HB 1403

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to ad valorem millage rates; amending s.
3	200.065, F.S.; providing for an annual adjustment to the
4	rolled-back millage rate; amending ss. 200.071 and
5	200.081, F.S.; providing for a limitation on the millage
6	rate levied by counties and municipalities that
7	participate in state revenue sharing; creating s. 200.082,
8	F.S.; limiting independent special districts to the
9	rolled-back millage rate; amending s. 218.23, F.S.;
10	providing additional certification requirements for a
11	local government to be eligible to receive state revenue-
12	sharing funds; providing an effective date.
13
14	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
15
16	Section 1.  Subsection (1) of section 200.065, Florida
17	Statutes, is amended to read:
18	200.065  Method of fixing millage.--
19	(1)  Upon completing completion of the assessment of all
20	property pursuant to s. 193.023, the property appraiser shall
21	certify to each taxing authority the taxable value of the
22	property within the jurisdiction of the taxing authority. This
23	certification shall include a copy of the statement required to
24	be submitted under s. 195.073(3) to the, as applicable to that
25	taxing authority. The form on which the certification is made
26	shall include instructions to each taxing authority describing
27	the proper method of computing a millage rate which, exclusive
28	of new construction, additions to structures, deletions,
29	increases in the value of improvements that have undergone a
30	substantial rehabilitation to improvements that increase which
31	increased the assessed value of such improvements by at least
32	100 percent, and property added due to geographic boundary
33	changes, will provide the same ad valorem tax revenue for each
34	taxing authority as was levied during the prior year. The
35	resulting millage rate shall be adjusted by a factor, published
36	annually by the Department of Revenue and based on the Implicit
37	Price Deflators for Gross Domestic Product as determined by the
38	Bureau of Economic Analysis of the United States Department of
39	Commerce, to account for increases or decreases in costs to
40	local governments for goods and services typically purchased by
41	such governments. That adjusted millage rate shall be known as
42	the "rolled-back rate." The property appraiser shall send this
43	information provided pursuant to this subsection shall also be
44	sent to the tax collector by the property appraiser at the same
45	time it is sent to each taxing authority.
46	Section 2.  Section 200.071, Florida Statutes, is amended
47	to read:
48	200.071  Limitation of Millage limitation; counties.--
49	(1)  Except for voted levies, or as otherwise provided
50	herein, no ad valorem tax millage shall be levied against real
51	property and tangible personal property by counties may not
52	exceed in excess of 10 mills, except for voted levies.
53	(1)  As a condition of participation in state revenue
54	sharing under part II of chapter 218, ad valorem millage shall
55	be limited to the rolled-back rate calculated under s.
56	200.065(1), subject to any adjustments allowed by s. 200.065(5)
57	or (10), unless otherwise approved by a super majority vote of
58	the governing body of the county.
59	(2)  If The board of county commissioners shall, in the
60	event the sum of the proposed millage for the county and
61	dependent districts therein is more than the maximum allowed
62	hereunder, the board of county commissioners shall reduce the
63	millage to be levied for county officers, departments,
64	divisions, commissions, authorities, and dependent special
65	districts so as not to exceed the maximum millage provided under
66	this section or s. 200.091.
67	(3)  Any county that which, through a municipal service
68	taxing unit, provides services or facilities of the kind or type
69	commonly provided by municipalities, may levy, in addition to
70	the millages otherwise provided in this section, against real
71	property and tangible personal property within each such
72	municipal service taxing unit an ad valorem tax millage not in
73	excess of 10 mills to pay for such services or facilities
74	provided with the funds obtained through such levy within such
75	municipal service taxing unit.
76	Section 3.  Section 200.081, Florida Statutes, is amended
77	to read:
78	200.081  Millage limitation; municipalities.--Except for
79	voted levies, No municipality shall levy ad valorem millage
80	levied taxes against real property and tangible personal
81	property by municipalities may not exceed in excess of 10 mills,
82	except for voted levies. However, as a condition of
83	participation in state revenue sharing under part II of chapter
84	218, ad valorem millage shall be limited to the rolled-back rate
85	calculated under s. 200.065(1), subject to any adjustments
86	allowed by s. 200.065(5) or (10), unless otherwise approved by a
87	super majority vote of the governing body of the municipality.
88	Section 4.  Section 200.082, Florida Statutes, is created
89	to read:
90	200.082  Millage limitation; independent special
91	districts.--Except for voted levies, ad valorem millage levied
92	by an independent special district against real property and
93	tangible personal property shall be limited to the rolled-back
94	rate calculated under s. 200.065(1), subject to any adjustments
95	allowed by s. 200.065(5) or (10), unless otherwise approved by a
96	super majority vote of the governing body of the independent
97	special district.
98	Section 5.  Subsection (1) of section 218.23, Florida
99	Statutes, is amended to read:
100	218.23  Revenue sharing with units of local government.--
101	(1)  To be eligible to participate in revenue sharing
102	beyond the minimum entitlement in any fiscal year, a unit of
103	local government is required to have:
104	(a)  Reported its finances for its most recently completed
105	fiscal year to the Department of Financial Services, under
106	pursuant to s. 218.32.
107	(b)  Made provisions for annual postaudits of its financial
108	accounts in accordance with provisions of law.
109	(c)  Levied, as shown on its most recent financial report
110	pursuant to s. 218.32, ad valorem taxes, exclusive of taxes
111	levied for debt service or other special millages authorized by
112	the voters, to produce the revenue equivalent to a millage rate
113	of 3 mills on the dollar based on the 1973 taxable values as
114	certified by the property appraiser under pursuant to s.
115	193.122(2) or, in order to produce revenue equivalent to that
116	which would otherwise be produced by such 3-mill ad valorem tax,
117	to have received a remittance from the county pursuant to s.
118	125.01(6)(a), collected an occupational license tax or a utility
119	tax, levied an ad valorem tax, or received revenue from any
120	combination of these four sources. If a new municipality is
121	incorporated, the provisions of this paragraph shall apply to
122	the taxable values for the year of incorporation as certified by
123	the property appraiser. This paragraph requires only a minimum
124	amount of revenue to be raised from the ad valorem tax, the
125	occupational license tax, and the utility tax. It does not
126	require a minimum millage rate.
127	(d)  Certified that persons in its employ as law
128	enforcement officers, as defined in s. 943.10(1), meet the
129	qualifications for employment as established by the Criminal
130	Justice Standards and Training Commission; that its salary
131	structure and salary plans meet the provisions of chapter 943;
132	and that no law enforcement officer is compensated for his or
133	her services at an annual salary rate of less than $6,000.
134	However, the department may waive the minimum law enforcement
135	officer salary requirement if a city or county certifies that it
136	is levying ad valorem taxes at 10 mills.
137	(e)  Certified that persons in its employ as firefighters,
138	as defined in s. 633.30(1), meet the qualification for
139	employment as established by the Division of State Fire Marshal
140	pursuant to the provisions of ss. 633.34 and 633.35 and that the
141	provisions of s. 633.382 have been met.
142	(f)  Certified that each dependent special district that is
143	budgeted separately from the general budget of the local
144	governing authority has met the provisions for annual postaudit
145	of its financial accounts in accordance with the provisions of
146	law.
147
148	Additionally, To receive its share of revenue sharing funds, a
149	unit of local government shall certify to the department of
150	Revenue that the requirements of ss. s. 200.065, 200.071, and
151	200.081, if applicable, were met. The certification shall be
152	made annually within 30 days after of adoption of an ordinance
153	or resolution establishing a final property tax levy or, if no
154	property tax is levied, not later than November 1.  The portion
155	of revenue sharing funds which, pursuant to this part, would
156	otherwise be distributed to a unit of local government which has
157	not certified compliance or has otherwise failed to meet the
158	requirements of s. 200.065 shall be deposited in the General
159	Revenue Fund for the 12 months following a determination of
160	noncompliance by the department.
161	Section 6.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2007.

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