Bill Text: FL S1118 | 2017 | Regular Session | Comm Sub

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Transportation

Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-05-05 - Laid on Table, companion bill(s) passed, see CS/HB 221 (Ch. 2017-12), CS/CS/HB 687 (Ch. 2017-136), CS/CS/CS/HB 695 (Ch. 2017-138), CS/CS/CS/HB 865 (Ch. 2017-42), HB 1153 (Ch. 2017-211), SB 2502 (Ch. 2017-71) [S1118 Detail]

Download: Florida-2017-S1118-Comm_Sub.html

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       Florida Senate - 2017                             CS for SB 1118
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Transportation; and Senators Gainer and
       Rouson
       
       
       
       
       596-03007-17                                          20171118c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to transportation; amending s.
    3         316.545, F.S.; providing for the calculation of fines
    4         for unlawful weight and load for a vehicle fueled by
    5         natural gas; requiring the vehicle operator to present
    6         a certain written certification upon request by a
    7         weight inspector or law enforcement officer;
    8         prescribing a maximum actual gross vehicle weight for
    9         vehicles fueled by natural gas; providing
   10         applicability; amending s. 335.074, F.S.; requiring
   11         bridges on public transportation facilities to be
   12         inspected for certain purposes at regular intervals as
   13         required by the Federal Highway Administration;
   14         amending s. 337.11, F.S.; increasing the allowable
   15         amount for contracts for construction and maintenance
   16         which the Department of Transportation may enter into,
   17         in certain circumstances, without advertising and
   18         receiving competitive bids; amending s. 338.227, F.S.;
   19         providing that certain bonds are not required to be
   20         validated but may be validated at the option of the
   21         Division of Bond Finance; providing filing, notice,
   22         and service requirements for complaints and circuit
   23         court orders concerning such validation; amending s.
   24         339.135, F.S.; providing an additional exception
   25         related to the amendment of adopted work programs when
   26         an emergency exists; amending s. 339.2405, F.S.;
   27         replacing the Florida Highway Beautification Council
   28         within the department with the Florida Highway
   29         Beautification Grant Program; providing the purpose of
   30         the program; providing duties of the department,
   31         including the establishment of rules related to grant
   32         requests; conforming provisions to changes made by the
   33         act; amending s. 343.52, F.S.; defining the term
   34         “department”; amending s. 343.54, F.S.; prohibiting
   35         the South Florida Regional Transportation Authority
   36         from entering into, extending, or renewing certain
   37         contracts or other agreements without the department’s
   38         prior review and written approval if such contracts or
   39         agreements may be funded with funds provided by the
   40         department; amending s. 343.58, F.S.; prohibiting
   41         specified funds provided to the authority by the
   42         department from being committed by the authority
   43         without the prior review and written approval by the
   44         department of the authority’s expenditures; deleting
   45         requirements relating to notification by the authority
   46         to the department of a proposed procurement or of a
   47         renewal of any existing contract that will rely on
   48         state funds for payment; requiring the authority to
   49         promptly provide the department any documentation or
   50         information, in addition to the proposed annual
   51         budget, which is required by the department for its
   52         evaluation of the proposed uses of state funds;
   53         prohibiting certain funding from being provided to the
   54         authority by the department until the authority
   55         terminates a Notice of Intent of Contract Award for a
   56         specified request for proposal; requiring the
   57         authority, before entering into a new contract for the
   58         services that were the subject of such request for
   59         proposal, to obtain the department’s written approval
   60         of all terms and conditions of the new procurement and
   61         contract for such services; amending s. 215.82, F.S.;
   62         conforming a provision to changes made by the act;
   63         amending s. 343.53, F.S.; conforming a cross
   64         reference; providing an effective date.
   65          
   66  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   67  
   68         Section 1. Present paragraphs (c) and (d) of subsection (3)
   69  of section 316.545, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as
   70  paragraphs (d) and (e), respectively, and a new paragraph (c) is
   71  added to that subsection, to read:
   72         316.545 Weight and load unlawful; special fuel and motor
   73  fuel tax enforcement; inspection; penalty; review.—
   74         (3)
   75         (c)1. For a vehicle fueled by natural gas, the fine is
   76  calculated by reducing the actual gross vehicle weight by the
   77  certified weight difference between the natural gas tank and
   78  fueling system and a comparable diesel tank and fueling system.
   79  Upon the request of a weight inspector or a law enforcement
   80  officer, the vehicle operator shall present a written
   81  certification that identifies the weight of the natural gas tank
   82  and fueling system and the difference in weight of a comparable
   83  diesel tank and fueling system. The written certification must
   84  originate from the vehicle manufacturer or the installer of the
   85  natural gas tank and fueling system.
   86         2. The actual gross vehicle weight for vehicles fueled by
   87  natural gas may not exceed 82,000 pounds, excluding the weight
   88  allowed for idle-reduction technology under paragraph (b).
   89         3. This paragraph does not apply to vehicles described in
   90  s. 316.535(6).
   91         Section 2. Subsection (2) of section 335.074, Florida
   92  Statutes, is amended to read:
   93         335.074 Safety inspection of bridges.—
   94         (2) At regular intervals as required by the Federal Highway
   95  Administration not to exceed 2 years, each bridge on a public
   96  transportation facility shall be inspected for structural
   97  soundness and safety for the passage of traffic on such bridge.
   98  The thoroughness with which bridges are to be inspected shall
   99  depend on such factors as age, traffic characteristics, state of
  100  maintenance, and known deficiencies. The governmental entity
  101  having maintenance responsibility for any such bridge shall be
  102  responsible for having inspections performed and reports
  103  prepared in accordance with the provisions contained herein.
  104         Section 3. Paragraph (c) of subsection (6) of section
  105  337.11, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  106         337.11 Contracting authority of department; bids; emergency
  107  repairs, supplemental agreements, and change orders; combined
  108  design and construction contracts; progress payments; records;
  109  requirements of vehicle registration.—
  110         (6)
  111         (c) When the department determines that it is in the best
  112  interest of the public for reasons of public concern, economy,
  113  improved operations, or safety, and only for contracts for
  114  construction and maintenance which do not exceed $250,000 when
  115  circumstances dictate rapid completion of the work, the
  116  department may, up to the amount of $120,000, enter into
  117  contracts for construction and maintenance without advertising
  118  and receiving competitive bids. The department may enter into
  119  such contracts only upon a determination that the work is
  120  necessary for one of the following reasons:
  121         1. To ensure timely completion of projects or avoidance of
  122  undue delay for other projects;
  123         2. To accomplish minor repairs or construction and
  124  maintenance activities for which time is of the essence and for
  125  which significant cost savings would occur; or
  126         3. To accomplish nonemergency work necessary to ensure
  127  avoidance of adverse conditions that affect the safe and
  128  efficient flow of traffic.
  129  
  130  The department shall make a good faith effort to obtain two or
  131  more quotes, if available, from qualified contractors before
  132  entering into any contract. The department shall give
  133  consideration to disadvantaged business enterprise
  134  participation. However, when the work exists within the limits
  135  of an existing contract, the department shall make a good faith
  136  effort to negotiate and enter into a contract with the prime
  137  contractor on the existing contract.
  138         Section 4. Subsection (5) is added to section 338.227,
  139  Florida Statutes, to read:
  140         338.227 Turnpike revenue bonds.—
  141         (5) Notwithstanding s. 215.82, bonds issued pursuant to
  142  this section are not required to be validated pursuant to
  143  chapter 75 but may be validated at the option of the Division of
  144  Bond Finance. Any complaint about such validation must be filed
  145  in the circuit court of the county in which the seat of state
  146  government is situated, and the clerk shall publish the notice
  147  as required by s. 75.06 only in the county in which the
  148  complaint is filed. The complaint and order of the circuit court
  149  must be served on the state attorney of the circuit in which the
  150  action is pending.
  151         Section 5. Paragraph (e) of subsection (7) of section
  152  339.135, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  153         339.135 Work program; legislative budget request;
  154  definitions; preparation, adoption, execution, and amendment.—
  155         (7) AMENDMENT OF THE ADOPTED WORK PROGRAM.—
  156         (e) Notwithstanding paragraphs (d), and (g), and (h) and
  157  ss. 216.177(2) and 216.351, the secretary may request the
  158  Executive Office of the Governor to amend the adopted work
  159  program when an emergency exists, as defined in s. 252.34, and
  160  the emergency relates to the repair or rehabilitation of any
  161  state transportation facility. The Executive Office of the
  162  Governor may approve the amendment to the adopted work program
  163  and amend that portion of the department’s approved budget if a
  164  delay incident to the notification requirements in paragraph (d)
  165  would be detrimental to the interests of the state. However, the
  166  department shall immediately notify the parties specified in
  167  paragraph (d) and provide such parties written justification for
  168  the emergency action within 7 days after approval by the
  169  Executive Office of the Governor of the amendment to the adopted
  170  work program and the department’s budget. The adopted work
  171  program may not be amended under this subsection without
  172  certification by the comptroller of the department that there
  173  are sufficient funds available pursuant to the 36-month cash
  174  forecast and applicable statutes.
  175         Section 6. Section 339.2405, Florida Statutes, is amended
  176  to read:
  177         339.2405 Florida Highway Beautification Grant Program
  178  Council.—
  179         (1) There is created within the Department of
  180  Transportation the Florida Highway Beautification Grant Program
  181  for the purpose of awarding grants to local governmental
  182  entities for beautification of roads on the State Highway System
  183  as provided in subsections (3) and (4). The department shall
  184  Council. It shall consist of seven members appointed by the
  185  Governor. All appointed members must be residents of this state.
  186  One member must be a licensed landscape architect, one member
  187  must be a representative of the Florida Federation of Garden
  188  Clubs, Inc., one member must be a representative of the Florida
  189  Nurserymen and Growers Association, one member must be a
  190  representative of the department as designated by the head of
  191  the department, one member must be a representative of the
  192  Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and two members
  193  must be private citizens. The members of the council shall serve
  194  at the pleasure of the Governor.
  195         (2) Each chair shall be selected by the council members and
  196  shall serve a 2-year term.
  197         (3) The council shall meet no less than semiannually at the
  198  call of the chair or, in the chair’s absence or incapacity, at
  199  the call of the head of the department. Four members shall
  200  constitute a quorum for the purpose of exercising all of the
  201  powers of the council. A vote of the majority of the members
  202  present shall be sufficient for all actions of the council.
  203         (4) The council members shall serve without pay but shall
  204  be entitled to per diem and travel expenses pursuant to s.
  205  112.061.
  206         (5) A member of the council may not participate in any
  207  discussion or decision to recommend grants to any qualified
  208  local government with which the member is associated as a member
  209  of the governing body or as an employee or with which the member
  210  has entered into a contractual arrangement.
  211         (6) The council may prescribe, amend, and repeal bylaws
  212  governing the manner in which the business of the council is
  213  conducted.
  214         (7)(a) The duties of the council shall be to:
  215         (a)1. Provide information to local governments and local
  216  highway beautification councils regarding the state highway
  217  beautification grants program.
  218         (b)2. Accept grant requests from local governments.
  219         (c)3. Review grant requests for compliance with department
  220  council rules.
  221         (d)4. Establish rules for evaluating and prioritizing the
  222  grant requests. The rules must include, but are not limited to,
  223  an examination of each grant’s aesthetic value, cost
  224  effectiveness, level of local support, feasibility of
  225  installation and maintenance, and compliance with state and
  226  federal regulations. Rules adopted by the department council
  227  which it uses to evaluate grant applications must take into
  228  consideration the contributions made by the highway
  229  beautification project in preventing litter.
  230         (e)5. Maintain a prioritized list of approved grant
  231  requests. The list must include recommended funding levels for
  232  each request and, if staged implementation is appropriate,
  233  funding requirements for each stage shall be provided.
  234         6. Assess the feasibility of planting and maintaining
  235  indigenous wildflowers and plants, instead of sod groundcovers,
  236  along the rights-of-way of state roads and highways. In making
  237  such assessment, the council shall utilize data from other
  238  states which include indigenous wildflower and plant species in
  239  their highway vegetative management systems.
  240         (b) The council may, at the request of the head of the
  241  department, review and make recommendations on any other highway
  242  beautification matters relating to the State Highway System.
  243         (8) The head of the department shall provide from existing
  244  personnel such staff support services to the council as are
  245  necessary to enable the council to fulfill its duties and
  246  responsibilities.
  247         (2)(9) Local highway beautification councils may be created
  248  by local governmental entities or by the Legislature. Prior to
  249  being submitted to the department council, a grant request must
  250  be approved by the local government or governments of the area
  251  in which the project is located.
  252         (3)(10) The head of the department, after receiving
  253  recommendations from the council, shall award grants to local
  254  governmental entities that have submitted grant requests for
  255  beautification of roads on the State Highway System and which
  256  requests are on the council’s approved list. The grants shall be
  257  awarded in the order they appear on the council’s prioritized
  258  list and in accordance with available funding.
  259         (4)(11) State highway beautification grants may be
  260  requested only for projects to beautify through landscaping
  261  roads on the State Highway System. The grant request shall
  262  identify all costs associated with the project, including
  263  sprinkler systems, plant materials, equipment, and labor. A
  264  grant shall provide for the costs of purchase and installation
  265  of a sprinkler system, the cost of plant materials and
  266  fertilizer, and may provide for the costs for labor associated
  267  with the installation of the plantings. Each local government
  268  that receives a grant is shall be responsible for any costs for
  269  water, for the maintenance of the sprinkler system, for the
  270  maintenance of the landscaped areas in accordance with a
  271  maintenance agreement with the department, and, except as
  272  otherwise provided in the grant, for any costs for labor
  273  associated with the installation of the plantings. The
  274  department may provide, by contract, services to maintain such
  275  landscaping at a level not to exceed the cost of routine
  276  maintenance of an equivalent unlandscaped area.
  277         (12) The council shall annually submit to the head of the
  278  Department of Transportation a proposal recommending the level
  279  of grant funding.
  280         Section 7. Section 343.52, Florida Statutes, is reordered
  281  and amended to read:
  282         343.52 Definitions.—As used in this part, the term:
  283         (2)(1) “Authority” means the South Florida Regional
  284  Transportation Authority.
  285         (3)(2) “Board” means the governing body of the authority.
  286         (4) “Department” means the Department of Transportation.
  287         (1)(3) “Area served” means Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm
  288  Beach Counties. However, this area may be expanded by mutual
  289  consent of the authority and the board of county commissioners
  290  of Monroe County. The authority may not expand into any
  291  additional counties without the department’s prior written
  292  approval.
  293         (8)(4) “Transit system” means a system used for the
  294  transportation of people and goods by means of, without
  295  limitation, a street railway, an elevated railway having a fixed
  296  guideway, a commuter railroad, a subway, motor vehicles, or
  297  motor buses, and includes a complete system of tracks, stations,
  298  and rolling stock necessary to effectuate passenger service to
  299  or from the surrounding regional municipalities.
  300         (7)(5) “Transit facilities” means property, avenues of
  301  access, equipment, or buildings built and installed in Miami
  302  Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties which are required to
  303  support a transit system.
  304         (6)(6) “Member” means the individuals constituting the
  305  board.
  306         (5)(7) “Feeder transit services” means a transit system
  307  that transports passengers to or from stations within or across
  308  counties.
  309         Section 8. Present subsections (4) and (5) of section
  310  343.54, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (5)
  311  and (6), respectively, and a new subsection (4) is added to that
  312  section, to read:
  313         343.54 Powers and duties.—
  314         (4) Notwithstanding any other provision of this part, the
  315  authority may not enter into, extend, or renew any contract or
  316  other agreement under this part without the department’s prior
  317  review and written approval of the authority’s proposed
  318  expenditures if such contract or agreement may be funded, in
  319  whole or in part, with funds provided by the department.
  320         Section 9. Paragraph (c) of subsection (4) of section
  321  343.58, Florida Statutes, is amended, and paragraph (e) is added
  322  to that subsection, to read:
  323         343.58 County funding for the South Florida Regional
  324  Transportation Authority.—
  325         (4) Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the
  326  contrary and effective July 1, 2010, until as provided in
  327  paragraph (d), the department shall transfer annually from the
  328  State Transportation Trust Fund to the South Florida Regional
  329  Transportation Authority the amounts specified in subparagraph
  330  (a)1. or subparagraph (a)2.
  331         (c)1. Funds provided to the authority by the department
  332  under this subsection may not be committed by the authority
  333  without the prior review and written approval by of the
  334  department of the authority’s expenditures, which may not be
  335  unreasonably withheld. At least 90 days before advertising any
  336  procurement or renewing any existing contract that will rely on
  337  state funds for payment, the authority shall notify the
  338  department of the proposed procurement or renewal and the
  339  proposed terms thereof. If the department, within 60 days after
  340  receipt of notice, objects in writing to the proposed
  341  procurement or renewal, specifying its reasons for objection,
  342  the authority may not proceed with the proposed procurement or
  343  renewal. Failure of the department to object in writing within
  344  60 days after notice shall be deemed consent. This requirement
  345  does not impair or cause the authority to cancel contracts that
  346  exist as of June 30, 2012.
  347         2. To enable the department to evaluate the authority’s
  348  proposed uses of state funds, the authority shall annually
  349  provide the department with its proposed budget for the
  350  following authority fiscal year and shall promptly provide the
  351  department with any additional documentation or information
  352  required by the department for its evaluation of the proposed
  353  uses of the state funds.
  354         (e) Funding may not be provided to the authority by the
  355  department under this subsection until the authority withdraws,
  356  cancels, or otherwise terminates the authority’s Notice of
  357  Intent of Contract Award for Request for Proposal 16-010
  358  “Operating Services,” approved by the authority’s board on
  359  January 27, 2017. Before entering into a new contract for the
  360  services that were the subject of the Request for Proposal 16
  361  010, the authority must obtain the department’s written approval
  362  of all terms and conditions of a new procurement and contract
  363  for the services that were the subject of such request for
  364  proposal to ensure that the authority has sufficient revenues to
  365  fund the contract.
  366         Section 10. Subsection (2) of section 215.82, Florida
  367  Statutes, is amended to read:
  368         215.82 Validation; when required.—
  369         (2) Any bonds issued pursuant to this act which are
  370  validated shall be validated in the manner provided by chapter
  371  75. In actions to validate bonds to be issued in the name of the
  372  State Board of Education under s. 9(a) and (d), Art. XII of the
  373  State Constitution and bonds to be issued pursuant to chapter
  374  259, the Land Conservation Program, the complaint shall be filed
  375  in the circuit court of the county where the seat of state
  376  government is situated, the notice required to be published by
  377  s. 75.06 shall be published only in the county where the
  378  complaint is filed, and the complaint and order of the circuit
  379  court shall be served only on the state attorney of the circuit
  380  in which the action is pending. In any action to validate bonds
  381  issued pursuant to s. 1010.62 or issued pursuant to s. 9(a)(1),
  382  Art. XII of the State Constitution or issued pursuant to s.
  383  215.605 or s. 338.227, the complaint shall be filed in the
  384  circuit court of the county where the seat of state government
  385  is situated, the notice required to be published by s. 75.06
  386  shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the
  387  county where the complaint is filed and in two other newspapers
  388  of general circulation in the state, and the complaint and order
  389  of the circuit court shall be served only on the state attorney
  390  of the circuit in which the action is pending; provided,
  391  however, that if publication of notice pursuant to this section
  392  would require publication in more newspapers than would
  393  publication pursuant to s. 75.06, such publication shall be made
  394  pursuant to s. 75.06.
  395         Section 11. Paragraph (d) of subsection (2) of section
  396  343.53, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
  397         343.53 South Florida Regional Transportation Authority.—
  398         (2) The governing board of the authority shall consist of
  399  10 voting members, as follows:
  400         (d) If the authority’s service area is expanded pursuant to
  401  s. 343.54(6) s. 343.54(5), the county containing the new service
  402  area shall have two members appointed to the board as follows:
  403         1. The county commission of the county shall elect a
  404  commissioner as that commission’s representative on the board.
  405  The commissioner must be a member of the county commission when
  406  elected and for the full extent of his or her term.
  407         2. The Governor shall appoint a citizen member to the board
  408  who is not a member of the county commission but who is a
  409  resident and a qualified elector of that county.
  410         Section 12. This act shall take effect July 1, 2017.