Florida Senate - 2015 CS for SB 1114
By the Committee on Community Affairs; and Senator Stargel
578-02391-15 20151114c1
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to membership associations that
3 receive public funds; creating s. 617.221, F.S.;
4 defining the term “membership association”; requiring
5 a membership association that receives a specified
6 percentage of its budget from public funds to file an
7 annual report with the Legislature; requiring that
8 such a report provide specified information;
9 prohibiting a membership association from expending
10 public funds on litigation against the state;
11 providing an effective date.
12
13 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
14
15 Section 1. Section 617.221, Florida Statutes, is created to
16 read:
17 617.221 Membership associations that receive public funds;
18 reporting requirements; restriction on use of funds.—
19 (1) As used in this section, the term “membership
20 association” means a corporation not for profit, including a
21 department or division of such corporation, whose membership
22 includes a majority of elected or appointed public officers, as
23 defined in s. 112.313(1), and which receives 25 percent or more
24 of its annual revenue from public funds, as defined in s.
25 215.85(3). The term does not include a labor organization as
26 defined in s. 447.02.
27 (2) A membership association shall file a report with the
28 President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of
29 Representatives by January 1 of each year. The report must
30 include:
31 (a) The name and address of the membership association and
32 any parent membership association or any state, national, or
33 international membership association affiliate.
34 (b) The names, titles, telephone numbers, and addresses of
35 the principal officers and all representatives of the membership
36 association.
37 (c) The fee required to become a member of the membership
38 association, if any, and the annual dues that each member must
39 pay.
40 (d) The latest annual financial statements of the
41 membership association as described in s. 617.1605.
42 (e) A copy of the current constitution and bylaws of the
43 membership association.
44 (f) The assets and liabilities of the membership
45 association at the beginning and end of the preceding fiscal
46 year.
47 (g) The salary, allowances, and other direct or indirect
48 disbursements, including reimbursed expenses, to each officer
49 and to each employee who, during the preceding fiscal year,
50 received more than $10,000 total from the membership association
51 and any other state, national, or international membership
52 association affiliate.
53 (h) The annual dollar amount of the following benefit
54 packages paid to each of the principal officers of the
55 membership association:
56 1. Health, major medical, vision, dental, and life
57 insurance.
58 2. Retirement plans.
59 3. Automobile allowances.
60 (i) The amount of annual dues for each member sent from the
61 membership association to each state, national, or international
62 affiliate.
63 (j) The total amount of direct or indirect disbursements
64 for lobbying activity at the federal, state, or local level
65 incurred by the membership association, listed by the full name
66 and address of each person who received a disbursement.
67 (k) The total amount of direct or indirect disbursements
68 for litigation expenses incurred by the membership association,
69 listed by case citation.
70 (3) A membership association may not expend moneys received
71 from public funds on litigation against the state.
72 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2015.