CS/CS/HB 163

1
A bill to be entitled
2An act relating to prepaid wireless telecommunications
3service; amending s. 365.172, F.S.; removing provisions
4for a study of the feasibility of collecting an E911 fee
5on the sale of prepaid wireless telecommunications
6service; prohibiting collection of the fee until after a
7certain date; amending s. 365.173, F.S.; revising a
8limitation on the amount of funds received by a county
9from the E911 fee which may be carried forward to the
10following year; providing an effective date.
11
12Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
13
14     Section 1.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (8) of section
15365.172, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
16     365.172  Emergency communications number "E911."-
17     (8)  E911 FEE.-
18     (a)  Each voice communications services provider shall
19collect the fee described in this subsection. Each provider, as
20part of its monthly billing process, shall bill the fee as
21follows. The fee shall not be assessed on any pay telephone in
22the state.
23     1.  Each local exchange carrier shall bill the fee to the
24local exchange subscribers on a service-identifier basis, up to
25a maximum of 25 access lines per account bill rendered.
26     2.  Except in the case of prepaid wireless service, each
27wireless provider shall bill the fee to a subscriber on a per-
28service-identifier basis for service identifiers whose primary
29place of use is within this state. Before July 1, 2013 2009, the
30fee shall not be assessed on or collected from a provider with
31respect to an end user's service if that end user's service is a
32prepaid calling arrangement that is subject to s. 212.05(1)(e).
33     a.  No E911 fee shall be collected from the sale of prepaid
34wireless service prior to July 1, 2013. The board shall conduct
35a study to determine whether it is feasible to collect E911 fees
36from the sale of prepaid wireless service. If, based on the
37findings of the study, the board determines that a fee should
38not be collected from the sale of prepaid wireless service, it
39shall report its findings and recommendation to the Governor,
40the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of
41Representatives by December 31, 2008. If the board determines
42that a fee should be collected from the sale of prepaid wireless
43service, the board shall collect the fee beginning July 1, 2009.
44     b.  For purposes of this section, the term:
45     (I)  "Prepaid wireless service" means the right to access
46telecommunications services that must be paid for in advance and
47is sold in predetermined units or dollars enabling the
48originator to make calls such that the number of units or
49dollars declines with use in a known amount.
50     (II)  "Prepaid wireless service providers" includes those
51persons who sell prepaid wireless service regardless of its
52form, either as a retailer or reseller.
53     c.  The study must include an evaluation of methods by
54which E911 fees may be collected from end users and purchasers
55of prepaid wireless service on an equitable, efficient,
56competitively neutral, and nondiscriminatory basis and must
57consider whether the collection of fees on prepaid wireless
58service would constitute an efficient use of public funds given
59the technological and practical considerations of collecting the
60fee based on the varying methodologies prepaid wireless service
61providers and their agents use in marketing prepaid wireless
62service.
63     d.  The study must include a review and evaluation of the
64collection of E911 fees on prepaid wireless service at the point
65of sale within the state. This evaluation must be consistent
66with the collection principles of end user charges such as those
67in s. 212.05(1)(e).
68     e.  No later than 90 days after this section becomes law,
69the board shall require all prepaid wireless service providers,
70including resellers, to provide the board with information that
71the board determines is necessary to discharge its duties under
72this section, including information necessary for its
73recommendation, such as total retail and reseller prepaid
74wireless service sales.
75     f.  All subscriber information provided by a prepaid
76wireless service provider in response to a request from the
77board while conducting this study is subject to s. 365.174.
78     g.  The study shall be conducted by an entity competent and
79knowledgeable in matters of state taxation policy if the board
80does not possess that expertise. The study must be paid from the
81moneys distributed to the board for administrative purposes
82under s. 365.173(2)(f) but may not exceed $250,000.
83     3.  All voice communications services providers not
84addressed under subparagraphs 1. and 2. shall bill the fee on a
85per-service-identifier basis for service identifiers whose
86primary place of use is within the state up to a maximum of 25
87service identifiers for each account bill rendered.
88
89The provider may list the fee as a separate entry on each bill,
90in which case the fee must be identified as a fee for E911
91services. A provider shall remit the fee to the board only if
92the fee is paid by the subscriber. If a provider receives a
93partial payment for a monthly bill from a subscriber, the amount
94received shall first be applied to the payment due the provider
95for providing voice communications service.
96     Section 2.  Paragraph (c) of subsection (2) of section
97365.173, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
98     365.173  Emergency Communications Number E911 System Fund.-
99     (2)  As determined by the board pursuant to s.
100365.172(8)(h), and subject to any modifications approved by the
101board pursuant to s. 365.172(6)(a)3. or (8)(i), the moneys in
102the fund shall be distributed and used only as follows:
103     (c)  Any county that receives funds under paragraphs (a)
104and (b) shall establish a fund to be used exclusively for the
105receipt and expenditure of the revenues collected under
106paragraphs (a) and (b). All fees placed in the fund and any
107interest accrued shall be used solely for costs described in
108subparagraphs (a)1. and 2. The money collected and interest
109earned in this fund shall be appropriated for these purposes by
110the county commissioners and incorporated into the annual county
111budget. The fund shall be included within the financial audit
112performed in accordance with s. 218.39. A county may carry
113forward up to 30 20 percent of the total funds disbursed to the
114county by the board during a calendar year for expenditures for
115capital outlay, capital improvements, or equipment replacement,
116if such expenditures are made for the purposes specified in
117subparagraphs (a)1. and 2.; however, the 30-percent 20-percent
118limitation does not apply to funds disbursed to a county under
119s. 365.172(6)(a)3., and a county may carry forward any
120percentage of the funds, except that any grant provided shall
121continue to be subject to any condition imposed by the board. In
122order to prevent an excess recovery of costs incurred in
123providing E911 service, a county that receives funds greater
124than the permissible E911 costs described in s. 365.172(9),
125including the 30-percent 20 percent carryforward allowance, must
126return the excess funds to the E911 board to be allocated under
127s. 365.172(6)(a).
128
129The Legislature recognizes that the fee authorized under s.
130365.172 may not necessarily provide the total funding required
131for establishing or providing the E911 service. It is the intent
132of the Legislature that all revenue from the fee be used as
133specified in this subsection.
134     Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.


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