| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to regulation of releases from gambling |
| 3 | vessels; creating s. 376.25, F.S.; providing a short |
| 4 | title; providing definitions; requiring gambling vessels |
| 5 | operating in coastal waters to register with the |
| 6 | Department of Environmental Protection; specifying the |
| 7 | requirements for vessel registration; requiring facilities |
| 8 | in which gambling vessels make berth to establish |
| 9 | procedures for the release of certain substances; |
| 10 | requiring such facilities to establish and collect certain |
| 11 | fees; requiring the reporting of the release of certain |
| 12 | substances into coastal waters by gambling vessels; |
| 13 | providing civil penalties for violations; providing for |
| 14 | fees; requiring the department to adopt rules; directing |
| 15 | the department to petition the Federal Government to |
| 16 | prohibit certain releases within the federal territorial |
| 17 | waters off the shores of this state; providing an |
| 18 | effective date. |
| 19 |
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| 20 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 21 |
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| 22 | Section 1. Section 376.25, Florida Statutes, is created to |
| 23 | read: |
| 24 | 376.25 Gambling vessels; registration; required and |
| 25 | prohibited releases.-- |
| 26 | (1) SHORT TITLE.--This section may be cited as the "Clean |
| 27 | Ocean Act." |
| 28 | (2) DEFINITIONS.--As used in this section: |
| 29 | (a) "Berth" means a facility in which a gambling vessel |
| 30 | lies when at anchor or at a wharf and where passengers embark |
| 31 | and disembark. |
| 32 | (b) "Biomedical waste" has the same meaning as in s. |
| 33 | 381.0098(2)(a). |
| 34 | (c) "Coastal waters" means waters of the Atlantic Ocean or |
| 35 | the Gulf of Mexico within the jurisdiction of the state. |
| 36 | (d) "Department" means the Department of Environmental |
| 37 | Protection. |
| 38 | (e) "Gambling vessel" means a boat, ship, casino boat, |
| 39 | watercraft, or barge that is kept, operated, or maintained for |
| 40 | the purpose of gambling and that carries or operates gambling |
| 41 | devices for the use of its passengers or otherwise provides |
| 42 | facilities for the purpose of gambling, whether within or |
| 43 | without the jurisdiction of this state, and whether the vessel |
| 44 | is anchored, berthed, lying to, or navigating, and the sailing, |
| 45 | voyaging, or cruising, or any segment of the sailing, voyaging, |
| 46 | or cruising, begins and ends within this state. The term |
| 47 | "gambling vessel" does not include a cruise ship as defined in |
| 48 | 33 C.F.R. s. 101.105. |
| 49 | (f) "Hazardous waste" has the same meaning as in s. |
| 50 | 403.703(21). |
| 51 | (g) "Oily bilge water" means bilge water that contains |
| 52 | used lubrication oils, oil sludge and slops, fuel and oil |
| 53 | sludge, used oil, used fuel and fuel filters, and oily waste. |
| 54 | (h) "Release" means any discharge of liquids or solids, |
| 55 | however caused, from a gambling vessel and includes any escape, |
| 56 | disposal, spilling, leaking, pumping, emitting, or emptying. |
| 57 | (i) "Scheduled release" means the release a gambling |
| 58 | vessel would reasonably be expected to make under subsection (4) |
| 59 | after the treated and untreated sewage on the vessel has filled |
| 60 | the waste treatment system and storage areas and holding tanks |
| 61 | of that vessel to their registered capacities. |
| 62 | (j) "Sewage" means human body waste and the waste from |
| 63 | toilets and other receptacles intended to receive or retain |
| 64 | human body waste and includes any material that has been |
| 65 | collected or treated through a marine sanitation device, as that |
| 66 | term is used in s. 312 of the Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. s. |
| 67 | 1322, or that is a byproduct of sewage treatment. |
| 68 | (k) "Treated blackwater" means that part of treated sewage |
| 69 | carried off by toilets, urinals, and kitchen drains. |
| 70 | (l) "Treated graywater" means that part of treated sewage |
| 71 | that is not blackwater, including waste from the bath, lavatory, |
| 72 | laundry, and sink, except kitchen sink waste. |
| 73 | (m) "Untreated blackwater" means that part of untreated |
| 74 | sewage carried off by toilets, urinals, and kitchen drains. |
| 75 | (n) "Untreated graywater" means that part of untreated |
| 76 | sewage that is not blackwater, including waste from the bath, |
| 77 | lavatory, laundry, and sink, except kitchen sink waste. |
| 78 | (3) REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS.-- |
| 79 | (a) For each calendar year in which the owner or operator |
| 80 | of a gambling vessel intends to operate, or cause or allow to be |
| 81 | operated, a gambling vessel in coastal waters, the owner or |
| 82 | operator of the vessel shall register with the department. The |
| 83 | registration shall be completed before the gambling vessel of |
| 84 | the owner or operator enters the marine waters of the state in |
| 85 | that calendar year. The registration shall include the following |
| 86 | information: |
| 87 | 1. The vessel owner's business name and, if different, the |
| 88 | vessel operator's business name for each gambling vessel of the |
| 89 | owner or operator which is reasonably expected to be in coastal |
| 90 | waters during the calendar year. |
| 91 | 2. The postal address, e-mail address, telephone number, |
| 92 | and facsimile number of the principal place of each business |
| 93 | identified in subparagraph 1. |
| 94 | 3. The name and address of an agent for service of process |
| 95 | for each business identified under subparagraph 1. The owner and |
| 96 | operator shall continuously maintain a designated agent for |
| 97 | service of process whenever a gambling vessel of the owner or |
| 98 | operator is in coastal waters, and the agent must be an |
| 99 | individual resident of this state, a domestic corporation, or a |
| 100 | foreign corporation having a place of business in and authorized |
| 101 | to do business in this state. |
| 102 | 4. The name or call sign, port of registry, berth |
| 103 | location, and passenger and crew capacity of each of the owner's |
| 104 | or operator's gambling vessels scheduled to be in coastal waters |
| 105 | during the calendar year and after the date of registration. |
| 106 | 5. A description of all waste treatment systems of each |
| 107 | gambling vessel identified under subparagraph 4., including |
| 108 | system type, design, operation, location of all discharge pipes |
| 109 | and valves, and the number and capacity of all storage areas and |
| 110 | holding tanks. |
| 111 | (b) Registration under paragraph (a) shall be executed |
| 112 | under oath by the owner or operator or designated representative |
| 113 | thereof. |
| 114 | (c) Upon request of the department, the registrant shall |
| 115 | submit registration information required under this subsection |
| 116 | electronically. |
| 117 | (4) RELEASE PROCEDURES; DISPOSAL FEE.-- |
| 118 | (a) Each facility in which a gambling vessel makes berth |
| 119 | shall establish procedures for the release of sewage, oily bilge |
| 120 | water, untreated or treated graywater, untreated or treated |
| 121 | blackwater, hazardous waste, and biomedical waste from gambling |
| 122 | vessels at such facilities. |
| 123 | (b) Each facility in which a gambling vessel makes berth |
| 124 | shall establish and collect a fee not to exceed the costs |
| 125 | associated with disposal of the contents identified under |
| 126 | paragraph (a) from a gambling vessel. |
| 127 | (5) NOTIFICATION OF RELEASES.--If a gambling vessel |
| 128 | releases any sewage, oily bilge water, untreated or treated |
| 129 | graywater, untreated or treated blackwater, hazardous waste, or |
| 130 | biomedical waste into coastal waters, the owner or operator of |
| 131 | the vessel shall immediately, but no later than 24 hours after |
| 132 | the release, notify the department of the release. The owner or |
| 133 | operator of the vessel shall include all of the following |
| 134 | information in the notification: |
| 135 | (a) Date of the release. |
| 136 | (b) Time of the release. |
| 137 | (c) Location of the release. |
| 138 | (d) Volume of the release. |
| 139 | (e) Source of the release. |
| 140 | (f) Remedial actions taken to prevent future releases. |
| 141 | (6) PENALTIES.-- |
| 142 | (a) A person who violates this section is subject to a |
| 143 | civil penalty of not more than $50,000 for each violation. |
| 144 | (b) The civil penalty imposed for each separate violation |
| 145 | of this section is separate from, and in addition to, any other |
| 146 | civil penalty imposed for a separate violation under this |
| 147 | subsection or any other provision of law. |
| 148 | (c) In determining the amount of a civil penalty imposed |
| 149 | under this subsection, the department shall take into |
| 150 | consideration all relevant circumstances, including, but not |
| 151 | limited to, the nature, circumstances, extent, and gravity of |
| 152 | the violation. In making this determination, the department |
| 153 | shall consider the degree of toxicity and volume of the release, |
| 154 | the extent of harm caused by the violation, whether the effects |
| 155 | of the violation can be reversed or mitigated, and, with respect |
| 156 | to the defendant, the ability to pay, the effect of a civil |
| 157 | penalty on the ability to continue in business, all voluntary |
| 158 | cleanup efforts undertaken in the past, the prior history of |
| 159 | violations, the gravity of the behavior, the economic benefit, |
| 160 | if any, resulting from the violation, and all other matters the |
| 161 | department determines justice may require. |
| 162 | (7) APPLICABILITY.--This section does not apply to |
| 163 | releases made for the purpose of securing the safety of the |
| 164 | gambling vessel or saving life at sea if all reasonable |
| 165 | precautions have been taken for the purpose of preventing or |
| 166 | minimizing the release. |
| 167 | (8) DEPARTMENT FEES.--The department shall establish and |
| 168 | collect fees to cover the entire cost to the department of |
| 169 | developing and implementing gambling vessel registration, |
| 170 | release tracking, and compliance and enforcement |
| 171 | responsibilities required or authorized under this section. |
| 172 | (9) RULES.--The department shall adopt rules pursuant to |
| 173 | ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to develop online registration |
| 174 | procedures, procedures for determining scheduled releases, the |
| 175 | receipt of fees from vessels, and applicable forms. |
| 176 | Section 2. The Department of Environmental Protection |
| 177 | shall request the appropriate federal agencies to prohibit the |
| 178 | release of all sewage, oily bilge water, untreated or treated |
| 179 | graywater, untreated or treated blackwater, hazardous waste, or |
| 180 | biomedical waste from any gambling vessel within the federal |
| 181 | territorial waters off the shores of this state. |
| 182 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2007. |