| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to school district taxation; amending s. |
| 3 | 1011.71, F.S.; authorizing certain expenditures from |
| 4 | district school tax revenues to pay property and casualty |
| 5 | insurance premiums; amending s. 200.065, F.S., relating to |
| 6 | the method of fixing millage, to conform; providing for |
| 7 | future repeal; providing an effective date. |
| 8 |
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| 9 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 10 |
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| 11 | Section 1. Subsection (2) and paragraph (a) of subsection |
| 12 | (5) of section 1011.71, Florida Statutes, as amended by sections |
| 13 | 17 and 18 of chapter 2003-399, Laws of Florida, are amended to |
| 14 | read: |
| 15 | 1011.71 District school tax.-- |
| 16 | (2) In addition to the maximum millage levy as provided in |
| 17 | subsection (1), each school board may levy not more than 2 mills |
| 18 | against the taxable value for school purposes to fund: |
| 19 | (a) New construction and remodeling projects, as set forth |
| 20 | in s. 1013.64(3)(b) and (6)(b) and included in the district's |
| 21 | educational plant survey pursuant to s. 1013.31, without regard |
| 22 | to prioritization, sites and site improvement or expansion to |
| 23 | new sites, existing sites, auxiliary facilities, athletic |
| 24 | facilities, or ancillary facilities. |
| 25 | (b) Maintenance, renovation, and repair of existing school |
| 26 | plants or of leased facilities to correct deficiencies pursuant |
| 27 | to s. 1013.15(2). |
| 28 | (c) The purchase, lease-purchase, or lease of school |
| 29 | buses; drivers' education vehicles; motor vehicles used for the |
| 30 | maintenance or operation of plants and equipment; security |
| 31 | vehicles; or vehicles used in storing or distributing materials |
| 32 | and equipment. |
| 33 | (d) The purchase, lease-purchase, or lease of new and |
| 34 | replacement equipment. |
| 35 | (e) Payments for educational facilities and sites due |
| 36 | under a lease-purchase agreement entered into by a district |
| 37 | school board pursuant to s. 1003.02(1)(f) or s. 1013.15(2), not |
| 38 | exceeding, in the aggregate, an amount equal to three-fourths of |
| 39 | the proceeds from the millage levied by a district school board |
| 40 | pursuant to this subsection. |
| 41 | (f) Payment of loans approved pursuant to ss. 1011.14 and |
| 42 | 1011.15. |
| 43 | (g) Payment of costs directly related to complying with |
| 44 | state and federal environmental statutes, rules, and regulations |
| 45 | governing school facilities. |
| 46 | (h) Payment of costs of leasing relocatable educational |
| 47 | facilities, of renting or leasing educational facilities and |
| 48 | sites pursuant to s. 1013.15(2), or of renting or leasing |
| 49 | buildings or space within existing buildings pursuant to s. |
| 50 | 1013.15(4). |
| 51 | (i) Payment of premiums for property and casualty |
| 52 | insurance necessary to insure the educational plants of the |
| 53 | school district. This paragraph shall be repealed on July 1, |
| 54 | 2006. |
| 55 |
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| 56 | Violations of these expenditure provisions shall result in an |
| 57 | equal dollar reduction in the Florida Education Finance Program |
| 58 | (FEFP) funds for the violating district in the fiscal year |
| 59 | following the audit citation. |
| 60 | (5)(a) It is the intent of the Legislature that, by July |
| 61 | 1, 2003, revenue generated by the millage levy authorized by |
| 62 | subsection (2) should be used only for the costs of |
| 63 | construction, renovation, remodeling, maintenance, and repair of |
| 64 | the educational plant; for the purchase, lease, or lease- |
| 65 | purchase of equipment, educational plants, and construction |
| 66 | materials directly related to the delivery of student |
| 67 | instruction; for the rental or lease of existing buildings, or |
| 68 | space within existing buildings, originally constructed or used |
| 69 | for purposes other than education, for conversion to use as |
| 70 | educational facilities; for property and casualty insurance |
| 71 | premiums necessary to insure the educational plants of the |
| 72 | school district; for the opening day collection for the library |
| 73 | media center of a new school; for the purchase, lease-purchase, |
| 74 | or lease of school buses; and for servicing of payments related |
| 75 | to certificates of participation issued for any purpose prior to |
| 76 | the effective date of this act. Costs associated with the lease- |
| 77 | purchase of equipment, educational plants, and school buses may |
| 78 | include the issuance of certificates of participation on or |
| 79 | after the effective date of this act and the servicing of |
| 80 | payments related to certificates so issued. For purposes of this |
| 81 | section, "maintenance and repair" is defined in s. 1013.01. |
| 82 |
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| 83 | A district that violates these expenditure restrictions shall |
| 84 | have an equal dollar reduction in funds appropriated to the |
| 85 | district under s. 1011.62 in the fiscal year following the audit |
| 86 | citation. The expenditure restrictions do not apply to any |
| 87 | school district that certifies to the Commissioner of Education |
| 88 | that all of the district's instructional space needs for the |
| 89 | next 5 years can be met from capital outlay sources that the |
| 90 | district reasonably expects to receive during the next 5 years |
| 91 | or from alternative scheduling or construction, leasing, |
| 92 | rezoning, or technological methodologies that exhibit sound |
| 93 | management. |
| 94 | Section 2. Subsection (9) of section 200.065, Florida |
| 95 | Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 96 | 200.065 Method of fixing millage.-- |
| 97 | (9)(a) In addition to the notice required in subsection |
| 98 | (3), a district school board shall publish a second notice of |
| 99 | intent to levy additional taxes under s. 1011.71(2). Such |
| 100 | notice shall specify the projects or number of school buses |
| 101 | anticipated to be funded by such additional taxes and shall be |
| 102 | published in the size, within the time periods, adjacent to, and |
| 103 | in substantial conformity with the advertisement required under |
| 104 | subsection (3). The projects shall be listed in priority within |
| 105 | each category as follows: construction and remodeling; |
| 106 | maintenance, renovation, and repair; motor vehicle purchases; |
| 107 | new and replacement equipment; payments for educational |
| 108 | facilities and sites due under a lease-purchase agreement; |
| 109 | payments for renting and leasing educational facilities and |
| 110 | sites; payments of loans approved pursuant to ss. 1011.14 and |
| 111 | 1011.15; payment of costs of compliance with environmental |
| 112 | statutes and regulations; and payment of costs of leasing |
| 113 | relocatable educational facilities; and payment of premiums for |
| 114 | property and casualty insurance necessary to insure the |
| 115 | educational plants of the school district. The property and |
| 116 | casualty insurance provision of this paragraph shall be repealed |
| 117 | on July 1, 2006. The additional notice shall be in the following |
| 118 | form, except that if the district school board is proposing to |
| 119 | levy the same millage under s. 1011.71(2) which it levied in the |
| 120 | prior year, the words "continue to" shall be inserted before the |
| 121 | word "impose" in the first sentence, and except that the second |
| 122 | sentence of the second paragraph shall be deleted if the |
| 123 | district is advertising pursuant to paragraph (3)(e): |
| 124 |
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| 125 | NOTICE OF TAX FOR SCHOOL |
| 126 | CAPITAL OUTLAY |
| 127 |
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| 128 | The . . . (name of school district) . . . will soon |
| 129 | consider a measure to impose a . . . (number) . . . mill |
| 130 | property tax for the capital outlay projects listed herein. |
| 131 | This tax is in addition to the school board's proposed tax |
| 132 | of . . . (number) . . . mills for operating expenses and is |
| 133 | proposed solely at the discretion of the school board. THE |
| 134 | PROPOSED COMBINED SCHOOL BOARD TAX INCREASE FOR BOTH OPERATING |
| 135 | EXPENSES AND CAPITAL OUTLAY IS SHOWN IN THE ADJACENT NOTICE. |
| 136 | The capital outlay tax will generate approximately $ . . . |
| 137 | (amount) . . . , to be used for the following projects: |
| 138 | . . . (list of capital outlay projects) . . . |
| 139 |
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| 140 | All concerned citizens are invited to a public hearing to |
| 141 | be held on . . . (date and time) . . . at . . . (meeting |
| 142 | place) . . . . |
| 143 | A DECISION on the proposed CAPITAL OUTLAY TAXES will be |
| 144 | made at this hearing. |
| 145 |
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| 146 | (b) In the event a school district needs to amend the list |
| 147 | of capital outlay projects previously advertised and adopted, a |
| 148 | notice of intent to amend the notice of tax for school capital |
| 149 | outlay shall be published in conformity with the advertisement |
| 150 | required in subsection (3). A public hearing to adopt the |
| 151 | amended project list shall be held not less than 2 days nor more |
| 152 | than 5 days after the day the advertisement is first published. |
| 153 | The projects should be listed under each category of new, |
| 154 | amended, or deleted projects in the same order as required in |
| 155 | paragraph (a). The notice shall appear in the following form, |
| 156 | except that any of the categories of new, amended, or deleted |
| 157 | projects may be omitted if not appropriate for the changes |
| 158 | proposed: |
| 159 |
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| 160 | AMENDED NOTICE OF TAX FOR |
| 161 | SCHOOL CAPITAL OUTLAY |
| 162 |
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| 163 | The School Board of . . . (name) . . . County will soon |
| 164 | consider a measure to amend the use of property tax for the |
| 165 | capital outlay projects previously advertised for the . . . |
| 166 | (year) . . . to . . . (year) . . . school year. |
| 167 |
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| 168 | New projects to be funded: |
| 169 | . . . (list of capital outlay projects) . . . |
| 170 |
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| 171 | Amended projects to be funded: |
| 172 | . . . (list of capital outlay projects) . . . |
| 173 |
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| 174 | Projects to be deleted: |
| 175 | . . . (list of capital outlay projects) . . . |
| 176 |
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| 177 | All concerned citizens are invited to a public hearing to |
| 178 | be held on . . . (date and time) . . . at . . . (meeting |
| 179 | place) . . . . |
| 180 | A DECISION on the proposed amendment to the projects funded |
| 181 | from CAPITAL OUTLAY TAXES will be made at this meeting. |
| 182 |
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| 183 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2004. |