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A bill to be entitled

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An act relating to inland navigation; amending s. 374.975,

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F.S.; providing that operation and maintenance of the

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Intracoastal Waterway and certain other public navigation

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channels by inland navigation districts is in the public

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interest; amending s. 374.976, F.S.; authorizing inland

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navigation districts to aid and cooperate with certain

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nonmember counties, certain seaports, and navigation

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districts in planning and carrying out certain projects

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concerning waterways; authorizing inland navigation

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districts to furnish assistance and support to seaports in

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planning and carrying out projects concerning waterway-

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related access; amending s. 374.977, F.S.; requiring that

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the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission assume

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certain responsibilities for posting and maintaining

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regulatory markers concerning manatee protection speed

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zones; allowing the commission to apply to inland

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navigation districts for funding to assist with this

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responsibility; amending s. 403.813, F.S.; removing

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provisions requiring the Secretary of Environmental

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Protection to adopt procedural rules for certain dredge

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and fill projects; revising requirements governing

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maintenance dredging by inland navigation districts and

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certain seaports; granting mixing zones; authorizing

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discharge of the return water from the site for the

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disposal of the dredged material under certain conditions;

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defining the term "manmade waters"; prohibiting the state

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from charging an inland navigation district or a public

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port authority for certain removed materials; authorizing

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the use of flocculants at a site for the disposal of

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dredged material under certain conditions; authorizing the

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Department of Environmental Protection to develop and

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maintain a list concerning the use of flocculants;

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providing that publication of the list is not a rule;

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authorizing the department to approve the use of a

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flocculant that is not on the list under specified

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conditions; providing an effective date.

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Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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     Section 1.  Subsection (1) of section 374.975, Florida

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Statutes, is amended to read:

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     374.975  Inland navigation districts; legislative intent.--

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     (1)  The Legislature hereby recognizes the continuing need

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for inland navigation districts to undertake programs necessary

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to accomplish the purposes of construction, maintenance, and

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operation of Florida's inland waterways pursuant to s. 107 of the

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federal River and Harbor Act of 1960, (33 U.S.C. s. 577,) and

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that it is in the public interest for inland navigation districts

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to operate and maintain the intracoastal waterway and any other

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public navigation channels authorized by the Board of Trustees of

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the Internal Improvement Trust Fund.

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     Section 2.  Paragraph (c) of subsection (1) and subsection

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(4) of section 374.976, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:

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     374.976  Authority to address impacts of waterway

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development projects.--

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     (1)  Each inland navigation district is empowered and

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authorized to undertake programs intended to alleviate the

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problems associated with its waterway or waterways, including,

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but not limited to, the following:

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     (c)  The district is authorized to aid and cooperate with

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the Federal Government, state, member counties, nonmember

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counties that contain any part of the intracoastal waterway

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within their boundaries, navigation districts, the seaports of

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Jacksonville, Port Canaveral, Fort Pierce, Palm Beach, Port

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Everglades, Miami, Port Manatee, St. Petersburg, Tampa, Port St.

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Joe, Panama City, Pensacola, Key West, and Fernandina, and local

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governments within the district in planning and carrying out

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public navigation, local and regional anchorage management, beach

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renourishment, public recreation, inlet management, environmental

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education, and boating safety projects, directly related to the

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waterways. The district is also authorized to enter into

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cooperative agreements with the United States Army Corps of

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Engineers, state, and member counties, and to covenant in any

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such cooperative agreement to pay part of the costs of

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acquisition, planning, development, construction, reconstruction,

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extension, improvement, operation, and maintenance of such

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projects.

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     (4)  The Florida Inland Navigation District may furnish

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assistance and support to seaports for the purpose of planning

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and carrying out dredge material management projects, and other

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environmental mitigation projects, and other projects concerning

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waterway-related access. Port projects shall benefit publicly

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maintained channels and harbors. Any port eligible for funding

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shall be located in a member county of the district, and each

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port shall contribute matching funds for funded projects.

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Financial assistance for such port projects shall not be included

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in calculating the proportional share of ad valorem tax

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collections of the county in which the port is located, provided

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the port seeking assistance demonstrates a regional benefit

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realized from the port's activities. However, the cost of a port

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project funded under pursuant to this section may not exceed the

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proportional share of ad valorem taxation of the counties in the

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district which are benefited by the project.

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     Section 3.  Section 374.977, Florida Statutes, is amended to

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read:

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     374.977  Inland navigation districts; manatee protection

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speed zones, responsibility for sign posting.--The Fish and

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Wildlife Conservation Commission shall assume the Each inland

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navigation district shall be responsible for posting and

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maintaining regulatory markers, as approved by the Fish and

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Wildlife Conservation Commission, for manatee protection speed

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zones. Such responsibility shall not be limited to the

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intracoastal waterway, but shall include all waters within each

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member county for which regulatory markers must be posted. Sign

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locations shall be jointly selected by the Fish and Wildlife

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Conservation Commission and the appropriate inland navigation

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district, pending necessary federal, state, and local approvals.

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Should an inland navigation district lack the resources or

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otherwise be unable to carry out its sign posting and maintenance

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duties, this responsibility for posting and maintaining

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regulatory markers for manatee protection speed zones as posted

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by the inland navigation districts pursuant to a rule adopted by

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the commission under s. 370.12(2). shall then be assumed by The

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Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission may apply to inland

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navigation districts for funding under s. 374.976 to assist with

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implementing its responsibility under this section for

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maintaining regulatory markers for manatee protection speed

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zones.

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     Section 4.  Present subsections (2) and (3) of section

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403.813, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (1)

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and (2), respectively, subsection (1) of that section is

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repealed, and subsection (4) is added to that section to read:

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     403.813  Permits issued at district centers; exceptions.--

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     (4) For maintenance dredging conducted under this section

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by the seaports of Jacksonville, Port Canaveral, Fort Pierce,

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Palm Beach, Port Everglades, Miami, Port Manatee, St. Petersburg,

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Tampa, Port St. Joe, Panama City, Pensacola, Key West, and

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Fernandina or by inland navigation districts:

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     (a) A mixing zone for turbidity is granted within a 100-

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meter radius from the point of dredging while dredging is

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ongoing, except that the mixing zone does not extend into areas

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supporting submerged aquatic vegetation or hardbottom

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communities.

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     (b) The discharge of the return water from the site used

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for the disposal of dredged material shall be allowed only if

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such discharge does not result in a violation of water quality

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standards in the receiving waters. However, any such return-water

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discharge into manmade waters that are not in Monroe County is

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granted a mixing zone for turbidity within a 150-meter radius

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from the point of discharge during and immediately after the

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discharge while dredging is ongoing, except that the mixing zone

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does not extend outside the manmade waters. As used in this

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paragraph, the term "manmade waters" means surface waters that

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were wholly excavated from lands other than wetlands and other

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surface waters or semienclosed port berths.

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     (c) The state may not exact a charge for material that this

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subsection allows a public port or an inland navigation district

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to remove.

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     (d) The use of flocculants at the site used for disposal of

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the dredged material is allowed if the use, including supporting

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documentation, is coordinated in advance with the department and

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the department has determined that the use is not harmful to

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water resources.

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     (e) This subsection does not prohibit maintenance dredging

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of areas where the loss of original design function and

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constructed configuration has been caused by a storm event,

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provided that the dredging is performed as soon as practical

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after the storm event. Maintenance dredging that commences within

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2 years after the storm event shall be presumed to satisfy this

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provision. If more than 2 years are needed to commence the

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maintenance dredging after the storm event, a request for a

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specific time extension to perform the maintenance dredging shall

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be submitted to the department, prior to the end of the 2-year

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period, accompanied by a statement, including supporting

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documentation, demonstrating that contractors are not available

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or that additional time is needed to obtain authorization for the

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maintenance dredging from the United States Army Corps of

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Engineers.

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     Section 5. The Department of Environmental Protection may

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develop and maintain a list of the flocculants that it has

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permitted to be used under part IV of chapter 373, Florida

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Statutes. The list may include information concerning any

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associated testing to determine compliance with state permitting

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standards and information on application rates and methods.

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Publication of this list is not a rule under chapter 120, Florida

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Statutes. This section does not prevent an entity from proposing

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or the department from approving the use of a flocculant that is

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not on the department's list subject to the entity providing the

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necessary documentation required by the department to ensure that

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the use of the flocculant will not cause harm to the water

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resources of the state.

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     Section 6.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2008.