Florida State Senator Tom Leek (R-Ormond Beach) has filed legislation (Senate Bill 1548: Florida Building Code) addressing how local governments use excess funds within their operating budget, and how those funds may be used specifically, the prioritization of stormwater projects within Florida communities.
The senator says that over the last many years, the City of Daytona Beach has impermissibly collected excess permitting and license fees and is sitting on approximately $11 million of impermissibly collected fees. This has resulted in the city having been under audit by the State for the last four years and the city continues to come to the State for money for ‘critical’ flooding and storm-related projects, while ignoring the audit and their legal obligations.
“A local government should not receive additional state funds for stormwater management improvements through a request to its legislative delegation while it is under audit by the State and until it has expended all impermissibly collected permitting and licensing fees. The City of Daytona Beach needs to get its house in order,” said Senator Leek.
The proposed legislation amends s. 553.80, F.S. requiring that local governments use certain excess funds from fees collected for code enforcement to perform necessary services or repairs on their stormwater management systems and prohibits state funds from being used by a local government for that purpose if the local government has such excess funds. Conversely, if such services or repairs are unnecessary, then those excess funds may be used as statutorily designated.
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