Florida Propane Gas Education, Safety, and Research Council established; membership; duties and responsibilities.

(1) The Florida Propane Gas Education, Safety, and Research Council is established.

(2)(a) The commissioner shall appoint members of the council from a list of nominees submitted by qualified industry organizations. The commissioner may require such reports or documentation as is necessary to document the nomination process for members of the council. Qualified industry organizations, in making nominations, and the commissioner, in making appointments, shall give due regard to selecting a council that is representative of the industry and the geographic regions of the state. Other than the public member, council members must be full-time employees or owners of propane gas producers or dealers doing business in this state.

(b) The council shall consist of 15 members, as follows:

1. Ten members representing dealers of propane gas, but not more than two dealer members may be from any one company;

2. Two members representing producers of propane gas;

3. Two members representing manufacturers and distributors of propane gas use equipment, wholesalers or resellers, and transporters; and

4. One public member.

(c) Council members shall be appointed to terms of 4 years. Vacancies in unexpired terms of council members may be filled by the council subject to approval of the commissioner.

(d) The council shall elect from among its members a chair, a vice chair, and a secretary, and shall use accepted rules of procedure. The terms of such officers shall be for 1 year.

(3)(a) The council shall meet at least annually. The council shall meet at the call of its chair, at the request of a majority of its membership, at the request of the department, or at such times as may be prescribed by its rules of procedure. The commissioner shall receive notice of all meetings. Meetings of the council are subject to the provisions of chapter 286.

(b) A majority of the members of the council constitutes a quorum for all purposes, and an act by a majority of a quorum at any meeting constitutes an official act of the council.

(c) The council secretary shall keep a complete record of the proceedings of each meeting, which record shall include the names of the members present and the actions taken.

(4) The council shall keep minutes, accounting records, and other records as necessary to clearly reflect all of the acts and transactions of the council and regularly report such information to the commissioner, along with such other information as the commissioner requires. All records of the council shall be kept on file with the department, and these records and other documents about matters within the jurisdiction of the council shall be subject to the review and inspection of the department’s Inspector General, the Auditor General, and the members of the council, or other interested parties upon request. All records of the council are subject to the provisions of s. 119.07.

(5) Council members shall receive no compensation or honorarium for their services.

(6) At the beginning of each fiscal period, the council shall prepare and submit to the commissioner for approval a business plan and a budget plan that includes the estimated costs of all recommended programs and projects and states a recommended rate of assessment to cover such costs.

(7) The members and employees of the council shall not be held responsible individually in any way whatsoever to any producer or dealer or any other person for errors in judgment, mistakes, or other acts, either of commission or omission, as principal, agency, person, or employee, except for their own individual acts of dishonesty or crime. No such member or employee shall be held responsible individually for any act of any other member of the council.