| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to public marinas and boat ramps; amending |
| 3 | s. 373.118, F.S.; directing the Department of |
| 4 | Environmental Protection to adopt rules to authorize local |
| 5 | governments to construct and maintain all facilities, |
| 6 | including public marinas and boat ramps; exempting certain |
| 7 | facilities from development-of-regional-impact review; |
| 8 | providing for regulatory criteria; providing for the use |
| 9 | of submerged lands; amending s. 403.813, F.S.; revising |
| 10 | permit exemption requirements for floating vessel |
| 11 | platforms or floating boat lifts; providing an effective |
| 12 | date. |
| 13 |
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| 14 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 15 |
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| 16 | Section 1. Subsection (5) is added to section 373.118, |
| 17 | Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 18 | 373.118 General permits.-- |
| 19 | (5) The department shall adopt by rule one or more general |
| 20 | permits for local governments to construct, operate, and |
| 21 | maintain public marina facilities, public mooring fields, public |
| 22 | boat ramps, including associated courtesy docks, and associated |
| 23 | parking facilities located in uplands. Such general permits |
| 24 | adopted by rule shall include provisions to ensure compliance |
| 25 | with subsection (1), part IV of this chapter, and the criteria |
| 26 | necessary to include the general permits in a state programmatic |
| 27 | general permit issued by the United States Army Corps of |
| 28 | Engineers under s. 404 of the Clean Water Act, Pub. L. No. 92- |
| 29 | 500, as amended, 33 U.S.C. ss. 1251 et seq. A facility |
| 30 | authorized under such general permits is exempt from review as a |
| 31 | development of regional impact if the facility complies with the |
| 32 | comprehensive plan of the applicable local government. Such |
| 33 | facilities shall be consistent with the local government manatee |
| 34 | protection plan required pursuant to ch. 370 and shall obtain |
| 35 | Clean Marina Program status prior to opening for operation and |
| 36 | maintain that status for the life of the facility. Marinas |
| 37 | authorized under any such general permit shall not exceed an |
| 38 | area of 50,000 square feet over wetlands and other surface |
| 39 | waters. The department shall initiate the rulemaking process |
| 40 | within 60 days after the effective date of this act. |
| 41 | Section 2. Paragraph (s) of subsection (2) of section |
| 42 | 403.813, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 43 | 403.813 Permits issued at district centers; exceptions.-- |
| 44 | (2) A permit is not required under this chapter, chapter |
| 45 | 373, chapter 61-691, Laws of Florida, or chapter 25214 or |
| 46 | chapter 25270, 1949, Laws of Florida, for activities associated |
| 47 | with the following types of projects; however, except as |
| 48 | otherwise provided in this subsection, nothing in this |
| 49 | subsection relieves an applicant from any requirement to obtain |
| 50 | permission to use or occupy lands owned by the Board of Trustees |
| 51 | of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund or any water management |
| 52 | district in its governmental or proprietary capacity or from |
| 53 | complying with applicable local pollution control programs |
| 54 | authorized under this chapter or other requirements of county |
| 55 | and municipal governments: |
| 56 | (s) The construction, installation, operation, or |
| 57 | maintenance of floating vessel platforms or floating boat lifts, |
| 58 | provided that such structures: |
| 59 | 1. Float at all times in the water for the sole purpose of |
| 60 | supporting a vessel so that the vessel is out of the water when |
| 61 | not in use; |
| 62 | 2. Are wholly contained within a boat slip previously |
| 63 | permitted under ss. 403.91-403.929, 1984 Supplement to the |
| 64 | Florida Statutes 1983, as amended, or part IV of chapter 373; |
| 65 | are, or, when associated with a dock that is exempt under this |
| 66 | subsection or a permitted dock with no defined boat slip and, do |
| 67 | not exceed a combined total of 500 square feet, or 200 square |
| 68 | feet in an Outstanding Florida Water; or are attached to a |
| 69 | bulkhead on a parcel of land where there is no other docking |
| 70 | structure and do not exceed a combined total of 1,000 square |
| 71 | feet outside of Outstanding Florida Waters, 500 square feet |
| 72 | within an Outstanding Florida Water that is not an aquatic |
| 73 | preserve, or 200 square feet within an aquatic preserve; |
| 74 | 3. Are not used for any commercial purpose or for mooring |
| 75 | vessels that remain in the water when not in use, and do not |
| 76 | substantially impede the flow of water, create a navigational |
| 77 | hazard, or unreasonably infringe upon the riparian rights of |
| 78 | adjacent property owners, as defined in s. 253.141; |
| 79 | 4. Are constructed and used so as to minimize adverse |
| 80 | impacts to submerged lands, wetlands, shellfish areas, aquatic |
| 81 | plant and animal species, and other biological communities, |
| 82 | including locating such structures in areas where no seagrasses |
| 83 | are least dense exist if such areas are present adjacent to the |
| 84 | dock or bulkhead; and |
| 85 | 5. Are not constructed in areas specifically prohibited |
| 86 | for boat mooring under conditions of a permit issued in |
| 87 | accordance with ss. 403.91-403.929, 1984 Supplement to the |
| 88 | Florida Statutes 1983, as amended, or part IV of chapter 373, or |
| 89 | other form of authorization issued by a local government. |
| 90 |
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| 91 | Structures that qualify for this exemption are relieved from any |
| 92 | requirement to obtain permission to use or occupy lands owned by |
| 93 | the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund and |
| 94 | shall not be subject to any permitting requirement, registration |
| 95 | requirement, or other more stringent regulation by any local |
| 96 | government. The exemption provided in this paragraph shall be in |
| 97 | addition to the exemption provided in paragraph (b). By January |
| 98 | 1, 2006 2003, the department shall adopt a general permit by |
| 99 | rule for the construction, installation, operation, or |
| 100 | maintenance of those floating vessel platforms or floating boat |
| 101 | lifts that do not qualify for the exemption provided in this |
| 102 | paragraph but do not cause significant adverse impacts to occur |
| 103 | individually or cumulatively. The issuance of such general |
| 104 | permit shall also constitute permission to use or occupy lands |
| 105 | owned by the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust |
| 106 | Fund. Structures that qualify for Upon the adoption of the rule |
| 107 | creating such general permit shall not be subject to any |
| 108 | permitting requirement, registration requirement, or other more |
| 109 | stringent regulation by any, no local government shall impose a |
| 110 | more stringent regulation on floating vessel platforms or |
| 111 | floating boat lifts covered by such general permit. |
| 112 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2005. |