Florida Senate - 2012                          SENATOR AMENDMENT
       Bill No. CS for SB 1858
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Barcode 171696                          
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
                                       .                                
                                       .                                
                                       .                                
                  Floor: WD            .                                
             03/09/2012 11:19 PM       .                                
       —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————




       —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
       Senator Dean moved the following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
    2  
    3         Between lines 12 and 13
    4  insert:
    5         Section 1. Present subsections (4) and (5) of section
    6  373.042, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (5)
    7  and (6), respectively, a new subsection (4) is added to that
    8  section, and subsection (2) and present subsection (5) of that
    9  section are amended, to read:
   10         373.042 Minimum flows and levels.—
   11         (2) By November 15, 1997, and annually thereafter, each
   12  water management district shall submit to the department for
   13  review and approval a priority list and schedule for the
   14  establishment of minimum flows and levels for surface
   15  watercourses, aquifers, and surface waters within the district.
   16  The priority list and schedule shall also identify those listed
   17  water bodies for which the district will voluntarily undertake
   18  independent scientific peer review; any reservations proposed by
   19  the district to be established pursuant to s. 373.223(4); and
   20  those listed water bodies that have the potential to be affected
   21  by withdrawals in an adjacent district for which department
   22  adoption of a reservation pursuant to s. 373.223(4) or a minimum
   23  flow or level pursuant to subsection (1) may be appropriate. By
   24  March 1, 2006, and annually thereafter, each water management
   25  district shall include its approved priority list and schedule
   26  in the consolidated annual report required by s. 373.036(7). The
   27  priority list shall be based upon the importance of the waters
   28  to the state or region and the existence of or potential for
   29  significant harm to the water resources or ecology of the state
   30  or region, and shall include those waters which are experiencing
   31  or may reasonably be expected to experience adverse impacts.
   32  Each water management district’s priority list and schedule
   33  shall include all first magnitude springs, and all second
   34  magnitude springs within state or federally owned lands
   35  purchased for conservation purposes. The specific schedule for
   36  establishment of spring minimum flows and levels shall be
   37  commensurate with the existing or potential threat to spring
   38  flow from consumptive uses. Springs within the Suwannee River
   39  Water Management District, or second magnitude springs in other
   40  areas of the state, need not be included on the priority list if
   41  the water management district submits a report to the Department
   42  of Environmental Protection demonstrating that adverse impacts
   43  are not now occurring nor are reasonably expected to occur from
   44  consumptive uses during the next 20 years. The priority list and
   45  schedule shall not be subject to any proceeding pursuant to
   46  chapter 120. Except as provided in subsection (3), the
   47  development of a priority list and compliance with the schedule
   48  for the establishment of minimum flows and levels pursuant to
   49  this subsection shall satisfy the requirements of subsection
   50  (1).
   51         (4) A water management district shall provide the
   52  department with technical information and staff support for the
   53  development of a reservation, minimum flow or level, or recovery
   54  or prevention strategy to be adopted by rule by the department.
   55  A reservation, minimum flow or level, or recovery or prevention
   56  strategy adopted by rule by the department shall be applied by
   57  the water management districts without adoption of such
   58  reservation, minimum flow or level, or recovery or prevention
   59  strategy by rule.
   60         (6)(5) If a petition for administrative hearing is filed
   61  under chapter 120 challenging the establishment of a minimum
   62  flow or level, the report of an independent scientific peer
   63  review conducted under subsection (5) (4) is admissible as
   64  evidence in the final hearing, and the administrative law judge
   65  must render the order within 120 days after the filing of the
   66  petition. The time limit for rendering the order shall not be
   67  extended except by agreement of all the parties. To the extent
   68  that the parties agree to the findings of the peer review, they
   69  may stipulate that those findings be incorporated as findings of
   70  fact in the final order.
   71         Section 2. Subsection (7) is added to section 373.046,
   72  Florida Statutes, to read:
   73         373.046 Interagency agreements.—
   74         (7) If the geographic area of a resource management
   75  activity, study, or project crosses water management district
   76  boundaries, the affected districts may designate a single
   77  affected district to conduct all or part of the applicable
   78  resource management responsibilities under this chapter, with
   79  the exception of those regulatory responsibilities that are
   80  subject to subsection (6). If funding assistance is provided to
   81  a resource management activity, study, or project, the district
   82  providing the funding must ensure that some or all of the
   83  benefits accrue to the funding district. This subsection does
   84  not impair any interagency agreement in effect on July 1, 2012.
   85         Section 3. Subsection (3) of section 373.709, Florida
   86  Statutes, is amended to read:
   87         373.709 Regional water supply planning.—
   88         (3) The water supply development component of a regional
   89  water supply plan which deals with or affects public utilities
   90  and public water supply for those areas served by a regional
   91  water supply authority and its member governments within the
   92  boundary of the Southwest Florida Water Management District
   93  shall be developed jointly by the authority and the applicable
   94  water management district. In areas not served by regional water
   95  supply authorities, or other multijurisdictional water supply
   96  entities, and where opportunities exist to meet water supply
   97  needs more efficiently through multijurisdictional projects
   98  identified pursuant to paragraph (2)(a), water management
   99  districts are directed to assist in developing
  100  multijurisdictional approaches to water supply project
  101  development jointly with affected water utilities, special
  102  districts, and local governments.
  103         Section 4. Subsection (5) is added to section 373.171,
  104  Florida Statutes, to read:
  105         373.171 Rules.—
  106         (5) Cooperative funding programs are not subject to the
  107  rulemaking requirements of chapter 120. However, any portion of
  108  an approved program which affects the substantial interests of a
  109  party is subject to s. 120.569.
  110  
  111  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
  112         And the title is amended as follows:
  113         Delete line 3
  114  and insert:
  115         improvements; amending s. 373.042, F.S.; requiring
  116         water management districts to include certain
  117         reservations and water bodies in priority lists and
  118         schedules; providing for the adoption of certain
  119         reservations and minimum flows and levels by the
  120         Department of Environmental Protection; requiring
  121         water management districts to apply, without adopting
  122         by rule, reservations, minimum flows and levels, and
  123         recovery and prevention strategies adopted by the
  124         department; amending s. 373.046, F.S.; authorizing
  125         water management districts to enter into interagency
  126         agreements for resource management activities under
  127         specified conditions; providing applicability;
  128         amending s. 373.709, F.S., relating to regional water
  129         supply planning; removing a reference to the Southwest
  130         Florida Water Management District; requiring a
  131         regional water supply authority and the applicable
  132         water management district to jointly develop the water
  133         supply component of the regional water supply plan;
  134         amending s. 373.171, F.S.; exempting cooperative
  135         funding programs from certain rulemaking requirements;
  136         creating s. 373.4591, F.S.; requiring a