Florida/Georgia Personal Injury & Workers Compensation

...r apparently whether the County had to contract with the cities to provide these services, the County claimed authority to act under Article VIII(1)(f) of the Florida Constitution, section 125.01(1), section 125.01(1)(q)1., section 125.01(5)(a), and section 125.0101(2)....

...It is the further intent of the Legislature that a special district created under this subsection include both unincorporated and incorporated areas of a county and that such special district may not be used to provide services in the unincorporated area only. ..... 125.0101 County may contract to provide services to municipalities and special districts....

...m used to fund the county's services is derived through service charges or special assessments rather than taxes. A special district is a separate unit of government which may possess such powers as are authorized by law. [9] We find the citation to section 125.0101(2) incomprehensible, since it plainly states that it does not provide authority to counties to impose special assessments....

...ity only when it enters into an express contract.”). Waiver of sovereign immunity by a city or county cannot be accomplished by local law. Arnold v. Shumpert, 217 So.2d 116, 120 (Fla. 1968); Donisi v. Trout, 415 So.2d 730, 730 (Fla. 4th DCA 1981). Section 125.0101, Florida Statutes (2010), however, permits counties to contract for services' with municipalities, thereby operating as a waiver of sovereign immunity. Section 125.0101 states in relevant part: (2)In addition to the powers enumerated in this, chapter, the legislative and governing body of a county shall have the power to contract with a municipality or special district within the county for fire pro...

...ed to enter into service contracts pursuant to this section. (4) Except as otherwise provided in this section, the powers granted by this section shall not be deemed to be a limitation of powers already existing but shall be deemed to be cumulative. § 125.0101(2)—(4), Fla....

...Const., voters may not waive a munic *727 ipality’s sovereign immunity through a local referendum. The referendum here was a local law, not a general law, and therefore did not waive the municipalities’ sovereign immunity. 3 Nor was the municipalities’ sovereign immunity waived by contract. Section 125.0101, Florida Statutes (2010), contemplates that municipalities may form interlocal agreements with a county for services, which would waive the municipalities’ sovereign immunity with respect to payment. Here, there was no interlocal agreement between the municipalities and the County. We need not decide whether interlocal agreements under section 125.0101 furnish the exclusive mechanism for a county to charge a municipality for government services....

with other than honorable discharges. § 125.0101/5(2), Fla. Stat. “First responder” means

...A provision of Chapter 125 , Florida Statutes, entitled "[c]ounty may contract to provide services to municipalities and special districts" may be helpful in delineating what may constitute a "service" within the contemplation of the Legislature. 13 Section 125.0101 , Florida Statutes, provides that "(1) It is the legislative intent of this act to permit counties to contract for services with municipalities and special districts as provided by s....

...for issuing development and building permits and providing inspection services within a delineated service area within the boundaries of a municipality. Sincerely, Bill McCollum Attorney General BM/tgh 1 Art. VIII , s. 4 , Fla. Const. 2 See , e.g. , s. 125.0101 , Fla....

...Stat., allows court to look to similar or analogous statutory provisions which give effect to the same public policy underlying the Sunshine Law.); Op. Att'y Gen. Fla. 95-14 (1995) (definitions of terms in related statutes may be reviewed to determine meaning). 14 See ss. 125.0101 , Fla....

its or their fair share of treatment costs. Section 125.0101, F.S. (1980 Supp.), authorizes counties to