| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to water management districts; |
| 3 | amending s. 373.046, F.S.; authorizing water |
| 4 | management districts to enter into interagency |
| 5 | agreements for resource management activities under |
| 6 | specified conditions; providing applicability; |
| 7 | amending s. 373.223, F.S.; requiring water management |
| 8 | districts to apply specified reservations, minimum |
| 9 | flows and levels, and recovery and prevention |
| 10 | strategies in determining certain effects of proposed |
| 11 | consumptive uses of water; prohibiting water |
| 12 | management districts from authorizing certain |
| 13 | consumptive uses of water; providing an exception; |
| 14 | providing requirements for the challenge of specified |
| 15 | rules; providing an effective date. |
| 16 |
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| 17 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 18 |
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| 19 | Section 1. Subsection (7) is added to section 373.046, |
| 20 | Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 21 | 373.046 Interagency agreements.- |
| 22 | (7) When the geographic area of a project or local |
| 23 | government or regional water supply authority crosses water |
| 24 | management district boundaries, the affected districts may |
| 25 | designate a single affected district by interagency agreement to |
| 26 | implement in that area all or part of the applicable resource |
| 27 | management responsibilities under this chapter. Interagency |
| 28 | agreements entered into under this subsection which apply to the |
| 29 | geographic area of a local government must have the concurrence |
| 30 | of the affected local government. This subsection only applies |
| 31 | to resource projects for which a measurable water resource |
| 32 | benefit can be demonstrated for the geographic area of the local |
| 33 | government or regional water supply authority. |
| 34 | Section 2. Subsection (6) is added to section 373.223, |
| 35 | Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 36 | 373.223 Conditions for a permit.- |
| 37 | (6) In determining the effect of a proposed consumptive |
| 38 | use of water on the water resources of an adjoining district, |
| 39 | the governing board shall apply, without adopting by rule, the |
| 40 | reservations, minimum flows and levels, and recovery or |
| 41 | prevention strategies adopted by the adjoining district. The |
| 42 | governing board may not authorize a consumptive use of water |
| 43 | that violates any reservation adopted pursuant to subsection (4) |
| 44 | or any minimum flow or level adopted pursuant to ss. 373.042 and |
| 45 | 373.0421, except as provided for in an adopted recovery or |
| 46 | prevention strategy. Any rule applied pursuant to this |
| 47 | subsection that is challenged under s. 120.56 or s. 120.569 |
| 48 | shall be defended by the district that adopted the rule. |
| 49 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012. |