| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to the use of state facilities as |
| 3 | emergency shelters; amending s. 252.385, F.S.; providing |
| 4 | for use of certain state facilities as emergency shelters; |
| 5 | requiring the Department of Management Services to list |
| 6 | state-owned facilities that are suitable for use as |
| 7 | emergency shelters; providing requirements with respect to |
| 8 | such listing; defining terms; providing an effective date. |
| 9 |
|
| 10 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 11 |
|
| 12 | Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (4) of section |
| 13 | 252.385, Florida Statutes, is amended, and paragraph (d) is |
| 14 | added to that subsection, to read: |
| 15 | 252.385 Public shelter space.-- |
| 16 | (4)(a) Public facilities, including schools, postsecondary |
| 17 | education facilities, and other facilities owned or leased by |
| 18 | the state or local governments, but excluding hospitals or |
| 19 | nursing homes, which are suitable for use as public hurricane |
| 20 | evacuation shelters shall be made available at the request of |
| 21 | the local emergency management agencies. Such agencies shall |
| 22 | coordinate with the appropriate school board, university, |
| 23 | community college, state agency, or local governing board when |
| 24 | requesting the use of such facilities as public hurricane |
| 25 | evacuation shelters. |
| 26 | (d) The Department of Management Services shall include in |
| 27 | the annual state facilities inventory report required under ss. |
| 28 | 216.015-216.016 a separate list of state-owned facilities, |
| 29 | including, but not limited to, meeting halls, auditoriums, |
| 30 | conference centers, and training centers that have unoccupied |
| 31 | space suitable for use as an emergency shelter during a storm or |
| 32 | other catastrophic event. Facilities must be listed by the |
| 33 | county and municipality where the facility is located and must |
| 34 | be made available in accordance with paragraph (a). As used in |
| 35 | this paragraph, the term "suitable for use as an emergency |
| 36 | shelter" means meeting the standards set by the American Red |
| 37 | Cross for a hurricane evacuation shelter, and the term |
| 38 | "unoccupied" means vacant due to suspended operation or nonuse. |
| 39 | The list must be updated by May 31 of each year. |
| 40 | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2006. |