376.3075 Inland Protection Financing Corporation. - Florida Statutes

376.3075 Inland Protection Financing Corporation.

   (1) There is hereby created a nonprofit public benefit corporation to be known as the “Inland Protection Financing Corporation” for the purpose of financing the rehabilitation of petroleum contamination sites pursuant to ss. 376.30-376.317.

   (2) The corporation shall be governed by a board of directors consisting of the Governor or the Governor’s designee, the Chief Financial Officer or the Chief Financial Officer’s designee, the Attorney General or the Attorney General’s designee, and the Secretary of Environmental Protection. The executive director of the State Board of Administration shall be the chief executive officer of the corporation and shall direct and supervise the administrative affairs of the corporation and shall control, direct, and supervise the operation of the corporation. The corporation shall have such other officers as may be determined by the board of directors.

   (3) The corporation shall have all the powers of a corporate body under the laws of the state to the extent not inconsistent with or restricted by the provisions of this section, including, but not limited to, the power to:

   (a) Adopt, amend, and repeal bylaws not inconsistent with this section.

   (b) Sue and be sued.

   (c) Adopt and use a common seal.

   (d) Acquire, purchase, hold, lease, and convey such real and personal property as may be proper or expedient to carry out the purposes of the corporation and this section, and to sell, lease, or otherwise dispose of such property.

   (e) Elect or appoint and employ such officers, agents, and employees as the corporation deems advisable to operate and manage the affairs of the corporation, which officers, agents, and employees may be officers or employees of the department and the state agencies represented on the board of directors of the corporation.

   (f) Borrow money and issue notes, bonds, certificates of indebtedness, or other obligations or evidences of indebtedness necessary to finance the rehabilitation of petroleum contamination sites pursuant to ss. 376.30-376.317.

   (g) Make and execute any and all contracts, trust agreements, and other instruments and agreements necessary or convenient to accomplish the purposes of the corporation and this section.

   (h) Select, retain, and employ professionals, contractors, or agents, which may include the Florida State Board of Administration’s Division of Bond Finance, as necessary or convenient to enable or assist the corporation in carrying out the purposes of the corporation and this section.

   (i) Do any act or thing necessary or convenient to carry out the purposes of the corporation and this section and the powers provided in this section.

   (4) The corporation may enter into one or more service contracts with the department to provide services to the department in connection with financing the functions and activities provided in ss. 376.30-376.317. The department may enter into one or more such service contracts with the corporation and provide for payments under such contracts pursuant to s. 376.3071(4)(o), subject to annual appropriation by the Legislature. The proceeds from such service contracts may be used for the corporation’s administrative costs and expenses after payments as set forth in subsection (5). Each service contract may have a term of up to 20 years. Amounts annually appropriated and applied to make payments under such service contracts may not include any funds derived from penalties or other payments received from any property owner or private party, including payments received under s. 376.3071(6)(b). In compliance with s. 287.0641 and other applicable provisions of law, the obligations of the department under such service contracts do not constitute a general obligation of the state or a pledge of the faith and credit or taxing power of the state nor may such obligations be construed in any manner as an obligation of the State Board of Administration or entities for which it invests funds, other than the department as provided in this section, but are payable solely from amounts available in the Inland Protection Trust Fund, subject to annual appropriation. In compliance with this subsection and s. 287.0582, the service contract must expressly include the following statement: “The State of Florida’s performance and obligation to pay under this contract is contingent upon an annual appropriation by the Legislature.”

   (5) The corporation may issue and incur notes, bonds, certificates of indebtedness, or other obligations or evidences of indebtedness payable from and secured by amounts payable to the corporation by the department under a service contract entered into pursuant to subsection (4) for the purpose of financing the rehabilitation of petroleum contamination sites pursuant to ss. 376.30-376.317. The term of any such note, bond, certificate of indebtedness, or other obligation or evidence of indebtedness may not have a financing term that exceeds 15 years. The corporation may select its financing team and issue its obligations through competitive bidding or negotiated contracts, whichever is most cost-effective. Any indebtedness of the corporation does not constitute a debt or obligation of the state or a pledge of the faith and credit or taxing power of the state, but is payable from and secured by payments made by the department under the service contract pursuant to s. 376.3071(4)(o).

   (6) The fulfillment of the purposes of the corporation promotes the health, safety, and general welfare of the people of the state and serves as essential governmental functions and a paramount public purpose.

   (7) The corporation is exempt from taxation and assessments of any nature upon its income and any property, assets, or revenues acquired, received, or used in the furtherance of the purposes provided in this chapter. The obligations of the corporation incurred pursuant to subsection (5) and the interest and income thereon and all security agreements, letters of credit, liquidity facilities, or other obligations or instruments arising out of, entered into in connection therewith, or given to secure payment thereof are exempt from all taxation, provided such exemption does not apply to any tax imposed by chapter 220 on the interest, income, or profits on debt obligations owned by corporations.

   (8) The corporation may validate obligations to be incurred pursuant to subsection (5) and the validity and enforceability of any service contracts providing for payments pledged to the payment thereof by proceedings under chapter 75. The validation complaint shall be filed only in the Circuit Court for Leon County. The notice required to be published by s. 75.06 must be published in Leon County, and the complaint and order of the circuit court shall be served only on the State Attorney for the Second Judicial Circuit. Sections 75.04(2) and 75.06(2) do not apply to a complaint for validation filed under this subsection.

   (9) The corporation is not a special district for the purposes of chapter 189 or a unit of local government for the purposes of part III of chapter 218. The provisions of chapters 120 and 215, except the limitation on interest rates provided by s. 215.84 which applies to obligations of the corporation issued pursuant to this section, and part I of chapter 287, except ss. 287.0582 and 287.0641, do not apply to this section, the corporation, the service contracts entered into pursuant to this section, or debt obligations issued by the corporation as contemplated in this section.

   (10) The benefits or earnings of the corporation may not inure to the benefit of any private person.

   (11) Upon dissolution of the corporation, title to all property owned by the corporation shall revert to the state.

   (12) The corporation may contract with the State Board of Administration to serve as trustee with respect to debt obligations issued by the corporation as contemplated by this section and to hold, administer, and invest proceeds of such debt obligations and other funds of the corporation and to perform other services required by the corporation. The state board may perform such services and may contract with others to provide all or a part of such services and to recover its and such other costs and expenses thereof.

History. s. 10, ch. 96-277; s. 394, ch. 2003-261; s. 3, ch. 2005-180; s. 63, ch. 2007-5; s. 4, ch. 2009-68.