2005 Florida Legislative Session Recap Holland & Knight
July 20, 2005
KEY:
Committee Substitute (CS) A Senate or House bill going through the
committee hearing process sometimes has numerous amendments, or the amendments
change the original concept of the bill. In these instances the bill is
rewritten and becomes a “committee substitute.” The next committee of reference
may again rewrite the bill, and more than one bill may be combined. The
committee substitute continues to carry the identifying number(s) of the
original bill(s) filed. A CS/CS or C2 is a Committee Substitute for Committee
Substitute.
Enacted The State Constitution requires that each bill be prefaced by
the phrase: “Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida” which is
referred to as the enacting clause. Enacted legislation refers to a bill which
has been passed into law.
Enrolled Bill (ER) A Senate or House measure approved by both houses
and signed by the legislative officers which is sent to the Governor for action
and transmittal to the Secretary of State or filed directly with the Secretary
of State. The bill is enrolled in the house of origin under the supervision of
the Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the House.
Law An act becomes a law when the Governor either approves it or fails
to sign or veto it within the period specified in the State Constitution. An act
can also become a law when a subsequent legislature overrides a veto by the
Governor. While the legislature is in session, the constitution allows a
seven-day period following presentation of a bill to the Governor within which
to sign or veto the bill. If the legislature adjourns sine die before an
act is presented to the Governor or while an act is in the Governor’s
possession, the Governor has 15 days following the date of presentation in which
to take action. The identifying number assigned by the Secretary of State to a
bill that has been enacted or passed into law is referred to as the Chapter Law.
The Chapter Law number indicates the year passed and the printing number. For
example, chapter 2000-541 represents the 541st law printed in the year 2000.
Chapter laws are compiled and published annually in the Laws of
Florida.
Business
Business Entities/Florida Revised Uniform Limited Partnership Act
CS/SB 1056 would streamline the registration and transfer laws governing
business incorporation and limited liability corporations in Florida. Patterned
after incorporation and registration statutes in Delaware and Nevada, the
legislation will make it easier for business entities to register in Florida and
to change their registrations. Corporations can gain tax breaks or increase
their sources of funding by becoming limited liability companies. The changes
could entice new companies to make their headquarters in Florida. Three
committees of The Florida Bar Association prepared the bill.
Copy of the Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1056er.pdf
Environment
Growth Management
The final bill to pass during the 2005 Legislative Session was CS/CS/CS/SB
360 which is the first update to Florida’s growth management law since 1985. The
omnibus legislation, dubbed the “pay-as-you-grow” growth management law, will
ensure roads, schools and water are available to meet the needs of growing
communities. The Governor this year marked growth management reform as a top
priority. The legislation addresses the road, water and school needs of
Florida’s growing communities:
• Roads – The reforms close the gap between new development and the
construction of needed transportation by requiring roads to be in place or under
construction within three years of a local government’s approval of a building
permit that would result in additional traffic.
• Schools – Local governments and school boards will jointly plan for
schools, requiring that educational facilities are available or under
construction within three years from development approval. Reform closes the gap
between when new development begins and needed school facilities are built.
• Water – The growth management legislation creates a stronger link between
local water supply planning and regional plans prepared by Florida’s five water
management districts. In addition, an adequate water supply must be available
before residents move into new developments.
To ensure the growth management bill passed, the sponsor Senator Bennett
sacrificed his provision calling for tighter controls on impact fees. Cities and
counties assess impact fees on new construction to help cover the costs of new
roads, parks, schools, ambulance stations and other facilities. They opposed the
provision as trying to limit their ability to levy the fees.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0360er.pdf
Water Resources
CS/CS/CS/SB 444 which passed this session provides for numerous changes to
the state’s water resource development efforts. The bill provides legislative
direction to guide the development of alternative water supplies, defines the
role of local governments and water management districts, and establishes a goal
for the districts to provide a 100 percent match of state funds for the
development of alternative water supplies. The bill creates a new program to
guide the water management districts in funding alternative water supply
projects. Included in the bill are provisions that: detail how the funds shall
be allocated to each water management district; direct that all applicants must
provide for at least 60 percent of the projects’ capital costs; provide factors
that the governing board must consider in determining the priority order for
projects; require certain rate setting structures for utilities receiving funds;
and allow the water management districts to impose certain conditions for reuse
projects that receive funds. The bill amends current law concerning requirements
for the issuance of consumptive use permits to provide that any project funded
under this new program shall be presumed to be in the public interest. Current
law is amended to direct that the water management districts issue 20-year
permits for projects that develop alternative water supplies.
Current law provisions relating to surface water improvement and management
programs are amended to require a 50 percent match for all projects.
Additionally, the bill makes a series of changes to existing growth management
laws. Specifically, local governments will now be required to select and include
in their capital improvement element those alternative water supplies needed to
meet their future water needs; be required to determine, prior to the issuance
of a building permit, that adequate water will be available; and include in
their evaluation and appraisal reports the extent to which water projects are
being implemented.
Numerous changes are made to the current law relating to the development and
implementation of total maximum daily loads. The bill adds specific criteria
that will be followed in the development of basin management action plans;
implementation of the loads; and development and use of best management
practices. The practical purpose of these new criteria is to address the
inclusion of non-point sources into the program and provide guidance for how the
plans will interact with existing permitting programs. The existing Water
Quality Improvement and Water Restoration Grant Program is also changed and will
be used to determine the eligibility of individual projects submitted annually
to the legislature. The bill removes provisions that made the program
competitive, prohibits drinking water programs from future consideration and
provides new criteria for projects. The new criteria provide that the project
must be approved by a water management district, be part of a previously
approved project and provide a local match. The bill creates the Water
Protection and Sustainability Program. This new program is designed to provide
funding for the new alternative water supply program provided in the bill and to
also fund a series of existing state programs. The existing state programs
include: surface water improvement and management; total maximum daily loads;
and disadvantaged small community wastewater grant program. The bill provides
two distribution methods. One for use in the 2005-2006 fiscal year and the other
for future fiscal years. For fiscal year 2005-2006: $100 million for alternative
water supply; $50 million for total maximum daily loads; $25 million for surface
water improvement and management; and $25 million for the disadvantaged small
community wastewater grant program. For future years the distribution is: 60
percent for alternative water; 20 percent for daily loads; 10 percent for water
improvement and management; and 10 percent for small communities.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0444er.pdf
Contamination Notification
The 2005 Legislature approved HB 937 that establishes notification
requirements when contamination has migrated beyond the property boundary of a
contaminated site. The measure requires persons responsible for site
rehabilitation (PRSR) to promptly notify the agency of any off-site
contamination. The PRSR must give notice to FDEP’s Division of Waste Management
no less than 10 days after discovery of the contamination. Copies of the notice
also must be given to the appropriate district office, county health department,
and all known lessees and tenants of the source property. Notice is to be
provided by certified mail and on a form adopted by FDEP. The bill also requires
FDEP to provide notice to all record property owners of any real property on
which contamination has been discovered. If the property is a school, then FDEP
also must provide a copy of the notice to the chair of the school board, and the
school board must provide actual notice to teachers and parents. The new law
becomes effective on September 1, 2005. This measure was prompted by an incident
in South Manatee County, Florida, where residents did not learn of contamination
from a nearby plant until several years after it was discovered and cleanup
activities were well underway.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h093705er.pdf
Net Ban
Environmentalists and coastal fishermen have been wrangling for 10 years over
the 1994 constitutional amendment limiting the size of trawl nets in coastal
waters and forbidding the use of gill nets or entanglement nets. Legislation was
introduced to allow the use of nets with any mesh size – not the one-inch mesh,
two-inch stretch permitted by the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
(FWCC). Rep. Will Kendrick (D-Carrabelle) also offered a constitutional
amendment that would have stripped the FWCC of its rulemaking power. Ultimately,
SB 1178 and HB 741 died with the House Water and Natural Resources Committee
after the sponsor agreed to an interim study of mesh size to be conducted by
university researchers.
Copy of the Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1178.pdf
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h074100.pdf
Government Contracts
Privatization
CS/CS/SB 1146 tightens the state’s outsourcing laws, creates a Commission for
Efficient Government and requires more legislative oversight over large state
procurement contracts. The commission is made up of four agency heads and three
people from the private sector, who must have procurement experience and cannot
be a registered lobbyist. Ultimately, the bill was vetoed by Governor Bush.
Copy of Vetoed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1146er.pdf
State Technology Office
The State Technology Office (STO), created by Governor Bush in 2000, had vast
powers to buy and oversee everything technology-related from computers to
telecommunications services within Florida’s state agencies. This session, the
Governor requested that some of the STO’s operational duties be transferred to
the Department of Management Services with a focus on long-range strategic
planning of the state’s technology needs, rather than day-to-day procurement and
contract monitoring. By passage of CS/CS/SB 1494, the Legislature went a step
further, by eliminating the State Technology Office and replacing it with a new
Florida Technology Council, with members to be appointed by the Governor. The
new council will be able to make decisions, but only after consultation with the
chief information officers of the state agencies and the Technology Resources
Workgroup, a legislative panel. Ultimately, the bill was vetoed by Governor
Bush.
Copy of Vetoed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1494er.pdf
Judicial/Corrections/Law Enforcement
Paternity
Court rulings require men to continue to support children they thought were
theirs, even if they weren’t. Legislation (CS/CS/SB 1456 and CS/HB 1195) was
proposed to allow men to challenge paternity with DNA testing, and it would have
allowed the courts to act on child-support orders based on test results. The
bills would have allowed a man to end his child support obligation if he proved
that he was not the biological father. The Senate passed the bill but it never
was approved by the House. The House sponsor of the legislation, Rep. Curtis
Richardson (D-Tallahassee), has said he intends to file the bill again next
year.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1456c2.pdf
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h119502c2.pdf
Alimony
Should people have to continue to pay alimony to an ex-spouse who has moved
in with another person as part of a “supportive relationship?” Judges generally
end alimony when the recipient remarries, but the courts in Florida have
disagreed about what to do when the person moves in with someone else but
doesn’t remarry. CS/SB 152, as passed by the Florida Legislature, would let
judges reduce or cut off alimony. Senator Gwen Margolis (D-Miami) called on
Governor Bush to veto the bill, which she called “the most extreme
anti-cohabitation statute in existence.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0152er.pdf
Wilton Dedge
Should the state compensate innocent people who are wrongfully imprisoned for
crimes they did not commit? The session, HB 865 was filed for Wilton Dedge, a
Brevard County man who was released from prison last summer after serving 22
years for a rape he did not commit. Dedge wanted lawmakers to compensate him for
his lost wages and attorney’s fees during the time he spent in prison in the
amount of $5 million. Ultimately, the House and Senate could not agree on how to
let innocent people seek compensation.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h086500.pdf
New Judgeships
It’s been four years since state budget funding has been provided for new
judges, even though Florida’s population has continued to increase
exponentially. The Florida Supreme Court had asked the Legislature to provide
funding for 108 new trial judges. Ultimately, the Legislature granted half this
request, agreeing to spend $8.5 million to get 55 new trial judges in Florida,
with half being appointed by November 2005 and the rest by January 2006. The
20th Judicial Circuit which is a five-county circuit in Southwest Florida
represented by Rep. Bruce Kyle (R-Fort Myers) did not receive any new judges.
Rep. Kyle has speculated publicly that he was singled out because of
“ideological differences” with Senate President Tom Lee (R-Brandon).
Copy of Budget Conference Report:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s2600er.pdf
Civil Legal Assistance Funding
The 2005 Legislature appropriated an unprecedented level of $5 million new
dollars to fund the Civil Legal Assistance Program, however, Governor Bush
vetoed the funding for this program in the budget. This funding would have
allowed the program to go statewide in providing legal assistance to the
poor.
Copy of Budget Conference Report:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s2600er.pdf
Anti-Murder Legislation
Sarah Lunde, Jessica Lunsford and Carli Brucia were all allegedly murdered by
probation violators who had violent pasts. Legislation dubbed the Anti-Murder
Act by Attorney General Charlie Crist (CS/SB 608 and HB 451) would have required
judges to send violators with a violent history back to prison. The bill
eventually died in a budget committee because the bill would have cost the state
$56 million for increased prison space. America’s Most Wanted host John Walsh
crusaded on behalf of the bill. Governor Bush said that the key to public safety
is returning probation violators to prison, but stopped short of endorsing the
anti-murder legislation.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0608c1.pdf
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h045100.pdf
Jessica Lunsford Act
On May 2, Governor Bush signed into law landmark legislation aimed at
protecting all Floridians from sexual predators and offenders. HB 1877, known as
The Jessica Lunsford Act, strengthens penalties for sexual crimes against
children. The bill was filed after 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford was seized from
her bedroom, assaulted and killed. A registered sex offender has been charged
with her murder. The legislation includes a measure requiring many child
molesters to wear satellite tracking devices for life.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h187705er.pdf
Stand Your Ground
The Sunshine State’s “No Duty to Retreat,” or “Stand Your Ground” law, which
passed as CS/CS/SB 436 (Chapter 2005-27, L.O.F.) permits a person to use force,
including deadly force, without fear of criminal prosecution or civil action for
damages, against a person who unlawfully and forcibly enters the person’s
dwelling, residence, or occupied vehicle. Additionally, the bill abrogates the
common law duty to retreat when attacked before using deadly force that is
reasonably necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm. The law
also expands the castle doctrine by expanding the concept of what is a “castle”
and by expanding the group of persons entitled to the castle’s protection. Under
the castle doctrine, a person has no duty to retreat from his or her “castle” (a
person’s home or workplace), before resorting to deadly force necessary for
self-defense. The bill expands the concept of the castle to include attached
porches, any type of vehicle, and places of temporary lodging, including tents.
Under the castle doctrine, only persons lawfully residing in a dwelling have no
duty to retreat before resorting to deadly force necessary for self-defense.
Under the provisions of the bill, invited guests in another person’s “castle”
will have the same rights to self-defense as a resident of the expanded castle.
These provisions were approved by the Governor on April 26 and will take effect
October 1, 2005.
Copy of Law:
http://election.dos.state.fl.us/laws/05laws/ch_2005-027.pdf
Taser Legislation
There was a plethora of bills filed this session relating to the use of
tasers, all of which died as the session came to a close: SB 0488 and HB 709
relating to taser use on minors on the grounds of a school; SB 1574 relating to
law enforcement officers and the use of tasers on minors; SB 2238 relating to
Florida Department of Law Enforcement Officers and the training requirements for
use of a taser gun; SB 2240 relating to law enforcement officers and taser
training and SB 2448 banning the civilian use of stun guns.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0488.pdf
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h070900.pdf
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1574.pdf
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s2238.pdf
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s2240c1.pdf
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s2448.pdf
Health Care
Florida KidCare Program
Enrollment in KidCare subsidized health insurance for children plummeted over
the past year from about 350,000 to less than 240,000. That occurred despite
promises and allocations last year by the Legislature and the Governor to
increase KidCare slots by 90,000. Tougher rules on enrolling and maintaining
eligibility for KidCare produced the drop-off in children served by a program
that costs families only $15-$20 a month. Up to $121 million allocated this year
for KidCare sits unused. Enrollment in the program was opened year-round under
CS/HB 569 which awaits the Governor’s signature. Enrollment is currently limited
to January and September of each year. Under the legislation, when the
enrollment ceiling is reached, enrollment shall immediately cease.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h056904er.pdf
Medicaid Reform
The original plan launched by Governor Bush would place all 2.2 million
elderly, people with disabilities, women and children under managed-care plans.
Medicaid patients would choose their plan, and the HMOs or provider-based
networks would set the level of benefits. No estimates of how the plan would
affect costs in the soon-to-be $15 billion program have been projected. The
Senate amended the reform proposal to exert tight legislative control over
implementation or expansion of the Governor’s managed-care-only experiment. The
reform will start with pilot projects in Broward, Duval, Clay, Baker and Nassau
counties with a separate pilot program for the elderly in long-term care. The
bill includes almost instant monitoring of the treatment delivered to patients
and whether it’s within best medical practices.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0838er.pdf
Medical Malpractice
CS/SB 940 implements s. 26, Art. X of the State Constitution, which
provides that “[n]o person who has been found to have committed three or more
incidents of medical malpractice shall be licensed or continue to be licensed by
the State of Florida to provide health care services as a medical doctor.”
Incident is defined to include a single act of medical malpractice, regardless
of the number of claimants. Multiple findings of medical malpractice arising
from the same act or acts associated with the treatment of the same patient must
count as only one incident. Beginning July 1, 2005, the Department of Health
must verify each physician’s disciplinary history and medical malpractice claims
at initial licensure and licensure renewal using the National Practitioner Data
Bank. The physician profiles must reflect the disciplinary action and medical
malpractice claims as reported by the National Practitioner Data Bank.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0940er.pdf
Patients’ Right-to-Know
CS/SB 938 implements s. 25, Art. X, of the State Constitution, which provides
patients access to records of adverse medical incidents. The new law, referred
to as the “Patients’ Right-to-Know About Adverse Medical Incidents Act,”
requires hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, mobile surgical facilities,
medical physicians, osteopathic physicians, and podiatric physicians to provide
access to records of adverse medical incidents that occurred on or after
November 2, 2004. An adverse medical incident means medical negligence,
intentional misconduct, or any other act, neglect, or default of a health care
facility or health care provider, which caused, or could have caused, injury or
death to a patient.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0938er.pdf
Parental Notification
HB 1659 requires a minor to notify her parent or legal guardian prior to
terminating her pregnancy. A judicial waiver process is provided in HB 1659,
which permits a minor to petition the court for a waiver to the notification
requirement. The court is authorized to waive notice, upon reaching certain
findings, such as when a medical emergency exists, the minor is sufficiently
mature to make the decision independently, abuse is present, or that notice is
not in the best interest of the minor. The substantive bill provides for
confidentiality of all hearings, but does not address the court record. CS/SB
798 provides the public records exemption relating to court records containing
information about a minor seeking judicial approval for a termination of
pregnancy subject to the parental notification provisions.
Copy of the Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h165905er.pdf
Utilities
Hurricane Recovery
CS/CS/CS SB 1366 would allow utility companies, namely Progress Energy
Florida, Inc. and Florida Power & Light Company, to issue corporate bonds to
cover their hurricane recovery costs. Both companies have asked the Florida
Public Service Commission for permission to recover their hurricane costs
through two-year customer surcharges, but this legislation would afford them an
alternative. Issuing corporate bonds would allow the companies to recover their
costs immediately with lower surcharges per year because the bonds would be
spread out over a longer period, therefore lessening the short-term effect on
utility customers. The legislation also would enable the companies to recover
revenues lost to hurricane damage, effectively allowing the companies to collect
money for electricity they never sold. The legislation would also enable the
companies to use the proceeds from the bonds to replenish their storm damage
reserve funds, which were depleted by last year’s hurricanes.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1366er.pdf
Public Service Commission Oversight
CS/CS/SB 1322 forms a 12-member legislative Committee on Public Service
Commission Oversight that would recommend nominees to the Governor for PSC
vacancies and would take over responsibility for appointing the state public
counsel from the Joint Legislative Auditing Committee. The public counsel
represents the interests of state utility customers before the PSC. The
legislation also amends the standards of conduct for PSC commissioners and bars
outside parties from appearing before the commission for two years if they are
found violating rules banning gifts to commissioners or improper “ex
parte” communication with commissioners. The bill allows PSC commissioners
to participate in conferences and related events funded in part by utility
companies and allows telephone companies to seek permission from the PSC to
include surcharges of up to 50 cents each on their monthly bills to defray the
cost of future catastrophic storm damage.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1322er.pdf
Insurance
Hurricane Insurance Coverage
Insurance companies sought legislation this session to protect them from
paying to rebuild houses destroyed or damaged partly by flooding when a
homeowner’s policy only covered wind damage. Insurers said that without the new
law they would be forced to leave Florida or have to raise rates. Proponents
wanted to undo a recent court decision that said insurance companies were
required to pay the full policy amount to repair a house, even if some of the
damage was caused by something that’s not covered in the policy, such as
flooding, which is not covered by wind policies. One of the last measures
legislators approved this session gives insurance companies a break from flood
damage and also gives consumers a guarantee that the details of their policy
will be clearly enumerated. The bill also gives consumers a choice of how large
a deductible their policy would carry. Under the measure, they can choose a
policy with a 2, 5 or 10 percent deductible. The bill also makes it easier for
insurers to tap into the state’s Hurricane Catastrophe Fund, a backup insurance
plan for companies that are hit hard by storms. Key provisions contained in the
legislation include:
• creation of an insurance policy checklist: the new law requires a committee
be convened to develop this checklist, with a report delivered to legislative
leaders by January 15, 2006
• new hurricane deductibles: by 2006, companies are supposed to offer
deductibles of 2, 5 and 10 percent; a higher deductible would mean lower
premiums
• paying for repairs or damaged items: as of October 1, companies will be
required to pay the full cost to replace an item; under current law, companies
first give the homeowner the actual cash value, then they remit the reset of
what the homeowner is owed after they make the repairs or replace the damaged
item
• additional coverage: also starting October 1, homeowners can request extra
coverage to help pay for repairs if their older home is destroyed and they have
to rebuild to newer, stricter building codes; this new coverage is called “law
and ordinance” coverage and it helps to rebuild beyond what an insurance policy
currently covers; most insurers offer this coverage at an additional 25 percent
above a homeowner’s policy limits to rebuild their home; the new law requires
them to offer it at 50 percent above the homeowner’s policy limits
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1486er.pdf
Hurricane Housing Work Group
HB 1889 appropriates $250 million to implement the recommendations of the
Hurricane Housing Work Group. The bill was amended in the Senate to specify that
$208 million will be used to implement the Hurricane Housing Recovery Program
with the remaining $42 million allocated to the Rental Recovery Loan
Program.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h188903er.pdf
Title Insurance
HB 75 amends the definition of title insurance to permit the issuance of
title policies for personal property, as specified in Article 9 of the UCC. The
scope of the bill is limited to only UCC transactions for personal property. The
bill does not affect real property transactions. UCC lender’s insurance
protection is the personal property equivalent to the real property lender’s
title insurance policy. Just as the real property lender’s title insurance
policy insures and indemnifies the lender’s first priority mortgage or deed of
trust secured by real property, the UCC lender’s policy insures and indemnifies
the lender’s attachment, perfection and first priority security interest (lien)
in personal property taken by lenders as collateral for a commercial loan. By
insuring that the Lender’s security interest in personal property attaches to
the Debtor’s collateral, the policy insures the Lender that the Debtor either
has ownership rights in the collateral or has an interest in the collateral
sufficient to transfer it to the Insured Lender as collateral for the loan.
Copy on Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h007504er.pdf
Health Insurance
This session’s health care package, containing some good things for health
plans and limiting some bad provisions, was contained in HB 811 which passed.
Life and Health Insurance
HB 811 which embodied the Office of Insurance Regulation’s health insurance
package, includes the following provisions:
• authorizes employers to list bill for individual health insurance policies
for the uninsured, under certain circumstances
• reduces audits for life and health insurers from every three years to once
in every five years and increases the maximum charge for the audits from $20,000
to $50,000
• amends 2004 healthy lifestyles rebate mandate to become optional for
individual coverage
• corrects a glitch so health savings account policies will meet federal tax
guidelines after January 1, 2006
• creates a small group and individual market advisory council for the Office
of Insurance Regulation
• allows emergency room payments directly to a hospital where the health plan
permits assignment, with certain limitations
Additionally, a provision requiring hospital transparency and funding for the
Agency on Health Care Administration’s Web site with comparison information on
hospitals passed as proviso language in the state budget.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h081106er.pdf
Discount Medical Plan Organizations
HB 1081 passed this session and corrected glitches to a law passed in 2004.
Discount medical plan organizations (DMPO) that provide access for plan members
to providers of medical services at a discounted fee in exchange for fees or
other consideration are subject to licensure and regulation under ch. 636, part
II, F.S., by the Office of Insurance Regulation (OIR). The bill provides the
following changes related to the licensure and regulation of these entities:
• authorizes OIR to impose an administrative penalty and cease and desist
orders in lieu of suspending or revoking the license of a DMPO
• provides that any charge or form is deemed approved on the 60th day after
filing unless OIR has previously disapproved it
• authorizes OIR to disapprove any form that does not comply with ch. 636,
part II, F.S., or that is unreasonable, discriminatory, misleading, or
unfair
• authorizes a DMPO to retain up to a $30 one-time processing fee if a
membership is canceled within 30 days of joining the plan
• revises the DMPO’s liability for the actions of its marketer
• eliminates audited financial statement requirements for licensure, if the
applicant is a subsidiary of a parent company and certain conditions are met by
the parent company
• eliminates the filing of annual, audited financial statements for a
subsidiary of a parent company if certain conditions are met, and instead,
requires a DMPO to file a sworn affidavit certifying compliance with net worth
requirements
• repeals the civil remedies provision
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h108103er.pdf
Health Insurance Deductibles Study Commission
CS/CS/SB 662 sets up a study commission to look at high health insurance
deductibles, co-payments and co-insurance and the ability of hospitals to
collect charges in the deductible that are not covered by insurance. This bill
was eventually vetoed by Governor Bush.
Copy of Vetoed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0662er.pdf
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses
HB 1503 calling for mandatory arbitration clauses in life and health
insurance contracts did not pass this session.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h150304e1.pdf
Hospital Prompt Pay
SB 900, the hospital prompt payment package, died this session.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0900.pdf
Health Insurance/Mandated Benefits
SB 318 mandating cystic fibrosis coverage died this session.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0318c1.pdf
Surgical First Assistants
CS/SB 594 & CS/HB 187 relating to surgical first assistants also did not
pass this session.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0594c2.pdf
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h018700.pdf
Cranio-Facial Anomalies
A bill requiring a study of cranio-facial anomalies, CS/SB 560, died this
session.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0560c1.pdf
Managed Care
SB 1800 relating to managed care fiscal intermediary service organizations
did not pass.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1800.pdf
Annuities
HB 105 relating to annuity sales to non-U.S. citizens in Florida by alien
insurers passed this session.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h010503er.pdf
Viatical Settlements
CS/SB 2412 regulating viatical settlements as securities passed this
session.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s2412er.pdf
Investor-Owned Life Insurance (IOLI)
SB 1616 would have created a loophole to allow third parties unrelated to
life insurance beneficiaries to take advantage of the tax-free status of life
insurance policies. The bill was opposed by a coalition of life insurance
companies and agents.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1616c1.pdf
Unclaimed Property
Among other provisions, HB 1527 would have banned locator services companies
from searching for heirs to unclaimed property unless a prior contract existed.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h152705er.pdf
Tort Reform
Lawsuit Limitations
The Legislature passed two litigation reform measures, CS/SB 2228 which
requires medical evidence of illness before plaintiffs can sue for asbestos
exposure and another, HB 135 which protects utilities from damages stemming from
broken street lights. There were several other tort reform measures which died
this session when the Senate refused to take them up, including proposals
dealing with the rights of people to collect damages when they fall in a store
or business; the liability of businesses whose customers are victims of crime;
product-liability lawsuits; and class-action suits. Another proposal eliminating
the legal doctrine known as “joint and several liability,” which allows
defendants with a small role in hurting someone pay a large share of the damages
in some cases, also died. Both Governor Jeb Bush and House Speaker Allan Bense,
together with a coalition of business groups, including Associated Industries of
Florida and the Florida Chamber of Commerce, sought major limitations on how
people could sue businesses.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s2228er.pdf
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h013504er.pdf
Transportation
Mandatory Seat Belt Law
It took five years, but Rep. Irv Slosberg (D-Boca Raton) finally passed a
tougher seat belt bill. Rep. Slosberg first ran for the State House of
Representatives after his teenage daughter, who was not wearing a seat belt, was
killed in a car crash. His legislative mission was to pass a law strengthening
the enforcement of Florida’s mandatory seat belt law. HB 1697 provides that law
enforcement officers would be authorized to stop motorists and issue citations
for a safety belt violation. A person violating this provision would be cited
for a nonmoving violation, punishable by a $30 fine. The bill also requires law
enforcement officers to record the race and ethnicity of the violator when a
citation is issued for not wearing a safety belt. This data must be forwarded to
DHSMV, and the DHSMV must report this information annually to the Governor and
the Legislature. Any fines collected for seat belt violations will be set aside
to provide safety training for young drivers.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h169704er.pdf
Traffic Fines
Florida lawmakers passed a number of bills aimed at getting tougher on
traffic safety during the 2005 Session. One bill more than doubles the fine for
running red lights, and increases the number of points against a driver’s
license. Another bill passed by the Legislature, but vetoed by Governor Bush,
aimed to crack down on road rage by fining a person $60 for driving slowly in
the left lane. With more than 3,000 people killed on Florida roads every year,
lawmakers hope higher fines will help to make a difference.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h049706er.pdf
Copy of Vetoed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h015704er.pdf
Taxes
Substitute Communications Systems Tax Repeal
CS/SB 2070 repeals retroactively the broad substitute communications systems
tax imposed on the cost of operating communications systems that by-passed, or
substituted for, dealer-provided communication paths (e.g., internal
telephone systems, networked computer systems [local area network or “LAN”],
monitoring systems, paging systems, radio dispatch and other radio systems, and
point-of-sale and other inventory control systems). This tax was not
aggressively enforced by Department of Revenue. The legislation prohibits
refunds and provides that voice over Internet protocol (VOIP) is expressly
taxed. A task force was created to report on telecommunications tax issues by
July 2006.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s2070er.pdf
Communications Services Tax Service Address
HB 1813 amends Section 202.011(15)(a), F.S., to designate a customer’s street
address as the service address for taxable communications services where the
location of the equipment from which the services originate or are received by
the customer are unknown (e.g., satellite radio in a motor vehicle that
crosses jurisdictional lines while receiving a signal). Prior law did not
provide a standard for sourcing or situsing these services.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h181302er.pdf
Reduction of Annual Intangibles Tax Rate
CS/SB 2348 reduces the annual intangible personal property tax rate to
.5 mill (down from 1 mill) effective December 31, 2005 (i.e., beginning
tax year 2006). The Florida Legislature will likely eliminate the annual
intangibles tax altogether in 2006.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s2348er.pdf
Streamlined Sales Tax Project
Proposed legislation (SB 56 and HB 607) did not pass for a third consecutive
year.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0056c1.pdf
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h060700.pdf
Hurricane Preparedness Tax Holiday
HB 6001 enacts a “sales tax holiday” for retail sales of certain
hurricane-related equipment and supplies for the period June 1-12, 2005. The
bill covers home generators (up to $750 in value), portable radios and lighting,
fuel tanks, first aid kits, batteries, tarps and coolers.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h600103er.pdf
Back-to-School Shopping Tax Holiday
HB 101 provides a “sales tax holiday” for retail sales of clothing, footwear
and handbags with a selling price of $50 or less and sales of school supplies
and books with a selling price of $10 or less for the period from July 23-31,
2005.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h010103er.pdf
Power Farm Equipment Exemption
HB 643 enacts a complete exemption for purchases of power farm equipment used
exclusively in agricultural production or in forestry and fire prevention,
effective July 1, 2005. Equipment had been taxed at reduced rate of 2.5
percent.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h064303er.pdf
Tax Fraud
HB 1813 broadens the scope of “tax fraud” to include willful attempts in any
manner to “evade any tax or fee” imposed by Chapter 212, F.S., and provides for
punishment of such crime as a third-degree felony and imposes a 100 percent
penalty. Under the current law, “tax fraud” crimes are limited to specific
culpable acts. The law formerly included the phrase “or willfully attempting to
evade the payment of such a tax or fee.”
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h181302er.pdf
Corporate Income Tax Piggyback
SB 1798 updates Florida’s Corporate Income Tax Code to adopt the Internal
Revenue Code as amended after January 1, 2004, per Section 220.03(1) and (2),
F.S.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1798er.pdf
Limitations Period for Refunds
CS/SB 1300 equalizes the statute of limitations for assessments and refund of
estimated corporate income tax payments, by the commencing statute from the same
triggering event (i.e., filing of return). Estimated payments will now be
deemed paid at the time the return is filed, including extensions. Under current
law, the statute of limitations for a refund of estimated payments disregards
extensions. The legislation applies retroactively to tax years beginning on or
after January 1, 2001.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1300er.pdf
Unemployment Compensation Tax
HB 1693 was designed to comply with the federal mandate (SUTA Dumping
Prevention Act of 2004) to enact state legislation to prevent employers from
evading unemployment compensation insurance tax, by transferring payroll from a
high-rate company to a new or different low-rate affiliate. This also increases
the criminal penalty for unemployment compensation fraud to a third-degree
felony.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h169303er.pdf
Estate Tax
HB 1813 allows estates that are not required to file a federal tax return to
file an “Affidavit of No Florida Estate Tax Due” directly with the Clerk of the
Court and not with the Department of Revenue, regardless of the decedent’s date
of death. Under prior law, that statute applied only to decedents who died on or
after January 1, 2000; estates for decedents who died prior to that date were
required under current law to file the affidavit with the Department of Revenue
in order to obtain a nontaxable certificate.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h181302er.pdf
Insurance Premium Tax
HB 1813 creates a new statute of limitations for assessment of insurance
premium tax where the amount of corporate income tax or workers’ compensation
administrative assessment paid by an insurer is adjusted through an amended
return or refund. Under prior law, refunds of the WCAA were made by the
Department of Financial Services without consideration of the relationship
between the WCAA and the insurer’s insurance premium tax or corporate income tax
liability.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h181302er.pdf
Economic Development Incentives
Two economic development programs, the Qualified Target Industry and
Qualified Defense Contractor tax refund programs, were extended to 2010 and
reorganized under the provisions of HB 1483. The Communications Services Tax was
also expressly added to the list of refundable taxes. These programs offer tax
refunds to certain types of businesses that relocate or expand operations in
Florida and create high-wage jobs.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h148301er.pdf
Enterprise Zones
HB 1725 re-enacts and extends the Florida Enterprise Zone program, and
related state and local tax incentives, until 2015. The number of enterprise
zones is capped at the current number (55), absent express legislative
authorization for additional zones. Available tax credits include job credits
against corporate income tax and sales tax, property tax credit, and sales tax
refund for building materials and business property. Local governments may
additionally authorize sales tax exemption for electrical energy used in an
enterprise zone, ad valorem tax exemption, occupational license tax
exemption, and local impact fee abatement or reduction.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h172504er.pdf
Restrictions on Customer Refund Claims
CS/SB 1602 provides increased burden of proof, restricts damages and provides
an affirmative defense in any action by a purchaser against a vendor to obtain a
refund of or to otherwise recover taxes collected by the vendor from the
purchaser. The legislation applies to virtually all state taxes, except
communications services tax. These restrictions include: 1) the purchaser must
prove all elements of its refund claim by clear and convincing evidence; 2) the
purchaser’s sole remedy is damages measured by the difference between the amount
that the vendor collected as a tax and the amount that the vendor paid to the
taxing authority plus any discount or collection allowance authorized by law and
taken by the vendor; and 3) it is an affirmative defense to the purchaser’s
action when the vendor remitted the amount collected from the purchaser to the
appropriate taxing authority, less any discount or collection allowance
authorized by law. The bill does not change the law regarding standing to claim
a refund.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1602er.pdf
Timeshares
HB 1813 limits application of documentary stamp tax and non-recurring
intangible personal property tax for timeshares to those documents that either
are recorded or as to which the conditions precedent to release the purchaser’s
funds or properties have been satisfied. Under prior law, there was some concern
in the timeshare industry that requiring these taxes to be remitted on
purchasers’ funds and properties held in escrow as required under Section
721.08, F.S., would violate the provisions of the escrow statute.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h181302er.pdf
Marlins Stadium
A measure providing a $60 million sales-tax subsidy for a new stadium in
Miami-Dade County for the Florida Marlins died as the session came to a close.
Senate President Tom Lee refused to take the measure up stating that they “just
didn’t have the support of the Florida Senate.’’
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h128701c1.pdf
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1306c1.pdf
Proposed Constitutional Amendments
The sponsors of a proposed constitutional amendment that was struck from the
November 2004 ballot have filed three new constitutional amendments to achieve
their goal of implementing a broad-based sales tax on services in Florida. The
three proposed amendments are designed to address the Florida Supreme Court’s
concerns in striking the 2004 amendment from the ballot, and would operate to
severely limit exemptions and exclusions (including services) from Florida’s
sales tax. See, In Re Fairness Initiative Requiring Legislative
Determination That Sales Tax Exemptions and Exclusions Serve a Public
Purpose, Case No. SC04-947 (July 15, 2004).
The first amendment would require the Legislature to periodically review all
sales tax exemptions except those currently provided for food; prescription
drugs; health services; and residential rent, electricity and heating fuel. Upon
completing that review, the Legislature would be required to reenact and
continue only those exemptions that advance or serve a legislatively determined
public purpose. Sales tax exemptions not reenacted and continued by the
Legislature would be eliminated.
Under the second amendment, except for the payment of employee salaries and
benefits, all non-taxed services provided for compensation would be reviewed by
the Legislature to determine whether the exclusion of each service from taxation
serves a public purpose. Upon completing that review, services not currently
taxed and not expressly exempted from taxation by the Legislature would become
subject to sales tax beginning January 1, 2009.
The third amendment would require that each law granting a sales tax
exemption must contain a legislative determination that such exemption advances
or serves a public purpose and must contain the single subject of a single
exemption.
Privacy/Outsourcing
Security Breach Notification
HB 481 provides that any person who willfully and fraudulently uses or
possesses with the intent to use, personal identification information concerning
a deceased individual commits a third-degree felony. The legislation creates a
third-degree felony offense for willfully and fraudulently creating, using, or
possessing with the intent to use, counterfeit or fictitious personal
identification information for the purpose of committing a fraud upon another
person. The legislation also provides for the reclassification of an identity
theft offense that involves misrepresenting oneself to be a law enforcement
officer, or an employee of a bank, credit card company, credit counseling
company, or a credit reporting agency, or any person who wrongfully represents
that he or she is seeking to assist the victim with a problem with the victim’s
credit history. Additionally, the bill requires a person who maintains
computerized personal identification information for another person or business
entity to notify the person or business entity for whom computerized records are
maintained when there is a breach of security in the system. The notification
language contains an exception that any disclosures which are already public
record do not require notification.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h048105er.pdf
Outsourcing
SB 614 relating to outsourcing did not pass during the 2005 session. Other
bills on this subject were defeated also.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0614.pdf
State Budget
During the 2005 Session, House and Senate leaders reached agreement regarding
a $63.5 billion state budget. The budget has been engrossed and will be sent to
Governor Jeb Bush for his consideration. Upon the Governor’s receipt of the
General Appropriations Act, he had 30 days to sign, veto, or line-item veto
certain aspects of the Act. A copy of the Governor’s budget veto message is
attached.
State Budget In Brief
This year’s budget underscores fiscal responsibility while appropriately
meeting the needs of Florida’s most vulnerable. The total proposed House Budget
is $63.5 billion, an increase of 8.36 percent over fiscal year 2004-2005. The
budget includes:
• $25.9 billion in General Revenue spending, an increase of 6.11 percent over
the previous year
• $37.6 billion in trust fund spending, an increase of 9.96 percent over the
previous year
• Health/Welfare: $22.5 billion
• Criminal Justice: $4.2 billion
• Education: $27.6 billion (largest increase ever in education funding)
• Agriculture and Environment: $2.7 billion
• $387.1 million for implementation of the Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten
Program
• $60.3 million to operate the state prison system and to provide additional
prison beds to assure that all inmates serve 85 percent of their sentences; this
includes funding to deal with sexual predators covered by the Jessica Lunsford
Act
• $393.3 million to continue the Medically Needy program in its current
form
• $193 million for Affordable Housing programs
• $7.3 million to repair of National Guard armories around the state
• Over $6 billion to fund transportation construction and repairs, including
204 new lane miles
• State employees got a 3.6 percent raise
• 55 new judges in courthouses throughout the state
• $1.5 billion for growth management projects
• $1.1 billion goes into a savings account or “rainy-day” fund
• $386 million for universal pre-kindergarten
• $225 million in tax cuts
• $130 million for water projects
• $60.3 million for new prison beds
• $14 million to increase grants to Floridians attending private colleges or
universities
• $11 million for historically black colleges and universities – highest
level ever
• $4.9 million for GPS tracking-monitors for sexual predators
• $2.7 million for electronic monitoring of juvenile offenders
• $4 million to train poll workers
• $3 million for voter education
• in-state undergraduate students face a 5 percent tuition hike
The following budget items were secured:
City of West Palm Beach: $1.2 million in local projects (after Governor’s
vetoes)
Sarasota County: $1 million for Phillipi Creek Septic Tank Replacement
Project; $210,000 for Juvenile Assessment Center
Girl Scouts Legislative Network: $700,000 for Mentoring Program
Copy of Budget Conference Report:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s2600er.pdf
Copy of Budget Veto Message:
http://www.myflorida.com/myflorida/government/laws/2005legislation/
pdfs/2005_veto_final.pdf
Ethics and Elections
Election Reform
Democratic lawmakers are outraged over HB 1567 which limits early voting
hours. The legislation is part of an overall election-reform bill. It expands
“no solicitation” zones to prevent voter intimidation. It also makes changes to
voter registration, creates guidelines for poll-watchers, and outlines early
voting processes. The legislation also limits early voting to just eight hours a
day. The legislation also eliminates the current provision allowing for voting
on the Monday before election day.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h156705er.pdf
Lobbyist Disclosure
A bill that would have forced lobbyists to disclose their earnings and the
money they spend on meals with lawmakers died on the final day of the 2005
Session. The measure was a top priority for Senate President Tom Lee. The
Senate’s version of the bill, SB 2646, would have required lobbyists to report
their total compensation by categories, such as $10,000-$49,999;
$50,000-$99,999; $100,000-$250,000, instead of a precise amount. It would have
prohibited lawmakers from accepting gifts from lobbyists, except for novelty
gifts valued under $25. The Senate bill would also have prevented many felons
from lobbying which the House proposal did not contain. Under the Senate plan, a
felon would have to complete all of their legal requirements, have their civil
rights restored and win a majority vote of the Governor and Cabinet before
registering as a lobbyist.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s2646e1.pdf
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h184900.pdf
Term Limits
HJR 1177 increases term limits for state legislators from eight to 12 years.
The 12-year term limit applies only to legislators whose consecutive years
in office begin on November 7, 2006, or thereafter; office holders
prior to and continuing through November 7, 2006, remain subject to the current
eight-year term limit restriction in s. 4(b), Art. VI, State Constitution. The
bill also removes unconstitutional term-limit restrictions in the State
Constitution applicable to federal office holders; the U.S. Supreme Court has
ruled that state-imposed term limits on federal officers violates the
qualifications clause of the U.S. Constitution. See, U.S. Term Limits,
Inc. v. Thornton, 514 U.S. 779 (1995).
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h117702er.pdf
Regulated Industries
Slot Machines
Slot machines generated a lot of conversation during the legislative session,
but lawmakers ultimately could not agree on how to tax them – or even define
them. The parimutuel industry has stated that it will likely go to court to
clarify these issues. In last November’s general election, voters approved an
amendment to the Florida Constitution that gave Broward and Miami-Dade counties
the option of having slot machines at parimutuel facilities. The ballot measure
specified that any revenue raised from taxing the slots would be used for public
schools statewide. Four months later, voters in Miami-Dade County rejected the
slots initiative, while voters in Broward approved it. The Senate version of the
legislation would have allowed the parimutuels to install traditional slots like
those found in Las Vegas and Atlantic City. The House wanted to allow only
bingo-based electronic gambling machines, like those currently found in
Florida’s Indian casinos. The two chambers couldn’t reach a compromise and
passed nothing.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1174c3.pdf
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1342.pdf
Education
Class-Size Amendment
Governor Bush’s priority to dilute Florida’s class-size mandate was rejected
by the Florida Senate this session. The class-size amendment was approved in
2002 by 52.4 percent of the voters. Of the 2.55 million votes in favor of the
caps, nearly one of every three was cast in Broward, Palm Beach and Miami-Dade
counties. Repealing the mandate was one of the Governor’s top priorities this
session even though polls have shown that voters do not agree with the repeal.
The House overwhelmingly endorsed the idea of putting the issue back before
voters in November 2006, but the plan could not even win a simple majority of
the 40-member Senate, much less the 24 votes needed to put a constitutional
amendment on the ballot. The State Constitution now requires that by 2010 all
kindergarten through third-grade classes have no more than 18 students, that
fourth- through eighth-grade classes be capped at 22 students and high school
classes be limited to 25.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s2090c2.pdf
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/House/bills/billtext/pdf/h184300.pdf
On The Lighter Side
Portable Toilets
CS/CS/SB 626 requires portable toilets to be regulated by the Department of
Health and creates penalties and fines for failing to comply with the
regulations.
Copy of the Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0626er.pdf
Toilet-Tissue Tax
Senator Al Lawson (D-Tallahassee) tried to float a bill putting a
2-cent-per-roll tax on toilet paper to help buy new sewer systems for the small
rural counties in his district. There was no companion bill filed in the House,
and SB 2544 died without a single committee hearing.
Copy of Failed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s2544.pdf
“Merlot To Go”
Under CS/SB 1114 diners will be able to take an opened bottle of wine home
from a restaurant. The bill gives restaurants the choice to provide the service
to customers who have eaten a full meal and consumed part of a bottle of wine.
If they do, the bottle would be placed in a sealed bag and may be taken home in
a car trunk or glove compartment. The bag, which is to be approved by the state
Department of Business and Professional Regulation, must be
tamper-resistant.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1114er.pdf
Nursing Home Beds
Lawmakers passed a measure, CS/CS/CS/SB 442, giving nursing home residents
the right to arrange their furniture in their rooms as they see fit. Currently,
Florida’s decades-old safety code required that nursing home beds stick out
perpendicularly from the wall, leaving space on both sides, as in hospital
rooms. The legislation was filed at the behest of a few nursing home
administrators who asked for an official exemption from the rules in law. The
legislation allows wall beds as long as residents request them, their roommates
don’t object and they don’t interfere with safety or care.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0442er.pdf
Official Fruit of Florida
On May 20, the Governor signed into law SB 574 which designates the orange as
the official state fruit.
Copy of Enacted Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s0574er.pdf
Sloppy Joe’s
Governor Jeb Bush will soon have to decide whether a historic bar in Key West
deserves a special exception to the state’s smoking ban in restaurants.
Legislation passed during the 2005 Session, CS/CS/SB 1348, lets bars in historic
buildings circumvent the constitutional amendment. Opponents argue that the bill
opens the door to other exemptions, and flies in the face of what voters
intended. They have asked Governor Bush to veto the legislation. This bill was
vetoed by Governor Bush.
Copy of Vetoed Legislation:
http://www.flsenate.gov/data/session/2005/Senate/bills/billtext/pdf/s1348er.pdf
For more information on these enacted laws, e-mail Patricia Greene at patricia.greene@hklaw.com or call
toll free, 1-888-688-8500.
Growth Management
On June 24, Governor Bush signed into law legislation overhauling Florida’s
growth management law. The new law provides the Department of Environmental
Protection (FDEP) with more than $2 billion to fight pollution, improve water
quality and supply and strengthen protection for Florida’s natural resources.
Appropriations include more than $400 million to continue restoring America’s
Everglades and acquiring environmentally-sensitive land, $73 million to restore
Florida’s hurricane-ravaged beaches, and more than $294 million to improve the
health of rivers, lakes, estuaries and springs. For details, see the attached
press release:
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/secretary/news/2005/06/0624_03.htm
Lottery Prize Scam
Attorney General Crist warned Floridians about a scam that requires “winners”
of a lottery or sweepstakes to submit payments in order to claim their prize.
The scam lures Florida citizens, particularly elderly residents, into paying
unnecessary “processing” or “premium” fees in order to collect a “free”
prize.
The Attorney General’s Office spotted the growing trend after receiving
numerous complaints from consumers across the state. Soliciting fees to collect
a “free prize” is illegal in Florida.
Copy of Press Release:
http://myfloridalegal.com/newsrel.nsf/newsreleases/
B20049B548F2501A852570260061D78C
Broward County Slot Machines
After being criticized in the press by Senate President Tom Lee, Attorney
General Crist issued a statement (see link below) on June 24 regarding the
Broward County slot machine issue:
Copy of Statement:
http://myfloridalegal.com/newsrel.nsf/newsreleases/
488F398F067E075E8525702A006499E4
Hydrogen Fuel Technology
Moving into the next generation of energy technology, Homosassa Springs
Wildlife State Park today unveiled a hydrogen fuel cell system, which is now
powering the park’s Wildlife Encounter Pavilion. The partnership between the
Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and Progress Energy Florida
provides clean energy to the park and shares the benefits of emerging
“next-generation” technology with hundreds of thousands of visitors.
Copy of Press Release:
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/secretary/news/2005/06/0624_02.htm
Brownfields Redevelopment Act
Florida reached a milestone in restoring abandoned and idle properties this
year, designating its 100th local brownfield site. The Florida Department of
Environmental Protection (DEP) recently submitted the 2004 Annual Report on the
Brownfields Redevelopment Act to Governor Jeb Bush and the Florida Legislature
outlining the State’s achievements in implementing the 1997 law to revitalize
communities and boost local economies by cleaning up historically-polluted
sites.
Copy of Press Release:
http://www.dep.state.fl.us/secretary/news/2005/06/0615_02.htm
Medicaid Reform
On June 3, Governor Jeb Bush signed historic legislation aimed at reforming
Medicaid, the healthcare safety net program for more than 2.1 million
low-income, elderly and disabled Floridians. Medicaid, administered through a
state-federal partnership, has not undergone significant reform since its
inception more than 30 years ago.
Copy of Press Release:
http://www.fdhc.state.fl.us/Executive/Communications/
Press_Releases/06_03_2005.shtml
“Do Not Call” Law
Florida Agriculture and Consumer Services Charlie Bronson announced on June
17 that he has taken legal action against a Hillsborough County telemarketer for
violating Florida’s “Do Not Call” law.
A lawsuit filed in Hillsborough County Circuit Court alleges that Liberty One
Capital Inc. made at least six telephone calls to Florida residents on the
state’s “Do Not Call” list during the past 10 months. Moreover, the company is
accused of playing recorded messages when residents answered the phone, which is
a separate violation of Florida law.
“Consumers who join the program are entitled to be spared the intrusion of
commercial telemarketing calls, and this company apparently has failed to get
the message,” Bronson said.
Copy of Press Release:
http://doacs.state.fl.us/press/2005/06172005.html
Speaker Appoints Select Committee to Review Eminent
Domain
On June 24, Florida House Speaker Allan Bense announced that he was forming
the Select Committee to Protect Private Property Rights. In his press release,
he issued the following statement:
“Private property rights are a fundamental principle upon which our nation
was founded, and government should only be allowed to deny a United States
citizen those most basic rights under the most extraordinary circumstances.
Ordinarily, we expect eminent domain to be asserted only in situations with a
clear public necessity and clear public benefit. When it is used in a situation
involving private companies, with an inherent profit motive, people should be
extremely skeptical and in a situation such as the one in Connecticut their
outrage is understandable. Fortunately, the court’s majority opinion did
recognize that state legislatures could and should clearly set parameters for
when the assertion of eminent domain was appropriate. Therefore, in an effort to
make sure the private property rights of Florida citizens are protected, I am
immediately appointing a select committee of the Florida House of
Representatives, with Rep. Marco Rubio as its chairman, to review Florida’s
Constitution as well as relevant statutes, rules and ordinances. Their task will
be to identify any areas of ambiguity and recommend appropriate changes to make
sure the unfortunate situation we’ve seen in Connecticut is not repeated in the
state of Florida.”
The recent Kelo v. City of New London decision by the U.S. Supreme
Court has raised eyebrows across the state as to how and when government uses
its eminent domain powers. The decision considers economic development a
legitimate public purpose under a government’s eminent domain powers. This could
allow government to take land from a property owner and give it to a private
developer to boost the tax base or create jobs. According to recent news
reports, the Kelo decision is already being referenced by local governments to
justify the sale of private property to benefit a private developer and the
city’s tax base.
Subsequent to the formation of the select committee, Speaker Bense appointed
the following members to serve on the committee:
Rep. Marco Rubio (R-Miami) Chairman
Rep. Dean Cannon (R-Winter Park)
Rep. Greg Evers (R-Milton)
Rep. Anitere Flores (R-Miami)
Rep. Ron Greenstein (D-Coconut Creek)
Rep. Denise Grimsley (R-Sebring)
Rep. Arthenia Joyner (D-Tampa)
Rep. Jeff Kottkamp (R-Cape Coral)
Rep. Dick Kravitz (R-Orange Park)
Rep. Ralph Poppell (R-Titusville)
Rep. Jack Seiler (D-Pompano Beach)
Rep. Dwight Stansel (D-Live Oak)
Rep. Trey Traviesa (R-Brandon)
The purpose of the select committee will be to review Florida’s Constitution,
current laws, regulations and ordinances and to recommend changes ensuring
government only asserts its eminent domain powers where the public necessity and
public benefit are clear.
In addition, Rep. Everett Rice (R-Seminole) has filed House Joint Resolution
31 for the 2006 Legislative Session that would not allow private economic
development to be a public purpose for which private property may be taken in
eminent domain proceedings. This resolution, if passed by the Legislature, would
be placed on the 2006 ballot.
Florida Public Policy and Regulation Practice Group
Martha W. Barnett • Partner
850 425 5620 • martha.barnett@hklaw.com
Lawrence N. Curtin • Executive Partner, Tallahassee
850 425 5678 • larry.curtin@hklaw.com
James M. Ervin, Jr. • Partner
850 425 5649 • jim.ervin@hklaw.com
Patricia Greene • Public Affairs Advisor
850 425 5604 • patricia.greene@hklaw.com
Curt Kiser • Partner
850 425 5632 • curt.kiser@hklaw.com
Joy M. Ryan • Senior Attorney/Counsel
850 425 5672 • joy.ryan@hklaw.com
Lawrence E. Sellers • Partner
850 425 5670 • larry.sellers@hklaw.com
Lori K. Weems • Partner
305 789 7624 • lori.weems@hklaw.com
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