purpose; providing definitions; requiring the Office of
5Tourism, Trade, and Economic Development to establish the
6Florida Ports Investment Corporation; providing authority
7and requirements for the corporation; providing for a
8board of directors; providing for appointment of board
9members; providing for investments by the corporation in
10certain port projects; specifying allocations of certain
11funds for certain port activities, investments, and
12education; providing requirements for capital allocation
13and investments; providing requirements for certain
14uninvested capital; providing requirements for
15investments; providing for a premium tax credit; providing
16for carryforward of the credit; providing limitations on
17the credit; providing limitations on the amount of tax
18credits; providing investment requirements; providing for
19transferability of unused credits; authorizing the
20corporation and the office to charge certain fees;
21providing reporting requirements; authorizing the
22Department of Revenue and the office to adopt rules;
23providing an effective date.
24
25Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
26
27     Section 1.  Section 311.23, Florida Statutes, is created to
28read:
29     311.23  Florida Ports Investment Act.-
30     (1)  SHORT TITLE.-This section may be cited as the "Florida
31Ports Investment Act."
32     (2)  PURPOSE.-The primary purpose of this section is to
33stimulate a substantial increase in the state's port
34infrastructure by providing an incentive for insurance companies
35to invest in port activities in this state which, in turn, will
36generate investments in new port projects or in expanding port
37projects. The increase in investment capital flowing into new or
38expanding port activities and businesses is intended to
39contribute to employment growth, create jobs that exceed the
40average wage for the county in which the jobs are created, and
41expand or diversify the economic base of this state.
42     (3)  DEFINITIONS.-As used in this section, the term:
43     (a)  "Corporation" means the Florida Ports Investment
44Corporation established by the office under subsection (4).
45     (b)  "Department" means the Department of Financial
46Services.
47     (c)  "Investment capital" means an investment of cash by a
48participating investor in the corporation in exchange for the
49tax credits provided in this section.
50     (d)  "Office" means the Office of Tourism, Trade, and
51Economic Development.
52     (e)  "Participating investor" means any insurance company
53subject to premium tax liability under s. 624.509 that
54contributes investment capital pursuant to this section.
55     (f)  "Premium tax liability" means any liability incurred
56by an insurance company under s. 624.509.
57     (g)  "Qualified port project" means the ports listed in s.
58403.021(9)(b) or any associated business or project that uses
59those ports for the movement of goods and people, as determined
60by the corporation.
61     (4)  FLORIDA PORTS INVESTMENT CORPORATION; CREATION;
62AUTHORITY; BOARD OF DIRECTORS.-
63     (a)  The office, in cooperation with the department, shall
64establish the Florida Ports Investment Corporation as a
65corporation not for profit, to be incorporated under the
66provisions of chapter 617 and approved by the Department of
67State. The corporation:
68     1.  May receive, hold, invest, and administer funds and
69make expenditures consistent with the purposes of this section.
70     2.  May make purchases, sales, exchanges, investments, and
71reinvestments for and on behalf of the funds received pursuant
72to this section.
73     3.  Shall retain at least one investment advisory company
74to assist the corporation in carrying out the provisions of this
75section. Any such company must be retained pursuant to the
76provisions of s. 287.055 and must have a minimum of 5 years'
77experience raising investment capital from similar investors,
78with not less than $100 million actually raised from insurance
79companies seeking a tax credit similar to that provided by this
80section.
81     (b)  The corporation shall be governed by a board of
82directors comprised of:
83     1.  The director of the office.
84     2.  Two members appointed by the Governor, two members
85appointed by the President of the Senate, and two members
86appointed by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
87Appointed members must have significant experience in
88international business, transportation, law, or logistics.
89Appointed members are subject to any restrictions on conflicts
90of interest specified in the organizational documents of the
91corporation and may not have any interest in any investments
92made by the corporation pursuant to subsection (5). Each
93appointed member shall be appointed for a term of 4 years. A
94vacancy on the board shall be filled by the appointing official
95for the member whose vacancy is to be filled or whose term has
96expired. An appointed member may be removed by the appointing
97official for that member, for cause. Absence from three
98consecutive meetings shall result in automatic removal. Any
99member is eligible for reappointment.
100     3.  The chair of the Florida Seaport Transportation and
101Economic Development Council shall serve as an ex officio
102director of the board.
103     4.  Members of the board shall serve without compensation,
104but may be reimbursed for all reasonable, necessary, and actual
105expenses as determined and approved by the board pursuant to s.
106112.061.
107     (5)  INVESTMENTS BY THE CORPORATION IN PORT PROJECTS AND
108PORT-RELATED ACTIVITIES.-
109     (a)1.  The corporation shall seek to maintain the state's
110advantage in ports and related industries. In order to maintain
111that advantage, the corporation shall:
112     a.  Allocate at least 65 percent of the capital received
113under this section to on-port activities or infrastructure as
114described in s. 315.02(6).
115     b.  Allocate at least 25 percent of the capital received
116under this section to off-port activities or infrastructure that
117improve the movement and intermodal transportation of cargo or
118passengers in commerce and trade and that will support the
119interests, purposes, and requirements of ports specified in s.
120403.021(9).
121     c.  Allocate at least 5 percent of the remaining capital
122received under this section to education related to ports and
123port-related studies under the New Florida Initiative developed
124by the Florida Board of Governors of the State University
125System.
126     2.  The capital received under this section shall be
127allocated by July 1, 2012, or held in accordance with paragraph
128(b).
129     3.  An individual port project may not consume more than 15
130percent of the total revenues of the corporation's intake.
131     (b)  The corporation shall hold all capital received under
132this section that is not invested in qualified port projects and
133such capital:
134     1.  Must be held in a financial institution as defined by
135s. 655.005(1)(h) or held by a broker-dealer registered under s.
136517.12.
137     2.  Must be invested only in:
138     a.  United States Treasury obligations;
139     b.  Certificates of deposit or other obligations, maturing
140within 3 years after acquisition of such certificates or
141obligations, issued by any financial institution or trust
142company incorporated under the laws of the United States;
143     c.  Marketable obligations, maturing within 5 years or less
144after the acquisition of such obligations, which are rated "A"
145or better by any nationally recognized credit rating agency; or
146     d.  Interests in money market funds, the portfolio of which
147is limited to cash and obligations described in sub-
148subparagraphs a.-c.
149     (c)  All investment decisions shall be made by the
150corporation which must certify that each project is of a
151beneficial nature to a port listed in s. 403.021(9)(b), is ready
152to proceed within 60 days for design, construction, and
153permitting, and will create a lasting economic impact as defined
154by the office by rule. Applications for funding by qualified
155port projects must be made to the corporation under rules
156adopted by the office.
157     (6)  PREMIUM TAX CREDIT; AMOUNT; LIMITATIONS.-
158     (a)  Any participating investor who makes an investment of
159investment capital shall earn a vested credit against premium
160tax liability equal to 100 percent of the investment capital
161invested by the participating investor and such investments may
162not be subject to recapture, disallowance, forfeiture, or
163reduction. Participating investors shall be entitled to use no
164more than 10 percentage points of the vested premium tax credit,
165including any carryforward credits under this section, per year
166beginning with premium tax filings for calendar year 2012. Any
167premium tax credits not used by participating investors in any
168single year may be carried forward and applied against the
169premium tax liabilities of such investors for subsequent
170calendar years. The carryforward credit may be applied against
171subsequent premium tax filings through calendar year 2029.
172     (b)  The credit to be applied against premium tax liability
173in any single year may not exceed the premium tax liability of
174the participating investor for that taxable year.
175     (c)  A participating investor claiming a credit against
176premium tax liability earned through an investment in the
177corporation is not required to pay any additional retaliatory
178tax levied pursuant to s. 624.5091 as a result of claiming such
179credit. Because credits under this section are available to a
180participating investor, s. 624.5091 does not limit such credit
181in any manner.
182     (d)  The amount of tax credits vested under this section
183may not be considered in ratemaking proceedings involving a
184participating investor.
185     (7)  ANNUAL TAX CREDIT; MAXIMUM AMOUNT.-
186     (a)  The total amount of tax credits which may be allocated
187by the office may not exceed $500 million. The total amount of
188tax credits which may be used by participating investors under
189this section may not exceed $50 million annually.
190     (b)  The office shall be responsible for allocating premium
191tax credits as provided for in this section to participating
192investors. A participating investor must submit an application
193to the office for the tax credit authorized in this section.
194     (8)  TRANSFERABILITY.-Tax credits may be freely transferred
195by a participating investor to an affiliate or non-affiliate of
196the investor, and all such transfers shall be subject to rules
197adopted by the department.
198     (9)  FEES.-The corporation may charge reasonable fees for
199administering and processing applications by qualified port
200projects for funding pursuant to paragraph (5)(c), and the
201office may charge reasonable fees for administering and
202processing applications by participating investors for tax
203credits pursuant to subsection (7). Any fee charged by the
204corporation or office under this subsection for an application
205may not exceed the actual cost incurred by the corporation or
206office in administering and processing any application for
207funding or a tax credit.
208     (10)  REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.-The office shall report on an
209annual basis to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and
210the Speaker of the House of Representatives on or before April
2111:
212     (a)  The total dollar amount received by the corporation
213from all participating investors and any other investor, the
214identity of the participating investors, and the total amount of
215premium tax credit used by each participating investor for the
216previous calendar year.
217     (b)  The total dollar amount invested by the corporation in
218qualified port projects, the identity and location of those
219projects, the amount invested in each qualified port project,
220and the total number of permanent, full-time jobs created or
221retained by each qualified port project.
222     (c)  The return for the state as a result of the
223investments in qualified port projects, including the extent to
224which:
225     1.  Investments have contributed to employment growth.
226     2.  The wage level of businesses in which the corporation
227has invested exceeds the average wage for the county in which
228the jobs are located.
229     3.  The investments of the corporation in qualified port
230projects have contributed to expanding or diversifying the
231economic base of the state.
232     (11)  RULEMAKING AUTHORITY.-
233     (a)  The Department of Revenue may by rule prescribe forms
234and procedures for the tax credit filings and audits.
235     (b)  The office may adopt any rules necessary to carry out
236its respective duties, obligations, and powers related to the
237administration, review, and reporting provisions of this section
238and may perform any other acts necessary for the proper
239administration and enforcement of such duties, obligations, and
240powers.
241     Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.


CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.