House Bill 1957
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Florida House of Representatives - 1999 HB 1957
By Representative Flanagan
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to water resources; creating
3 the Florida Oceans Study Committee; providing
4 membership; providing for a report; providing
5 contents of the report; requiring the committee
6 to recommend priority research, scientific
7 monitoring needs, and specified funding
8 mechanisms; creating the Florida Ocean
9 Commission; providing for appointment of
10 members; providing duties of the commission;
11 providing for annual reports; providing an
12 appropriation; providing an effective date.
13
14 WHEREAS, Florida, the fourth largest state in the
15 union, having the longest coastline in the contiguous United
16 States, possesses an abundance of fresh water bodies in a
17 peninsula bounded by the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic
18 Ocean, and
19 WHEREAS, a thin strip of land of nearly 35.7 million
20 acres, Florida is bounded on three sides by the ocean, and
21 WHEREAS, approximately 8,400 miles of tidal coastline
22 wrap around the state, and below its southern tip lie the only
23 living coral reefs in North America - the third largest coral
24 reef in the world, and
25 WHEREAS, Florida's territorial waters extend three
26 miles beyond its shores into the Atlantic Ocean and three
27 marine leagues, or approximately 10 miles, into the Gulf of
28 Mexico, and
29 WHEREAS, as an economic engine, Florida's oceans form
30 the basis for three of its most important industries,
31 including fishing, shipping, and tourism, and
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Florida House of Representatives - 1999 HB 1957
570-155-99
1 WHEREAS, but while they are vast, Florida's ocean
2 resources are not inexhaustible, and
3 WHEREAS, increasing demands for Florida's ocean
4 resources, coupled with an ever-growing ability to recover
5 those resources, are threatening the health and vitality of
6 Florida's oceans, and
7 WHEREAS, in response to this need, the late Governor
8 Lawton Chiles appointed the Florida Governor's Ocean Committee
9 for the purpose of promoting public awareness of the
10 significance of the ocean to Florida, as well as guiding the
11 state's efforts to develop and implement a coordinated and
12 comprehensive ocean resources management strategy, and
13 WHEREAS, since its inception in January 1998, the
14 24-member Florida Governor's Ocean Committee has met several
15 times and submitted a preliminary report to the Governor
16 entitled "Florida's Ocean Challenges," and
17 WHEREAS, the committee considered several of the
18 management challenges and has developed an interim draft
19 document of management strategies and actions and is preparing
20 to receive public input for the next six months, and
21 WHEREAS, in order to maintain the momentum, continuity,
22 and important work of this committee, it is the purpose of
23 this act to reconstitute the Florida Governor's Ocean
24 Committee, renamed as the Florida Oceans Study Committee, for
25 the purpose of completing the work it began and to pave the
26 way for the implementation of the committee's recommendations
27 through the establishment of a Florida Ocean Commission, NOW,
28 THEREFORE,
29
30 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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Florida House of Representatives - 1999 HB 1957
570-155-99
1 Section 1. Florida Oceans Study Committee.--
2 (1) CREATION; MEMBERSHIP.--The Florida Governor's
3 Ocean Committee is hereby renamed the Florida Oceans Study
4 Committee. The initial members of the Florida Ocean's Study
5 Committee shall be the members of the Florida Governor's Ocean
6 Committee who are serving on the committee on the effective
7 date of this act, who may serve the remainder of their terms
8 through June 30, 2000. Members of the committee shall serve
9 without compensation but shall be reimbursed for per diem and
10 travel expenses in accordance with s. 112.061. The Coastal
11 Zone Management Section of the Department of Community Affairs
12 shall provide staff to the Florida Oceans Study Committee.
13 (2) REPORT.--The final report of the Florida Oceans
14 Study Committee shall be submitted to the Governor, the
15 President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of
16 Representatives no later than February 1, 2000. The report
17 shall address specific priorities for a coordinated management
18 policy for Florida's oceans, including effective public
19 outreach and education. The committee shall recommend priority
20 research and scientific monitoring needs, and funding
21 mechanisms for a comprehensive scientific assessment of the
22 present status and future vitality and health of Florida's
23 oceans in consultation with the Florida members of the
24 Southern Association of Marine Laboratories, Eckerd College,
25 the Florida Institute of Oceanography, the Florida Institute
26 of Technology, the Florida Marine Research Institute, Florida
27 State University, Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution,
28 Inc., Mote Marine Laboratory, Nova Southeastern University,
29 the University of Florida, the University of Miami, the
30 University of South Florida, and the Florida Sea Grant
31 Program. The committee shall also explore cost-sharing avenues
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Florida House of Representatives - 1999 HB 1957
570-155-99
1 with the Federal Government and appropriate and equitable
2 funding responsibilities of federal agencies which may be of
3 benefit to the state.
4 Section 2. Florida Ocean Commission.--
5 (1) CREATION.--Following the submission of the final
6 report by the Florida Oceans Study Committee in February 2000,
7 the Governor shall appoint the members of the Florida Ocean
8 Commission as provided in subsection (2). The Governor shall
9 make all appointments to the commission no later than
10 September 30, 2000. The commission shall remain in existence
11 through June 30, 2005. The existence of the commission may be
12 extended, subject to review and approval by the Legislature.
13 (2) MEMBERSHIP.--The Florida Ocean Commission shall
14 consist of 24 members to be appointed by the Governor. The
15 appointed members of the commission shall consist of
16 representatives from the Department of Community Affairs, the
17 Department of Environmental Protection, the Department of
18 State, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services,
19 the Department of Education, the Fish and Wildlife
20 Conservation Commission, the Executive Office of the Governor,
21 and local representatives from the fields of conservation,
22 education, science, law, recreation, and business. Six ex
23 officio members shall be appointed to represent the Federal
24 Government, from the Department of Defense, the Army Corps of
25 Engineers, the Department of the Interior, the National
26 Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Environmental
27 Protection Agency, and the Coast Guard. Members of the
28 commission shall serve without compensation but shall be
29 reimbursed for per diem and travel expenses in accordance with
30 s. 112.061.
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Florida House of Representatives - 1999 HB 1957
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1 (3) DUTIES.--It shall be the duty of the commission to
2 implement the recommendations of the Florida Oceans Study
3 Committee and provide ongoing coordination and oversight of
4 ocean policy issues.
5 (4) REPORTS.--The commission shall submit annual
6 reports with recommendations on significant ocean policy
7 issues to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the
8 Speaker of the House of Representatives.
9 Section 3. There is appropriated for fiscal year 1999
10 the sum of $80,000 from funds in the General Revenue Fund for
11 the expenses of the Florida Oceans Study Committee. Of the
12 appropriated funds, up to $30,000 may be utilized for
13 workshops and activities related to developing priority
14 research and scientific monitoring needs for Florida's waters.
15 Section 4. This act shall take effect upon becoming a
16 law.
17
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19 HOUSE SUMMARY
20
Renames the Florida Governor's Ocean Committee as the
21 Florida Oceans Study Committee, and continues the
existence of the committee through June 30, 2000.
22 Provides that the current members of the committee shall
continue to serve as members of the study committee.
23 Provides for submission of a final report to the Governor
by February 2000. Requires the committee to recommend
24 priority research, scientific monitoring needs, and
funding mechanisms for a comprehensive scientific
25 assessment of the present status and future vitality and
health of Florida's oceans. Provides an appropriation for
26 the expenses of the study committee.
27
Creates a 24-member Florida Ocean Commission for the
28 purpose of implementing the recommendations of the
Florida Oceans Study Committee and to provide ongoing
29 coordination and oversight of the state's ocean policy
issues. Provides for appointment of commission members by
30 the Governor no later than September 2000. Provides for
annual reports.
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