CS/HB 1645 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1645-01-c1
Page 1 of 14
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to the City of Gainesville, Alachua 2
County; amending chapter 12760, Laws of Florida 3
(1927), as amended by chapter 90 -394, Laws of Florida, 4
relating to the City's charter; repealing section 3.06 5
of the charter, relating to the general manager for 6
utilities of Gainesville Regional Utilities; creating 7
the Gainesville Regional Utilities Authority and 8
establishing it as the governing board of Gain esville 9
Regional Utilities; providing an effective date. 10
11
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 12
13
Section 1. Section 3.06 of Article III of section 1 of 14
chapter 90-394, Laws of Florida, is repealed. 15
Section 2. Article VII is added to chapter 12760, Laws of 16
Florida (1927), as amended by chapter 90 -394, Laws of Florida, 17
to read: 18
ARTICLE VII 19
GAINESVILLE REGIONAL UTILITIES AUTHORITY 20
7.01 Establishment. — 21
There is created a regional utilities authority to be known as 22
the "Gainesville Regional Utilities Authority" ("Authority"). 23
Gainesville Regional Utilities shall be governed by the 24
Authority upon installation of the Authority's members pursuant 25
CS/HB 1645 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1645-01-c1
Page 2 of 14
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
to this article. The Authority shall operate as a unit of city 26
government and, except as otherwise provided in this article, 27
shall be free from direction and control of the Gainesville City 28
Commission. The Authority is created for the express purpose of 29
managing, operating, controlling, and otherwise having broad 30
authority with respect to t he utilities owned by the City of 31
Gainesville. 32
7.02 Definitions.— 33
For the purposes of this article, unless otherwise designated, 34
or the context otherwise requires, the following terms have the 35
following meanings: 36
(1) "Authority" means the Gainesville R egional Utilities 37
Authority created in this article. 38
(2) "City" means the City of Gainesville. 39
(3) "City Commission" means the Gainesville City 40
Commission. 41
(4) "County" means Alachua County. 42
(5) "Customer" means a person or an entity that makes 43
application for and is supplied with service by GRU for its 44
ultimate use. 45
(6) "Flow of funds" means the sum of required debt 46
service, necessary operations and management expenses, a 47
reasonable contribution to a utility plan improvement fund, 48
identified SLA-related losses, and any other lawful purpose as 49
provided in bond covenants. 50
CS/HB 1645 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1645-01-c1
Page 3 of 14
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
(7) "Government services contribution" or "GSC" means the 51
portion of revenues generated from rates, fees, assessments, and 52
charges for the provision of utility services by the utility 53
system which is annually transferred by the Authority to the 54
City for use in funding or financing its general government 55
municipal functions. 56
(8) "GRU" means Gainesville Regional Utilities. 57
(9) "Member" means a member of the Authority. 58
(10) "Net revenues" means the gross revenues less fuel 59
revenues. 60
(11) "Service-level agreement" or "SLA" means a contract 61
entered into by the Authority that establishes a set of 62
deliverables that one party has agreed to provide another. 63
(12) "Utilities" mea ns the electric utility system, water 64
utility system, wastewater utility system, reuse water utility 65
system, natural gas utility system, communications utility 66
system, and such other utility systems as may be acquired by GRU 67
in the future. 68
7.03 Powers and duties.- 69
(1) The Authority shall have the following powers and 70
duties, in addition to the powers and duties otherwise conferred 71
by this article: 72
(a) To manage, operate, and control the utilities, and to 73
do all things necessary to effectuate an orderl y transition of 74
the management, operation, and control of the utilities from the 75
CS/HB 1645 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1645-01-c1
Page 4 of 14
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
City to the Authority, consistent with this article. 76
(b) To establish and amend the rates, fees, assessments, 77
charges, rules, regulations, and policies governing the sale an d 78
use of services provided through the utilities. 79
(c) To acquire real or personal property and to construct 80
such projects as necessary to operate, maintain, enlarge, 81
extend, preserve, and promote the utility systems in a manner 82
that will ensure the econo mic, responsible, safe, and efficient 83
provision of utility services, provided that title to all such 84
property is vested in the City. 85
(d) To exercise the power of eminent domain pursuant to 86
chapter 166, Florida Statutes, and to use utility funds to 87
appropriate or acquire property, excluding federal or state 88
property, for the purpose of obtaining, constructing, and 89
maintaining utility facilities, provided that title to all such 90
property is vested in the City. 91
(e) To authorize the issuance of revenue bonds and other 92
evidences of indebtedness of the City, secured by the revenues 93
and other pledged funds and accounts of the utility system, 94
pursuant to Florida law. Upon resolution of the Authority 95
establishing the authorized form, terms, and purpose of such 96
bonds, for the purpose of financing or refinancing utility 97
system projects, and to exercise all powers in connection with 98
the authorization of the issuance, and sale of such bonds by the 99
City as conferred upon municipalities by part II of chapter 166, 100
CS/HB 1645 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1645-01-c1
Page 5 of 14
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
Florida Statutes, other applicable state laws, and section 103 101
of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. Such bonds may be 102
validated in accordance with chapter 75, Florida Statutes. The 103
Authority may not authorize the issuance of general obligation 104
bonds. Such bonds and other forms of indebtedness of the City 105
shall be executed and attested by the officers, employees, or 106
agents of the City, including the chief executive 107
officer/general manager (CEO/GM) or chief financial officer of 108
the utility system, the Authority has so designated as agents of 109
the City. The Authority may enter into hedging agreements or 110
options for the purpose of moderating interest rates on existing 111
and proposed indebtedness or price fluctuations of fuel or other 112
commodities, including agreements for the future delivery 113
thereof, or any combinations thereof. 114
(f) To dispose of utility system assets only to the extent 115
and under the conditions that the City Commission may dispose of 116
such assets pursuant to section 5.04 of Article V. 117
(g) To prepare and submit to the City Commission, at least 118
3 months before the start of the City's fiscal year, an annual 119
budget for all Authority and GRU operations, including the 120
amount of any transfer to the City. The term of the budget shall 121
coincide with the City's fis cal year. The amount of any transfer 122
is subject to the limitations specified in section 7.11. 123
(h) To appoint and remove a CEO/GM as provided in this 124
article. 125
CS/HB 1645 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1645-01-c1
Page 6 of 14
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
(i) To recommend, by resolution to the City Commission, 126
the acquisition and operation of a uti lity system not owned or 127
operated by GRU as of the date of transfer of governing 128
authority to the Authority. 129
7.04 Authority members. — 130
(1) There shall be five members of the Authority appointed 131
by the Governor. Each member shall be a person of recognize d 132
ability and good business judgment as identified by the Governor 133
who is expected to perform his or her official duties in the 134
best interests of GRU and its customers. Appointments shall be 135
made as follows: 136
(a) One member shall be a residential customer with 137
substantial knowledge of GRU, its operations, and its history. 138
(b) One member shall be a private, nongovernment customer 139
consuming at least 10,000 kilowatt hours per month of electric 140
usage during each of the previous 12 months. This member may be 141
the owner or representative of the customer. 142
(c) Three members shall be competent and knowledgeable in 143
one or more specific fields substantially related to the duties 144
and functions of the Authority, including, but not limited to, 145
law, economics, accounti ng, engineering, finance, or energy. 146
(2) All members of the Authority shall: 147
(a) Maintain primary residence within the electric service 148
territory of GRU's electric utility system. 149
(b) Receive GRU electric utility system service at all 150
CS/HB 1645 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1645-01-c1
Page 7 of 14
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
times during the term of appointment. 151
(c) Not have been convicted of a felony as defined by 152
general law. 153
(d) Be a qualified elector of the City, except that a 154
minimum of one member must be a resident of the unincorporated 155
area of the county or a municipality in the county other than 156
the City of Gainesville. 157
(3) The composition of the Authority shall be adjusted 158
upon expiration of any member's term, or upon any Authority 159
vacancy, to reflect the ratio of total electric meters serving 160
GRU electric customers outside the City's jurisdictional 161
boundaries to total electric meters serving all GRU electric 162
customers. For example, upon expiration of a member's term or 163
upon an Authority vacancy, if the ratio of total electric meters 164
serving customers outside the City boundar ies to total electric 165
meters serving all electric customers reaches 40 percent, the 166
Governor must appoint a second member from outside the City 167
boundaries to serve the next term that would otherwise be served 168
by a qualified elector of the City. Conversely, upon expiration 169
of any member's term or upon any Authority vacancy, if the ratio 170
subsequently falls below 40 percent, the Governor must appoint a 171
qualified elector of the City to serve the next term that 172
otherwise would have been served by a resident from outside the 173
City boundaries. 174
7.05 Member nominations and terms. — 175
CS/HB 1645 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1645-01-c1
Page 8 of 14
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
(1) The Governor shall issue a public notice soliciting 176
citizen nominations for Authority members within 120 days after 177
the effective date of this article. The nomination solicitation 178
period shall remain open for at least 30 days after the date of 179
the public notice. 180
(2) The Governor shall appoint initial members to the 181
Authority from among the nominees within 60 days after the close 182
of the nomination solicitation period. The initial ter ms of 183
office for the five members shall commence at 12 a.m. on October 184
1, 2023. The terms of the initial appointments shall be as 185
follows: one member shall be designated to serve until 12 a.m. 186
on October 1, 2024; one member shall be designated to serve 187
until 12 a.m. on October 1, 2025; one member shall be designated 188
to serve until 12 a.m. on October 1, 2026; and two members shall 189
be designated to serve until 12 a.m. on October 1, 2027. 190
(3) The Governor shall have a citizen nomination 191
solicitation period f or at least 30 days and appoint members for 192
subsequent terms from among the nominees. Members appointed for 193
subsequent terms shall be appointed for 4 -year terms commencing 194
at 12 a.m. on October 1 of the year in which they are appointed. 195
If a member is appointed to complete an unexpired term, the 196
member's term shall commence at the time of appointment and 197
shall continue through the remainder of the unexpired term. 198
(4) The Governor shall fill any vacancy for the unexpired 199
portion of a term within 60 days af ter the vacancy occurs if the 200
CS/HB 1645 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1645-01-c1
Page 9 of 14
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
remainder of the term exceeds 90 days. 201
7.06 Member compensation. —Beginning October 1, 2023, 202
necessary expenses of members incurred in carrying out and 203
conducting the business of the Authority shall be paid in 204
accordance with Authority policy and procedures, subject to the 205
approval of a majority of the members of the Authority. No 206
supplemental benefits shall be provided for a member position. 207
7.07 Authority; oath; organization; and meeting. — 208
(1) The Authority shall initial ly meet at the chambers of 209
the City Commission at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, October 4, 2023. 210
(2) Before taking office for any term, each member shall 211
be given an oath or affirmation by the Mayor or his or her 212
designee similar to the oath or affirmation requir ed of a member 213
of the City Commission. 214
(3) The first official action of the Authority shall be 215
election of a chairperson and a vice chairperson from among its 216
membership. 217
(4) The Authority shall meet at least once each month, 218
except in case of unforese en circumstances. All meetings of the 219
Authority shall be noticed and open to the public, and minutes 220
shall be kept as required by law, except that meetings related 221
to settlement of then existing litigation may be held as allowed 222
by law. 223
(5) The GRU general manager or his or her designee shall 224
be responsible for making arrangements for and providing 225
CS/HB 1645 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1645-01-c1
Page 10 of 14
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
adequate notice for the initial meeting of the Authority. 226
7.08 Removal and suspension of members. — 227
(1) A member may be removed or suspended from office by 228
the Governor in accordance with s. 112.501, Florida Statutes. In 229
addition to the grounds for removal set forth therein, a member 230
may be removed by the Governor for failure to maintain the 231
qualifications specified in section 7.04. 232
(2) The Authority may re commend to the Governor that a 233
member be removed or suspended from office if it finds, by vote 234
of at least three members, a reasonable basis for removal or 235
suspension on one or more of the grounds set forth in s. 236
112.501, Florida Statutes, or for failure t o maintain the 237
qualifications specified in section 7.04. The Authority shall 238
give reasonable notice of any proceeding in which such action is 239
proposed and must provide the member against whom such action is 240
proposed a written statement of the basis for the proposed 241
action and an opportunity to be heard. The member against whom 242
such action is proposed may not participate in the Authority's 243
debate or vote on the matter. 244
7.09 Management and personnel. — 245
(1) A chief executive officer/general manager (CEO/GM) 246
shall direct and administer all utility functions, subject to 247
the rules and resolutions of the Authority. The CEO/GM shall 248
serve at the pleasure of the Authority. Appointment or removal 249
of the CEO/GM shall be by majority vote of the Authority. Until 250
CS/HB 1645 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1645-01-c1
Page 11 of 14
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
such time as the Authority appoints a CEO/GM, the sitting 251
general manager of GRU shall serve as the CEO/GM. A sitting 252
member of the Authority may not be selected as the CEO/GM. 253
(2) All officers and employees of the City who serve under 254
the supervision and dir ection of the sitting general manager of 255
GRU shall serve under the CEO/GM. The CEO/GM shall have the 256
exclusive authority to hire, transfer, promote, discipline, or 257
terminate employees under his or her supervision and direction. 258
(3) The Authority shall fi x the salary of the CEO/GM, and 259
the CEO/GM shall fix the salaries of all other employees who 260
serve under his or her direction consistent with the annual 261
budget approved by the Authority. The sitting general manager of 262
GRU, as well as all officers and emplo yees of the City who, by 263
virtue of this article, become subject to the supervision and 264
direction of the CEO/GM, shall continue without any loss of 265
rights or benefits as employees under the pension plans and 266
civil service merit system of the City existing a s of the 267
creation of the Authority. 268
7.10 General provisions. — 269
(1) The City and the Authority shall perform all acts 270
necessary and proper to effectuate an orderly transition of the 271
governance, operation, management, and control of all utility 272
systems, properties, and assets held in the possession of GRU as 273
of January 1, 2023, to the Authority, including, but not limited 274
to, the creation of such instruments as are necessary for the 275
CS/HB 1645 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1645-01-c1
Page 12 of 14
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
Authority to function in accordance with this article. 276
Notwithstanding the reorganization of the governance structure 277
of the management of the utility system as provided in this 278
section, the utility system shall continue to be operated as a 279
single enterprise and there shall be no change to the ownership 280
of the utility system. 281
(2) All City ordinances, policies, rates, fees, 282
assessments, charges, rules, regulations, and budgets related to 283
operation of the utilities shall remain in effect until such 284
time as the Authority, pursuant to the powers granted in this 285
article, modifies an y such item. In the event that any City 286
charter provision, ordinance, resolution, decree, or any part 287
thereof conflicts with the provisions of this article, the 288
provisions of this article shall govern. This subsection is not 289
intended to and shall not inter fere with existing contractual 290
arrangements between the City and county, regardless of whether 291
such arrangements are reflected in charter provisions, 292
ordinances, resolutions, decrees, or any part thereof. 293
(3) All rights, responsibilities, claims, and act ions 294
involving GRU as of the transfer to the Authority shall 295
continue, except as may be modified by the Authority under the 296
powers granted by this article and consistent with law. 297
(4) No franchise, right -of-way, license, permit or usage 298
fee or tax may be levied by the City upon the Authority or the 299
utilities unless allowed by general law. 300
CS/HB 1645 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1645-01-c1
Page 13 of 14
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
(5) Any utility advisory board created by the City 301
Commission shall have no role with respect to the Authority. 302
(6) No member of the Authority shall be individually 303
responsible for Authority debts or liabilities. 304
(7) The Authority shall develop an ethics policy and a 305
code of business conduct that shall be reviewed at least 306
biennially. 307
(8) In order to provide for the transitional 308
administrative needs and orderly compliance with the provisions 309
of this act, the chairperson of the Authority or his or her 310
designee is authorized to execute documents required for the 311
transition. 312
7.11 Limitation on government services contribution. — 313
(1) MAXIMUM CAP ON GSC. —For any fiscal year, the GSC may 314
not exceed aggregate utility system net revenues less flow of 315
funds. 316
(2) DEBT SERVICE AND AVOIDANCE. —Any remaining funds, after 317
deductions for flow of funds and GSC, shall be dedicated to 318
additional debt service or utilized as equi ty in future capital 319
projects. 320
7.12 Limitation on utility directives. -The Authority and 321
the CEO/GM, in making all policy and operational decisions over 322
the affairs of the utility system as contemplated under the 323
provisions of this act, shall consider onl y pecuniary factors 324
and utility industry best practices standards, which do not 325
CS/HB 1645 2023
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
hb1645-01-c1
Page 14 of 14
F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
include consideration of the furtherance of social, political, 326
or ideological interests. Appropriate pecuniary factors and 327
utility industry best practices are those which solel y further 328
the fiscal and financial benefit of the utility system and 329
customers. This provision does not prohibit the establishment 330
and application of rate structures based on utility usage. 331
Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023. 332