Florida Senate - 2020                      CS for CS for SB 1258
       
       
        
       By the Committees on Rules; and Community Affairs; and Senators
       Diaz and Baxley
       
       
       
       
       595-04468-20                                          20201258c2
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to commercial service airports;
    3         amending s. 11.45, F.S.; directing the Auditor General
    4         to conduct specified audits of certain airports;
    5         defining the term “large-hub commercial service
    6         airport”; amending s. 112.3144, F.S.; requiring
    7         members of the governing body of a large-hub
    8         commercial service airport to comply with certain
    9         financial disclosure requirements; defining the term
   10         “large-hub commercial service airport”; creating s.
   11         332.0075, F.S.; providing definitions; requiring the
   12         governing body of a municipality, county, or special
   13         district that operates a commercial service airport to
   14         establish and maintain a website; requiring the
   15         governing body to post or provide links to certain
   16         information on the website; requiring the posting of
   17         specified contracts; providing for the redaction of
   18         confidential and exempt information; requiring
   19         commercial service airports to comply with certain
   20         contracting requirements; providing exceptions;
   21         requiring the governing body to approve, award, or
   22         ratify certain contracts; requiring members of the
   23         governing body of a commercial service airport to
   24         comply with certain ethics requirements and complete
   25         annual ethics training; requiring governing bodies of
   26         commercial service airports to submit certain
   27         information annually to the Department of
   28         Transportation; requiring the department to review
   29         such information and submit an annual report to the
   30         Governor and the Legislature; prohibiting the
   31         department’s expenditure of certain funds unless
   32         specified conditions are met; providing an effective
   33         date.
   34          
   35  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   36  
   37         Section 1. Paragraph (m) is added to subsection (2) of
   38  section 11.45, Florida Statutes, to read:
   39         11.45 Definitions; duties; authorities; reports; rules.—
   40         (2) DUTIES.—The Auditor General shall:
   41         (m)At least once every 7 years, conduct an operational and
   42  financial audit of each large-hub commercial service airport.
   43  Each operational audit shall include, at a minimum, an
   44  assessment of compliance with s. 332.0075, including compliance
   45  with chapter 287, and compliance with the public records and
   46  public meetings laws of this state. For purposes of this
   47  paragraph, the term “large-hub commercial service airport” means
   48  a publicly owned airport that has at least 1 percent of the
   49  annual passenger boardings in the United States as reported by
   50  the Federal Aviation Administration.
   51  
   52  The Auditor General shall perform his or her duties
   53  independently but under the general policies established by the
   54  Legislative Auditing Committee. This subsection does not limit
   55  the Auditor General’s discretionary authority to conduct other
   56  audits or engagements of governmental entities as authorized in
   57  subsection (3).
   58         Section 2. Paragraph (c) is added to subsection (1) of
   59  section 112.3144, Florida Statutes, to read:
   60         112.3144 Full and public disclosure of financial
   61  interests.—
   62         (1)
   63         (c) Each member of the governing body of a large-hub
   64  commercial service airport, except for members required to
   65  comply with the financial disclosure requirements of s. 8, Art.
   66  II of the State Constitution, shall comply with the financial
   67  disclosure requirements of s. 112.3145(3). For purposes of this
   68  paragraph, the term “large-hub commercial service airport” means
   69  a publicly owned airport that has at least 1 percent of the
   70  annual passenger boardings in the United States as reported by
   71  the Federal Aviation Administration.
   72         Section 3. Section 332.0075, Florida Statutes, is created
   73  to read:
   74         332.0075Commercial service airports; transparency and
   75  accountability; penalty.—
   76         (1)As used in this section, the term:
   77         (a)“Commercial service airport” means a primary airport,
   78  as defined in 49 U.S.C. s. 47102, that is classified as a large
   79  , medium-, or small-hub airport by the Federal Aviation
   80  Administration.
   81         (b)“Department” means the Department of Transportation.
   82         (c)“Governing body” means the governing body of the
   83  county, municipality, or special district that operates a
   84  commercial service airport.
   85         (2)Each governing body shall establish and maintain a
   86  website to post information relating to the operation of a
   87  commercial service airport, including:
   88         (a)All published notices of meetings and published meeting
   89  agendas of the governing body.
   90         (b)The official minutes of each meeting of the governing
   91  body, which shall be posted within 7 business days after the
   92  date of the meeting in which the minutes were approved.
   93         (c)The approved budget for the commercial service airport
   94  for the current fiscal year, which shall be posted within 7
   95  business days after the date of adoption. Budgets must remain on
   96  the website for 2 years after the conclusion of the fiscal year
   97  for which they were adopted.
   98         (d)A link to the airport master plan for the commercial
   99  service airport on the Federal Aviation Administration’s
  100  website.
  101         (e)A link to all financial and statistical reports for the
  102  commercial service airport on the Federal Aviation
  103  Administration’s website.
  104         (f)Any contract or contract amendment executed by or on
  105  behalf of the commercial service airport in excess of $100,000,
  106  shall be posted no later than 7 business days after the
  107  commercial service airport executes the contract or contract
  108  amendment. However, a contract or contract amendment may not
  109  reveal information made confidential or exempt by law. Each
  110  commercial service airport must redact confidential or exempt
  111  information from each contract or contract amendment before
  112  posting a copy on its website.
  113         (g)Position and rate information for each employee of the
  114  commercial service airport, including, at a minimum, the
  115  employee’s position title, position description, and annual or
  116  hourly salary.
  117         (3)(a)Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the
  118  contrary, commercial service airports are subject to the
  119  requirements of chapter 287 for purchases of commodities or
  120  contractual services that exceed $100,000. If the purchase of
  121  commodities or contractual services exceeds $100,000, the
  122  purchase of commodities or contractual services may not be made
  123  without receiving competitive sealed bids, competitive sealed
  124  proposals, or competitive sealed replies unless an exception
  125  applies as provided in s. 287.057(3) or an immediate danger to
  126  the public health, safety, or welfare, or other substantial loss
  127  to the commercial service airport requires emergency action. In
  128  making purchases or conducting a competitive solicitation
  129  pursuant to this section, a commercial service airport is
  130  authorized to enact or adopt criteria, standards, preferences,
  131  or policies for the promotion of small or locally owned
  132  businesses, or otherwise apply such criteria, standards,
  133  preferences, or policies otherwise generally applicable to
  134  competitive solicitations of the political subdivision owning
  135  and operating such commercial service airport, and may impose
  136  contract provisions necessary to address local economic
  137  conditions or local regulatory requirements.
  138         (b)A governing body must approve, award, or ratify all
  139  contracts executed by or on behalf of a commercial service
  140  airport in excess of the threshold amount provided in s. 287.017
  141  for CATEGORY FIVE as a separate line item on the agenda and must
  142  provide a reasonable opportunity for public comment. Such
  143  contracts may not be approved, awarded, or ratified as part of a
  144  consent agenda.
  145         (4)(a)Members of a governing body and employees of a
  146  commercial service airport are subject to part III of chapter
  147  112. However, this paragraph does not prohibit the application
  148  of more stringent ethical standards adopted by county or
  149  municipal charter, ordinance, or resolution of the governing
  150  body for its members and employees.
  151         (b)Beginning January 1, 2021, each member of a governing
  152  body must complete 4 hours of ethics training each calendar year
  153  which addresses, at a minimum, s. 8, Art. II of the State
  154  Constitution, the Code of Ethics for Public Officers and
  155  Employees, and the public records and public meetings laws of
  156  this state. This requirement may be satisfied by completion of a
  157  continuing legal education class or other continuing
  158  professional education class, seminar, or presentation if the
  159  required subject material is covered therein. Constitutional
  160  officers and elected municipal officers who are members of the
  161  governing body who complete the ethics training required in s.
  162  112.3142 shall be considered in compliance with this paragraph.
  163         (5)(a)Beginning November 1, 2021, and each November 1
  164  thereafter, the governing body of each commercial service
  165  airport shall submit the following information to the
  166  department:
  167         1.Its approved budget for the current fiscal year.
  168         2.Any financial reports submitted to the Federal Aviation
  169  Administration during the previous calendar year.
  170         3.A link to its website.
  171         4.A statement, verified as provided in s. 92.525, that it
  172  has complied with part III of chapter 112, chapter 287, and this
  173  section.
  174         (b)The department shall review the information submitted
  175  by the commercial service airport and posted on the airport’s
  176  website to determine the accuracy of such information. Beginning
  177  January 15, 2022, and each January 15 thereafter, the department
  178  shall submit to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and
  179  the Speaker of the House of Representatives a report summarizing
  180  commercial service airport compliance with this section.
  181         (6)The department may not expend any funds allocated to a
  182  commercial service airport as contained in the adopted work
  183  program, unless pledged for debt service, until the commercial
  184  service airport demonstrates its compliance with this section.
  185         Section 4. This act shall take effect October 1, 2020.