| 1 | The Committee on Agriculture recommends the following: |
| 2 |
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| 3 | Committee Substitute |
| 4 | Remove the entire bill and insert: |
| 5 | A bill to be entitled |
| 6 | An act relating to the Department of Citrus; amending s. |
| 7 | 601.04, F.S.; requiring the Florida Citrus Commission to |
| 8 | establish an executive committee for certain purposes; |
| 9 | providing for membership, terms, meetings, and |
| 10 | responsibilities of the committee; requiring committee |
| 11 | meetings to be open to the public; amending s. 601.155, |
| 12 | F.S.; requiring the department to develop a process for |
| 13 | persons liable for the equalizing excise tax to elect to |
| 14 | not pay a portion of the tax; prohibiting the department |
| 15 | from expending certain amounts of excise tax moneys for |
| 16 | advertising, marketing, or public relations activities |
| 17 | under certain circumstances; providing an exception; |
| 18 | providing for the dismissal of certain claims; requiring |
| 19 | the commission to include a report by the department's |
| 20 | internal auditor as an agenda item at each regularly |
| 21 | scheduled commission meeting; providing an effective date. |
| 22 |
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| 23 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 24 |
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| 25 | Section 1. Section 601.04, Florida Statutes, is amended to |
| 26 | read: |
| 27 | 601.04 Florida Citrus Commission; creation and membership; |
| 28 | executive committee.-- |
| 29 | (1)(a) There is hereby created and established within the |
| 30 | Department of Citrus a board to be known and designated as the |
| 31 | "Florida Citrus Commission" to be composed of 12 practical |
| 32 | citrus fruit persons who are resident citizens of the state, |
| 33 | each of whom is and has been actively engaged in growing, |
| 34 | growing and shipping, or growing and processing of citrus fruit |
| 35 | in the state for a period of at least 5 years immediately prior |
| 36 | to appointment to the said commission and has, during said |
| 37 | period, derived a major portion of her or his income therefrom |
| 38 | or, during said time, has been the owner of, member of, officer |
| 39 | of, or paid employee of a corporation, firm, or partnership |
| 40 | which has, during said time, derived the major portion of its |
| 41 | income from the growing, growing and shipping, or growing and |
| 42 | processing of citrus fruit. |
| 43 | (b) Seven members of the commission shall be designated as |
| 44 | grower members and shall be primarily engaged in the growing of |
| 45 | citrus fruit as an individual owner; as the owner of, or as |
| 46 | stockholder of, a corporation; or as a member of a firm or |
| 47 | partnership primarily engaged in citrus growing. None of such |
| 48 | members shall receive any compensation from any licensed citrus |
| 49 | fruit dealer or handler, as defined in s. 601.03, other than |
| 50 | gift fruit shippers, but any of the grower members shall not be |
| 51 | disqualified as a member if, individually, or as the owner of, a |
| 52 | member of, an officer of, or a stockholder of a corporation, |
| 53 | firm, or partnership primarily engaged in citrus growing which |
| 54 | processes, packs, and markets its own fruit and whose business |
| 55 | is primarily not purchasing and handling fruit grown by others. |
| 56 | Five members of the commission shall be designated as grower- |
| 57 | handler members and shall be engaged as owners, or as paid |
| 58 | officers or employees, of a corporation, firm, partnership, or |
| 59 | other business unit engaged in handling citrus fruit. Two of |
| 60 | such five grower-handler members shall be primarily engaged in |
| 61 | the fresh fruit business and three of such five grower-handler |
| 62 | members shall be primarily engaged in the processing of citrus |
| 63 | fruits. |
| 64 | (c) There shall be four members of the commission from |
| 65 | each of the three citrus districts. Each member must reside in |
| 66 | the district from which she or he was appointed. For the |
| 67 | purposes of this section, the residence of a member shall be the |
| 68 | actual physical and permanent residence of the member. |
| 69 | (2)(a) The members of such commission shall possess the |
| 70 | qualifications herein provided and shall be appointed by the |
| 71 | Governor for terms of 3 years each. Appointments shall be made |
| 72 | by February 1 preceding the commencement of the term and shall |
| 73 | be subject to confirmation by the Senate in the following |
| 74 | legislative session. Four members shall be appointed each year. |
| 75 | Such members shall serve until their respective successors are |
| 76 | appointed and qualified. The regular terms shall begin on June 1 |
| 77 | and shall end on May 31 of the third year after such |
| 78 | appointment. |
| 79 | (b) When appointments are made, the Governor shall |
| 80 | publicly announce the actual classification and district that |
| 81 | each appointee represents. A majority of the members of the |
| 82 | commission shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of all |
| 83 | business and the carrying out of the duties of the commission. |
| 84 | Before entering upon the discharge of their duties as members of |
| 85 | the commission, each member shall take and subscribe to the oath |
| 86 | of office prescribed in s. 5, Art. II of the State Constitution. |
| 87 | The qualification of each member as herein required shall |
| 88 | continue throughout the respective term of office, and in the |
| 89 | event a member should, after appointment, fail to meet the |
| 90 | qualifications or classification which she or he possessed at |
| 91 | the time of appointment as above set forth, such member shall |
| 92 | resign or be removed and be replaced with a member possessing |
| 93 | the proper qualifications and classification. |
| 94 | (c) When making an appointment to the commission, the |
| 95 | Governor shall announce the district and classification of the |
| 96 | person appointed. |
| 97 | (3)(a) The commission is authorized to elect a chair and |
| 98 | vice chair and such other officers as it may deem advisable. |
| 99 | (b) The chair, subject to commission concurrence, may |
| 100 | appoint such advisory committees or councils composed of |
| 101 | industry representatives as the chair deems appropriate, setting |
| 102 | forth areas of committee or council concern which are consistent |
| 103 | with the statutory powers and duties of the commission and the |
| 104 | Department of Citrus. |
| 105 | (4)(a) The commission shall establish an executive |
| 106 | committee, which shall consist of the chair of the commission |
| 107 | and two additional members of the commission. The members of the |
| 108 | executive committee shall be elected for a term of 1 year at the |
| 109 | same meeting at which the chair of the commission is elected, |
| 110 | except that the initial executive committee shall be elected at |
| 111 | the first commission meeting held following the effective date |
| 112 | of this act. |
| 113 | (b) Any matter that is to be considered by the commission |
| 114 | or by the executive director of the Department of Citrus must be |
| 115 | submitted in advance to the executive committee for approval, |
| 116 | rejection, or modification. The executive committee shall meet |
| 117 | no later than 10 days before each meeting of the commission in |
| 118 | order to consider, at a minimum, any item on the agenda for the |
| 119 | upcoming commission meeting. All meetings of the executive |
| 120 | committee shall be open to the public and governed by chapter |
| 121 | 286. |
| 122 | (5)(4) It is the intent of the Legislature that the |
| 123 | commission be redistricted every 5 years. Redistricting shall be |
| 124 | based on the total boxes produced from each of the three |
| 125 | districts during that 5-year period. |
| 126 | Section 2. Present subsections (10) and (11) of section |
| 127 | 601.155, Florida Statutes, are renumbered as subsections (11) |
| 128 | and (12), respectively, and a new subsection (10) is added to |
| 129 | said section, to read: |
| 130 | 601.155 Equalizing excise tax; credit; exemption.-- |
| 131 | (10) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the |
| 132 | Department of Citrus shall develop a process by which any person |
| 133 | liable for the excise tax imposed under this section may |
| 134 | annually object to payment of the tax. Any such objection must |
| 135 | be allowed without discretion as to the validity thereof and |
| 136 | that person shall be granted the immediate right to elect not to |
| 137 | pay two-thirds of the applicable tax rate. The department may |
| 138 | not expend any of the remaining one-third of the applicable tax |
| 139 | rate on any advertising, marketing, or public relations |
| 140 | activities to which any person liable for the excise tax imposed |
| 141 | under this section objects, although such funds may be used for |
| 142 | research, administration, and regulatory activities. Effective |
| 143 | July 1, 2004, upon any necessary legislative appropriation of |
| 144 | moneys due under the settlement agreement of Consolidated Case |
| 145 | No. 2002-CA-4686 in the Circuit Court of the Tenth Judicial |
| 146 | Circuit in Polk County, the plaintiffs shall agree to the |
| 147 | dismissal of their claim under the foreign commerce clause with |
| 148 | prejudice. |
| 149 | Section 3. The Florida Citrus Commission shall include as |
| 150 | an agenda item at each regularly scheduled meeting a report by |
| 151 | the internal auditor of the Department of Citrus. |
| 152 | Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2004. |