Senate Bill 1622

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



    Florida Senate - 1999                                  SB 1622

    By Senator Bronson





    18-822A-99                                              See HB

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to the placement of rip current

  3         warning signs; providing a short title;

  4         creating s. 380.275, F.S.; providing for a

  5         cooperative effort among state agencies and

  6         local governments to plan for and assist in the

  7         placement of rip current warning signs;

  8         providing that the Department of Community

  9         Affairs shall direct and coordinate the

10         program; requiring the development of a uniform

11         rip current warning sign; authorizing the

12         department to coordinate the location,

13         distribution, and erection of rip current

14         warning signs; providing for rules; limiting

15         the liability of participating governmental

16         entities; providing an effective date.

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

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20         Section 1.  This act may be cited as the

21  "McGriff-Mannix Act" in honor of James McGriff and Brian

22  Mannix, who lost their lives as a result of rip currents.

23         Section 2.  Section 380.275, Florida Statutes, is

24  created to read:

25         380.275  Beaches and coastal areas; posting of rip

26  current warning signs.--

27         (1)  It is the intent of the Legislature that a

28  cooperative effort among state agencies and local governments

29  be developed to plan for and assist in the placement of rip

30  current warning signs along the public beaches and coastal

31  areas of the state.  A rip current is a strong surface current

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






    Florida Senate - 1999                                  SB 1622
    18-822A-99                                              See HB




  1  of water flowing out past the surf zone which can pull even

  2  the strongest swimmer into deeper water.  Rip currents pose a

  3  significant danger of drowning to tourists and the public, and

  4  it is therefore important to warn the public to be cautious in

  5  coastal areas where rip currents can occur.

  6         (2)  The Department of Community Affairs, through the

  7  Florida Coastal Management Program, shall direct and

  8  coordinate the rip current warning sign program, which shall

  9  be a program to require the placement of rip current warning

10  signs in areas that pose a significant risk to the public as a

11  result of rip currents.  Signs shall be located where the

12  public has established an access way to a beach or coastal

13  area.

14         (3)  The department shall develop a uniform rip current

15  warning sign for use at any public beach or along any coastal

16  area where there may be a significant threat to the public as

17  a result of rip currents, to be placed, insofar as is

18  practicable, wherever the public has established access ways

19  to the beach.

20         (4)  The department shall, within the limits of

21  appropriations available to it for such purposes, establish

22  and operate a program to fund the placement of rip current

23  warning signs in areas where the public has established an

24  access way to a beach or coastal area that may be subject to a

25  significant threat of dangerous rip currents and therefore may

26  pose a hazard to the public.  The department shall coordinate

27  efforts to determine the locations that local governments

28  consider appropriate for placement of rip current warning

29  signs.  For these locations, the department shall make rip

30  current warning signs available to the governing body of any

31  county or municipality in such quantity as is determined by

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






    Florida Senate - 1999                                  SB 1622
    18-822A-99                                              See HB




  1  the department.  The department shall also coordinate with the

  2  local governing body the distribution and erection of rip

  3  current warning signs, wherever there is a request for such

  4  assistance.

  5         (5)  The department may adopt such rules and forms as

  6  are necessary to carry out the purposes of this section and to

  7  ensure that all projects to which assistance is rendered under

  8  this section are for the purpose of providing and erecting rip

  9  current warning signs.

10         (6)  The state, state agencies, local governments, and

11  local government agencies shall not be held liable for any

12  injury caused by the placement or maintenance of rip current

13  warning signs or the failure to install or maintain rip

14  current signs as provided by this section.

15         Section 3.  This act shall take effect October 1, 1999.

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18                       LEGISLATIVE SUMMARY

19
      Provides for a cooperative effort among state agencies
20    and local governments to plan for and assist in the
      placement of rip current warning signs, under the
21    direction of the Department of Community Affairs.
      Requires the development of a uniform rip current warning
22    sign and authorizes the department to coordinate the
      location, distribution, and erection of such signs.
23    Limits the liability of participating governmental
      entities.
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