Florida Senate - 2025 CS for CS for SB 818
By the Committees on Rules; and Transportation; and Senator
McClain
595-03656-25 2025818c2
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to utility relocation; amending s.
3 202.18, F.S.; requiring that a specified percentage of
4 a local communications services tax levied by
5 municipalities and counties be distributed to the
6 Department of Commerce to fund the Utility Relocation
7 Reimbursement Grant Program; creating the program
8 within the department; providing the purpose of the
9 program; requiring the Department of Revenue to
10 deposit certain proceeds into an account to fund the
11 program beginning on a certain date; requiring the
12 Department of Commerce to establish program
13 requirements by rule; authorizing certain uses of
14 program funds; exempting program funds from a certain
15 service charge; providing that interest earned on
16 program funds accrues to the program’s fund; amending
17 s. 337.403, F.S.; requiring a service provider to
18 perform communications services facility relocation
19 work under certain circumstances; requiring an
20 authority to pay the expense properly attributable to
21 such work; providing an exception for county and
22 municipal authorities; authorizing a service provider
23 to apply to the Utility Relocation Reimbursement Grant
24 Program for reimbursement of relocation expenses;
25 requiring a department to notify certain providers of
26 communications services of certain projects within a
27 specified timeframe; defining the term “department”;
28 providing notification requirements; requiring a
29 provider to respond to the notification with certain
30 information within a specified timeframe; requiring a
31 department to provide a reasonable offer for joint
32 participation in certain relocation costs under
33 certain conditions; providing construction; amending
34 s. 125.42, F.S.; conforming a cross-reference;
35 providing a finding and declaration of important state
36 interest; providing an effective date.
37
38 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
39
40 Section 1. Paragraphs (a) and (c) of subsection (3) of
41 section 202.18, Florida Statutes, are amended, and subsection
42 (4) is added to that section, to read:
43 202.18 Allocation and disposition of tax proceeds.—The
44 proceeds of the communications services taxes remitted under
45 this chapter shall be treated as follows:
46 (3)(a) Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the
47 proceeds of each local communications services tax levied by a
48 municipality or county pursuant to s. 202.19(1) or s. 202.20(1),
49 less 7.5 percent distributed to the Department of Commerce to
50 fund the Utility Relocation Reimbursement Grant Program created
51 in subsection (4) and less the department’s costs of
52 administration, shall be transferred to the Local Communications
53 Services Tax Clearing Trust Fund and held there to be
54 distributed to such municipality or county. However, the
55 proceeds of any communications services tax imposed pursuant to
56 s. 202.19(5) shall be deposited and disbursed in accordance with
57 ss. 212.054 and 212.055. For purposes of this section, the
58 proceeds of any tax levied by a municipality, county, or school
59 board under s. 202.19(1) or s. 202.20(1) are all funds collected
60 and received by the department pursuant to a specific levy
61 authorized by such sections, including any interest and
62 penalties attributable to the tax levy.
63 (c)1. Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph,
64 proceeds of the taxes levied pursuant to s. 202.19, less 7.5
65 percent distributed to the Department of Commerce to fund the
66 Utility Relocation Reimbursement Grant Program created in
67 subsection (4) and less amounts deducted for costs of
68 administration in accordance with paragraph (b), shall be
69 distributed monthly to the appropriate jurisdictions. The
70 proceeds of taxes imposed pursuant to s. 202.19(5) shall be
71 distributed in the same manner as discretionary surtaxes are
72 distributed, in accordance with ss. 212.054 and 212.055.
73 2. The department shall make any adjustments to the
74 distributions pursuant to this section which are necessary to
75 reflect the proper amounts due to individual jurisdictions or
76 trust funds. In the event that the department adjusts amounts
77 due to reflect a correction in the situsing of a customer, such
78 adjustment shall be limited to the amount of tax actually
79 collected from such customer by the dealer of communication
80 services.
81 3.a. Adjustments in distributions which are necessary to
82 correct misallocations between jurisdictions shall be governed
83 by this subparagraph. If the department determines that
84 misallocations between jurisdictions occurred, it shall provide
85 written notice of such determination to all affected
86 jurisdictions. The notice shall include the amount of the
87 misallocations, the basis upon which the determination was made,
88 data supporting the determination, and the identity of each
89 affected jurisdiction. The notice shall also inform all affected
90 jurisdictions of their authority to enter into a written
91 agreement establishing a method of adjustment as described in
92 sub-subparagraph c.
93 b. An adjustment affecting a distribution to a jurisdiction
94 which is less than 90 percent of the average monthly
95 distribution to that jurisdiction for the 6 months immediately
96 preceding the department’s determination, as reported by all
97 communications services dealers, shall be made in the month
98 immediately following the department’s determination that
99 misallocations occurred.
100 c. If an adjustment affecting a distribution to a
101 jurisdiction equals or exceeds 90 percent of the average monthly
102 distribution to that jurisdiction for the 6 months immediately
103 preceding the department’s determination, as reported by all
104 communications services dealers, the affected jurisdictions may
105 enter into a written agreement establishing a method of
106 adjustment. If the agreement establishing a method of adjustment
107 provides for payments of local communications services tax
108 monthly distributions, the amount of any such payment agreed to
109 may not exceed the local communications services tax monthly
110 distributions available to the jurisdiction that was allocated
111 amounts in excess of those to which it was entitled. If affected
112 jurisdictions execute a written agreement specifying a method of
113 adjustment, a copy of the written agreement shall be provided to
114 the department no later than the first day of the month
115 following 90 days after the date the department transmits notice
116 of the misallocation. If the department does not receive a copy
117 of the written agreement within the specified time period, an
118 adjustment affecting a distribution to a jurisdiction made
119 pursuant to this sub-subparagraph shall be prorated over a time
120 period that equals the time period over which the misallocations
121 occurred.
122 (4) There is created within the Department of Commerce a
123 Utility Relocation Reimbursement Grant Program. The purpose of
124 the program is to reimburse providers of communications services
125 which are subject to this chapter for eligible costs incurred in
126 relocating facilities at the request of a county or municipal
127 authority.
128 (a) Beginning October 1, 2025, the department shall deposit
129 the proceeds to be distributed to the Department of Commerce
130 under subsection (3) into an account to fund the Utility
131 Relocation Reimbursement Grant Program. The department shall
132 ensure the transfer of such funds on a monthly basis.
133 (b) The Department of Commerce shall establish by rule all
134 of the following:
135 1. The criteria and process by which service providers may
136 apply for reimbursement.
137 2. The minimum documentation required to verify eligible
138 relocation costs, which may not be excessive or burdensome.
139 3. The timeline for application review and reimbursement
140 disbursement, which may not exceed 90 days from submission.
141 (c) Program funds may be used only to reimburse actual,
142 documented expenses directly attributable to the physical
143 relocation of facilities required by a county or municipal
144 authority. Reimbursement may not be made to a service provider
145 for indirect or administrative costs.
146 (d) Program funds are exempt from s. 215.20 and any
147 interest earnings shall accrue to the program’s fund.
148 Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 337.403, Florida
149 Statutes, is amended, and subsection (4) is added to that
150 section, to read:
151 337.403 Interference caused by utility; expenses.—
152 (1) If a utility that is placed upon, under, over, or
153 within the right-of-way limits of any public road or publicly
154 owned rail corridor is found by the authority to be unreasonably
155 interfering in any way with the convenient, safe, or continuous
156 use, or the maintenance, improvement, extension, or expansion,
157 of such public road or publicly owned rail corridor, the utility
158 owner must shall, within 30 days after upon 30 days’ written
159 notice to the utility or its agent by the authority, initiate
160 the work necessary to alleviate the interference at its own
161 expense except as provided in paragraphs (a)-(k) (a)-(j). The
162 work must be completed within such reasonable time as stated in
163 the notice or such time as agreed to by the authority and the
164 utility owner.
165 (a) If the relocation of utility facilities, as referred to
166 in s. 111 of the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956, Pub. L. No.
167 84-627, is necessitated by the construction of a project on the
168 federal-aid interstate system, including extensions thereof
169 within urban areas, and the cost of the project is eligible and
170 approved for reimbursement by the Federal Government to the
171 extent of 90 percent or more under the Federal-Aid Highway Act,
172 or any amendment thereof, then in that event the utility owning
173 or operating such facilities must shall perform any necessary
174 work upon notice from the department, and the state must shall
175 pay the entire expense properly attributable to such work after
176 deducting therefrom any increase in the value of a new facility
177 and any salvage value derived from an old facility.
178 (b) When a joint agreement between the department and the
179 utility is executed for utility work to be accomplished as part
180 of a contract for construction of a transportation facility, the
181 department may participate in those utility work costs that
182 exceed the department’s official estimate of the cost of the
183 work by more than 10 percent. The amount of such participation
184 is limited to the difference between the official estimate of
185 all the work in the joint agreement plus 10 percent and the
186 amount awarded for this work in the construction contract for
187 such work. The department may not participate in any utility
188 work costs that occur as a result of changes or additions during
189 the course of the contract.
190 (c) When an agreement between the department and utility is
191 executed for utility work to be accomplished in advance of a
192 contract for construction of a transportation facility, the
193 department may participate in the cost of clearing and grubbing
194 necessary to perform such work.
195 (d) If the utility facility was initially installed to
196 exclusively serve the authority or its tenants, or both, the
197 authority must shall bear the costs of the utility work.
198 However, the authority is not responsible for the cost of
199 utility work related to any subsequent additions to that
200 facility for the purpose of serving others. For a county or
201 municipality, if such utility facility was installed in the
202 right-of-way as a means to serve a county or municipal facility
203 on a parcel of property adjacent to the right-of-way and if the
204 intended use of the county or municipal facility is for a use
205 other than transportation purposes, the obligation of the county
206 or municipality to bear the costs of the utility work shall
207 extend only to utility work on the parcel of property on which
208 the facility of the county or municipality originally served by
209 the utility facility is located.
210 (e) If, under an agreement between a utility and the
211 authority entered into after July 1, 2009, the utility conveys,
212 subordinates, or relinquishes a compensable property right to
213 the authority for the purpose of accommodating the acquisition
214 or use of the right-of-way by the authority, without the
215 agreement expressly addressing future responsibility for the
216 cost of necessary utility work, the authority must shall bear
217 the cost of removal or relocation. This paragraph does not
218 impair or restrict, and may not be used to interpret, the terms
219 of any such agreement entered into before July 1, 2009.
220 (f) If the utility is an electric facility being relocated
221 underground in order to enhance vehicular, bicycle, and
222 pedestrian safety and in which ownership of the electric
223 facility to be placed underground has been transferred from a
224 private to a public utility within the past 5 years, the
225 department must shall incur all costs of the necessary utility
226 work.
227 (g) An authority may bear the costs of utility work
228 required to eliminate an unreasonable interference when the
229 utility is not able to establish that it has a compensable
230 property right in the particular property where the utility is
231 located if:
232 1. The utility was physically located on the particular
233 property before the authority acquired rights in the property;
234 2. The utility demonstrates that it has a compensable
235 property right in adjacent properties along the alignment of the
236 utility or, after due diligence, certifies that the utility does
237 not have evidence to prove or disprove that it has a compensable
238 property right in the particular property where the utility is
239 located; and
240 3. The information available to the authority does not
241 establish the relative priorities of the authority’s and the
242 utility’s interests in the particular property.
243 (h) If a municipally owned utility or county-owned utility
244 is located in a rural area of opportunity, as defined in s.
245 288.0656(2), and the department determines that the utility is
246 unable, and will not be able within the next 10 years, to pay
247 for the cost of utility work necessitated by a department
248 project on the State Highway System, the department may pay, in
249 whole or in part, the cost of such utility work performed by the
250 department or its contractor.
251 (i) If the relocation of utility facilities is necessitated
252 by the construction of a commuter rail service project or an
253 intercity passenger rail service project and the cost of the
254 project is eligible and approved for reimbursement by the
255 Federal Government, then in that event the utility owning or
256 operating such facilities located by permit on a department
257 owned rail corridor must shall perform any necessary utility
258 relocation work upon notice from the department, and the
259 department must shall pay the expense properly attributable to
260 such utility relocation work in the same proportion as federal
261 funds are expended on the commuter rail service project or an
262 intercity passenger rail service project after deducting
263 therefrom any increase in the value of a new facility and any
264 salvage value derived from an old facility. In no event is shall
265 the state be required to use state dollars for such utility
266 relocation work. This paragraph does not apply to any phase of
267 the Central Florida Commuter Rail project, known as SunRail.
268 (j) If a utility is lawfully located within an existing and
269 valid utility easement granted by recorded plat, regardless of
270 whether such land was subsequently acquired by the authority by
271 dedication, transfer of fee, or otherwise, the authority must
272 bear the cost of the utility work required to eliminate an
273 unreasonable interference. The authority shall pay the entire
274 expense properly attributable to such work after deducting any
275 increase in the value of a new facility and any salvage value
276 derived from an old facility.
277 (k)1. Except as provided in subparagraph 2., if the
278 authority requires a provider of communications services which
279 is subject to chapter 202 to relocate a facility used to provide
280 such communications services, the service provider owning or
281 operating such facility must perform any necessary work upon
282 notice from the authority. The authority requiring the
283 relocation shall pay the entire expense properly attributable to
284 such work.
285 2. If a county or municipal authority requires a provider
286 of communications services which is subject to chapter 202 to
287 relocate a facility used to provide such communications
288 services, the service provider owning or operating such facility
289 must perform any necessary work upon notice from the authority.
290 The county or municipal authority requiring such relocation is
291 not responsible for paying the expense of such work. The service
292 provider may apply for reimbursement of relocation expenses from
293 the Utility Relocation Reimbursement Grant Program pursuant to
294 s. 202.18(4), subject to the availability of funds and in
295 compliance with the requirements of the program.
296 (4) Notwithstanding paragraph (1)(k), a department shall
297 notify providers of communications services that are subject to
298 chapter 202 which have permitted infrastructure within a planned
299 or existing public right-of-way within 90 days after a project
300 is added to the department’s project schedule which may require
301 the provider to relocate its infrastructure for roadway
302 improvements to increase safety or reduce congestion. For
303 purposes of this subsection, the term “department” means the
304 Department of Transportation or an agency of the state created
305 under chapter 348 or chapter 349.
306 (a) The notification provided under this subsection must
307 include an estimated project schedule and timeline, including
308 the anticipated year of construction.
309 (b) Within 90 days after receipt of the notification, the
310 provider shall respond to the department with an estimated
311 timeframe and project cost for the relocation of the provider’s
312 infrastructure. The response must include a draft relocation
313 schedule within or adjacent to the existing or planned public
314 right-of-way.
315 (c) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section,
316 the department shall provide a reasonable offer for joint
317 participation in relocation costs, so long as the provider
318 begins work within a mutually agreed upon timeframe and, if the
319 infrastructure relocation is a result of roadway improvements
320 within the public right-of-way to increase safety or reduce
321 congestion and the impacted infrastructure was, at the time of
322 notification under this subsection, installed within the past 7
323 state fiscal years, the department must incur at least 50
324 percent of the costs for relocation work as described in a joint
325 participation agreement.
326 (d) This subsection may not be construed to prevent a
327 department from pursuing the additional relocation processes,
328 agreements, or payment options authorized under this section or
329 to prevent a provider from using grant funds provided through
330 other government sources to support all or a portion of the
331 relocation costs.
332 Section 3. Subsection (5) of section 125.42, Florida
333 Statutes, is amended to read:
334 125.42 Water, sewage, gas, power, telephone, other utility,
335 and television lines within the right-of-way limits of county
336 roads and highways.—
337 (5) In the event of widening, repair, or reconstruction of
338 any such road, the licensee shall move or remove such water,
339 sewage, gas, power, telephone, and other utility lines and
340 television lines at no cost to the county should they be found
341 by the county to be unreasonably interfering, except as provided
342 in s. 337.403(1)(d)-(k) s. 337.403(1)(d)-(j).
343 Section 4. The Legislature finds and declares that this act
344 fulfills an important state interest.
345 Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025.