Senate Bill sb1104c1

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    Florida Senate - 2004                           CS for SB 1104

    By the Committee on Natural Resources; and Senator Dockery





    312-2183-04

  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to water resources; amending s.

  3         163.3167, F.S.; requiring local governments to

  4         include projected water use in comprehensive

  5         plans; amending s. 163.3177, F.S.; requiring

  6         local governments to consider regional water

  7         supply plans in their work plans for building

  8         water supply facilities; amending s. 373.116,

  9         F.S.; providing for notice by electronic mail;

10         providing requirements for notices published

11         electronically; creating s. 373.2234, F.S.;

12         authorizing the governing board of a water

13         management district to adopt rules identifying

14         certain preferred water supply sources;

15         providing requirements with respect to such

16         rules; providing construction; amending s.

17         373.250, F.S.; authorizing water management

18         districts to require the use of reclaimed water

19         in lieu of surface or groundwater when the use

20         of uncommitted reclaimed water is

21         environmentally, economically, and technically

22         feasible; providing construction with respect

23         to such authority; providing legislative

24         findings and intent with regard to landscape

25         irrigation design; requiring water management

26         districts to develop landscape irrigation and

27         xeriscape design standards; providing an

28         effective date.

29  

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

31  

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    Florida Senate - 2004                           CS for SB 1104
    312-2183-04




 1         Section 1.  Subsection (13) is added to section

 2  163.3167, Florida Statutes, to read:

 3         163.3167  Scope of act.--

 4         (13)  Each local government shall address in its

 5  comprehensive plan, as enumerated in this chapter, the water

 6  supply projects necessary to meet and achieve the existing and

 7  projected water use demand for the established planning

 8  period, considering the applicable plan developed pursuant to

 9  s. 373.0361.

10         Section 2.  Paragraph (c) of subsection (6) of section

11  163.3177, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

12         163.3177  Required and optional elements of

13  comprehensive plan; studies and surveys.--

14         (6)  In addition to the requirements of subsections

15  (1)-(5), the comprehensive plan shall include the following

16  elements:

17         (c)  A general sanitary sewer, solid waste, drainage,

18  potable water, and natural groundwater aquifer recharge

19  element correlated to principles and guidelines for future

20  land use, indicating ways to provide for future potable water,

21  drainage, sanitary sewer, solid waste, and aquifer recharge

22  protection requirements for the area.  The element may be a

23  detailed engineering plan including a topographic map

24  depicting areas of prime groundwater recharge. The element

25  shall describe the problems and needs and the general

26  facilities that will be required for solution of the problems

27  and needs.  The element shall also include a topographic map

28  depicting any areas adopted by a regional water management

29  district as prime groundwater recharge areas for the Floridan

30  or Biscayne aquifers, pursuant to s. 373.0395.  These areas

31  shall be given special consideration when the local government

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    Florida Senate - 2004                           CS for SB 1104
    312-2183-04




 1  is engaged in zoning or considering future land use for said

 2  designated areas.  For areas served by septic tanks, soil

 3  surveys shall be provided which indicate the suitability of

 4  soils for septic tanks. By December 1, 2006 January 1, 2005,

 5  or the Evaluation and Appraisal Report adoption deadline

 6  established for the local government pursuant to s.

 7  163.3191(1) s. 163.3191(a), whichever date occurs first, the

 8  element must consider the appropriate water management

 9  district's regional water supply plan approved pursuant to s.

10  373.0361. The element must include a work plan, covering at

11  least a 10-year planning period, for building water supply

12  facilities that are identified in the element as necessary to

13  serve existing and new development and for which the local

14  government is responsible. The work plan shall be updated, at

15  a minimum, every 5 years within 12 months after the governing

16  board of a water management district adopts an updated

17  regional water supply plan.

18         Section 3.  Subsection (2) of section 373.116, Florida

19  Statutes, is amended, and subsection (4) is added to that

20  section, to read:

21         373.116  Procedure for water use and impoundment

22  construction permit applications.--

23         (2)  Upon receipt of an application for a permit of the

24  type referred to in subsection (1), the governing board shall

25  cause a notice thereof to be published in a newspaper having

26  general circulation within the affected area or on the

27  official Internet website of the water management district. A

28  notice published on the website shall clearly state the date

29  the notice was first posted. In addition, the governing board

30  shall send, by regular or electronic mail, a copy of such

31  notice to any person who has filed a written request for

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    Florida Senate - 2004                           CS for SB 1104
    312-2183-04




 1  notification of any pending applications affecting this

 2  particular designated area. At the option of the applicable

 3  county or city government, notice of application for the

 4  consumptive use of water shall be mailed by regular or

 5  electronic mail to the county and appropriate city government

 6  from which boundaries the withdrawal is proposed to be made.

 7         (4)  The governing board may provide constructive

 8  notice of intended agency action on a permit application by

 9  publication in a newspaper of general circulation within the

10  affected area or by publication on the official Internet

11  website of the water management district. A notice published

12  on the website shall clearly state the date the notice was

13  first posted. For permit applicants and for persons who have

14  requested actual notice of intended agency action for that

15  specific permit application, such notice shall be mailed by

16  regular or electronic mail.

17         Section 4.  Section 373.2234, Florida Statutes, is

18  created to read:

19         373.2234  Preferred water supply sources.--The

20  governing board of a water management district is authorized

21  to adopt rules that identify preferred water supply sources

22  for consumptive uses for which there is sufficient data to

23  establish that a preferred source will provide a substantial

24  new water supply to meet the existing and projected

25  reasonable-beneficial uses of a water supply planning region

26  identified pursuant to s. 373.0361(1), while sustaining

27  existing water resources and natural systems. At a minimum,

28  such rules must contain a description of the preferred water

29  supply source and an assessment of the water the preferred

30  source is projected to produce. If an applicant proposes to

31  use a preferred water supply source, that applicant's proposed

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    Florida Senate - 2004                           CS for SB 1104
    312-2183-04




 1  water use is subject to s. 373.223(1), except that the use of

 2  a preferred water supply source shall be deemed a factor

 3  consistent with the public interest pursuant to s.

 4  373.223(1)(c). A consumptive use permit issued for the use of

 5  a preferred water supply source must be granted for at least a

 6  20-year period and may be subject to the compliance reporting

 7  provisions of s. 373.236(3). Nothing in this section shall be

 8  construed to exempt the use of preferred water supply sources

 9  from the provisions of ss. 373.016(4) and 373.223(2) and (3),

10  or be construed to provide that permits issued for the use of

11  a nonpreferred water supply source must be issued for a

12  duration of less than 20 years or that the use of a

13  nonpreferred water supply source is not consistent with the

14  public interest. Additionally, nothing in this section shall

15  be interpreted to require the use of a preferred water supply

16  source or to restrict or prohibit the use of a nonpreferred

17  water supply source.  Rules adopted by the governing board of

18  a water management district to implement this section shall

19  specify that the use of a preferred water supply source is not

20  required, and that the use of a nonpreferred water supply

21  source is not restricted or prohibited.

22         Section 5.  Paragraph (c) is added to subsection (2) of

23  section 373.250, Florida Statutes, to read:

24         373.250  Reuse of reclaimed water.--

25         (2)

26         (c)  A water management district may require the use of

27  reclaimed water in lieu of surface water or groundwater when

28  the use of uncommitted reclaimed water is environmentally,

29  economically, and technically feasible and of such quality and

30  reliability as is necessary to the user. However, this

31  paragraph does not authorize a water management district to

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    Florida Senate - 2004                           CS for SB 1104
    312-2183-04




 1  require a provider of reclaimed water to redirect reclaimed

 2  water from one user to another or to provide uncommitted water

 3  to a specific user if such water is anticipated to be used by

 4  the provider, or a different user selected by the provider,

 5  within a reasonable amount of time.

 6         Section 6.  Landscape irrigation design.--

 7         (1)  The Legislature finds that multiple areas

 8  throughout the state have been identified by water management

 9  districts as water resource caution areas, which indicates

10  that in the near future water demand in those areas will

11  exceed the current available water supply and that

12  conservation is one of the mechanisms by which future water

13  demand will be met.

14         (2)  The Legislature finds that landscape irrigation

15  comprises a significant portion of water use and that the

16  current typical landscape irrigation system and xeriscape

17  designs offer significant potential water conservation

18  benefits.

19         (3)  It is the intent of the Legislature to improve

20  landscape irrigation water use efficiency by ensuring that

21  landscape irrigation systems meet or exceed minimum design

22  criteria.

23         (4)  The water management districts shall develop and

24  adopt by rule landscape irrigation and xeriscape design

25  standards for new construction which incorporate a landscape

26  irrigation system. The standards must be based on the

27  irrigation code defined in the Florida Building Code,

28  Plumber's Volume, Appendix F. Such design standards should

29  promote the effective and efficient use of irrigation water

30  and include a consideration of local demographic, hydrologic,

31  and other considerations as they apply to landscape irrigation

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    Florida Senate - 2004                           CS for SB 1104
    312-2183-04




 1  water use. When adopting an ordinance or regulation, local

 2  governments shall use these approved irrigation design

 3  standards.

 4         (5)  The water management districts shall work with the

 5  Florida Chapter of the American Society of Landscape

 6  Architects, the Florida Irrigation Society, the Florida

 7  Nurserymen and Growers Association, the Department of

 8  Agriculture and Consumer Services, the Institute of Food and

 9  Agricultural Sciences, the Department of Environmental

10  Protection, the Department of Transportation, the Florida

11  League of Cities, and the Florida Association of Counties to

12  develop scientifically based model guidelines for urban,

13  commercial, and residential landscape irrigation, including

14  drip irrigation, for plants, trees, sod, and other

15  landscaping. Local governments shall use the scientific

16  information when developing landscape irrigation ordinances or

17  guidelines. Every 3 years, the  agencies and entities

18  specified in this subsection shall review the model guidelines

19  to determine whether new research findings require a change or

20  modification of the guidelines.

21         Section 7.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

22  law.

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    Florida Senate - 2004                           CS for SB 1104
    312-2183-04




 1          STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
                       COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
 2                         Senate Bill 1104

 3                                 

 4  The committee substitute retains original provisions of the
    bill relating to water supply projects addressed in local
 5  comprehensive plans and amends the date by which certain local
    comprehensive plan elements must consider a regional water
 6  supply plan.  The committee substitute clarifies original
    provisions of the bill relating to preferred water supply
 7  sources and provides that the use of a preferred water source
    must be consistent with current provisions of law providing
 8  for the conditions of a consumptive use permit. The committee
    substitute further provides that the use of a preferred water
 9  source must comply with state laws governing the use of water
    from local sources first.  Original provisions relating to the
10  reuse of reclaimed water and landscape irrigation design are
    retained. The committee substitute provides the water
11  management districts with the authority to electronically post
    consumptive use permit applications on their official
12  websites.  At the option of a local government, the water
    management district may also provide electronic notice of
13  consumptive use permit applications.  Finally, the committee
    substitute provides that the water management districts can
14  electronically provide constructive notice of intended agency
    action.
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