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| 1 | A bill to be entitled | ||
| 2 | An act relating to working waterfronts; defining the term | ||
| 3 | "working waterfront"; providing requirements of counties | ||
| 4 | and governmental entities with respect to working | ||
| 5 | waterfronts; authorizing assessment of a fee to fund | ||
| 6 | public boat ramp construction; requiring a study and | ||
| 7 | report to the Governor and Legislature; providing an | ||
| 8 | effective date. | ||
| 9 | |||
| 10 | WHEREAS, the Legislature recognizes there is a significant | ||
| 11 | interest in the availability and economic impact of public | ||
| 12 | marinas and public boat ramps along the navigable waterways in | ||
| 13 | this state, and | ||
| 14 | WHEREAS, it is the interest of the Legislature that local | ||
| 15 | governmental comprehensive plans encourage the availability of | ||
| 16 | working waterfronts by means of restrictions or incentives, NOW, | ||
| 17 | THEREFORE, | ||
| 18 | |||
| 19 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: | ||
| 20 | |||
| 21 | Section 1. Definition.--As used in this act, the term | ||
| 22 | "working waterfront" means a facility that requires direct | ||
| 23 | access to or location in marine waters and therefore cannot be | ||
| 24 | located inland, including, but not limited to, public marinas, | ||
| 25 | public boat ramps, boat hauling and repair facilities, | ||
| 26 | waterfront recreational facilities, commercial fishing | ||
| 27 | facilities, and boating facilities. | ||
| 28 | Section 2. Requirements.-- | ||
| 29 | (1) For the purpose of funding public boat ramp | ||
| 30 | construction, a county government may assess up to an additional | ||
| 31 | $10 for any vessel less than 40 feet long that can be | ||
| 32 | transported by a trailer within the jurisdiction of the county. | ||
| 33 | (2) Each county government through its comprehensive plan | ||
| 34 | is authorized to provide a sufficient number of boat ramps to | ||
| 35 | achieve a boat trailer parking capacity of 5 percent of the | ||
| 36 | registered available vessels within its jurisdiction by July 1, | ||
| 37 | 2014. | ||
| 38 | (3) A governmental entity that removes a working | ||
| 39 | waterfront facility for any development and thereby limits | ||
| 40 | public access to the working waterfront must replace the | ||
| 41 | facility within its jurisdiction. The replacement facility must | ||
| 42 | be substantially the same, provide similar access to navigable | ||
| 43 | waterways, and be available for use when the existing working | ||
| 44 | waterfront facility is removed. | ||
| 45 | Section 3. Working waterfront study.--The Department of | ||
| 46 | Community Affairs shall commission a study on the economic | ||
| 47 | trends of the working waterfronts of the state and the impact | ||
| 48 | the loss of critical working waterfronts would have on the | ||
| 49 | state's economy. The study shall include, but not be limited to, | ||
| 50 | findings concerning coastal and waterway development trends and | ||
| 51 | their impact on the working waterfronts. The study shall be | ||
| 52 | completed no later than November 1, 2004, and a written report | ||
| 53 | on the conclusions of this study shall be submitted to the | ||
| 54 | Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the | ||
| 55 | House of Representatives. | ||
| 56 | Section 4. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. | ||