| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to the Hardee County Economic Development |
| 3 | Authority, Hardee County; amending chapter 2004-394, Laws |
| 4 | of Florida; revising provisions relating to the |
| 5 | authority's purpose and grant application criteria; |
| 6 | correcting cross-references; providing an effective date. |
| 7 |
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| 8 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 9 |
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| 10 | Section 1. Section 1 and paragraph (e) of subsection (2) |
| 11 | of section 7 of chapter 2004-394, Laws of Florida, are amended |
| 12 | to read: |
| 13 | Section 1. Creation.- |
| 14 | (1) The Hardee County Economic Development Authority is |
| 15 | created in accordance with section 211.3103(2)(b)3. |
| 16 | 211.3103(3)(b)3., Florida Statutes, as amended from time to |
| 17 | time, as a body corporate. The powers granted by this act are |
| 18 | declared to be public and governmental functions exercised for |
| 19 | public purposes and are matters of public necessity. |
| 20 | (2) The purpose of the authority is to solicit, rank, and |
| 21 | fund projects that provide economic development opportunities or |
| 22 | and infrastructure within the geographic boundaries of Hardee |
| 23 | County and to otherwise maximize the use of federal, local, and |
| 24 | private resources as provided by section 211.3103(4) |
| 25 | 211.3103(5), Florida Statutes, as amended from time to time, and |
| 26 | for its administrative and other costs as further provided by |
| 27 | this act. |
| 28 | Section 7. Grants; application; review; awards.- |
| 29 | (2) APPLICATION REVIEW.- |
| 30 | (e) Thereafter, the authority shall evaluate each |
| 31 | application based on the criteria relating to the site involved, |
| 32 | the prospective grantee, and the anticipated public benefit as |
| 33 | follows: |
| 34 | 1. Criteria related to the site shall be established by |
| 35 | the authority prior to any solicitation for grant applications. |
| 36 | 2. Criteria related to the grantee: |
| 37 | a. Administrative capability, including personnel, |
| 38 | facilities, and organization, adequate to complete the project |
| 39 | and meet the administrative requirements of the grant. |
| 40 | b. Financial resources adequate to carry project costs as |
| 41 | necessary pending receipt of reimbursements from grant funds. |
| 42 | c. Availability of professional and technical services |
| 43 | required to carry out the project work. |
| 44 | 3. Criteria related to public benefit: |
| 45 | a. Compatibility with countywide economic development and |
| 46 | infrastructure priorities, including equitable geographic and |
| 47 | demographic distribution of available funds. |
| 48 | b. Anticipated economic benefits, including direct impact |
| 49 | on the local economy and the stimulation of additional private- |
| 50 | sector interest and investment in the county. |
| 51 | c. Public use or other public good resulting from the |
| 52 | project. |
| 53 | Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. |