Florida Senate - 2018                      CS for CS for SB 1180
       
       
        
       By the Committees on Community Affairs; and Ethics and
       Elections; and Senators Steube and Brandes
       
       
       
       
       578-03463-18                                          20181180c2
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to county and municipal public
    3         officers; amending s. 112.061, F.S.; requiring that
    4         certain requests for travel authorization by county or
    5         municipal public officers be approved by the governing
    6         body of the county or municipality at a regularly
    7         scheduled meeting; specifying requirements for such
    8         requests; requiring that approved travel be posted on
    9         the county’s or municipality’s website for a specified
   10         timeframe; providing an exception for county
   11         constitutional officers; providing an effective date.
   12          
   13  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   14  
   15         Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (3) of section
   16  112.061, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
   17         112.061 Per diem and travel expenses of public officers,
   18  employees, and authorized persons.—
   19         (3) AUTHORITY TO INCUR TRAVEL EXPENSES.—
   20         (a) All travel must be authorized and approved by the head
   21  of the agency, or his or her designated representative, from
   22  whose funds the traveler is paid. The head of the agency shall
   23  not authorize or approve such a request unless:
   24         1. It is accompanied by a signed statement by the
   25  traveler’s supervisor stating that such travel is on the
   26  official business of the state and also stating the purpose of
   27  such travel.
   28         2. For county or municipal public officers requesting
   29  authorization to travel outside of the state or internationally,
   30  such travel must be on the official business of the county or
   31  municipality and must be approved by the county’s or
   32  municipality’s governing body at a regularly scheduled meeting
   33  before the officer’s travel, unless ratified for good cause at
   34  the next regularly scheduled meeting. Good cause requires a
   35  written explanation for why the travel request could not be
   36  approved in advance. A request for travel authorization must
   37  include an itemized list detailing all anticipated travel
   38  expenses, including, but not limited to, the anticipated costs
   39  of all means of travel, lodging, and subsistence. All travel
   40  approved in accordance with this subparagraph must be posted on
   41  the county’s or municipality’s website. If a municipality does
   42  not maintain a website, it must request that the applicable
   43  county post the approved travel on the county’s website. The
   44  applicable county must comply with such request. All such
   45  approved travel must be posted on the applicable website as soon
   46  as practicable, but no later than 10 days after approval, and
   47  must remain on the website until the end of the next calendar
   48  quarter. This subparagraph does not apply to a county
   49  constitutional officer, as defined in s. 1(d), Art. VIII of the
   50  State Constitution, who is elected by the electors of the
   51  county.
   52         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2018.