Florida Senate - 2023 SB 740



By Senator Brodeur





10-00780-23 2023740__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to the Statewide Blue Ribbon Task
3 Force on County Realignment; providing legislative
4 findings; creating the Statewide Blue Ribbon Task
5 Force on County Realignment within the Department of
6 Economic Opportunity; requiring the task force to
7 evaluate and consider specified items; specifying the
8 composition of the task force appointed in a specified
9 timeframe; specifying requirements for meetings;
10 requiring the department to provide administrative and
11 technical support; requiring that task force members
12 serve without compensation; specifying that task force
13 members are not entitled to certain reimbursement;
14 requiring the task force to submit a report to the
15 Governor and the Legislature by a certain date;
16 specifying the minimum requirement for the report;
17 providing for termination of the task force; providing
18 an effective date.
19
20 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
21
22 Section 1. The Legislature finds that:
23 (1) While the population has continued to shift throughout
24 this state, county boundaries have been mostly unchanged since
25 1925.
26 (2) Counties are mandated by law to provide certain
27 services for the benefit and protection of the public.
28 (3) Local governments should perform at the highest level
29 of efficiency and economy while providing the highest standards
30 of governmental services to their citizens.
31 (4) This state should review whether changing county
32 boundaries to address population shifts would help local
33 governments provide more efficient local services and more
34 effective public administration.
35 Section 2. (1) The Statewide Blue Ribbon Task Force on
36 County Realignment, a task force as defined in s. 20.03(8),
37 Florida Statutes, is created within the Department of Economic
38 Opportunity to study and evaluate the effectiveness, efficiency,
39 and value of realigning, contracting, or expanding county
40 boundaries in this state. The task force shall evaluate whether
41 realigning, contracting, or consolidating county boundaries
42 would help better serve constituent needs, and whether services
43 offered by counties, including services offered by
44 constitutional officers, could better serve the overall
45 population of the state through realignment. The task force
46 should consider incentives, efficiencies of services, economies
47 of scale of key services, and all realignment scenarios.
48 (2) The task force is composed of all of the following
49 members, to be appointed by September 1, 2023:
50 (a) The secretary of the Department of Economic
51 Opportunity, or his or her designee, who shall serve as chair of
52 the task force.
53 (b) Seven members appointed by the Governor, as follows:
54 1. One sitting county commissioner from a large county with
55 a population of at least 900,000.
56 2. One sitting county commissioner from a medium-sized
57 county with a population between 300,000 and 900,000.
58 3. One sitting county commissioner from a small county with
59 a population below 300,000.
60 4. One taxpayer from a charter county.
61 5. One taxpayer from a noncharter county.
62 6. One taxpayer from a fiscally constrained county as
63 defined in s. 218.67(1).
64 7. One district school board member.
65 (c) Two members appointed by the President of the Senate.
66 (d) Two members appointed by the Speaker of the House of
67 Representatives.
68 (e) One representative of the Florida Association of
69 Counties.
70 (f) One representative of the Florida League of Cities.
71 (g) One representative of the Florida Association for
72 Constitutional Officers.
73 (3) By October 1, 2023, the task force shall meet to
74 establish procedures for the conduct of its business and to
75 elect a vice chair. The task force shall meet at the call of the
76 chair. A majority of the members of the task force constitutes a
77 quorum, which is necessary for the purpose of voting on any
78 action or recommendation of the task force. Administrative and
79 technical support shall be provided by the Department of
80 Economic Opportunity. Task force members shall serve without
81 compensation and are not entitled to reimbursement for per diem
82 or travel expenses from the state.
83 (4) By October 1, 2024, the task force must submit a final
84 report to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the
85 Speaker of the House of Representatives. The report must, at a
86 minimum, include recommendations for consideration by the
87 Legislature.
88 (5) The task force is terminated upon the submission of its
89 final report.
90 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023.