Florida Statutes Section 110.181 - Florida State Employees’ Charitable Campaign. (Fla. Stat. § 110.181)

110.181 Florida State Employees’ Charitable Campaign.—

(1) CREATION AND ORGANIZATION OF CAMPAIGN.—

(a) The Department of Management Services shall establish and maintain, in coordination with the payroll system of the Department of Financial Services, an annual Florida State Employees’ Charitable Campaign. Except as provided in subsection (5), this annual fundraising drive is the only authorized charitable fundraising drive directed toward state employees within work areas during work hours, and for which the state will provide payroll deduction.

(b) State officers’ and employees’ contributions toward the Florida State Employees’ Charitable Campaign must be entirely voluntary. State officers and employees shall designate a charitable organization to receive their contributions unless such contributions are collected as part of a campaign event.

(c) Participation in the annual Florida State Employees’ Charitable Campaign is limited to any nonprofit charitable organization that has as its principal mission:

1. Public health and welfare;

2. Education;

3. Environmental restoration and conservation;

4. Civil and human rights; or

5. The relief of human suffering and poverty.

(d) The financial records of a nonprofit charitable organization participating in the Florida State Employees’ Charitable Campaign must be audited annually by an independent public accountant whose examination conforms to generally accepted accounting principles.

(e) Organizations ineligible to participate in the Florida State Employees’ Charitable Campaign include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. Organizations whose fundraising and administrative expenses exceed 25 percent, unless extraordinary circumstances can be demonstrated.

2. Organizations whose activities contain an element that is more than incidentally political in nature or whose activities are primarily political, religious, professional, or fraternal in nature.

3. Organizations that discriminate against any individual or group on account of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, handicap, or political affiliation.

4. Organizations not properly registered as a charitable organization as required by the Solicitation of Contributions Act, ss. 496.401-496.424.

5. Organizations that have not received tax-exempt status under s. 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

(2) SELECTION OF FISCAL AGENTS; COST.—

(a) The Department of Management Services shall select through the competitive procurement process a fiscal agent or agents to receive, account for, and distribute charitable contributions among participating charitable organizations.

(b) The fiscal agent shall withhold the reasonable costs for conducting the campaign and for accounting and distribution to the participating organizations and shall reimburse the department the actual cost for coordinating the campaign in accordance with the rules of the department. In any fiscal year that the Legislature specifically appropriates to the department its total costs for coordinating the campaign from the General Revenue Fund, the fiscal agent is not required to reimburse such costs to the department under this subsection. Otherwise, reimbursement will be the difference between actual costs and the amount appropriated.

(c) The fiscal agent shall furnish the department and participating charitable organizations a report of the accounting and distribution activities. Records relating to these activities must be open for inspection upon reasonable notice and request.

(d) The fiscal agent shall distribute undesignated funds to each participating organization in direct proportion to the percentage of designated funds pledged to the organization.

(3) RULEMAKING AUTHORITY; ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW.—

(a) In accordance with the recommendations of the steering committee, the department shall adopt rules relating to the time and manner for charitable organizations’ participation in the campaign, selection and responsibilities of the fiscal agent, determination of eligible expenses, and such other rules as may be necessary to administer the campaign.

(b) Department action which adversely affects the substantial interests of a party may be subject to a hearing. The proceeding shall be conducted in accordance with chapter 120, except that the time limits set forth in s. 496.405(7) shall prevail to the extent of any conflict.

(4) FLORIDA STATE EMPLOYEES’ CHARITABLE CAMPAIGN STEERING COMMITTEE.—A Florida State Employees’ Charitable Campaign steering committee shall be established with seven members appointed by members of the administration commission, and two members appointed by the secretary of the department from among applications submitted from other agencies or departments. The committee, whose members shall serve staggered terms, shall meet at the call of the secretary. Members shall serve without compensation, but shall be entitled to receive reimbursement for travel and per diem expenses as provided in s. 112.061.

(5) PARTICIPATION OF STATE UNIVERSITIES.—Each university may elect to participate in the Florida State Employees’ Charitable Campaign, upon timely notice to the department. Each university may also conduct annual charitable fundraising drives for employees under the authority granted in s. 1001.706.

History.—s. 1, ch. 93-56; s. 7, ch. 99-399; s. 891, ch. 2002-387; s. 120, ch. 2003-261; s. 1, ch. 2006-221; s. 6, ch. 2007-217; s. 1, ch. 2010-78; s. 1, ch. 2012-141; s. 9, ch. 2012-215; s. 1, ch. 2015-61.

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Last modified: September 23, 2016