Terms Used In Florida Statutes > Chapter 195 - Property Assessment Administration and Finance

• Agency: means any of the various state officers, departments, boards, commissions, divisions, bureaus, and councils and any other unit of organization, however designated, of the executive branch of state government. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
• Answer: The formal written statement by a defendant responding to a civil complaint and setting forth the grounds for defense.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Appellate: About appeals; an appellate court has the power to review the judgement of another lower court or tribunal.
• Appraisal: A determination of property value.
• Appropriation: The provision of funds, through an annual appropriations act or a permanent law, for federal agencies to make payments out of the Treasury for specified purposes. The formal federal spending process consists of two sequential steps: authorization
• Arrest: Taking physical custody of a person by lawful authority.
• Best value: means the highest overall value to the state based on factors that include, but are not limited to, price, quality, design, and workmanship. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Budget authority: Authority provided by law to enter into obligations that will result in outlays of Federal funds. Budget authority may be classified by the period of availability (one-year, multiyear, no-year), by the timing of congressional action (current or permanent), or by the manner of determining the amount available (definite or indefinite).
• Commodity: means any of the various supplies, materials, goods, merchandise, food, equipment, information technology, and other personal property, including a mobile home, trailer, or other portable structure that has less than 5,000 square feet of floor space, purchased, leased, or otherwise contracted for by the state and its agencies. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Competitive solicitation: means the process of requesting and receiving two or more sealed bids, proposals, or replies submitted by responsive vendors in accordance with the terms of a competitive process, regardless of the method of procurement. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Contractor: means a person who contracts to sell commodities or contractual services to an agency. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Contractual service: means the rendering by a contractor of its time and effort rather than the furnishing of specific commodities. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Conviction: A judgement of guilt against a criminal defendant.
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
• Department: means the Department of Management Services. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• electronically post: means the noticing of solicitations, agency decisions or intended decisions, or other matters relating to procurement on a centralized Internet website designated by the department for this purpose, and in the manner and form required under…. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Eligible user: means any person or entity authorized by the department pursuant to rule to purchase from state term contracts or to use the online procurement system. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Equitable: Pertaining to civil suits in "equity" rather than in "law." In English legal history, the courts of "law" could order the payment of damages and could afford no other remedy. See damages. A separate court of "equity" could order someone to do something or to cease to do something. See, e.g., injunction. In American jurisprudence, the federal courts have both legal and equitable power, but the distinction is still an important one. For example, a trial by jury is normally available in "law" cases but not in "equity" cases. ^{Source: U.S. Courts}
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Exceptional purchase: means any purchase of commodities or contractual services excepted by law or rule from the requirements for competitive solicitation, including, but not limited to, purchases from a single source; purchases upon receipt of less than two responsive bids, proposals, or replies; purchases made by an agency after receiving approval from the department, from a contract procured, pursuant to…. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Extension: means an increase in the time allowed for the contract period. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Fair market value: The price at which an asset would change hands in a transaction between a willing, informed buyer and a willing, informed seller.
• Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
• Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
• Governmental entity: means a political subdivision or agency of this state or of any state of the United States, including, but not limited to, state government, county, municipality, school district, nonprofit public university or college, single-purpose or multipurpose special district, single-purpose or multipurpose public authority, metropolitan or consolidated government, separate legal entity or administrative entity, or any agency of the Federal Government. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Injunction: An order of the court prohibiting (or compelling) the performance of a specific act to prevent irreparable damage or injury.
• Invitation to bid: means a written or electronically posted solicitation for competitive sealed bids. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Invitation to negotiate: means a written or electronically posted solicitation for competitive sealed replies to select one or more vendors with which to commence negotiations for the procurement of commodities or contractual services. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• minor: includes any person who has not attained the age of 18 years. See Florida Statutes 1.01
• Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
• Office: means the Office of Supplier Diversity of the Department of Management Services. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability: means an entity designated by joint rule of the Legislature or by agreement between the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. See Florida Statutes 1.01
• Oversight: Committee review of the activities of a Federal agency or program.
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• person: includes individuals, children, firms, associations, joint adventures, partnerships, estates, trusts, business trusts, syndicates, fiduciaries, corporations, and all other groups or combinations. See Florida Statutes 1.01
• Personal property: All property that is not real property.
• Pleadings: Written statements of the parties in a civil case of their positions. In the federal courts, the principal pleadings are the complaint and the answer.
• political subdivision: include counties, cities, towns, villages, special tax school districts, special road and bridge districts, bridge districts, and all other districts in this state. See Florida Statutes 1.01
• Presiding officer: A majority-party Senator who presides over the Senate and is charged with maintaining order and decorum, recognizing Members to speak, and interpreting the Senate's rules, practices and precedents.
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Renewal: means contracting with the same contractor for an additional contract period after the initial contract period, only if pursuant to contract terms specifically providing for such renewal. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Request for information: means a written or electronically posted request made by an agency to vendors for information concerning commodities or contractual services. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Request for proposals: means a written or electronically posted solicitation for competitive sealed proposals. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Responsible vendor: means a vendor who has the capability in all respects to fully perform the contract requirements and the integrity and reliability that will assure good faith performance. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Responsive vendor: means a vendor that has submitted a bid, proposal, or reply that conforms in all material respects to the solicitation. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Service of process: The service of writs or summonses to the appropriate party.
• State term contract: means a term contract that is competitively procured by the department pursuant to…. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Term contract: means an indefinite quantity contract to furnish commodities or contractual services during a defined period. See Florida Statutes 287.012
• Testimony: Evidence presented orally by witnesses during trials or before grand juries.
• Trial: A hearing that takes place when the defendant pleads "not guilty" and witnesses are required to come to court to give evidence.
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• Uniform Commercial Code: A set of statutes enacted by the various states to provide consistency among the states' commercial laws. It includes negotiable instruments, sales, stock transfers, trust and warehouse receipts, and bills of lading. ^{Source: OCC}
• Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
• writing: includes handwriting, printing, typewriting, and all other methods and means of forming letters and characters upon paper, stone, wood, or other materials. See Florida Statutes 1.01