Senate Bill sb1374c2
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Florida Senate - 2002 CS for CS for SB 1374
By the Committees on Health, Aging and Long-Term Care;
Comprehensive Planning, Local and Military Affairs; and
Senators Mitchell and Lawson
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1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to small counties; amending s.
3 212.055, F.S.; allowing small counties having a
4 specified population to levy an indigent care
5 surtax; providing procedures; providing uses of
6 the surtax; providing a maximum tax rate;
7 amending s. 336.025, F.S.; authorizing
8 municipalities within small counties to use
9 revenues from a local option fuel tax to fund
10 infrastructure projects that are consistent
11 with the comprehensive plan; providing an
12 effective date.
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14 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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16 Section 1. Subsection (7) of section 212.055, Florida
17 Statutes, is amended to read:
18 212.055 Discretionary sales surtaxes; legislative
19 intent; authorization and use of proceeds.--It is the
20 legislative intent that any authorization for imposition of a
21 discretionary sales surtax shall be published in the Florida
22 Statutes as a subsection of this section, irrespective of the
23 duration of the levy. Each enactment shall specify the types
24 of counties authorized to levy; the rate or rates which may be
25 imposed; the maximum length of time the surtax may be imposed,
26 if any; the procedure which must be followed to secure voter
27 approval, if required; the purpose for which the proceeds may
28 be expended; and such other requirements as the Legislature
29 may provide. Taxable transactions and administrative
30 procedures shall be as provided in s. 212.054.
31 (7) VOTER-APPROVED INDIGENT CARE SURTAX.--
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Florida Senate - 2002 CS for CS for SB 1374
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1 (a) The governing body in each county that has a
2 population of less than 800,000 residents may levy an indigent
3 care surtax pursuant to an ordinance conditioned to take
4 effect only upon approval by a majority vote of the electors
5 of the county voting in a referendum. The surtax may be levied
6 at a rate not to exceed 0.5 percent, except that if a publicly
7 supported medical school is located in the county, the rate
8 shall not exceed 1 percent.
9 (b) A statement that includes a brief and general
10 description of the purposes to be funded by the surtax and
11 that conforms to the requirements of s. 101.161 shall be
12 placed on the ballot by the governing body of the county. The
13 following questions shall be placed on the ballot:
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15 FOR THE. . . .CENTS TAX
16 AGAINST THE. . . .CENTS TAX
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18 (c) Notwithstanding paragraph (a), the governing body
19 in each county that has a population of fewer than 30,000
20 residents may levy an indigent care surtax conditioned to take
21 effect only upon approval by a majority vote of the electors
22 of the county voting in a referendum. In addition to the uses
23 otherwise set out in this subsection, a county that has a
24 population of fewer than 30,000 residents may pledge such
25 proceed for the purpose of servicing new or existing bond
26 indebtedness incurred to finance, plan, construct, or
27 reconstruct a public or not-for-profit hospital in such county
28 and any land acquisition, land improvement, design, or
29 engineering costs related thereto, when the county commission
30 has determined that a currently existing public or
31 not-for-profit hospital would, more likely than not, otherwise
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Florida Senate - 2002 CS for CS for SB 1374
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1 cease to operate. Such counties may also use the services of
2 the Division of Bond Finance of the State Board of
3 Administration pursuant to the State Bond Act to issue bonds
4 under this subsection. A jurisdiction may not issue bonds
5 under this subsection more frequently than once per year. Any
6 county that has a population of fewer than 30,000 residents at
7 the time the bonds authorized in this subsection are issued
8 retains the authority granted under this subsection throughout
9 the term of the bonds, including the term of any refinancing
10 bonds, regardless of any subsequent increase in population
11 which results in the county's having 30,000 or more residents
12 and regardless of amendments to or repeal of this subsection.
13 The rate of the surtax levied under this paragraph may not
14 exceed 1 percent.
15 (d)(c) The ordinance adopted by the governing body
16 providing for the imposition of the surtax must set forth a
17 plan for providing health care services to qualified
18 residents, as defined in paragraph (e)(d). The plan and
19 subsequent amendments to it shall fund a broad range of health
20 care services for indigent persons and the medically poor,
21 including, but not limited to, primary care and preventive
22 care, as well as hospital care. It shall emphasize a
23 continuity of care in the most cost-effective setting, taking
24 into consideration a high quality of care and geographic
25 access. Where consistent with these objectives, it shall
26 include, without limitation, services rendered by physicians,
27 clinics, community hospitals, mental health centers, and
28 alternative delivery sites, as well as at least one regional
29 referral hospital where appropriate. It shall provide that
30 agreements negotiated between the county and providers shall
31 include reimbursement methodologies that take into account the
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1 cost of services rendered to eligible patients, recognize
2 hospitals that render a disproportionate share of indigent
3 care, provide other incentives to promote the delivery of
4 charity care, and require cost containment, including, but not
5 limited to, case management. The plan must also include
6 innovative health care programs that provide cost-effective
7 alternatives to traditional methods of service delivery and
8 funding. In addition to the services otherwise authorized
9 under this subsection, in counties having a population of
10 fewer than 30,000 residents the plan for providing health care
11 services to qualified residents may, by an extraordinary vote
12 of the county commission, provide that some or all of the
13 surtax revenues and any interest accrued thereon must be
14 expended for the purpose of servicing bond indebtedness
15 incurred to finance, plan, construct, or reconstruct a public
16 or not-for-profit hospital in the county and for any land
17 acquisition, land improvement, design, or engineering costs
18 related thereto, if the county commission has determined that
19 a currently existing public or not-for-profit hospital would,
20 more likely than not, otherwise cease to operate.
21 (e)(d) As used in For the purpose of this subsection,
22 the term "qualified residents" means residents of the
23 authorizing county who are:
24 1. Qualified as indigent persons as certified by the
25 authorizing county;
26 2. Certified by the authorizing county as meeting the
27 definition of the medically poor, defined as persons having
28 insufficient income, resources, and assets to provide the
29 needed medical care without using resources required to meet
30 basic needs for shelter, food, clothing, and personal
31 expenses; not being eligible for any other state or federal
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1 program or having medical needs that are not covered by any
2 such program; or having insufficient third-party insurance
3 coverage. In all cases, the authorizing county shall serve as
4 the payor of last resort; or
5 3. Participating in innovative, cost-effective
6 programs approved by the authorizing county.
7 (f)(e) Moneys collected pursuant to this subsection
8 remain the property of the state and shall be distributed by
9 the Department of Revenue on a regular and periodic basis to
10 the clerk of the circuit court as ex officio custodian of the
11 funds of the authorizing county. The clerk of the circuit
12 court shall:
13 1. Maintain the moneys in an indigent health care
14 trust fund.
15 2. Invest any funds held on deposit in the trust fund
16 pursuant to general law.
17 3. Disburse the funds, including any interest earned,
18 to any provider of health care services, as provided in
19 paragraphs (c) and (d), upon directive from the authorizing
20 county.
21 4. Disburse the funds, including any interest accrued
22 thereon, to service any bond indebtedness otherwise authorized
23 in this section, upon a directive from the authorizing county,
24 which directive may be irrevocably given at the time the bond
25 indebtedness is incurred.
26 (g)(f) Notwithstanding any other provision of this
27 section, a county may not levy local option sales surtaxes
28 authorized in this subsection and subsections (2) and (3) in
29 excess of a combined rate of 1 percent or, if a publicly
30 supported medical school is located in the county or the
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1 county has a population of fewer than 30,000 residents, in
2 excess of a combined rate of 1.5 percent.
3 Section 2. Subsection (8) of section 336.025, Florida
4 Statutes, is amended to read:
5 336.025 County transportation system; levy of local
6 option fuel tax on motor fuel and diesel fuel.--
7 (8) In addition to the uses specified in subsection
8 (7), the governing body of a county with a population of
9 50,000 or less on April 1, 1992, or a municipality within such
10 county, may use the proceeds of the tax levied pursuant to
11 paragraph (1)(a) in any fiscal year to fund infrastructure
12 projects, if such projects are consistent with the local
13 government's approved comprehensive plan or, if the approval
14 or denial of the plan has not become final, consistent with
15 the plan last submitted to the state land planning agency. In
16 addition, no more than an amount equal to the proceeds from 4
17 cents per gallon of the tax imposed pursuant to paragraph
18 (1)(a) may be used by such county for the express and limited
19 purpose of paying for a court-ordered refund of special
20 assessments. Except as provided in subsection (7), such funds
21 shall not be used for the operational expenses of any
22 infrastructure. Such funds may be used for infrastructure
23 projects under this subsection only after the local
24 government, prior to the fiscal year in which the funds are
25 proposed to be used, or if pledged for bonded indebtedness,
26 prior to the fiscal year in which the bonds will be issued,
27 has held a duly noticed public hearing on the proposed use of
28 the funds and has adopted a resolution certifying that the
29 local government has met all of the transportation needs
30 identified in its approved comprehensive plan or, if the
31 approval or denial of the plan has not become final,
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Florida Senate - 2002 CS for CS for SB 1374
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1 consistent with the plan last submitted to the state land
2 planning agency. The proceeds shall not be pledged for bonded
3 indebtedness for a period exceeding 10 years, except that, for
4 the express and limited purpose of using such proceeds in any
5 fiscal year to pay a court-ordered refund of special
6 assessments, the proceeds may be pledged for bonded
7 indebtedness not exceeding 15 years. For the purposes of this
8 subsection, "infrastructure" has the same meaning as provided
9 in s. 212.055.
10 Section 3. This act shall take effect October 1, 2002.
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12 STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
13 CS for Senate Bill 1374
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15 CS/CS/SB 1374 allows the proceeds of the indigent care surtax
to finance, plan, construct, or reconstruct a not-for-profit
16 hospital in addition to a public hospital; and allows
municipalities within small counties to use revenues from a
17 local option fuel tax to fund infrastructure projects that are
consistent with the comprehensive plan.
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