Florida Senate - 2015 SB 668
By Senator Latvala
20-00566-15 2015668__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to the emergency fire rescue services
3 and facilities surtax; amending s. 212.055, F.S.;
4 revising the distribution of surtax proceeds; deleting
5 a provision requiring the county governing authority
6 to develop and execute interlocal agreements with
7 local government entities providing emergency fire and
8 rescue services; requiring a local government entity
9 requesting and receiving certain personnel or
10 equipment from another service provider to pay for
11 such personnel or equipment from its share of surtax
12 proceeds; deleting a requirement that surtaxes
13 collected in excess of projected collections be
14 applied as a rebate to the final millage; deleting a
15 provision requiring local government entities to enter
16 into an interlocal agreement in order to receive
17 surtax proceeds; providing an effective date.
18
19 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
20
21 Section 1. Paragraphs (b) through (j) of subsection (8) of
22 section 212.055, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
23 212.055 Discretionary sales surtaxes; legislative intent;
24 authorization and use of proceeds.—It is the legislative intent
25 that any authorization for imposition of a discretionary sales
26 surtax shall be published in the Florida Statutes as a
27 subsection of this section, irrespective of the duration of the
28 levy. Each enactment shall specify the types of counties
29 authorized to levy; the rate or rates which may be imposed; the
30 maximum length of time the surtax may be imposed, if any; the
31 procedure which must be followed to secure voter approval, if
32 required; the purpose for which the proceeds may be expended;
33 and such other requirements as the Legislature may provide.
34 Taxable transactions and administrative procedures shall be as
35 provided in s. 212.054.
36 (8) EMERGENCY FIRE RESCUE SERVICES AND FACILITIES SURTAX.—
37 (b) Upon the adoption of the ordinance, the levy of the
38 surtax must be placed on the ballot by the governing authority
39 of the county enacting the ordinance. The ordinance will take
40 effect if approved by a majority of the electors of the county
41 voting in a referendum held for such purpose. The referendum
42 shall be placed on the ballot of a regularly scheduled election.
43 The ballot for the referendum must conform to the requirements
44 of s. 101.161. The interlocal agreement required under paragraph
45 (d) is a condition precedent to holding the referendum.
46 (c) Pursuant to s. 212.054(4), the proceeds of the
47 discretionary sales surtax collected under this subsection, less
48 an administrative fee that may be retained by the Department of
49 Revenue, shall be distributed by the department to the county.
50 The county shall distribute the proceeds it receives from the
51 department to each local government entity providing emergency
52 fire rescue services in the county. The surtax proceeds, less an
53 administrative fee not to exceed 2 percent of the surtax
54 collected, shall be distributed by the county based on the
55 proportion of each entity’s average annual expenditures of ad
56 valorem taxes and non-ad valorem assessments for fire control
57 and emergency fire rescue services in the preceding 5 fiscal
58 years to the average annual total of the expenditures for all
59 entities receiving such proceeds in the preceding 5 fiscal years
60 the participating jurisdictions that have entered into an
61 interlocal agreement with the county under this subsection. The
62 county may also charge an administrative fee for receiving and
63 distributing the surtax in the amount of the actual costs
64 incurred, not to exceed 2 percent of the surtax collected.
65 (d) If a local government entity requests The county
66 governing authority must develop and execute an interlocal
67 agreement with participating jurisdictions, which are the
68 governing bodies of municipalities, dependent special districts,
69 independent special districts, or municipal service taxing units
70 that provide emergency fire and rescue services within the
71 county. The interlocal agreement must include a majority of the
72 service providers in the county.
73 1. The interlocal agreement shall only specify that:
74 a. The amount of the surtax proceeds to be distributed by
75 the county to each participating jurisdiction is based on the
76 actual amounts collected within each participating jurisdiction
77 as determined by the Department of Revenue’s population
78 allocations in accordance with s. 218.62; or
79 b. If a county has special fire control districts and
80 rescue districts within its boundary, the county shall
81 distribute the surtax proceeds among the county and the
82 participating municipalities or special fire control and rescue
83 districts based on the proportion of each entity’s expenditures
84 of ad valorem taxes and non-ad valorem assessments for fire
85 control and emergency rescue services in each of the immediately
86 preceding 5 fiscal years to the total of the expenditures for
87 all participating entities.
88 2. Each participating jurisdiction shall agree that if a
89 participating jurisdiction is requested to provide personnel or
90 equipment from to any other service provider, on a long-term
91 basis and the personnel or equipment is provided pursuant to an
92 interlocal agreement, the local government entity jurisdiction
93 providing the service is entitled to payment from the requesting
94 service provider from that provider’s share of the surtax
95 proceeds for all costs of the equipment or personnel.
96 (e) Upon the surtax taking effect and initiation of
97 collections, each local government entity receiving a share of
98 surtax proceeds a county and any participating jurisdiction
99 entering into the interlocal agreement shall reduce the ad
100 valorem tax levy or any non-ad valorem assessment for fire
101 control and emergency rescue services in its next and subsequent
102 budgets by the estimated amount of revenue provided by the
103 surtax.
104 (f) Use of surtax proceeds authorized under this subsection
105 does not relieve a local government from complying with the
106 provisions of chapter 200 and any related provision of law that
107 establishes millage caps or limits undesignated budget reserves
108 and procedures for establishing rollback rates for ad valorem
109 taxes and budget adoption. If surtax collections exceed
110 projected collections in any fiscal year, any surplus
111 distribution shall be used to further reduce ad valorem taxes in
112 the next fiscal year. These proceeds shall be applied as a
113 rebate to the final millage, after the TRIM notice is completed
114 in accordance with this provision.
115 (g) Municipalities, special fire control and rescue
116 districts, and contract service providers that do not enter into
117 an interlocal agreement are not entitled to receive a portion of
118 the proceeds of the surtax collected under this subsection and
119 are not required to reduce ad valorem taxes or non-ad valorem
120 assessments pursuant to paragraph (e).
121 (h) The provisions of sub-subparagraph (d)1.a. and
122 subparagraph (d)2. do not apply if:
123 1. There is an interlocal agreement with the county and one
124 or more participating jurisdictions which prohibits one or more
125 jurisdictions from providing the same level of service for
126 prehospital emergency medical treatment within the prohibited
127 participating jurisdictions’ boundaries; or
128 2. The county has issued a certificate of public
129 convenience and necessity or its equivalent to a county
130 department or a dependent special district of the county.
131 (g)(i) Surtax collections shall be initiated on January 1
132 of the year following a successful referendum in order to
133 coincide with s. 212.054(5).
134 (h)(j) Notwithstanding s. 212.054, if a multicounty
135 independent special district created pursuant to chapter 67-764,
136 Laws of Florida, levies ad valorem taxes on district property to
137 fund emergency fire rescue services within the district and is
138 required by s. 2, Art. VII of the State Constitution to maintain
139 a uniform ad valorem tax rate throughout the district, the
140 county may not levy the discretionary sales surtax authorized by
141 this subsection within the boundaries of the district.
142 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2015.