Senate Bill sb1276c1

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
    Florida Senate - 2001                           CS for SB 1276

    By the Committee on Transportation and Senator Lee





    306-1755-01

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to driver's licenses; amending

  3         s. 322.02, F.S.; providing legislative intent

  4         with regard to the delivery of driver's license

  5         services; authorizing county tax collectors to

  6         serve as exclusive agents of the Department of

  7         Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles; amending s.

  8         322.135, F.S.; providing an application process

  9         for county tax collectors to serve as exclusive

10         agents; creating the Cost Determination and

11         Allocation Task Force; establishing the duties

12         and responsibilities of the task force;

13         providing for the development of transition

14         plans to transfer certain responsibilities to

15         tax collectors; providing an effective date.

16

17  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

18

19         Section 1.  Section 322.02, Florida Statutes, is

20  amended to read:

21         322.02  Legislative intent; administration.--

22         (1)  The Legislature finds that over the past several

23  years the department and individual county tax collectors have

24  entered into contracts for the delivery of full and limited

25  driver's license services where such contractual relationships

26  best served the public interest through state administration

27  and enforcement and local government implementation.  It is

28  the intent of the Legislature that future interests and

29  processes for developing and expanding the department's

30  relationship with tax collectors through contractual

31  relationships for the delivery of driver license services be

                                  1

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2001                           CS for SB 1276
    306-1755-01




  1  achieved through the provisions of this chapter, thereby

  2  serving best the public interest considering accountability,

  3  cost effectiveness, efficiency, responsiveness, and

  4  high-quality service to the drivers in Florida.

  5         (2)(1)  The Department of Highway Safety and Motor

  6  Vehicles is charged with the administration and function of

  7  enforcement of the provisions of this chapter.

  8         (3)(2)  The department shall employ a director, who is

  9  charged with the duty of serving as the executive officer of

10  the Division of Driver Licenses of the department insofar as

11  the administration of this chapter is concerned.  He or she

12  shall be subject to the supervision and direction of the

13  department, and his or her official actions and decisions as

14  executive officer shall be conclusive unless the same are

15  superseded or reversed by the department or by a court of

16  competent jurisdiction.

17         (4)(3)  The department shall have the authority to

18  enter into reciprocal driver's license agreements with other

19  jurisdictions within the United States and its territories and

20  possessions and with foreign countries or political entities

21  equivalent to Florida state government within a foreign

22  country.

23         (5)  The tax collector in and for his or her county may

24  be designated the exclusive agent of the department to

25  implement and administer the provisions of this chapter as

26  provided by s. 322.135(5).

27         (6)(4)  The department shall make and adopt rules and

28  regulations for the orderly administration of this chapter.

29         Section 2.  Subsections (5), (6), (7), and (8) are

30  added to section 322.135, Florida Statutes, to read:

31         322.135  Driver's license agents.--

                                  2

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2001                           CS for SB 1276
    306-1755-01




  1         (5)  The county tax collector at his or her option may

  2  apply to the department for approval by the executive director

  3  to be the exclusive agent of the department for his or her

  4  county to administer driver's license services as provided and

  5  authorized in this chapter.

  6         (a)  The application by the county tax collector shall

  7  be in writing to the executive director of the department. The

  8  application must be submitted by September 1 to be effective

  9  for the state's subsequent fiscal year beginning July 1.

10         (b)  The department shall provide a form for such

11  application, which shall include the following information

12  unless this information has been included in the report

13  submitted by the Cost Determination and Allocation Task Force:

14         1.  Locations within the county where offices and

15  branch offices for driver's license services are proposed.

16         2.  The designation by the tax collector of the

17  driver's license functions to be performed by the tax

18  collector in the county.

19         3.  Any anticipated capital acquisition or construction

20  costs.

21         4.  A projection of equipment available or to be

22  provided by the department.

23         5.  All anticipated operating costs, including

24  facilities, equipment, and personnel to administer driver's

25  license services.

26         (c)  The department shall review applications on or

27  before September 1 of each year.  The department will compare

28  the costs included in the information submitted in the

29  application with the related costs incurred by the department

30  to accomplish the same level of services.  The department

31  shall approve or deny an application within 60 calendar days

                                  3

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2001                           CS for SB 1276
    306-1755-01




  1  after the application is received unless the department and

  2  the applicant agree mutually to a specific alternative date.

  3         (d)  The department may provide technical assistance to

  4  an applicant upon request.

  5         (6)  Administration of driver's license services by a

  6  county tax collector as the exclusive agent of the department

  7  must be revenue-neutral with no adverse state fiscal impact

  8  and with no adverse unfunded mandate to the tax collector.

  9  Toward this end, the Cost Determination and Allocation Task

10  Force is created, to be established by July 1, 2001.  The task

11  force shall be composed of two representatives appointed by

12  the executive director of the department, two tax collectors

13  appointed by the president of The Florida Tax Collectors,

14  Inc., one from a small-population county and one from a

15  large-population county; one person appointed by the Speaker

16  of the House of Representatives; one person appointed by the

17  President of the Senate; and the Auditor General or his or her

18  designee.  The purpose of the task force is to recommend the

19  allocation of costs between the Department of Highway Safety

20  and Motor Vehicles and tax collectors to administer driver's

21  license services authorized in this chapter.  It is in the

22  public interest to have these recommendations by the task

23  force submitted in a written report by January 1, 2002.  The

24  written report shall be presented to the President of the

25  Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the

26  Executive Office of the Governor, and shall contain findings

27  and determinations and related allocation recommendations

28  dealing with costs, both construction and operating costs, of

29  both the department and the applicable tax collectors,

30  appropriate allocations of costs between the department and

31  the tax collectors, and fee recommendations to assure that the

                                  4

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2001                           CS for SB 1276
    306-1755-01




  1  fees paid for these driver's license services do not result in

  2  a loss of revenue to the state in excess of costs incurred by

  3  the state.

  4         (7)  Upon approval by the department for a tax

  5  collector to provide exclusive driver's license services in a

  6  county, the department and the applicable tax collector shall

  7  develop a transition plan for the orderly transfer of service

  8  responsibilities to the tax collector.  This plan shall

  9  include, but is not limited to:

10         (a)  The specifics of any possible use of any

11  state-owned or leased facilities giving consideration to lease

12  expiration date, cancellation provisions, and possibilities

13  for sublease of such facilities.

14         (b)  Consideration of staffing needs of the tax

15  collector, either the assumption by the collector or

16  departmental relocation of employees adversely affected.

17         (c)  The execution of a standard agreement between the

18  department and the tax collector for providing driver license

19  services.

20         (8)  The county tax collector, as the exclusive agent

21  of the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, shall

22  be paid fees for driver's license services as determined by

23  the task force.

24         Section 3.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

25  law.

26

27

28

29

30

31

                                  5

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 2001                           CS for SB 1276
    306-1755-01




  1          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
  2                             SB 1276

  3

  4  This CS provides that county tax collectors may be designated
    the exclusive agent of the Department of Highway Safety and
  5  Motor Vehicles (DHSMV) for the local administration of driver
    license services.
  6
    The CS establishes an application process for tax collectors
  7  to apply to DHSMV to serve as the exclusive agent.

  8  The CS provides that the administration of driver license
    services by the tax collector as the exclusive agent of DHSMV
  9  must be revenue neutral with no adverse state fiscal impact
    and with no adverse unfunded mandate to the tax collector.
10
    This CS provides for the creation of a Cost Determination and
11  Allocation Task Force to determine and allocate cost between
    the Department and tax collectors for the administration of
12  driver license services.  The CS also provides for the
    development of transition plans to facilitate, where
13  applicable, the orderly transfer of service responsibilities
    to the tax collector.
14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

                                  6

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.