Agenda 06/12/2018 Item #10A06/12/2018
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Recommendation to direct the County Attorney to advertise and bring back for a Public
Hearing an Ordinance which would create the unpaved private road emergency repair
municipal service taxing unit by authorizing a levy of not to exceed one (1) mil of ad
valorem taxes per year.
______________________________________________________________________________
OBJECTIVE: To protect the health, safety, and welfare of citizens that have unpaved, private
road access and egress.
CONSIDERATION: Many roads in the unincorporated portion of Collier County are unpaved,
private roads not maintained by the County which may become impassable if not maintained. It
is imperative that all roads in the County are passible to emergency services vehicles to protect
the public health, safety, and welfare in certain emergencies, including fires, hurricanes, and
floods.
Currently, there is no ready available funding source to pay for reactive and proactive repairs
when an emergency vehicle cannot access private roads deemed impassable or when a private
road is imminently expected to fail. The creation of a municipal service taxing unit is the best
method to provide funding to enable the County to make emergency repairs to private roads upon
the notification by the local fire district or the Collier County Sheriff’s Office that the road is, or
soon will be, impassable.
The proposed Ordinance seeks to strike a balance with the Board’s obligations to safeguard the
health, safet y and welfare of the citizens of Collier County, with its duty to respect the
Constitutional private property rights of owners of private roads, and the prohibition of public
expenditures for a private purpose. With the establishment of a Municipal Service Taxing Unit
(MSTU) as a funding source, the cost utilized to repair the private roads will be ultimately
borne solel y by the residents serviced by the private road, the County Attorney has opined that
the proposed procedure is legally sound.
There are approximately 105 miles of unpaved private roads with public access within Collier
County with adjoining properties with an estimated taxable value of $290,000,000. At an average
cost of $9,000 per mile for limerock road repairs, the estimated revenues may cover repairs on
approximately 32 miles of unpaved roads.
To acknowledge that some unpaved roads may be in good condition and under continuous
maintenance by the property owners utilizing the road, the proposed ordinance establishes an
opt-out provision for roads that are not likely to require maintenance within a five-year period.
To opt out, the property owner must show that the road is passable and that there is a sustainable
maintenance plan in place by the property owner or owners on that road. If at a point in the
future the road becomes impassable to emergency vehicles and emergency maintenance is
required by the County, those previously opted-out homes shall become subjected to the tax
levied herein beginning the next fiscal year and continuing the following years.
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FISCAL IMPACT: Estimated cost of advertising is $350. If approved at a future Board
meeting, this MSTU Ordinance will set in motion a series of fiscal steps including: (1) creation
of the unpaved private road Municipal Service Taxing Unit (MSTU) Fund and related Cost
Center; and (2) a mechanism to establish the budget based upon certified taxable value and
applied millage rate not to exceed 1 mil per year. Based upon a projected taxable value equal to
$290,000,000 the taxes would raise approximately $290,000 per year. The effect of the proposed
MSTU, including the tax levy implications, will not be realized until the 2019 tax year (FY
2020). This assumes that the enabling ordinance and related filings will be completed prior to
December 31, 2018.
GROWTH MANAGEMENT IMPACT: There is no Growth Management impact associated
with this Executive Summary.
LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS: This item has been reviewed by the County Attorney, is
approved as to form and legality, and requires majority vote for approval. -JAK
RECOMMENDATION: That the Board of County Commissioners directs the County Attorney
to advertise, and bring back for a Public Hearing, an ordinance which would create the unpaved
private road emergency repair Municipal Service Taxing Unit (MSTU).
Prepared by: Commissioner William L. McDaniel, Jr., District 5
ATTACHMENT(S)
1. Unpaved _Road_MSTU_Ordinance_2018 (002) (DOCX)
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COLLIER COUNTY
Board of County Commissioners
Item Number: 10.A
Doc ID: 5892
Item Summary: Recommendation to direct the County Attorney to advertise and bring back for a
Public Hearing an Ordinance which would create the unpaved private road emergency repair municipal
service taxing unit by authorizing a levy of not to exceed one (1) mil of ad valorem taxes per year.
(Commissioner McDaniel)
Meeting Date: 06/12/2018
Prepared by:
Title: Executive Secretary to County Manager – County Manager's Office
Name: MaryJo Brock
06/06/2018 2:10 PM
Submitted by:
Title: County Manager – County Manager's Office
Name: Leo E. Ochs
06/06/2018 2:10 PM
Approved By:
Review:
Office of Management and Budget MaryJo Brock Level 3 OMB Gatekeeper Review Skipped 06/06/2018 11:20 AM
County Attorney's Office Jeffrey A. Klatzkow Level 3 County Attorney's Office Review Completed 06/06/2018 3:10 PM
County Manager's Office Nick Casalanguida Level 4 County Manager Review Completed 06/06/2018 3:29 PM
Board of County Commissioners MaryJo Brock Meeting Pending 06/12/2018 9:00 AM
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ORDINANCE NO. 2017-_____
AN ORDINANCE OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF
COLLIER COUNTY, FLORIDA, CREATING THE PRIVATE ROAD
EMERGENCY REPAIR MUNICIPAL SERVICE TAXING UNIT;
PROVIDING FOR THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS TO BE
THE UNIT’S GOVERNING BODY; PROVIDING FUNDING AND THE
LEVY OF NOT TO EXCEED ONE (1) MIL OF AD VALOREM TAXES PER
YEAR; PROVIDING FOR THE COLLECTION OF TAXES; PROVIDING
FOR AN OPT-OUT MECHANISM; PROVIDING FOR DUTIES OF THE
COUNTY MANAGER; PROVIDING FOR CONFLICT AND
SEVERABILITY; PROVIDING FOR INCLUSION IN THE COLLIER
COUNTY CODE OF LAWS AND ORDINANCES; AND PROVIDING FOR
AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS, many roads in the unincorporated portion of Collier County are unpaved,
private roads not maintained by the County, which may become impassable if not maintained; and
WHEREAS, it is imperative that all roads in the County are passable to emergency services
vehicles to protect the public health, safety, and welfare in certain emergencies, including fires,
hurricanes and floods; and
WHEREAS, there is currently no mechanism or funding source to pay for emergency
repairs when an emergency vehicle cannot access private roads deemed impassable; and
WHEREAS, the Board of County Commissioners has determined that the creation of a
municipal service taxing unit is the best method to provide funding to enable the County to make
emergency repairs to private roads upon the notification by the local fire district or the Collier
County Sheriff’s Office.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY
COMMISSIONERS OF COLLIER COUNTY, FLORIDA, that:
SECTION ONE: Authority.
This Ordinance is adopted pursuant to the provisions of Section 125.01 and Chapter 200,
Florida Statutes, and other applicable provisions of law.
SECTION TWO: Creation of the Municipal Service Taxing Unit.
There is hereby created and established the Private Road Emergency Repair Municipal
Service Taxing Unit, hereinafter referred to as the “MSTU.” The property subject to the MSTU
shall be all properties adjacent to and/or takes access from an unpaved, private road in
unincorporated Collier County.
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SECTION THREE: Purpose and Governing Body.
The MSTU is created for the purpose of providing emergency repairs to unpaved, private
roads in Collier County where the County is notified by a local fire district or the Collier County
Sheriff’s Office that such roads are, or soon will be, impassable to emergency vehicles and such
disrepair is a danger to the health, safety, and welfare to the citizens of Collier County. The roads
shall be repaired only to the extent that they are made passable to emergency vehicles. Such repair
does not designate an ownership interest in the road by the County.
The governing body of the MSTU shall be the Board of County Commissioners of Collier
County, Florida.
SECTION FOUR: Funding and Levy of Taxes.
For the purpose of implementing this Ordinance, the Board of County Commissioners shall
annually, at the time required by general budgetary law, make an itemized estimate of the amount
of money required to carry out the business of the MSTU for the next fiscal year, which shall be
from October 1 to and including the following September 30. The estimate shall describe the
purpose for which the monies are required and the amount necessary to be raised by taxation within
the MSTU. At the time and place for fixing the annual rate of taxation for County purposes, the
Board of County Commissioners shall fix and cause to be levied on all properties within the
MSTU, subject to taxation, a millage rate not to exceed one (1) mil per year.
SECTION FIVE: Tax Assessment and Collection.
Taxes herein provided for shall be assessed and collected in the same manner and form as
provided for the assessment and collection of general County taxes and subject to the same fees
for assessing and collecting as general County taxes.
SECTION SIX: Opting Out.
Upon application to the County Manager or his Designee, the property owners abutting
and/or takes access from an unpaved road may opt out of the tax levied herein upon a finding by
the County Manager that the road is not likely to require maintenance within the next five fiscal
years. In order to opt out, the property owner must show that the road is passable and that there is
a sustainable maintenance plan in place by the property owner or owners on that road. If at a point
in the future the road becomes impassable to emergency vehicles and emergency maintenance is
required by the County, as determined by the County Manager or his Designee, those previously
opted-out homes shall become subjected to the tax levied herein beginning the next fiscal year and
continuing the following years.
SECTION SEVEN: Duties of the County Manager or Designee.
The duties of the County Manager or designee are as follows:
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1. To aid and assist the Board in carrying out the purposes of the MSTU in accordance
with established practices and policies of the Board of County Commissioners and as set forth in
this Ordinance;
2. To prepare and recommend to the Board an itemized annual budget of the amount
of money required to carry out the business of the MSTU for the next fiscal year;
3. To provide periodic written reports to the Board of the activities of the MSTU and
its finances in accordance with established guidelines of the Board; and
4. To administer the opt-out provisions in Section Six herein.
SECTION EIGHT: Conflict and Severability.
In the event this Ordinance conflicts with any other Ordinance of Collier County or other
applicable law, the more restrictive shall apply. If any court of competent jurisdiction holds any
phrase or portion of this Ordinance invalid or unconstitutional, such portion shall be deemed a
separate, distinct and independent provision and such holding shall not affect the validity of the
remaining portion.
SECTION NINE: Inclusion in the Code of Laws and Ordinances.
The provisions of this Ordinance shall become and be made a part of the Code of Laws and
Ordinances of Collier County, Florida. The sections of the Ordinance ma y be renumbered or re-
lettered to accomplish such, and the word “ordinance” may be changed to “section,” “article,” or
any other appropriate word.
SECTION TEN: Effective Date.
This Ordinance shall be effective upon filing with the Florida Department of State.
PASSED AND DULY ADOPTED by the Board of County Commissioners of Collier
County, Florida, this ______ day of ________________, 2018.
ATTEST: BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
DWIGHT E. BROCK, Clerk COLLIER COUNTY, FLORIDA
By: ___________________________ By: _____________________________
, Deputy Clerk Andy Solis, Chairman
Approved as to form and legality:
_______________________________
Jeffrey A. Klatzkow, County Attorney
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Packet Pg. 101 Attachment: Unpaved _Road_MSTU_Ordinance_2018 (002) (5892 : MSTU Ad Valorem Taxes)