Bill Summary – FastDemocracy

       Florida Senate - 2024                                    SB 1678
       
       
        
       By Senator Gruters
       
       
       
       
       
       22-01439A-24                                          20241678__
                      A bill to be entitled                      
       An act relating to taxes, fines, and fees; amending s.
       212.055, F.S.; deleting a provision allowing the
       indigent care and trauma center surtax to be levied
       without a majority vote of electors; repealing s.
       319.32, F.S., relating to fees for certificates of
       title and disposition thereof; repealing s. 339.0801,
       F.S., relating to allocation of increased revenues;
       amending s. 319.20, F.S.; restoring provisions
       relating to the payment of funds collected by a county
       officer into the State Treasury; amending ss. 215.211,
       319.23, 319.24, 319.27, 319.28, 319.29, 319.323,
       319.324, 320.04, and 379.209, F.S.; conforming
       provisions to changes made by the act; repealing ss.
       320.08 and 320.08001, F.S., relating to license taxes;
       repealing ss. 320.08015, 320.0802, 320.0804, and
       320.08046, F.S., relating to surcharges on license
       taxes; repealing ss. 320.08047, 320.081, 320.10,
       320.14, 320.15, 320.20, 320.405, and 339.0803, F.S.,
       relating to a voluntary contribution for organ and
       tissue donor education, collection and distribution of
       annual license tax on certain units, exemptions,
       fractional license tax, refund of license tax,
       disposition of license tax moneys, International
       Registration Plan records and hearings, and allocation
       of increased revenues, respectively; amending ss.
       193.075, 212.05, 212.0601, 215.22, 215.615, 282.709,
       311.07, 311.09, 316.251, 316.261, 316.515, 316.545,
       316.550, 320.01, 320.03, 320.055, 320.06, 320.0609,
       320.0655, 320.0657, 320.0659, 320.07, 320.0705,
       320.071, 320.072, 320.0801, 320.0803, 320.08035,
       320.0805, 320.08056, 320.08058, 320.08068, 320.0815,
       320.0821, 320.083, 320.0843, 320.0847, 320.086,
       320.0863, 320.0875, 320.089, 320.0891, 320.0892,
       320.0893, 320.0894, 320.102, 320.13, 320.133, 320.203,
       320.27, 320.57, 320.771, 322.025, 322.0255, 339.139,
       553.382, and 765.5155, F.S.; conforming provisions to
       changes made by the act; amending s. 322.21, F.S.;
       eliminating fees for original, renewal, and
       replacement driver licenses and identification cards,
       certain driver license endorsements, reinstatement of
       driver licenses, and certain requests for review or
       hearing; removing provisions relating to collection,
       deposit, and use of such fees; amending ss. 322.051,
       322.14, 322.17, 322.18, 322.251, 322.29, and 1003.48,
       F.S.; conforming provisions to changes made by the
       act; amending s. 601.15, F.S.; revising a specified
       assessment on citrus; revising procedures for payment
       of certain assessments; amending ss. 601.041, 601.13,
       601.152, and 601.155, F.S.; conforming provisions to
       changes made by the act; repealing s. 97.05831, F.S.,
       relating to voter registration applications made
       available to the Fish and Wildlife Conservation
       Commission; repealing s. 258.0145, F.S., relating to
       military, law enforcement, and firefighter state park
       fee discounts; repealing s. 379.2213, F.S., relating
       to management area permit revenues; repealing s.
       379.3502, F.S., relating to nontransferable
       recreational hunting and fishing licenses and permits;
       repealing ss. 379.3503 and 379.3504, F.S., relating to
       providing false statements and information on
       recreational hunting and fishing applications,
       licenses, and permits; repealing s. 379.3511, F.S.,
       relating to the appointment of subagents for the sale
       of recreational hunting, fishing, and trapping
       licenses and permits; repealing s. 379.3512, F.S.,
       relating to competitive bidding for the sale of
       licenses, permits, and authorizations; repealing s.
       379.352, F.S., relating to recreational licenses,
       permits, and authorizations to take wild animal life,
       freshwater aquatic life, and marine life; repealing s.
       379.353, F.S., relating to exemptions from fees and
       requirements for recreational hunting and fishing
       licenses and permits; repealing s. 379.354, F.S.,
       relating to recreational hunting and fishing licenses,
       permits, and authorizations; repealing s. 379.356,
       F.S., relating to fish pond licenses; repealing s.
       379.357, F.S., relating to the Fish and Wildlife
       Conservation Commission license program for tarpon;
       repealing s. 379.3581, F.S., relating to hunter safety
       course requirements; repealing s. 379.359, F.S.,
       relating to voluntary contributions to Southeastern
       Guide Dogs, Inc.; repealing s. 938.04, F.S., relating
       to court costs for criminal offenses to provide
       compensation to victims of crimes; repealing s.
       938.06, F.S., relating to court costs for criminal
       offenses to fund crime stoppers programs; repealing s.
       938.15, F.S., relating to criminal justice education
       for local governments; amending ss. 16.555 and 212.06,
       F.S.; conforming provisions to changes made by the
       act; amending s. 258.014, F.S.; removing the authority
       of the Division of Parks and Recreation within the
       Department of Environmental Protection to set fees for
       the use of state parks; amending ss. 258.0142, 318.18,
       318.21, 327.73, 379.203, 379.207, 379.208, 379.2201,
       379.2255, 379.363, 379.3501, 379.3582, 379.3712,
       379.3751, 379.401, 790.0655, 938.01, and 943.25, F.S.;
       conforming provisions to changes made by the act;
       providing an effective date.
        
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

       Section 1.âParagraph (a) of subsection (4) of section
212.055, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
       212.055âDiscretionary sales surtaxes; legislative intent;
authorization and use of proceeds.âIt is the legislative intent
that any authorization for imposition of a discretionary sales
surtax shall be published in the Florida Statutes as a
subsection of this section, irrespective of the duration of the
levy. Each enactment shall specify the types of counties
authorized to levy; the rate or rates which may be imposed; the
maximum length of time the surtax may be imposed, if any; the
procedure which must be followed to secure voter approval, if
required; the purpose for which the proceeds may be expended;
and such other requirements as the Legislature may provide.
Taxable transactions and administrative procedures shall be as
provided in s. 212.054.
       (4)âINDIGENT CARE AND TRAUMA CENTER SURTAX.â
       (a)1.âThe governing body in each county the government of
which is not consolidated with that of one or more
municipalities, which has a population of at least 800,000
residents and is not authorized to levy a surtax under
subsection (5), may levy, pursuant to an ordinance either
approved by an extraordinary vote of the governing body or
conditioned to take effect only upon approval by a majority vote
of the electors of the county voting in a referendum, a
discretionary sales surtax at a rate that may not exceed 0.5
percent.
       2.âIf the ordinance is conditioned on a referendum, A
statement that includes a brief and general description of the
purposes to be funded by the surtax and that conforms to the
requirements of s. 101.161 shall be placed on the ballot by the
governing body of the county. The following questions shall be
placed on the ballot:
                     FOR THE.â.â.â.CENTS TAX                     
                   AGAINST THE.â.â.â.CENTS TAX                   
       3.âThe ordinance adopted by the governing body providing
for the imposition of the surtax shall set forth a plan for
providing health care services to qualified residents, as
defined in subparagraph 4. Such plan and subsequent amendments
to it shall fund a broad range of health care services for both
indigent persons and the medically poor, including, but not
limited to, primary care and preventive care as well as hospital
care. The plan must also address the services to be provided by
the Level I trauma center. It shall emphasize a continuity of
care in the most cost-effective setting, taking into
consideration both a high quality of care and geographic access.
Where consistent with these objectives, it shall include,
without limitation, services rendered by physicians, clinics,
community hospitals, mental health centers, and alternative
delivery sites, as well as at least one regional referral
hospital where appropriate. It shall provide that agreements
negotiated between the county and providers, including hospitals
with a Level I trauma center, will include reimbursement
methodologies that take into account the cost of services
rendered to eligible patients, recognize hospitals that render a
disproportionate share of indigent care, provide other
incentives to promote the delivery of charity care, promote the
advancement of technology in medical services, recognize the
level of responsiveness to medical needs in trauma cases, and
require cost containment including, but not limited to, case
management. It must also provide that any hospitals that are
owned and operated by government entities on May 21, 1991, must,
as a condition of receiving funds under this subsection, afford
public access equal to that provided under s. 286.011 as to
meetings of the governing board, the subject of which is
budgeting resources for the rendition of charity care as that
term is defined in the Florida Hospital Uniform Reporting System
(FHURS) manual referenced in s. 408.07. The plan shall also
include innovative health care programs that provide cost
effective alternatives to traditional methods of service
delivery and funding.
       4.âFor the purpose of this paragraph, the term âqualified
residentâ means residents of the authorizing county who are:
       a.âQualified as indigent persons as certified by the
authorizing county;
       b.âCertified by the authorizing county as meeting the
definition of the medically poor, defined as persons having
insufficient income, resources, and assets to provide the needed
medical care without using resources required to meet basic
needs for shelter, food, clothing, and personal expenses; or not
being eligible for any other state or federal program, or having
medical needs that are not covered by any such program; or
having insufficient third-party insurance coverage. In all
cases, the authorizing county is intended to serve as the payor
of last resort; or
       c.âParticipating in innovative, cost-effective programs
approved by the authorizing county.
       5.âMoneys collected pursuant to this paragraph remain the
property of the state and shall be distributed by the Department
of Revenue on a regular and periodic basis to the clerk of the
circuit court as ex officio custodian of the funds of the
authorizing county. The clerk of the circuit court shall:
       a.âMaintain the moneys in an indigent health care trust
fund;
       b.âInvest any funds held on deposit in the trust fund
pursuant to general law;
       c.âDisburse the funds, including any interest earned, to
any provider of health care services, as provided in
subparagraphs 3. and 4., upon directive from the authorizing
county. However, if a county has a population of at least
800,000 residents and has levied the surtax authorized in this
paragraph, notwithstanding any directive from the authorizing
county, on October 1 of each calendar year, the clerk of the
court shall issue a check in the amount of $6.5 million to a
hospital in its jurisdiction that has a Level I trauma center or
shall issue a check in the amount of $3.5 million to a hospital
in its jurisdiction that has a Level I trauma center if that
county enacts and implements a hospital lien law in accordance
with chapter 98-499, Laws of Florida. The issuance of the checks
on October 1 of each year is provided in recognition of the
Level I trauma center status and shall be in addition to the
base contract amount received during fiscal year 1999-2000 and
any additional amount negotiated to the base contract. If the
hospital receiving funds for its Level I trauma center status
requests such funds to be used to generate federal matching
funds under Medicaid, the clerk of the court shall instead issue
a check to the Agency for Health Care Administration to
accomplish that purpose to the extent that it is allowed through
the General Appropriations Act; and
       d.âPrepare on a biennial basis an audit of the trust fund
specified in sub-subparagraph a. Commencing February 1, 2004,
such audit shall be delivered to the governing body and to the
chair of the legislative delegation of each authorizing county.
       6.âNotwithstanding any other provision of this section, a
county shall not levy local option sales surtaxes authorized in
this paragraph and subsections (2) and (3) in excess of a
combined rate of 1 percent.
       Section 2.âSections 319.32 and 339.0801, Florida Statutes,
are repealed.
       Section 3.âSection 319.20, Florida Statutes, is amended to
read:
       319.20âApplication of law.â
       (1)âExcept as otherwise specifically provided, this chapter
applies exclusively to motor vehicles and mobile homes required
to be registered and licensed under the laws of this state and
defined by such registration laws, including residential
manufactured buildings placed on mobile home lots under s.
553.382. A residential manufactured building placed on a mobile
home lot as provided in s. 553.382 shall be treated as a mobile
home for purposes of this chapter. The provisions of This
chapter does do not apply to any moped or to any trailer or
semitrailer having a net weight of less than 2,000 pounds. All
provisions of this chapter relating to title certificates also
apply to any recreational vehicle-type unit and to any mobile
home classified and taxed as real property pursuant to s.
320.0815(2),; and no title, lien, or other interest in such
vehicle or mobile home shall be valid unless evidenced in
accordance with this chapter.
       (2)âNotwithstanding chapter 116, each county officer within
this state authorized to collect funds provided for in this
chapter shall pay all sums officially received by the officer
into the State Treasury no later than 5 working days after the
close of the business day in which the officer received the
funds. Payment by county officers to the state shall be made by
means of electronic funds transfer.
       Section 4.âSubsection (1) of section 215.211, Florida
Statutes, is amended to read:
       215.211âService charge; elimination or reduction for
specified proceeds.â
       (1)âNotwithstanding the provisions of s. 215.20(1) and
former s. 215.20(3), the service charge provided in s. 215.20(1)
and former s. 215.20(3), which is deducted from the proceeds of
the taxes distributed under ss. 206.606(1), 207.026, and
212.0501(6), and 319.32(5), shall be eliminated beginning July
1, 2000.
       Section 5.âSubsection (1) of section 319.23, Florida
Statutes, is amended to read:
       319.23âApplication for, and issuance of, certificate of
title.â
       (1)âApplication for a certificate of title shall be made
upon a form prescribed by the department and, shall be filed
with the department, and shall be accompanied by the fee
prescribed in this chapter. If a certificate of title has
previously been issued for a motor vehicle or mobile home in
this state, the application for a certificate of title shall be
accompanied by the certificate of title duly assigned, or
assigned and reassigned, unless otherwise provided for in this
chapter. If the motor vehicle or mobile home for which
application for a certificate of title is made is a new motor
vehicle or new mobi