Senate Bill sb1156c2
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Florida Senate - 2004 CS for CS for SB 1156
By the Committees on Criminal Justice; Judiciary; and Senators
Peaden and Posey
307-1997-04
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to sport shooting and training
3 range environmental liability protection;
4 creating s. 790.333, F.S.; providing
5 legislative findings and intent; providing
6 definitions; specifying immunity from liability
7 for certain persons or entities from certain
8 claims relating to projectiles at sport
9 shooting and training ranges; providing a
10 limitation; requiring withdrawal of certain
11 claims from courts or administrative agencies
12 after a certain date; providing that certain
13 legal actions found in favor of the state may
14 not benefit the state; requiring the state to
15 pay all costs of litigation, attorney's fees,
16 damages, and economic loss for certain legal
17 actions found in its favor; requiring the
18 Department of Environmental Protection to
19 develop a plan to conduct review and cleanup;
20 requiring the department to conduct an
21 environmental cleanup under certain
22 circumstances; providing duties and
23 restrictions on the department and ranges;
24 creating an identification process; authorizing
25 the department to develop guidelines;
26 authorizing the department to use funds from
27 the Water Quality Assurance Trust Fund for
28 expenses associated with the act; providing
29 criminal penalties; specifying preemption by
30 the state; providing for construction;
31 providing an effective date.
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Florida Senate - 2004 CS for CS for SB 1156
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1 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
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3 Section 1. Section 790.333, Florida Statutes, is
4 created to read:
5 790.333 Sport shooting and training range protection;
6 liability; claims, expenses, and fees; penalties; preemption;
7 construction.--
8 (1) LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS.--
9 (a) The Legislature finds that more than 400 sport
10 shooting and training ranges exist on public and private lands
11 throughout this state.
12 (b) These sport shooting and training ranges are
13 widely used and enjoyed by the residents of this state and are
14 a necessary component of the guarantees of the Second
15 Amendment to the United States Constitution and of s. 8, Art.
16 I of the State Constitution.
17 (c) Many of these ranges are used by state and local
18 law enforcement agencies for training, practice, and regular
19 mandatory qualification by law enforcement officers; by hunter
20 safety instructors of the Fish and Wildlife Conservation
21 Commission who teach adults and youngsters the safe use and
22 handling of firearms in preparation for obtaining hunting
23 licenses; by school boards, colleges, and universities for
24 reserve officer training corps training and activities; by
25 school shooting teams; by Olympic competitors; and by
26 certified instructors who teach the safe use and handling of
27 firearms in preparation for applying for licenses to carry
28 concealed firearms for lawful self-protection.
29 (d) The public policy of this state is to encourage
30 the safe handling and operation of firearms and mandates
31 appropriate training in the safe use and handling of firearms
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1 for persons licensed to carry concealed firearms and for
2 persons licensed to hunt in this state. Sport shooting and
3 training ranges throughout this state provide the location at
4 which this important public purpose is served and at which the
5 firearms training mandates are fulfilled.
6 (e) Projectiles are integral to sport shooting and
7 training range activity and to the ownership and use of
8 firearms.
9 (f) Over years of operation, projectiles have
10 accumulated in the environment at many ranges, the
11 environmental impact of which is disputed.
12 (g) Litigation has been initiated by certain state
13 agencies, including the Department of Environmental Protection
14 and the Southwest Florida Water Management District, against
15 sport shooting and training range owners and operators seeking
16 to compel such owners and operators to discontinue the use of
17 certain projectiles and to investigate and remove accumulated
18 projectiles under the theory that these projectiles were
19 deposited without authorization under prevailing state
20 environmental laws. The cost of defending these actions is
21 prohibitive and threatens to destroy the sport shooting and
22 training range industry.
23 (h) The elimination of sport shooting and training
24 ranges would unnecessarily impair the ability of residents of
25 this state to exercise and practice their constitutional
26 guarantees under the Second Amendment to the United States
27 Constitution and under s. 8, Art. I of the State Constitution.
28 (2) LEGISLATIVE INTENT.--The Legislature intends to
29 protect and immunize sport shooting and training range owners,
30 operators, users, employees, agents, contractors, and
31 customers from environmental liability as described in this
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1 act and to prohibit actions by the state, special purpose
2 districts, or political subdivisions which threaten to destroy
3 or bankrupt sport shooting and training ranges.
4 (3) DEFINITIONS.--As used in this act, the term:
5 (a) "Owner" means any person who owns or has owned a
6 sport shooting or training range or any interest therein.
7 (b) "Operator" means any person who operates or has
8 operated a sport shooting or training range.
9 (c) "Projectile" means any object expelled, propelled,
10 discharged, shot, or otherwise released from a firearm, BB
11 gun, airgun, or similar device, including, but not limited to,
12 gunpowder, ammunition, lead, shot, skeet, and trap targets and
13 associated chemicals, derivatives, and constituents thereof.
14 (d) "Environment" means the air, water, surface water,
15 sediment, soil, groundwater, and other natural and manmade
16 resources of this state.
17 (e) "User" means any person, partner, joint venture,
18 business, or social entity or corporation, or any group of
19 such persons or entities, organized or united for a business,
20 sport, or social purpose.
21 (f) "Sport shooting and training range" or "range"
22 means any area that has been designed or operated primarily
23 for the use of firearms, rifles, shotguns, pistols,
24 silhouettes, skeet, trap, black powder, BB guns, airguns, or
25 similar devices or for any other type of sport or training
26 shooting.
27 (4) SPORT SHOOTING AND TRAINING RANGE LIABILITY
28 PROTECTION.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any
29 private or public owner, operator, employee, agent,
30 contractor, customer, or user of any sport shooting or
31 training range located in this state, identified to the
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1 department by September 30, 2005, as set forth in paragraph
2 (7)(i) shall have limited liability to this state or any
3 agency of the state, special purpose district, or political
4 subdivision of this state for any claim associated with the
5 intentional or unintentional placement, deposition, or
6 accumulation of projectiles in the environment on or under
7 that sport shooting or training range or any other property
8 over which the range has an easement, leasehold, or other
9 legal right of use. For purposes of this subsection, a public
10 owner or operator means the state, a county, a municipal
11 corporation, a state university or college, or a school
12 district.
13 (5) PENDING AND FUTURE CLAIMS.--
14 (a) All claims from which private or public owners,
15 operators, employees, agents, contractors, customers, or users
16 of any sport shooting and training ranges are immunized under
17 this section which are pending in any court of this state or
18 before any administrative agency on January 1, 2004, shall be
19 withdrawn within 30 days after the effective date of this act
20 and failure to immediately withdraw such claim shall be a
21 violation of this act and shall be penalized in accordance
22 with subsection (6).
23 (b) No state agency, county, municipality, town,
24 special purpose district, or other political subdivision may
25 benefit financially or otherwise from any such action pending
26 on or after January 1, 2004, in which any judgment or other
27 legal action or recourse is or has been entered in favor of
28 the state, any of its agencies, or a county, municipality,
29 town, special purpose district, or other political subdivision
30 against any private or public owner, operator, employee,
31 agent, contractor, customer, or user of any sport shooting or
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1 training range. The state, agency, county, municipality, town,
2 special purpose district, or other political subdivision that
3 brought such action shall immediately pay all costs of
4 litigation and all reasonable attorney's fees, paralegal's
5 fees, and damages for all economic and other losses resulting
6 from the initiation of such claim for which this section
7 provides immunity.
8 (c) Any private or public owner, operator, employee,
9 agent, contractor, customer, or user of any sport shooting or
10 training range injured as a result of a claim filed in
11 violation of this section shall have a civil cause of action
12 for damages, reasonable attorney's fees, and costs.
13 (6) PENALTIES.--Any official, employee, or other agent
14 of this state or its agencies, or of a county, municipality,
15 town, special purpose district, or other political subdivision
16 of this state, who, while acting in his or her official
17 capacity and within the scope of his or her employment or
18 office, willfully and knowingly brings or is a party to
19 bringing an action in violation of this section commits a
20 misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as provided in s.
21 775.082 or s. 775.083.
22 (7) DUTIES.--
23 (a) The Department of Environmental Protection shall
24 develop a plan and procedures for the reasonable review,
25 contamination assessment, and cleanup of sport shooting and
26 training ranges if there is credible reason to believe that
27 the accumulation of projectiles on such ranges poses an
28 immediate threat to the environment or to human health. The
29 department shall give 60 days' notice to the sport shooting or
30 training range owner, operator, tenant, or occupant of the
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1 department's intent to enter the site for the purpose of a
2 contamination assessment.
3 (b) Principles of risk-based corrective action
4 pursuant to s. 376.30701 shall be applied to sport shooting or
5 training ranges.
6 (c) The department may enter a sport shooting or
7 training range and conduct an environmental cleanup of the
8 site under the following circumstances:
9 1. The department has proven by competent, substantial
10 evidence through scientifically accepted documentation that
11 the effect of accumulation of lead projectiles at the sport
12 shooting or training range is in violation of laws and rules
13 and is causing an unreasonable risk of injury or death to
14 humans or the environment;
15 2. The department has presented scientifically
16 accepted documentation of contamination at the sport shooting
17 or training range to the sport shooting and training range
18 owner, operator, tenant, or occupant;
19 3. The department has made a reasonable effort to
20 obtain permission from the sport shooting or training range
21 owner, operator, tenant, or occupant for entrance for the
22 purpose of environmental cleanup;
23 4. The department has given 120 days' notice to the
24 sport shooting or training range owner, operator, tenant, or
25 occupant of the department's intent to enter the site for the
26 purpose of an environmental cleanup; and
27 5. The sport shooting or training range owner,
28 operator, tenant, or occupant has given permission to the
29 department to conduct the environmental cleanup.
30 (d) In the event that the department has complied with
31 the requirements of subparagraphs (c)1.-4. and been denied
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1 permission to conduct the environmental cleanup, the
2 department may seek judicial intervention for the purpose of
3 fulfilling its duties.
4 (e) Should the department seek judicial intervention
5 as authorized in paragraph (d), the owner, operator, tenant,
6 or occupant shall have the opportunity to rebut the
7 department's claims.
8 (f) Should the department seek judicial intervention,
9 the prevailing party may recover related costs and fees from
10 the other party or parties.
11 (g) Upon this act becoming law, the department shall
12 initially notify those sport shooting and training ranges
13 known to the department of the passage of this act and the
14 rights and obligations of range owners and operators under
15 this act.
16 (h) No later than October 1, 2004, the department
17 shall establish a range identification process to identify the
18 ownership and location of all sport shooting and training
19 ranges in the state. The department is authorized to develop
20 the guidelines necessary to implement the range identification
21 process. However, the process for developing the guidelines by
22 the department shall be strictly limited to the following
23 activities:
24 1. In establishing the identification process, the
25 department shall make a reasonable effort to notify the public
26 of the identification requirements which shall include
27 providing legal notice as provided in chapter 50.
28 2. Any costs associated with this identification
29 process shall be borne by the department.
30 3. The department shall develop an education program
31 to assist identified ranges and to promote the use of
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1 best-management practices that can be implemented to limit
2 environmental impacts associated with the operation of the
3 ranges.
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5 Any owner of a sport shooting or training range must identify
6 themselves to the department in accordance with department
7 guidelines and provide, at a minimum, the name and legal
8 address of the owner and the address and legal description of
9 the range. Owners of ranges in existence on or before October
10 1, 2004, must identify themselves to the department by
11 September 30, 2005. Owners of ranges established after October
12 1, 2004, must identify themselves to the department within 1
13 year of the establishment of the ranges.
14 (i) Sport shooting or training ranges that have been
15 identified to the department by September 30, 2005, may not be
16 required to pay for the initial environmental cleanup,
17 whenever it occurs, and the cost of the contamination
18 assessment and the initial environmental cleanup shall be
19 borne by the state. The cost of any subsequent cleanup will be
20 done at the expense of the owner, operator, tenant, or
21 occupant of the range. The cost of environmental cleanups
22 conducted at ranges that have identified themselves to the
23 department after September 30, 2005, shall be borne by the
24 owner, operator, tenant, or occupant of the range. The
25 liability protection in subsection (4) terminates after the
26 initial environmental cleanup is completed by the department.
27 (j) A county, municipality, town, special purpose
28 district, other political subdivision, or any other government
29 entity in the state may not initiate any site investigation or
30 any other activity related to environmental issues or cleanup
31 of sport shooting or training ranges unless such activity is
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1 specifically permitted by the Department of Environmental
2 Protection and is under the direct supervision of the
3 department.
4 (k) The department may use funds from the Water
5 Quality Assurance Trust Fund for expenses associated with this
6 act.
7 (l) This section does not relieve the state of its
8 duty to absorb the costs of environmental cleanups of sport
9 shooting or training ranges under other circumstances.
10 (m) The department may not initiate a range cleanup
11 unless funding is available to complete the cleanup project.
12 The department shall work with ranges to develop, with
13 reasonable certainty, estimates of the time necessary to clean
14 up each range and shall strictly adhere to a reasonable time
15 frame, consistent with the principles of risk-based corrective
16 action. Once a cleanup has begun, the department shall
17 proceed, without delay until completion, utilizing the most
18 fiscally responsible approach.
19 (8) PREEMPTION.--Notwithstanding any other provision
20 of law, the Legislature preempts the entire field of
21 regulating the environmental effects of projectile deposition
22 at sport shooting and training ranges.
23 (9) CONSTRUCTION.--This section shall be liberally
24 construed to effectuate its remedial and deterrent purposes.
25 Section 2. This act shall take effect upon becoming a
26 law.
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1 STATEMENT OF SUBSTANTIAL CHANGES CONTAINED IN
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR
2 CS/SB 1156
3
4 1. Provides limited liability for, rather than blanket
immunity from claims relating to the depositing of
5 projectiles and their effect on the environment, to
shooting ranges, and parties associated with the ranges,
6 as identified to the Department of Environmental
Regulation by September 30, 2005.
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2. Changes the potential criminal penalty for bringing an
8 action in violation of the bill from a third degree
felony to a first degree misdemeanor. Provides that the
9 criminal penalty may be imposed if any action pending as
a January 1, 2004, is not withdrawn within 30 days of the
10 bill becoming law.
11 3. Provides that no state agency or other political
subdivision may benefit financially or otherwise from an
12 action that is pending as of January 1, 2004, in which a
judgment, legal action, or other recourse has been
13 entered. The CS requires the agency or political
subdivision to pay costs and fees associated with the
14 litigation as well as damages, economic or otherwise that
resulted from the litigation.
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4. Deletes the potential for treble damages being available
16 to a claimant injured as a result of a claim filed in
violation of the newly-created statute. The potential
17 claimants who may recover under this provision are
limited to: any private or public owner, operator,
18 employee, agent, contractor, customer, or user of a
range.
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5. The CS creates certain duties and methods by which they
20 may be carried out, within the Department of
Environmental Protection.
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6. The CS provides that the Department may seek judicial
22 intervention under certain circumstances, in order to
carry out its duties, and that the prevailing party shall
23 recover costs associated with the litigation.
24 7. The CS creates a duty to use risk-based corrective
action, using the most fiscally responsible approach in
25 the cleanup process.
26 8. The CS requires the Department to notify ranges when the
Act passes.
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9. The CS directs the Department to develop and implement a
28 range identification process. Ranges identified to the
Department by September 30, 2005, may not be required to
29 pay for the cost of the initial cleanup. The limited
liability protection is lifted after the initial cleanup
30 by the Department of Environmental Regulation.
31 10. The CS restricts governmental entities other than the
state from initiating any activity related to
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1 environmental issues, except under certain restricted
circumstances.
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11. The CS provides that funds from the Water Quality
3 Assurance Trust Fund may be used for expenses associated
with this Act.
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