Bill Text: FL S1646 | 2018 | Regular Session | Comm Sub

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

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Bill Title: Regional Rural Development Grants

Spectrum:

Status: (Failed) 2018-03-10 - Died in returning Messages [S1646 Detail]

Download: Florida-2018-S1646-Comm_Sub.html

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       Florida Senate - 2018                             CS for SB 1646
       
       
        
       By the Committee on Commerce and Tourism; and Senators Montford
       and Gainer
       
       
       
       
       577-02597-18                                          20181646c1
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to regional rural development grants;
    3         amending s. 288.018, F.S.; providing that regional
    4         rural development grants may be used to hire regional
    5         economic development organization professional staff;
    6         authorizing the use of matching grant funds to provide
    7         technical assistance to certain entities; increasing
    8         the annual maximum amount of grant funding that
    9         specified economic development organizations may
   10         receive; revising the amount of nonstate matching
   11         funds required; requiring that contracts or agreements
   12         involving the expenditure of grant funds be placed on
   13         a certain website for a specified time period;
   14         requiring that certain information be included in a
   15         contract or agreement involving the expenditure of
   16         grant funds; requiring that a plain language version
   17         of certain contracts or agreements be placed on a
   18         certain website; deleting a provision authorizing the
   19         Department of Economic Opportunity to contract for the
   20         development of certain enterprise zone web portals or
   21         websites; amending s. 288.0655, F.S.; providing that
   22         improving access to and availability of broadband
   23         Internet service may be included in a project that is
   24         eligible for rural infrastructure grant funds;
   25         extending the date by which the department is required
   26         to reevaluate certain guidelines and criteria;
   27         revising the factors that the department must consider
   28         when awarding grant funds; requiring that contracts or
   29         agreements involving the expenditure of grant funds be
   30         placed on a certain website for a specified time
   31         period; requiring that certain information be included
   32         in a contract or agreement involving the expenditure
   33         of grant funds; requiring that a plain language
   34         version of certain contracts or agreements be placed
   35         on a certain website; providing an effective date.
   36          
   37  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   38  
   39         Section 1. Subsections (1) and (3) of section 288.018,
   40  Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
   41         288.018 Regional Rural Development Grants Program.—
   42         (1) The department shall establish a matching grant program
   43  to provide funding to regional regionally based economic
   44  development organizations representing rural counties and
   45  communities to build for the purpose of building the
   46  professional capacity of such regional economic development
   47  their organizations. Building the professional capacity of
   48  regional economic development organizations includes hiring
   49  professional staff to develop, facilitate the delivery of, and
   50  directly provide needed economic development professional
   51  services, including technical assistance, education and
   52  leadership development, marketing and project recruitment, and
   53  other services that are important for rural economic
   54  development. Such Matching grants may also be used by a regional
   55  an economic development organization to provide technical
   56  assistance to local governments, local economic development
   57  organizations, and existing and prospective businesses within
   58  the rural counties and communities that it serves. The
   59  department is authorized to approve, on an annual basis, grants
   60  to such regional regionally based economic development
   61  organizations. The maximum amount an organization may receive in
   62  any year is will be $50,000, or $250,000 for each of the three
   63  regional economic development organizations serving rural areas
   64  of opportunity designated pursuant to s. 288.0656. The three
   65  regional economic development organizations include the North
   66  Florida Economic Development Partnership, Opportunity Florida,
   67  and Florida Heartland Economic Region of Opportunity. Grant
   68  funds received by a regional economic development organization
   69  $150,000 in a rural area of opportunity recommended by the Rural
   70  Economic Development Initiative and designated by the Governor,
   71  and must be matched each year by an equivalent amount of
   72  nonstate resources in an amount equal to 25 percent of the state
   73  contribution.
   74         (3)(a) A contract or agreement that involves the
   75  expenditure of grant funds provided under this section must be
   76  placed on the contracting regional economic development
   77  organization’s website for review at least 14 days before
   78  execution.
   79         (b) A contract or agreement that involves the expenditure
   80  of grant funds provided under this section, including a contract
   81  or agreement entered into between another entity and a regional
   82  economic development organization, a unit of local government,
   83  or an economic development organization substantially
   84  underwritten by a unit of local government, must include:
   85         1. The purpose of the contract or agreement.
   86         2. Specific performance standards and responsibilities for
   87  each entity.
   88         3. A detailed project or contract budget, if applicable.
   89         4. The value of any services provided.
   90         5. The projected travel and entertainment expenses for
   91  employees and board members, if applicable.
   92         (c) A plain language version of a contract or agreement
   93  with a private entity, a municipality, or a vendor of services,
   94  supplies, or programs, including marketing, or for the purchase
   95  or lease or use of lands, facilities, or properties which
   96  involves the expenditure of grant funds provided under this
   97  section and which is estimated to exceed $35,000 must be posted
   98  on the contracting regional economic development organization’s
   99  website The department may also contract for the development of
  100  an enterprise zone web portal or websites for each enterprise
  101  zone which will be used to market the program for job creation
  102  in disadvantaged urban and rural enterprise zones. Each
  103  enterprise zone web page should include downloadable links to
  104  state forms and information, as well as local message boards
  105  that help businesses and residents receive information
  106  concerning zone boundaries, job openings, zone programs, and
  107  neighborhood improvement activities.
  108         Section 2. Subsection (5) of section 288.0655, Florida
  109  Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (6), paragraph (b) of
  110  subsection (2) and subsection (4) of that section are amended,
  111  and a new subsection (5) is added to that section, to read:
  112         288.0655 Rural Infrastructure Fund.—
  113         (2)(b) To facilitate access of rural communities and rural
  114  areas of opportunity as defined by the Rural Economic
  115  Development Initiative to infrastructure funding programs of the
  116  Federal Government, such as those offered by the United States
  117  Department of Agriculture and the United States Department of
  118  Commerce, and state programs, including those offered by Rural
  119  Economic Development Initiative agencies, and to facilitate
  120  local government or private infrastructure funding efforts, the
  121  department may award grants for up to 30 percent of the total
  122  infrastructure project cost. If an application for funding is
  123  for a catalyst site, as defined in s. 288.0656, the department
  124  may award grants for up to 40 percent of the total
  125  infrastructure project cost. Eligible projects must be related
  126  to specific job-creation or job-retention opportunities.
  127  Eligible projects may also include improving any inadequate
  128  infrastructure that has resulted in regulatory action that
  129  prohibits economic or community growth or reducing the costs to
  130  community users of proposed infrastructure improvements that
  131  exceed such costs in comparable communities, which includes
  132  improving access to and the availability of broadband Internet
  133  service. Eligible uses of funds shall include improvements to
  134  public infrastructure for industrial or commercial sites, and
  135  upgrades to or development of public tourism infrastructure, and
  136  improvements to broadband Internet service and access in
  137  unserved or underserved rural communities. Authorized
  138  infrastructure may include the following public or public
  139  private partnership facilities: storm water systems;
  140  telecommunications facilities; broadband facilities; roads or
  141  other remedies to transportation impediments; nature-based
  142  tourism facilities; or other physical requirements necessary to
  143  facilitate tourism, trade, and economic development activities
  144  in the community. Authorized infrastructure may also include
  145  publicly or privately owned self-powered nature-based tourism
  146  facilities, publicly owned telecommunications facilities, and
  147  broadband facilities, and additions to the distribution
  148  facilities of the existing natural gas utility as defined in s.
  149  366.04(3)(c), the existing electric utility as defined in s.
  150  366.02, or the existing water or wastewater utility as defined
  151  in s. 367.021(12), or any other existing water or wastewater
  152  facility, which owns a gas or electric distribution system or a
  153  water or wastewater system in this state where:
  154         1. A contribution-in-aid of construction is required to
  155  serve public or public-private partnership facilities under the
  156  tariffs of any natural gas, electric, water, or wastewater
  157  utility as defined herein; and
  158         2. Such utilities as defined herein are willing and able to
  159  provide such service.
  160         (4) By September 1, 2019 2012, the department shall, in
  161  consultation with the organizations listed in subsection (3),
  162  and other organizations, reevaluate existing guidelines and
  163  criteria governing submission of applications for funding,
  164  review and evaluation of such applications, and approval of
  165  funding under this section. The department shall consider
  166  factors including, but not limited to, the project’s potential
  167  for enhanced job creation or increased capital investment, the
  168  demonstration and level of local public and private commitment,
  169  whether the project is located in an enterprise zone, in a
  170  community development corporation service area, or in an urban
  171  high-crime area as designated under s. 212.097, the unemployment
  172  rate of the county in which the project would be located, and
  173  the poverty rate of the community.
  174         (5)(a) A contract or agreement that involves the
  175  expenditure of grant funds provided under this section must be
  176  placed on the department’s website for review at least 14 days
  177  before execution.
  178         (b) A contract or agreement that includes the expenditure
  179  of grant funds provided under this section, including a contract
  180  or agreement entered into between an entity and a regional
  181  economic development organization, a unit of local government,
  182  or an economic development organization substantially
  183  underwritten by a unit of local government, must include:
  184         1. The purpose of the contract or agreement.
  185         2. Specific performance standards and responsibilities for
  186  each entity.
  187         3. A detailed project or contract budget, if applicable.
  188         4. The value of any services provided.
  189         5. The projected travel and entertainment expenses for
  190  employees and board members, if applicable.
  191         (c) A plain language version of a contract or agreement
  192  with a private entity, a municipality, or a vendor of services,
  193  supplies, or programs, including marketing, or for the purchase
  194  or lease or use of lands, facilities, or properties which
  195  involves the expenditure of grant funds provided under this
  196  section and which is estimated to exceed $35,000 must be posted
  197  on the department’s website.
  198         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2018.