Florida Senate - 2015 SB 578
By Senator Dean
5-00834-15 2015578__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to trust funds; creating s. 20.142,
3 F.S.; creating the Land Acquisition Trust Fund within
4 the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services;
5 providing for the purpose of the trust fund and
6 sources of funds; requiring the department to maintain
7 the integrity of such funds; providing for disposition
8 of funds from reversions or reductions in budget
9 authority from the trust fund; requiring that title to
10 lands or related property interests acquired be vested
11 in the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement
12 Trust Fund; requiring the department or its designee
13 to manage lands or related property interests acquired
14 in accordance with the purposes set forth in s. 28,
15 Art. X of the State Constitution; providing a
16 restriction on how funds may be invested; providing
17 for future review and termination or re-creation of
18 the trust fund; providing an effective date.
19
20 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
21
22 Section 1. Section 20.142, Florida Statutes, is created to
23 read:
24 20.142 Land Acquisition Trust Fund.—
25 (1) The Land Acquisition Trust Fund is created within the
26 Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. The trust fund
27 is established for use as a depository for funds received from
28 the Land Acquisition Trust Fund within the Department of
29 Environmental Protection and for expenditure of such funds for
30 the purposes set forth in s. 28, Art. X of the State
31 Constitution.
32 (2) The Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
33 must maintain the integrity of such moneys transferred from the
34 Department of Environmental Protection. Any transferred moneys
35 available from reversions or reductions in budget authority
36 shall be transferred back to the Land Acquisition Trust Fund
37 within the Department of Environmental Protection within 15 days
38 after such reversion or reduction and shall be available for
39 future appropriation for the purposes set forth in s. 28, Art. X
40 of the State Constitution.
41 (3) If expenditures from the trust fund will result in
42 state ownership of land or related property interests, title
43 shall be vested in the Board of Trustees of the Internal
44 Improvement Trust Fund as required under chapter 253. Such
45 acquisition of land or related property interests shall be by
46 voluntary, negotiated acquisition and, if title is to be vested
47 in the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund,
48 is subject to the acquisition procedures of s. 253.025.
49 Acquisition costs shall include purchase prices and costs and
50 fees associated with title work, surveys, and appraisals
51 required to complete an acquisition. The Department of
52 Agriculture and Consumer Services or its designee shall manage
53 such lands or related property interests in accordance with the
54 purposes set forth in s. 28, Art. X of the State Constitution.
55 Other uses, not contrary to such purposes, may be authorized.
56 (4) Moneys in the trust fund may not be invested as
57 provided in s. 17.61, but shall be retained in the trust fund
58 for investment with interest appropriated to the General Revenue
59 Fund as provided in s. 17.57.
60 (5) In accordance with s. 19(f)(2), Art. III of the State
61 Constitution, the Land Acquisition Trust Fund within the
62 Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services shall, unless
63 terminated sooner, be terminated on July 1, 2019. Before its
64 scheduled termination, the trust fund shall be reviewed as
65 provided in s. 215.3206.
66 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2015.