| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to Pinellas Suncoast Transit |
| 3 | Authority, Pinellas County; amending chapter 2000-424, |
| 4 | Laws of Florida; providing for alternative income |
| 5 | revenues through a specified discretionary sales |
| 6 | surtax under certain conditions; prohibiting the |
| 7 | authority from levying and collecting ad valorem tax |
| 8 | revenue after it elects to accept the discretionary |
| 9 | sales surtax proceeds; providing an effective date. |
| 10 |
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| 11 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 12 |
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| 13 | Section 1. Paragraphs (i) and (j) of subsection (2) of |
| 14 | section 4 of section 2 of chapter 2000-424, Laws of Florida, are |
| 15 | redesignated as paragraphs (j) and (k), respectively, a new |
| 16 | paragraph (i) is added to that subsection, and section 8 is |
| 17 | amended, to read: |
| 18 | Section 4. Purposes and powers.- |
| 19 | (2) The authority is hereby granted, and shall have and |
| 20 | may exercise all powers necessary, appurtenant, convenient, or |
| 21 | incidental to the carrying out of the aforesaid purposes, |
| 22 | including, but not limited to, the following rights and powers: |
| 23 | (i) If Pinellas County levies a discretionary sales surtax |
| 24 | for transportation purposes pursuant to section 212.055(1), |
| 25 | Florida Statutes, and offers the surtax proceeds or a portion |
| 26 | thereof to the authority and the authority elects to accept |
| 27 | funding through this source, the authority shall cease levying |
| 28 | and collecting ad valorem tax revenue as provided in section 8. |
| 29 | Section 8. Special district taxation.- |
| 30 | (1) The Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority shall be |
| 31 | deemed a special district and is authorized to levy an ad |
| 32 | valorem tax on the taxable real property in the Pinellas |
| 33 | Suncoast Transit Area at a rate sufficient to produce an amount |
| 34 | that may be necessary for the purposes of this act, but not to |
| 35 | exceed three-quarters of a mill; provided such millage limit is |
| 36 | approved by a vote of the qualified electors who are residents |
| 37 | of the transit area. Property taxes determined and levied under |
| 38 | this section shall be certified by the authority to the county |
| 39 | property appraiser, extended, assessed, and collected in like |
| 40 | manner as provided by law for regular property taxes for the |
| 41 | county or municipalities. The proceeds under this section shall |
| 42 | be remitted by the tax collector to the treasurer of the |
| 43 | authority who shall credit them to the funds of the authority |
| 44 | for use for the purposes of this act. At any time after making a |
| 45 | tax levy under this section and certifying the same to the |
| 46 | county, the authority may issue tax anticipation notes of |
| 47 | indebtedness in anticipation of the collection of such taxes. |
| 48 | (2) The authority shall cease levying and collecting ad |
| 49 | valorem tax revenue under subsection (1) after the authority |
| 50 | elects to accept discretionary sales surtax revenue as described |
| 51 | in section 4(2)(i). |
| 52 | Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. |