Florida Senate - 2019                              CS for SB 728
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Infrastructure and Security; and Senator Lee
       
       
       
       
       
       596-03787-19                                           2019728c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to community development districts;
    3         amending s. 190.046, F.S.; authorizing sufficiently
    4         contiguous lands located within the county or
    5         municipality which a petitioner anticipates adding to
    6         the boundaries of a new community development district
    7         to also be identified in a petition to establish the
    8         new district under certain circumstances; providing
    9         requirements for the petition; providing notification
   10         requirements for the petition; prohibiting a parcel
   11         from being included in the district without the
   12         written consent of the owner of the parcel;
   13         authorizing a person to petition the county or
   14         municipality to amend the boundaries of the district
   15         to include a certain parcel after establishment of the
   16         district; prohibiting a filing fee for such petition;
   17         providing requirements for the petition; requiring the
   18         person to provide the petition to the district and to
   19         the owner of the proposed additional parcel before
   20         filing the petition with the county or municipality;
   21         requiring the county or municipality to process the
   22         addition of the parcel to the district as an amendment
   23         to the ordinance that establishes the district once
   24         the petition is determined sufficient and complete;
   25         authorizing the county or municipality to process all
   26         such petitions even if the addition exceeds specified
   27         acreage; providing notice requirements for the intent
   28         to amend the ordinance establishing the district;
   29         providing that the amendment of a district by the
   30         addition of a parcel does not alter the transition
   31         from landowner voting to qualified elector voting;
   32         requiring the petitioner to cause to be recorded a
   33         certain notice of boundary amendment upon adoption of
   34         the ordinance expanding the district; providing
   35         construction; authorizing community development
   36         districts to merge with another type of special
   37         district created by special act or by filing a
   38         petition for establishment of a new district;
   39         authorizing a community development district merging
   40         with another type of district to enter into merger
   41         agreements for certain purposes; providing an
   42         effective date.
   43          
   44  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   45  
   46         Section 1. Paragraph (h) is added to subsection (1) of
   47  section 190.046, Florida Statutes, and subsection (3) of that
   48  section is amended, to read:
   49         190.046 Termination, contraction, or expansion of
   50  district.—
   51         (1) A landowner or the board may petition to contract or
   52  expand the boundaries of a community development district in the
   53  following manner:
   54         (h) For a petition to establish a new community development
   55  district of less than 2,500 acres on land located solely in one
   56  county or one municipality, sufficiently contiguous lands
   57  located within the county or municipality which the petitioner
   58  anticipates adding to the boundaries of the district within 10
   59  years after the effective date of the ordinance establishing the
   60  district may also be identified. If such sufficiently contiguous
   61  land is identified, the petition must include a legal
   62  description of each additional parcel within the sufficiently
   63  contiguous land, the current owner of the parcel, the acreage of
   64  the parcel, and the current land use designation of the parcel.
   65  At least 14 days before the hearing required under s.
   66  190.005(2)(b), the petitioner must give the current owner of
   67  each such parcel notice of filing the petition to establish the
   68  district, the date and time of the public hearing on the
   69  petition, and the name and address of the petitioner. A parcel
   70  may not be included in the district without the written consent
   71  of the owner of the parcel.
   72         1. After establishment of the district, a person may
   73  petition the county or municipality to amend the boundaries of
   74  the district to include a previously identified parcel that was
   75  a proposed addition to the district before its establishment. A
   76  filing fee may not be charged for this petition. Each such
   77  petition must include:
   78         a. A legal description by metes and bounds of the parcel to
   79  be added;
   80         b. A new legal description by metes and bounds of the
   81  district;
   82         c. Written consent of all owners of the parcel to be added;
   83         d. A map of the district including the parcel to be added;
   84         e. A description of the development proposed on the
   85  additional parcel; and
   86         f. A copy of the original petition identifying the parcel
   87  to be added.
   88         2. Before filing with the county or municipality, the
   89  person must provide the petition to the district and to the
   90  owner of the proposed additional parcel, if the owner is not the
   91  petitioner.
   92         3. Once the petition is determined sufficient and complete,
   93  the county or municipality must process the addition of the
   94  parcel to the district as an amendment to the ordinance that
   95  establishes the district. The county or municipality may process
   96  all petitions to amend the ordinance for parcels identified in
   97  the original petition, even if, by adding such parcels, the
   98  district exceeds 2,500 acres.
   99         4. The petitioner shall cause to be published in a
  100  newspaper of general circulation in the proposed district a
  101  notice of the intent to amend the ordinance that establishes the
  102  district. The notice must be in addition to any notice required
  103  for adoption of the ordinance amendment. Such notice must be
  104  published at least 10 days before the scheduled hearing on the
  105  ordinance amendment and may be published in the section of the
  106  newspaper reserved for legal notices. The notice must include a
  107  general description of the land to be added to the district and
  108  the date and time of the scheduled hearing to amend the
  109  ordinance. The petitioner shall deliver, including by mail or
  110  hand delivery, the notice of the hearing on the ordinance
  111  amendment to the owner of the parcel and to the district at
  112  least 14 days before the scheduled hearing.
  113         5. The amendment of a district by the addition of a parcel
  114  pursuant to this paragraph does not alter the transition from
  115  landowner voting to qualified elector voting pursuant to s.
  116  190.006, even if the total size of the district after the
  117  addition of the parcel exceeds 5,000 acres. Upon adoption of the
  118  ordinance expanding the district, the petitioner must cause to
  119  be recorded a notice of boundary amendment which reflects the
  120  new boundaries of the district.
  121         6. This paragraph is intended to facilitate the orderly
  122  addition of lands to a district under certain circumstances and
  123  does not preclude the addition of lands to any district using
  124  the procedures in the other provisions of this section.
  125         (3) The district may merge with other community development
  126  districts upon filing a petition for merger, which petition
  127  shall include the elements set forth in s. 190.005(1) and which
  128  shall be evaluated using the criteria set forth in s.
  129  190.005(1)(e). The filing fee shall be as set forth in s.
  130  190.005(1)(b). In addition, the petition shall state whether a
  131  new district is to be established or whether one district shall
  132  be the surviving district. A community development district may
  133  also merge with another type of special district created by
  134  special act pursuant to the terms of that special act or by
  135  filing a petition for establishment of a new The district may
  136  merge with any other special districts upon filing a petition
  137  for establishment of a community development district pursuant
  138  to s. 190.005. The government formed by a merger involving a
  139  community development district pursuant to this section shall
  140  assume all indebtedness of, and receive title to, all property
  141  owned by the preexisting special districts, and the rights of
  142  creditors and liens upon property are shall not be impaired by
  143  such merger. Any claim existing or action or proceeding pending
  144  by or against any district that is a party to the merger may be
  145  continued as if the merger had not occurred, or the surviving
  146  district may be substituted in the proceeding for the district
  147  that ceased to exist. Prior to filing a the petition, the
  148  districts desiring to merge shall enter into a merger agreement
  149  and shall provide for the proper allocation of the indebtedness
  150  so assumed and the manner in which such debt shall be retired.
  151  The approval of the merger agreement and the petition by the
  152  board of supervisors of the district shall constitute consent of
  153  the landowners within the district. A community development
  154  district merging with another type of district may also enter
  155  into a merger agreement to address issues of transition,
  156  including the allocation of indebtedness and retirement of debt.
  157         Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.