HomeMy Public PortalAboutLTC 052-2016 Legislative Session Week 8 Report - February 29 - March 4, 2016
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2016 Session
Week 8 Report
The budget conference began late Friday of week 7, and as of this Saturday, 3/5, conference is ongoing. Several
areas of the budget have been completed, though education, criminal justice, and the agriculture and natural
resources budgets, (including water projects), remain unresolved. However, until the full budget is printed and goes
to a vote, no area is technically closed. We expect the water projects list for funding to be completed this weekend
or possibly Monday. Both the Senate and the House budget do include $50 million allocated for water projects.
Local Government Issues: The following are bills filed that affect local governments. Should you have
questions or need further information on these issues, or issues not included, please contact us and we will
provide that information.
Natural Gas Rebate Program: SB 90 (Simpson) and HB 285 (Ray) authorizes the Department of Agriculture and
Consumer Services (DACS) to receive applications for additional rebates from the natural gas fuel fleet vehicle
rebate program, giving preference to governmental applicants. Any remaining funds may be expended for
commercial applicant rebates. HB 285 and its companion bill, SB 90 are on the House Special Order Calendar, for
3/7.
Fracking / Regulation of Oil and Gas: As reported, HB 191 (Rodrigues) passed the House on 1/27 with a vote of
73 – 45, and the Senate companion, SB 318 (Richter) was heard but failed by a vote of 9 – 10 in the Senate
Appropriations committee. Through a rules maneuver, this bill was brought back by a motion to reconsider, and
was left pending. The bill was back on the agenda for Senate Appropriations for 3/1, but the bill sponsor, Senator
Richter, declined the motion to reconsider the bill. Therefore, the bill remains as having failed in Senate
Appropriations, 9 – 10.
Transportation Network Companies (Uber, Lyft ride sharing services): HB 509 (Gaetz, M.) passed the full
House during week 3, with a vote of 108 – 10, and is awaiting action in the Senate. HB 509 as passed, would take
effect July 1, 2016, and was summarized in detail in the week 4 report.
Transportation Network Companies/Insurance: HB 1118, (Simmons), is the Senate TNC bill that at this time,
only addresses insurance required of the company and drivers, and would take effect July 1, 2017. This bill:
• Specifies minimum insurance requirements for TNCs, and requires transportation network companies or
drivers to maintain primary automobile liability insurance of at least $125,000 for death and bodily injury
per person, $250,000 for death and bodily injury per incident, and $50,000 for property damage. The bill
creates two time periods during which the insurance is required. The first time period is during the time
when a driver is logged on to the transportation network company’s digital network but not providing a
prearranged ride. The second time period is during a prearranged ride.
• Requires TNC drivers to maintain liability insurance of at least $25,000 for death and bodily injury per
person, $50,000 for death and bodily injury per incident, and $10,000 for property damage. Such coverage
would apply at all times other than during a prearranged ride or when the driver is logged on to the TNC
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digital network but not providing a prearranged ride. The bill also requires that coverage meeting the
requirements of the Florida Motor Vehicle No-Fault Law be maintained at all times.
• Preempts any local ordinances imposing insurance requirements on transportation network companies.
• Requires the TNC to provide an electronic notice to the TNC driver that it is illegal for a TNC driver to
solicit or accept a ride if the ride is not arranged through the TNC’s digital network; and if a TNC driver
provides a ride not arranged through the TNC network, the ride is not covered by the TNC driver’s or the
TNC’s insurance policy.
SB 1118 is now on the Senate Special Order Calendar.
Government Accountability: CS/CS/SB 686 (Gaetz) was scheduled for a hearing in Senate Appropriations, on
3/3, but was not considered. SB 686 is an omnibus government accountability bill, which would have done the
following:
• Prohibit legislators from accepting employment with private entities that directly receive funding through
state revenues appropriated by the General Appropriations Act, if he or she knows, or with the exercise of
reasonable care should know, that the position is being offered by the employer for the purpose of gaining
influence or other advantage based on the legislator’s office or candidacy. A member who is employed by
such an entity before his or her legislative service may keep his or her employment, however, there are
limitations on advancement, promotions, additional compensation, or anything of value that is given
because of his or her legislative position. Additionally, such advancement, promotion, additional
compensation, or thing of value may not be inconsistent with that given to any other similarly situated
employee. For acceptance of future employment by legislators with such entity, several criteria must be
met, including the position must already exist or be created without the knowledge or anticipation of the
legislator’s interest in the position, and the position must be open to other candidates.
• Include changes to Florida’s governmental ethics policies such as broadening the water management
district lobbyist registration provisions to apply to many more special districts and applying post-
employment lobbying restrictions to certain individuals with Enterprise Florida, its divisions, and the
Florida Development Finance Corporation.
• Applied certain ethical standards and post-employment lobbying restrictions to corporations created or
housed within the Department of Economic Opportunity (DEO) that are not currently covered by ethical
standards.
• Extend the conflicting contractual relationship ban in s. 112.313(7)(a), F.S., to include contracts held by a
business entity in which a public officer or public employee holds a controlling interest in a business entity
or is an officer, director, or a member who manages such an entity.
• Require that, beginning in 2016, all elected municipal officers file the more detailed CE Form 6 financial
disclosure with their qualifying papers for each year that they hold office.
• Amend Florida’s criminal provisions relating to Bribery, Misuse of Public Office, Unlawful Compensation
or Reward for Official Behavior, Official Misconduct, and Bid Tampering to replace the corrupt intent
mens rea requirement with the knowingly and intentionally mens rea requirement. The bill also applies the
crimes of Official Misconduct and Bid Tampering to “public contractors.”
• Require local governmental entities to keep their final budgets, and any amendments thereto, on their
website for a period of 2 years after adoption.
• Require various governmental entities to adopt internal controls to prevent and detect fraud, waste, and
abuse.
• Require governmental entities to investigate claims of unauthorized compensation.
• Allow the Governor or Commissioner of Education, or their designees, to report that a local governmental
entity has failed to comply with applicable auditing, financial reporting, bond issuance notification, bond
verification provisions, or failed to disclose a financial emergency or provide information required during a
financial emergency. The bill increases the Single Audit Act threshold from $500,000 to $750,000 and
allows the Auditor General to review the threshold periodically and make appropriate recommendations to
the Legislature. The bill makes changes to the financial reporting requirements and independent audit
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requirements. The bill specifies who can serve as members of the auditor selection committees for local
governmental entities. The bill requires the Florida Virtual School to have an independent financial audit
each year.
Election Dates for Municipal Office: HB 7059 (Caldwell) The Florida League of Cities remains strongly opposed
to this bill. This bill has passed the House with a vote of 70 – 47, on 2/3. The House bill has no Senate companion
at this point, and it was expected that the Senate would address this bill, but to date, no companion has been
released.
The bill preempts to the state, the authority to establish the dates of elections of municipal officers and provides the
exclusive method for establishing those dates. Any state law, municipal charter, or municipal ordinance that
conflicts with the bill is superseded to the extent of the conflict. As a result, a municipality will no longer have
authority to unilaterally establish the date of its municipal officer elections.
The House bill requires the date of elections for municipal officers to be established in accordance with one of the
following options:
• Option 1: All elections of municipal officers in a county may be held on the same date as the general
election in November of each even-numbered year or on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in
November of each odd-numbered year, or both, as determined by the supervisor of elections (SOE);
or
• Option 2: All elections of municipal officers in a county may be held on one alternative fixed date each
year if the SOE and all municipalities within the county agree to the date and each municipality within the
county adopts the date by ordinance. Each ordinance must also provide the dates for qualifying for the
election and the date on which the elected officers’ terms of office commence.
The dates for elections of municipal officers may be selected under either Option 1 or Option 2, but not both.
Additionally, the provisions of the bill that establish the method of selecting municipal election dates do not affect
the manner in which vacancies in municipal office are filled or the manner in which recall elections for municipal
officers are conducted. Lastly, in order to provide for an orderly transition of office, the bill provides that the terms
of incumbent elected municipal officers, affected by the change in election dates, will be extended to the next
municipal election.
Gun Legislation: This week, Senator Gaetz filed an amendment regarding “open carry” (amendment bar code
142992), to SB 612, a bill that revises the definition of the term “concealed weapon” to delete its inclusion of a
“slungshot.” This amendment mirrored Representative Gaetz’ open carry legislation, however, the Senator
withdrew the amendment and it was not considered.
HB 163 (Gaetz, M.) The full House passed a bill allowing individuals with concealed carry permits to carry guns
openly, otherwise known as “open carry”. Additionally, HB 163 was amended by Representative Wood to allow
those with concealed carry permits, to take concealed weapons into the legislative chambers. The vote was 72 – 43
on this specific amendment language. Amendments were passed that would allow public hospitals to prohibit open
carry, and that would allow those with concealed carry permits to take guns on university and college campuses.
The Senate President and various key Senate members have voiced strong concern about some of these provisions.
Senator Diaz de la Portilla has definitively said that as these bills have been referred to his committee, Judiciary, he
would not hear them.
Traffic Infraction Detectors (Red Light Cameras): SB 168 (Brandes) would repeal the use of red light cameras,
was passed by the Transportation committee with a vote of 4 – 3. The bill was amended in committee to change the
effective date to July 1, 2019, in order to allow for current contracts with municipalities to expire. However, the bill
has not had a hearing in the Transportation and Economic Development Appropriations subcommittee.
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HB 4027 (Artiles) is scheduled for third reading, 3/7/16
Drones: SB 642 (Diaz de la Portilla) and HB 459 (Fitzenhagen) these bills provide for liability for injury to a
person or property damage in this state for the negligent operation of a drone. SB 642 passed the Rules committee,
12 – 1, on 1/27 and the House companion, HB 459 has not been heard to date.
Body Cameras/Law Enforcement Officers: HB 93 (Jones) and SB 418 (Smith) Requires law enforcement
agencies that permit law enforcement officers to wear body cameras, to develop policies and procedures governing
the proper use, maintenance, and storage of body cameras and recorded data. The policies would be required to
include the following:
• Guidelines for the proper use, maintenance, and storage of body cameras;
• Any limitations on which law enforcement officers are permitted to wear body cameras;
• Any limitations on law enforcement-related encounters in which law enforcement officers are permitted to
wear body cameras; and
• Guidelines for the proper storage, retention, and release of audio and video data recorded by body cameras.
• Training for use and storage of camera, and use and maintenance of data.
SB 418 / HB 93 is on third reading on 3/7.
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