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Agenda 04/14/2009 Item #16C 4 Agenda Item No. 16C4 April 14, 2009 Page 1 of 7 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Recommendation to approve a Resolution of the Board of County Commissioners expressing opposition to proposed Florida House Bill 5121, which would impose a new solid waste disposal "tipping fee" of $1.25 per ton on any owner of a permitted solid waste facility for solid waste disposed at the disposal site. OBJECTIVE: To have the Board of County Commissioners approve the attached Resolution expressing opposition to Florida House Bill 5121 (H,B. 5121), which proposes the imposition ofa new solid waste disposal fee of $1.25 per ton on any owner ofa permitted solid waste facility for solid waste disposed at the disposal site. If approved by the Board of County Commissioners, the Resolution will be transmitted to members of the Collier County legislative delegation, the Senate President and House Speaker, the Office of the Governor, the Florida Association of Counties, and the Florida League of Cities. CONSIDERATION: The House Natural Resources Appropriations Committee passed PCB-NRAC-09-02 on April 2, 2009, which includes the following provision: 403.7062 Solid waste disposal fee. -- (I) For the privilege of engaging in business, a fee for each ton of solid waste disposed of at a permitted solid waste management facility is imposed on the owner of such facility within this state. The "owner" includes private entities, governmental entities, special districts, or other entities authorized to own or operate solid waste management facilities. For purposes of this fee, solid waste management facilities include Class I landfills, Class III landfills, construction and demolition debris disposal facilities, and land clearing debris disposal facilities. Such fee shall be imposed at the rate of $1.25 for each ton of solid waste received at the facility. The fee imposed shall be paid to the Department of Revenue on or before the 20th day of every month following the month in which the solid waste is received at the facility. [Emphasis added.] (2)(a) The fee imposed by this section must be paid to the Department of Revenue by electronic funds transfer and must be accompanied by a form prescribed by the Department of Revenue and initiated by the owner of the facility through electronic data interchange. The proceeds of the solid waste disposal fee, less administrative costs, shall be deposited into the General Revenue Fund. (b) For the purposes of this section, "proceeds" of the fee means all funds collected and received by the department hereunder, including interest and penalties on delinquent fees. The amount deducted for the costs of administration must not exceed 3 percent of the total revenues collected hereunder and may include only those costs reasonably attributable to the fee. Page I of3 Agenda Item No. 16C4 April 14. 2009 Page 2 of 7 (3)(a) The Department of Revenue shall administer, collect, and enforce the fee authorized under this section pursuant to the same procedures used in the administration, collection, and enforcement of the general state sales tax imposed under chapter 212, except as provided in this section. The provisions of this section regarding the authority to audit and make assessments, keeping of books and records, and interest and penalties. on delinquent fees apply. The fee shall not be included in the computation of estimated taxes pursuant to s. 212.11 nor shall the dealer's credit for collecting taxes or fees in s. 212.12 apply to this fee. (b) The Department of Revenue is authorized to adopt rules and prescribe and publish such forms as are necessary to effectuate the purposes of this section. The Department of Revenue is authorized to establish audit procedures and to assess delinquent fees. PCB NRAC 09-02 is now referenced as House Bill 5121 and is on the April 7 agenda for the Full Appropriations Council on General Government and Health Care. H.B. 5121 has many impacts and consequences that should be considered, including: The proposed solid waste disposal fee is imposed on Collier County for providing an essential life sustaining service required under Florida law. This is equal to imposing a similar fee on local governments tor providing fire and police services. While the proposed solid waste disposal fee will be imposed on Collier County, the cost will be "passed through" to the solid waste facility users, which makes the proposed solid waste disposal fee essentially a tax on the residents and businesses in Collier County. The proposed solid waste disposal fee will be paid to the State Department of Revenue and deposited into the State's General Revenue Fund. As a result, it is very unlikely that the proposed solid waste disposal fee will be used for any purpose related to solid waste management. The Florida Legislature has enacted Section 403.7032, Florida Statutes, which provides a statewide goal of reducing the amount of disposed recyclable solid waste by 75 percent by 2020. It is likely that achieving this goal (currently the highest recycling goal of any state) will place an additional financial burden on Collier County. Solid waste may be transported to more than one permitted solid waste disposal facility before ultimate disposal. To manage this activity will require a sophisticated tracking system, which furthers the administrative burden and could result in the payment of solid waste disposal fee more than once. FISCAL IMPACT: If House Bill 512] is enacted, the fiscal impact to Collier County would be approximately $350,000 based on FY20 I 0 disposal tonnage projections. It should be noted that the fiscal impact is not a one-time payment, rather it would be paid annually and the payment is likely to increase in value in future years. Page 2 of3 Agenda Item No. 16C4 April 14, 2009 Page 3 of 7 GROWTH MANAGEMENT IMP ACT: There IS no grow1h management impact associated with this Executive Summary. LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS: This item has been reviewed for legal sufficiency and there are no outstanding legal considerations. This item is not quasi-judicial, and no ex parte disclosures are required. This item requires a simple majority vote. -JW RECOMMENDATION: That the Board of County Commissioners approve the attached Resolution expressing opposition to Florida House Bill 5121, which imposes a new solid waste disposal fee of $1.25 per ton on any owner of a pennitted solid waste facility for each ton of so lid waste disposed at the disposal site. If approved by the Board of County Commissioners, it is further recommended that the attached Resolution be transmitted to members of the Collier County legislative delegation, the Senate President and House Speaker, the Office of the Governor, the Florida Association of Counties, and the Florida League of Cities. PREPARED BY: Mary Jo Thurston, Waste Reduction and Recycling Manager, Solid Waste Management Department Page 30f3 Page I of2 Agenda Item No. 16C4 April 14. 2009 Page 4 of 7 COLLIER COUNTY BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS Item Number: 16C4 Item Summary: Recommendation to approve a Resolution of the Board of County Commissioners, expressing opposition to proposed Florida House Bill 5121, which would impose a new solid waste disposal "tipping fee" of $1_25 per ton on any owner of a permitted solid waste facility for solid waste disposed at the disposal site Meeting Date: 4/14/200990000 AM Prepared By Mary Jo Thurston Waste Reduction & Recycling Manager Date Public Utilities Solid Waste Department 4/7/200911:03:58 AM A pproved By Mary Jo Thurston Waste Reduction & Recycling Manager Dale Public Utilities Solid Waste Department 4/7/2009 11: 00 AM Approved By Linda Best Compliance Manager Date Public Utilities Division Solid Waste Management Department 4/7/200911:14 AM Approved By Joseph Bellone Operations Supervisor Date Public Utilities Public Utilities Operations 4/7/200911:16 AM Approved By Jeff Klatzkow County Attorney Date County Attorney County Attorney Office 4/7/200911:22 AM Approved By Margie Hapke Public Information Coordinator Date Public Utilities Public Utilities Administration 4/7/200911:43 AM Approved By Jeff Wright Assistant County Attorney Date County Attorney County Attorney Office 4/7/200911:43 AM Approved By Thomas Wides Operations Director Date Public Utilities Public Utilities Operations 4/7/20092:00 PM Approved By James W. Delany Public Utilities Administrator Date Public Utilities Public Utilities Administration 4/7/2009 2:01 PM Approved By OMB Coordinator OMB Coordinator Date County Manager's Office Office of Management & Budget 4/7/20092:03 PM Approved By Page 2 of2 Agenda Item No. 16C4 April 14. 2009 Page 5 of 7 Randy Greenwald ManagemenUBudget Analyst Date County Manager's Office Office of Management & Budget 4/7/20092:44 PM Approved By Leo E. Ochs, Jr. Deputy County Manager Date Board of County Commissioners County Manager's Office 4/7/20094:33 PM Agenda Item No. 16C4 April 14, 2009 Page 6 of? RESOLUTION NO. 2009- A RESOLUTION OF THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF COLLIER COUNTY, FLORIDA, URGING MEMBERS OF THE FLORIDA LEGISLA TURE AND FLORIDA'S GOVERNOR TO OPPOSE PROPOSED FLORIDA HOUSE BILL 5121, RELATING, AMONG OTHER THINGS, TO A PROPOSED STATE "TIPPING" FEE OF $1.25 PER TON FOR SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL AT PERMITTED SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT FACILITIES, AND ANY SIMILAR PROPOSED FLORIDA BILL, AND DIRECTING THAT THIS RESOLUTION BE FORWARDED TO THE COLLIER COUNTY LOCAL LEGISLATIVE DELEGATION; THE SENATE PRESIDENT AND HOUSE SPEAKER; FLORIDA'S GOVERNOR; THE FLORIDA ASSOCIATION OF COUNTIES; AND THE FLORIDA LEAGUE OF CITIES. WHEREAS, on April 2, 2009, the House Natural Resources Appropriations Committee passed PCB NRAC 09-02, which requires a solid waste disposal "tipping" fee in the amount of $1.25 for every ton of solid waste accepted by a landfill; and WHEREAS, the bill has since been renamed as House Bill 5121 (H.B. 5121); and WHEREAS, the Board of County Commissioners ("Board") wishes to express its opposition to H.B. 5121 and the new solid waste disposal fee; and WHEREAS, if passed, H.B. 5121 would impose a virtual tax on local governments for providing an essential governmental service, as local governments are required to provide solid waste services under Florida Law; and WHEREAS, it is important to recognize that not all materials brought to a landfill are brought for final disposition, as some materials are used beneficially, or are recovered from landfills for recycling or energy production; and WHEREAS, the proposed "tipping fee" is essentially a tax that will be passed on to the residents and businesses of Collier County to enable Collier County to operate the Collier County Landfill; and Page t of2 Agenda Item No. 16C4 April 14, 2009 Page? of? WHEREAS, Fiscal Year 2010 projections of tonnage to the Landfill are approximately 280,000 tons, and based on this projection, the proposed legislation would result in a burden to the residents and businesses of Collier County of approximately $350,000. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF COLLIER COUNTY, FLORIDA, that: I. The foregoing "WHEREAS" clauses are hereby ratified and confirmed as being true and correct, and are hereby incorporated herein as an integral part of this Resolution; 2. The Board opposes H.B. 512], and any other substantially similar Florida Legislation, and urges all members of the Florida legislature and the Florida Governor to oppose and defeat the proposed House Bill and any other similar Florida legislation; 3. The County Manager, or his designee, is hereby directed to immediately distribute a copy of this Resolution to all members of Collier County's local legislative delegation, the Senate President and House Speaker, Florida Governor Charlie Crist, the Florida Association of Counties, and the Florida League of Cities; and 4. This Resolution shall be effective upon its adoption. THIS RESOLUTION ADOPTED after motion, second, and majority vote favoring same, this 14th day of April, 2009. ATTEST: DWIGHT E. BROCK, CLERK BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS COLLIER COUNTY, FLORIDA By: By: , Deputy Clerk DONNA FIALA, CHAIRMAN Approved as to form and al sufficiency: .. ~ ... j . c/ Je E right As' ant County Attorney Page 2 of2