Florida Senate - 2023 CS for SB 980 By the Committee on Regulated Industries; and Senators Brodeur and Stewart 580-02577-23 2023980c1 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to 911 public safety telecommunicator 3 certifications; amending s. 401.465, F.S.; increasing 4 the timeframe within which an inactive 911 public 5 safety telecommunicator certificate may be reactivated 6 before it permanently expires; deleting a process by 7 which a certificateholder may voluntarily place his or 8 her certificate in inactive status; providing 9 applicability; prohibiting the Department of Health 10 from requiring certificateholders to pay a fee or to 11 make an election to place their certificates in 12 inactive status, beginning on a specified date; 13 requiring that certain fees paid by a 14 certificateholder before a specified date be credited 15 toward any future renewal fees required to be paid by 16 the certificateholder; providing for retroactive 17 application; providing an effective date. 18 19 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 20 21 Section 1.Paragraphs (f) and (h) of subsection (2) of 22 section 401.465, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 23 401.465911 public safety telecommunicator certification. 24 (2)PERSONNEL; STANDARDS AND CERTIFICATION. 25 (f)A 911 public safety telecommunicator certificate 26 expires automatically if not renewed at the end of the 2-year 27 period and may be renewed if the holder meets the qualifications 28 for renewal as established by the department. A certificate that 29 is not renewed at the end of the 2-year period automatically 30 reverts to an inactive status for a period that may not exceed 6 31 years 180 days. Such certificate may be reactivated and renewed 32 within the 6-year 180-day period by if the certificateholder 33 pursuant to paragraph (h). A certificate that has been inactive 34 for more than 6 years automatically expires and may not be 35 renewed meets all other qualifications for renewal and pays a 36 $50 late fee. Reactivation shall be in a manner and on forms 37 prescribed by department rule. 38 (h)A certificateholder may request that his or her 911 39 public safety telecommunicator certificate be placed on inactive 40 status by applying to the department before his or her current 41 certification expires and paying a fee set by the department, 42 which may not exceed $50. 43 1.A certificateholder whose certificate has been on 44 inactive status for 6 years 1 year or less may renew his or her 45 certificate pursuant to the rules adopted by the department and 46 upon payment of a renewal fee set by the department, which may 47 not exceed $50. 48 2.A certificateholder whose certificate has been on 49 inactive status for more than 1 year may renew his or her 50 certificate pursuant to rules adopted by the department. 51 3.A certificate that has been inactive for more than 6 52 years automatically expires and may not be renewed. 53 Section 2.(1)The amendments made by this act to s. 54 401.465(2)(f) and (h), Florida Statutes, apply regardless of 55 whether the certificateholder voluntarily placed his or her 56 certificate in inactive status pursuant to former s. 57 401.465(2)(h), Florida Statutes, or the certificate reverted to 58 inactive status pursuant to s. 401.465(2)(f), Florida Statutes, 59 during the 6-year period before the effective date of this act. 60 Beginning on the effective date of this act, the Department of 61 Health may not require a certificateholder to pay a fee or to 62 make an election to place his or her certificate in inactive 63 status. 64 (2)Any fee paid by a certificateholder to voluntarily 65 place his or her certificate in inactive status during the 6 66 year period before the effective date of this act must be 67 credited toward any future renewal fee required to be paid by 68 the certificateholder under s. 401.465(2)(h), Florida Statutes. 69 (3)This act is remedial in nature and applies 70 retroactively to any public safety telecommunicator certificate 71 that has expired pursuant to former s. 401.465(2)(f), Florida 72 Statutes, during the 6-year period before the effective date of 73 this act. 74 Section 3.This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.