Florida Senate - 2026 CS for CS for SB 214
By the Committee on Fiscal Policy; the Appropriations Committee
on Transportation, Tourism, and Economic Development; and
Senator McClain
594-03335-26 2026214c2
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to special district funding; amending
3 s. 215.971, F.S.; revising agency agreements that
4 provide state financial assistance to recipients or
5 subrecipients to include specified special districts
6 as an entity to which such agency may provide for the
7 payment of invoices under specified circumstances;
8 providing construction; requiring state agencies to
9 expedite payment requests from certain counties,
10 municipalities, and special districts for a specified
11 purpose; amending s. 288.0656, F.S.; revising the
12 definition of “rural community” to include specified
13 special districts; providing an effective date.
14
15 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
16
17 Section 1. Paragraph (h) of subsection (1) of section
18 215.971, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
19 215.971 Agreements funded with federal or state
20 assistance.—
21 (1) An agency agreement that provides state financial
22 assistance to a recipient or subrecipient, as those terms are
23 defined in s. 215.97, or that provides federal financial
24 assistance to a subrecipient, as defined by applicable United
25 States Office of Management and Budget circulars, must include
26 all of the following:
27 (h) If the agency agreement provides federal or state
28 financial assistance to a county or municipality that is a rural
29 community or rural area of opportunity as those terms are
30 defined in s. 288.0656(2) or a special district located entirely
31 within such county or municipality or an independent special
32 district that provides water and wastewater services within a
33 rural area of opportunity as that term is defined in s.
34 288.0656(2), a provision allowing the agency to provide for the
35 payment of invoices to such the county, municipality, or special
36 district rural area of opportunity as that term is defined in s.
37 288.0656(2), for verified and eligible performance that has been
38 completed in accordance with the terms and conditions set forth
39 in the agreement. The provision is not intended to require
40 reimbursement to such county, municipality, or special district
41 for invoices paid, but to allow the agency to provide for the
42 payment of invoices due. The agency shall expedite payment
43 requests in order to facilitate the timely payment of invoices
44 received by such county, municipality, or special district. This
45 provision is included to alleviate the financial hardships that
46 such certain rural counties, and municipalities, or special
47 districts encounter when administering agreements, and must be
48 exercised by the agency if when a county, or municipality, or
49 special district located entirely within such county or
50 municipality or an independent special district that provides
51 water and wastewater services within a rural area of
52 opportunity, as that term is defined in s. 288.0656(2),
53 demonstrates financial hardship, to the extent that federal or
54 state law, rule, or other regulation allows such payments. This
55 paragraph may not be construed to alter or limit any other
56 provisions of federal or state law, rule, or other regulation.
57 Section 2. Paragraph (e) of subsection (2) of section
58 288.0656, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
59 288.0656 Rural Economic Development Initiative.—
60 (2) As used in this section, the term:
61 (e) “Rural community” means:
62 1. A county with a population of 75,000 or fewer.
63 2. A county with a population of 125,000 or fewer which is
64 contiguous to a county with a population of 75,000 or fewer.
65 3. A municipality or special district within a county
66 described in subparagraph 1. or subparagraph 2.
67 4. An unincorporated federal enterprise community or an
68 incorporated rural city with a population of 25,000 or fewer and
69 an employment base focused on traditional agricultural or
70 resource-based industries, located in a county not defined as
71 rural, which has at least three or more of the economic distress
72 factors identified in paragraph (c) and verified by the
73 department.
74 5. An independent special district that provides water and
75 wastewater services within a rural area of opportunity.
76
77 For purposes of this paragraph, population shall be determined
78 in accordance with the most recent official estimate pursuant to
79 s. 186.901.
80 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026.