Florida Senate - 2021                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. CS for SB 426
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Ì3142943Î314294                         
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
                  Comm: RCS            .                                
                  03/25/2021           .                                
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       The Committee on Community Affairs (Boyd) recommended the
       following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
    2  
    3         Delete lines 113 - 137
    4  and insert:
    5  violation of paragraph (a) which was adopted before, on, or
    6  after the effective date of this act is prohibited, void, and
    7  expressly preempted to the state.
    8         (2)(a)A municipality or political subdivision thereof, or
    9  a special district other than one established for port
   10  management by special act of the Legislature, may not restrict
   11  maritime commerce in the seaports of this state with respect to
   12  any federally authorized passenger cruise vessel, including, but
   13  not limited to, a restriction based on any of the following:
   14         1.Vessel type, size, number, or capacity, except when the
   15  port, by virtue of the physical limitations of its docking,
   16  berthing, or navigational capabilities, is unable to accommodate
   17  a passenger cruise vessel pursuant to applicable federal or
   18  state laws or regulations.
   19         2.Number, origin, nationality, embarkation, or
   20  disembarkation of passengers or crew or their entry into this
   21  state or any local jurisdiction.
   22         3.Source, type, loading, or unloading of cargo related or
   23  incidental to its use as a passenger cruise vessel.
   24         4.Environmental or health records of a particular
   25  passenger cruise vessel or cruise line.
   26         (b)Any provision of a law, a charter, an ordinance, a
   27  resolution, a regulation, a policy, an initiative, or a
   28  referendum which is in conflict with paragraph (a) and which
   29  existed before, on, or after the effective date of this act is
   30  prohibited, void, and expressly preempted to the state.
   31         (c)This subsection does not apply to a municipality the
   32  government of which has been consolidated with that of a county
   33  or to a municipal government that is a county as defined in s.
   34  125.011(1).
   35         (d)Except as provided in paragraph (a), this subsection
   36  does not otherwise limit the authority of a subject
   37  municipality, political subdivision thereof, or special district
   38  to:
   39         1.Engage in any activity authorized under this chapter,
   40  chapter 315, s. 313.22, or s. 313.23, including those
   41  surrounding the continued operation and development of the port
   42  and port facilities and the implementation of seaport security
   43  measures pursuant to ss. 311.12-311.124.
   44         2.Issue and enforce tariffs properly filed with the
   45  Federal Maritime Commission.
   46         3.Enter into leases, terminal agreements, or other
   47  contracts with tenants, customers, and other users of port
   48  facilities.
   49  
   50  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
   51  And the title is amended as follows:
   52         Delete lines 6 - 92
   53  and insert:
   54         providing that such a local ballot initiative,
   55         referendum, or action adopted therein is prohibited,
   56         void, and expressly preempted to the state;
   57         prohibiting municipalities and certain special
   58         districts from restricting maritime commerce in the
   59         seaports of this state with respect to any federally
   60         authorized passenger cruise vessel; providing that
   61         certain actions relating to such restrictions are
   62         prohibited, void, and expressly preempted to the
   63         state; providing applicability; clarifying remaining
   64         authority of certain local entities; providing a
   65         directive to the Division of Law Revision; providing
   66         an effective date.
   67  
   68         WHEREAS, maritime commerce between and among seaports, both
   69  foreign and domestic, is the subject of extensive federal and
   70  state regulation designed to protect the marine environment and
   71  the health, safety, and welfare of the general public and those
   72  involved in conducting that commerce, and
   73         WHEREAS, the economic impact of a seaport extends far
   74  beyond the boundaries of the local jurisdiction in which the
   75  port is located, materially contributing to the economies of
   76  multiple cities and counties within the region and to the
   77  economy of this state as a whole, and
   78         WHEREAS, Florida seaports currently generate nearly 900,000
   79  direct and indirect jobs and contribute $117.6 billion in
   80  economic value to this state through cargo and cruise
   81  activities, accounting for approximately 13 percent of this
   82  state’s gross domestic product and $4.2 billion in state and
   83  local taxes, and
   84         WHEREAS, because this state is a peninsula, much of this
   85  state is highly dependent upon the unimpeded flow of maritime
   86  commerce through its seaports, which is made even more critical
   87  when this state is threatened or impacted by natural disasters,
   88  such as tropical storms and hurricanes, and
   89         WHEREAS, because of its geographic location, this state is
   90  a hub for global maritime commerce and is uniquely positioned to
   91  capture an even larger share of this commerce as global trade
   92  routes shift, and
   93         WHEREAS, the international, national, statewide, and
   94  regional importance of Florida seaports has long been recognized
   95  in federal and state law with respect to the regulation,
   96  planning, and public financing of seaport operations and
   97  facilities, and
   98         WHEREAS, this state is widely known as the cruise capital
   99  of the world, and the cruise industry is vital to this state’s
  100  economy, contributing more than $9 billion in direct spending on
  101  an annual basis and supporting 159,000 jobs with more than $8
  102  billion in total wages and salaries before the current pandemic,
  103  and
  104         WHEREAS, 8.3 million passengers boarded cruises from one of
  105  this state’s five cruise ports in 2019, accounting for 60
  106  percent of embarkations in the United States, generating 11
  107  million passenger and crew onshore visits in both home port and
  108  transit port calls in this state, and
  109         WHEREAS, allowing a ballot initiative or referendum in each
  110  local seaport jurisdiction to impose its own requirements on the
  111  maritime commerce conducted in that port could result in abrupt
  112  changes in the supply lines bringing goods into and out of this
  113  state and could reasonably be expected to suppress such commerce
  114  and potentially drive it out of the port and out of this state
  115  in search of a more consistent and predictable operating
  116  environment, thus disrupting this state’s economy and
  117  threatening the public’s health, safety, and welfare, and
  118         WHEREAS, allowing a ballot initiative or referendum in each
  119  local seaport jurisdiction to impose its own requirements on the
  120  maritime commerce conducted in that port could result in abrupt
  121  changes in vessel traffic, frustrating the multiyear planning
  122  process for all Florida seaports and the assumptions and
  123  forecasts underlying federal and state financing of port
  124  improvement projects, and
  125         WHEREAS, there are similar concerns regarding the capacity
  126  of a municipality and certain special districts to impose such
  127  requirements on the maritime commerce conducted in a port, as
  128  the more limited geographic and political scope of a
  129  municipality and certain special districts may make such entity
  130  less sensitive to the negative impact of such requirements on
  131  neighboring municipalities and on the county, region, and state,
  132  and
  133         WHEREAS, many local economies in this state depend heavily
  134  on tourism, on which the surrounding politics can be
  135  particularly complex at the municipal level, which significantly
  136  heightens concerns that surrounding municipalities and certain
  137  special districts may impose local requirements affecting
  138  passenger cruise vessels or cruise lines, and
  139         WHEREAS, in light of these potential negative impacts, the
  140  permissible scope of local ballot initiatives or referendums and
  141  of the powers of a municipality and certain special districts
  142  must be appropriately limited, NOW, THEREFORE,