Florida Senate - 2016 SB 1552 By Senator Altman 16-01155-16 20161552__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to tolls; amending s. 338.155, F.S.; 3 requiring a toll facility to ensure the presence of 4 signage notifying drivers if cash payment is not an 5 option; creating s. 338.163, F.S.; authorizing a 6 rental car company to charge a renter an amount in 7 addition to the toll charge incurred by the renter 8 under certain circumstances; providing limitations to 9 the additional charge; providing an effective date. 10 11 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 12 13 Section 1. Section 338.155, Florida Statutes, is amended to 14 read: 15 338.155 Payment of toll on toll facilities required; 16 exemptions; signage required.— 17 (1) A person may not use any toll facility without payment 18 of tolls, except employees of the agency operating the toll 19 project when using the toll facility on official state business, 20 state military personnel while on official military business, 21 handicapped persons as provided in this section, persons exempt 22 from toll payment by the authorizing resolution for bonds issued 23 to finance the facility, and persons exempt on a temporary basis 24 where use of such toll facility is required as a detour route. 25 Any law enforcement officer operating a marked official vehicle 26 is exempt from toll payment when on official law enforcement 27 business. Any person operating a fire vehicle when on official 28 business or a rescue vehicle when on official business is exempt 29 from toll payment. Any person participating in the funeral 30 procession of a law enforcement officer or firefighter killed in 31 the line of duty is exempt from toll payment. The secretary or 32 the secretary’s designee may suspend the payment of tolls on a 33 toll facility when necessary to assist in emergency evacuation. 34 The failure to pay a prescribed toll constitutes a noncriminal 35 traffic infraction, punishable as a moving violation as provided 36 in s. 318.18. The department may adopt rules relating to the 37 payment, collection, and enforcement of tolls, as authorized in 38 this chapter and chapters 316, 318, 320, and 322, including, but 39 not limited to, rules for the implementation of video or other 40 image billing and variable pricing. With respect to toll 41 facilities managed by the department, the revenues of which are 42 not pledged to repayment of bonds, the department may by rule 43 allow the use of such facilities by public transit vehicles or 44 by vehicles participating in a funeral procession for an active 45 duty military service member without the payment of tolls. 46 (2) Any person driving an automobile or other vehicle 47 belonging to the Department of Military Affairs used for 48 transporting military personnel, stores, and property, when 49 properly identified, shall, together with any such conveyance 50 and military personnel and property of the state in his or her 51 charge, be allowed to pass free through all tollgates and over 52 all toll bridges and ferries in this state. 53 (3) Any handicapped person who has a valid driver license, 54 who operates a vehicle specially equipped for use by the 55 handicapped, and who is certified by a physician licensed under 56 chapter 458 or chapter 459 or by comparable licensing in another 57 state or by the Adjudication Office of the United States 58 Department of Veterans Affairs or its predecessor as being 59 severely physically disabled and having permanent upper limb 60 mobility or dexterity impairments which substantially impair the 61 person’s ability to deposit coins in toll baskets, shall be 62 allowed to pass free through all tollgates and over all toll 63 bridges and ferries in this state. A person who meets the 64 requirements of this subsection shall, upon application, be 65 issued a vehicle window sticker by the Department of 66 Transportation. 67 (4) A copy of this section shall be posted at each toll 68 bridge and on each ferry. 69 (5) The Department of Transportation shall provide 70 envelopes for voluntary payments of tolls by those persons 71 exempted from the payment of tolls pursuant to this section. The 72 department shall accept any voluntary payments made by exempt 73 persons. 74 (6) Personal identifying information held by the Department 75 of Transportation, a county, a municipality, or an expressway 76 authority for the purpose of paying, prepaying, or collecting 77 tolls and associated administrative charges due for the use of 78 toll facilities is exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 24(a), Art. I 79 of the State Constitution. This exemption applies to such 80 information held by the Department of Transportation, a county, 81 a municipality, or an expressway authority before, on, or after 82 the effective date of the exemption. This subsection is subject 83 to the Open Government Sunset Review Act in accordance with s. 84 119.15 and shall stand repealed on October 2, 2019, unless 85 reviewed and saved from repeal through reenactment by the 86 Legislature. 87 (7) A toll facility must ensure the presence of signage 88 notifying drivers if cash payment of the applicable toll at such 89 facility is not an available option. 90 Section 2. Section 338.163, Florida Statutes, is created to 91 read: 92 338.163 Rental car companies; charges for tolls.—A rental 93 car company may charge a renter up to $10 in addition to the 94 toll charge incurred by the renter while using an electronic 95 toll collection system and driving a rental car equipped with a 96 transponder or similar electronic tolling device that is 97 provided by the rental car company. The rental car company may 98 not assess the additional charge more than once per day and may 99 only assess the charge on a day that a toll is incurred. 100 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2016.