Senate Bill 1516

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.



    Florida Senate - 1998                                  SB 1516

    By Senator Turner





    36-1304-98                                          See HB 945

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to environmental equity;

  3         creating s. 760.854, F.S.; creating the Center

  4         for Environmental Equity and Justice; providing

  5         purpose of the center; requiring each state

  6         agency to include an environmental justice

  7         element in its agency functional plan;

  8         requiring the establishment of specified

  9         tracking systems and registries by the

10         Department of Health and county health

11         departments for the purpose of providing data

12         to the Center for Environmental Equity and

13         Justice; amending s. 382.008, F.S.; requiring

14         specified additional information to be included

15         on certain certificates of death for the

16         purpose of providing data to the Center for

17         Environmental Equity and Justice; amending s.

18         120.525, F.S.; requiring state agencies to

19         provide notice of certain proposed agency

20         action via specified media; providing effective

21         dates.

22

23  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

24

25         Section 1.  Section 760.854, Florida Statutes, is

26  created to read:

27         760.854  Center for Environmental Equity and Justice.--

28         (1)  There is hereby established the Center for

29  Environmental Equity and Justice.

30         (2)  The purpose of the center is to conduct and

31  facilitate research, develop policies, and engage in

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 1998                                  SB 1516
    36-1304-98                                          See HB 945




  1  education, training, and community outreach with respect to

  2  environmental equity and justice issues.

  3         (3)  The Center for Environmental Equity and Justice

  4  shall be established at an historically black college or

  5  university.

  6         (4)  The Center for Environmental Equity and Justice

  7  shall sponsor students to serve as interns at the epidemiology

  8  branch of the Department of Health.

  9         Section 2.  Each state agency shall include an

10  environmental justice element in its agency functional plan

11  that parallels the element required of federal agencies by

12  Executive Order 12898 on environmental equity.

13         Section 3.  For the purpose of aiding in the

14  compilation of data to be used in the conduct of research by

15  the Center for Environmental Equity and Justice, as created by

16  this act, a registry and tracking system shall be established

17  by the Department of Health and each county health department

18  which will monitor, and make reports to the center regarding,

19  instances of adverse or negative health effects among children

20  and adults, and instances of birth defects in newborn

21  children, which may have occurred as the result of exposure to

22  environmental hazards within the state.

23         Section 4.  Subsection (1) of section 382.008, Florida

24  Statutes, is amended to read:

25         382.008  Death and fetal death registration.--

26         (1)  A certificate for each death and fetal death that

27  which occurs in this state shall be filed on a form prescribed

28  by the department with the local registrar of the district in

29  which the death occurred within 5 days after such death and

30  prior to final disposition of the dead body or fetus, and

31  shall be registered by such registrar if it has been completed

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 1998                                  SB 1516
    36-1304-98                                          See HB 945




  1  and filed in accordance with this chapter or adopted rules.

  2  In addition, each certificate of death or fetal death:

  3         (a)  If requested by the informant, shall include

  4  aliases or "also known as" (AKA) names of a decedent in

  5  addition to the decedent's name of record.  Aliases shall be

  6  entered on the face of the death certificate in the space

  7  provided for name if there is sufficient space.  If there is

  8  not sufficient space, aliases may be recorded on the back of

  9  the certificate and shall be considered part of the official

10  record of death;

11         (b)  If the place of death is unknown, shall be

12  registered in the registration district in which the dead body

13  or fetus is found within 5 days after such occurrence; and

14         (c)  If death occurs in a moving conveyance, shall be

15  registered in the registration district in which the dead body

16  was first removed from such conveyance;.

17         (d)  For the purpose of aiding in the compilation of

18  data to be used in the conduct of research by the Center for

19  Environmental Equity and Justice, as created by s. 760.854,

20  the certificate of death for an adult must include:

21         1.  The length of time the individual was employed at

22  the occupation listed on the certificate.

23         2.  The length of time the individual resided at the

24  address listed on the certificate.

25         3.  The length of time the individual was a Florida

26  resident.

27         Section 5.  Effective July 1, 1998, subsection (4) is

28  added to section 120.525, Florida Statutes, to read:

29         120.525  Meetings, hearings, and workshops.--

30         (4)  Effective July 1, 1997, each agency shall provide

31  notice required by this chapter in ethnic newspapers, local

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida Senate - 1998                                  SB 1516
    36-1304-98                                          See HB 945




  1  community bulletins, and televised public service

  2  announcements targeting the population affected by the

  3  proposed agency action.

  4         Section 6.  Except as otherwise expressly provided in

  5  this act, this act shall take effect upon becoming a law.

  6

  7            *****************************************

  8                       LEGISLATIVE SUMMARY

  9
      Creates the Center for Environmental Equity and Justice
10    for the purpose of facilitating research, developing
      policies, and engaging in education, training, and
11    community outreach with respect to environmental justice
      and equity issues.
12

13    Requires each state agency to include an environmental
      justice element in its agency functional plan.
14

15    Requires the Department of Health and each county health
      department to establish a registry and tracking system
16    which will provide data to the Center for Environmental
      Equity and Justice regarding instances of adverse or
17    negative health effects among children and adults, and
      instances of birth defects in newborn children, which may
18    have occurred as the result of exposure to environmental
      hazards within the state.
19

20    Requires specified additional information to be included
      on adult certificates of death for the purpose of
21    providing data to the center.

22
      Requires state agencies to provide notice of certain
23    proposed agency action via specified media.

24

25

26

27

28

29

30

31

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