As many of you know, the 2020 Florida Legislative session is now under way. START is focused on the important water quality bills described below. To express your support or concerns about these bills, contact us at collen@start1.org for a list of the Legislators who are working on them.
The following water quality bills are active in the Florida House:
1. HB 0417: Water Resources (Jacobs)
Requires DEP to conduct specified comprehensive and quantitative needs-based overview of the state’s water resources & submit a report to the Governor and Legislature. (Energy& Utility, Agriculture & Natural Resources).
2. HB 405: Stormwater Management Systems (Good)
Directs water management districts with DEP oversight to adopt rules for standards relating to new developments and redevelopment projects; directs DEP to incorporate such rules for district use; directs DEP and districts to amend such rules into applicant’s handbook; provides rebuttable presumption relating to water quality standards for certain systems; revises requirements for construction of certain systems; requires specified staff training ; directs DEP and districts to initiate rulemaking. (ANA, ANR-AP, SA).
The following water quality bills are active in the Florida Senate:
1. SB 0150: Sanitary Sewer Laterals (Brandes)
Sanitary Sewer Laterals; Encouraging counties and municipalities to, by a specific date, establish a sanitary sewer lateral inspection program; requiring a seller of real property to disclose any known defects in the property’s sanitary sewer lateral, etc. (ENR 4Y ON; JU, App.
2. SB 0454: Discharge of Domestic Wastewater (Rodriguez).
Prohibiting of new deep injection wells for domestic wastewater discharge or the expansion of existing wells; requiring current ocean outfall and deep well injection permit holders to install a functioning reuse-system within the utility’s service area by specified dates; prohibiting the discharge of domestic wastewater through ocean outfalls and deep injection wells after the specified dates, etc. (EN, AEG, AP).
3. SB 0492: Public Notification of Pollution (Cruz, Berman)
Redefining the term “reportable pollution release”, requiring the DEP to file certain notices received from the Health Department or a local government entity on a website accessible to the public; requiring DEP to provide written notice to certain homeowners, etc. (ENR; CA, RC).
4. SB 0690: Water Resources (Albritton)
Requiring DEP to conduct a comprehensive and quantitative needs-based overview of the state’s water resources; specifying requirements for the overviews; requiring the department to submit a report every five years to the Governor and Legislature. (EN, AEG, AP).
Now is the time to be heard on Florida’s water quality legislation.
