Fla. Stat. § 497.140 — Florida Code / Title XXXIII / Chapter 497 / Part I / Section 497.140
497.140 Fees.
Status: in_force

(1)(a) As to any fee payable under this chapter as to which discretion is provided to the licensing authority to specify the amount of the fee subject to a cap stated in this chapter, the board shall from time to time as requested by the department determine by rule the amount of such fee, based upon department-prepared estimates of the revenue required to implement all provisions of this chapter. (b) It is the legislative intent that the costs of regulation under this chapter be provided for by fees collected under this chapter. The board shall ensure that fees are adequate to cover all anticipated costs of implementation of this chapter. The department shall at least every other year provide the board with estimates as to projected costs in implementing this chapter and projected fee collections under this chapter for the following 2 years, information as to balances of regulatory trusts from fees collected, other information that the department deems material to the setting of fees by the board at proper levels, and a department recommendation as to action, if any, regarding changing fee levels. The board shall review such information provided by the department and increase or decrease fees as the board determines appropriate. If sufficient action is not taken by the board within 6 months after notification by the department that fees are projected to be inadequate, the department shall set fees on behalf of the board to cover anticipated costs. (c) The board may from time to time by rule assess and collect a one-time fee from each active and each voluntary inactive licensee under this chapter in an amount necessary to correct an inadequacy of fees received to implement regulation required by this chapter, provided that no such assessments may be made after October 1, 2007.

(2) All moneys collected under this chapter shall be paid into the Regulatory Trust Fund, except as otherwise expressly provided in this chapter, for the purpose of providing for the payment of all expenses in respect to the administration of this chapter.

(3) The department, in consultation with the board, shall from time to time recommend fee and fee cap increases to the Legislature as deemed advisable.

(4) If a duplicate license is required or requested by the licensee, the department may charge a fee as determined by rule not to exceed $25 before issuance of the duplicate license.

(5) The department shall charge a fee not to exceed $25 for the certification of a public record. The fee shall be determined by rule of the department. The department shall assess a fee for duplication of a public record as provided in s. 119.07(4).

(6)(a)1. The department shall impose, upon initial licensure and each renewal thereof, a special unlicensed activity fee of $5 per licensee, in addition to all other fees provided for in this chapter. Such fee shall be used by the department to fund efforts to identify and combat unlicensed activity which violates this chapter. Such fee shall be in addition to all other fees collected from each licensee and shall be deposited in a separate account of the Regulatory Trust Fund; however, the department is not limited to the funds in such an account for combating improper unlicensed activity in violation of this chapter. 2. A member of the United States Armed Forces, such member’s spouse, and a veteran of the United States Armed Forces who separated from service within 2 years preceding the application for licensure are exempt from the special unlicensed activity fee associated with initial licensure. To qualify for the fee exemption under this subparagraph, a licensee must provide a copy of a military identification card, military dependent identification card, military service record, military personnel file, veteran record, discharge paper, or separation document that indicates such member is currently in good standing or such veteran was honorably discharged. (b) The board may with the concurrence of the department, if that portion of the Regulatory Trust Fund held by the department for implementation of this chapter is not in deficit and has a reasonable cash balance, earmark $5 of each initial licensure and each license renewal fee collected under this chapter and direct the deposit of each such amount into the separate account required in paragraph (a), to be utilized by the department for the purposes of combating unlicensed practice in violation of this chapter. Such earmarked amount may be, as the board directs, in lieu of or in addition to the special unlicensed activity fee imposed under paragraph (a). The earmarking may be imposed and thereafter eliminated from time to time according to the adequacy of trust funds held for implementation of this chapter. (c) The department shall confer and consult with the board regarding enforcement methods and strategies regarding the use of such unlicensed activity fee funds.

(7) Any fee required to be paid under this chapter, which was set at a fixed amount as in the 2004 edition of the Florida Statutes, but as to which this chapter now provides to be a fee as determined by board rule subject to a cap specified in this chapter, shall remain at the amount as set in the 2004 edition of the Florida Statutes unless and until the board shall change such fee by rule.

(8) A delinquency fee shall be charged and collected from a licensee for the failure to timely renew a license issued under this chapter. Where no specific delinquency fee is specified in this chapter in relation to a particular category of licensure under this chapter, the delinquency fee shall be $50.

(9) The licensing authority may impose a fee upon a licensee for conducting an inspection of the licensee’s facilities if required under this chapter following a change in ownership or control or a change in location. The fee may not exceed the amount of the licensee’s annual inspection fee.

History: ss. 25, 40, ch. 80-238; ss. 2, 3, ch. 81-318; s. 1, ch. 89-8; ss. 89, 122, ch. 93-399; s. 10, ch. 2004-301; s. 88, ch. 2005-2; s. 5, ch. 2005-155; s. 2, ch. 2007-39; s. 4, ch. 2010-125; s. 16, ch. 2018-7; s. 71, ch. 2018-110.