Earlier this month, lobbyist for the City of Brooksville, Shawn Foster, reviewed items coming before the Florida legislature that could be affecting the City of Brooksville. He reminded the council that last year 99% of the legislation that would potentially hurt the city died.
Foster explained that a firefighter/paramedic cancer disability presumption has come up in the legislature. This legislation would allow the presumption to provide for any health condition caused by any cancer. The Florida League of Cities is opposing the bill as it is currently since it would be a significant unfunded mandate to any city.
Another bill that could have negative consequences for the city is the communications services tax. This legislation died last year, but has been revived this year. This is Senate Bill 256 which tries to reduce the state’s portion of the communication services tax by 2%. That would result in recurring funds that would be lost to the city, Foster explained.
The relocation of utilities bill also died last session, but it is also back. Last year, Shawn Foster explained that if passed, HB 391 and SB 896 for Utility Relocation, would have “prohibited local governments from requiring utilities to pay the costs of equipment relocation unless the utilities were in a right of way as opposed to the current requirement for utility relocations occurring ‘upon, over, under or along’ a roadway.” This would have required local governments and not utilities to bear the cost of relocating a utility’s equipment. Verizon, AT&T and others are fighting hard to get this through.
This year, the good thing about it according to Foster is that they did a “strike all amendment.” “They took everything in there and re-did it,” he stated. One thing that changed was that they reduced the impact to municipalities greatly. According to attorneys, Foster stated that they’ve “reduced it about 90% of what is opportunistic for the utilities to charge back to the citizens or taxpayers… it’s a lot less than what it was last year.”
There are also large water quality bills that aim at improving the health of springs in terms of water quality and quantity, with the cooperative efforts of cities and counties. Foster described it as one of the positive bills that did not go through last year.
A public private partnership bill, called P3, which passed in 2013 established “mandatory and statutory framework that cities must follow” which essentially takes away home-rule. A bill this year that has strong support will reverse the 2013 bill and bring home-rule back – a good thing for the city, Foster stated. There is a bill in the House and Senate that both moved through the committees and will appear on the floor soon.
The two appropriations bills for the city of Brooksville (water projects) passed both the House and Senate, but were vetoed by the governor last session. They still have the support of both Representative Ingoglia and Senator Simpson.
The Liberty street project involves restoring embankments that have been damaged from erosion on the brook north and south of Liberty Street. The total project is $206,000, and the city is asking for $150,000 in funding. The Horse Lake Project involves removing 5000 cubic yards of silt from the bottom of Horse Lake Creek which is a major stormwater drainage resource for Brooksville. Additionally they will reinforce an 8″ sewer pipe with concrete to prevent future damage. This is a $500,000 project in which the city is asking for 100% funding.
Water projects are funded differently than any other appropriations, explained Foster. During the third week of the session there will be an allocation amount given that is basically how much money is available for water projects. Both committee chairs are familiar with the projects and supportive of them so Foster feels they have a strong chance of successful funding.
Lastly, Mr. Foster was able to assist Michael Heard, President of The Florida Blueberry Festival Inc, with issues relating to the fair board and helped with a $5000 donation from Republic. They also assisted her with a couple of issues through the Economic Development Council and Board of County Commissioners. The Florida Blueberry Festival Inc. is a non-profit independent organization that has received much support from the city and county.