HB 73

1	A bill to be entitled
2	An act relating to expedited permitting process for
3	economic development projects; providing a short title;
4	creating s. 380.0657, F.S.; requiring the Department of
5	Environmental Protection and water management districts to
6	adopt programs to expedite the processing of permits for
7	certain economic development projects; providing an
8	exception; requiring municipalities and counties to
9	identify certain businesses by commission resolution;
10	requiring a preapplication review; providing a timeframe
11	for permit application approval or denial; providing that
12	projects designated as target industry businesses and
13	located in charter counties that meet certain criteria are
14	eligible for expedited permitting; providing an effective
15	date.
16
17	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
18
19	Section 1.  This act may be cited as the "Mike McHugh Act."
20	Section 2.  Section 380.0657, Florida Statutes, is created
21	to read:
22	380.0657  Expedited permitting process for economic
23	development projects.--
24	(1)  The Department of Environmental Protection and, as
25	appropriate, the water management districts created under
26	chapter 373 shall adopt programs to expedite the processing of
27	wetland resource and environmental resource permits for economic
28	development projects that have been identified by a municipality
29	or county as meeting the definition of target industry
30	businesses under s. 288.106, with the exception of those
31	projects requiring approval by the Board of Trustees of the
32	Internal Improvement Trust Fund.
33	(2)  A municipality or county shall provide an identified
34	business with a city or county commission resolution identifying
35	the business as a targeted industry business.
36	(3)  A mandatory preapplication review process shall be
37	required to reduce permitting conflicts by providing guidance to
38	applicants regarding the permits needed from each agency and
39	governmental entity, site planning and development, site
40	suitability and limitations, facility design, and steps the
41	applicant can take to ensure expeditious permit application
42	review.
43	(4)  A permit application shall be approved or denied
44	within 45 days after receipt of the original application, the
45	last item of timely requested additional material, or the
46	applicant's written request to begin processing the permit
47	application.
48	(5)  Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, permit
49	applications for projects to be located in a charter county that
50	has a population of 1.2 million or more and has entered into a
51	delegation agreement with the Department of Environmental
52	Protection or the applicable water management district to
53	process environmental resource permits, wetland resource
54	management permits, or surface water management permits pursuant
55	to chapter 373 are eligible for expedited permitting under this
56	section only upon designation by resolution of the charter
57	county's governing board. Before the governing board decides
58	that a project is eligible for expedited permitting, it may
59	require the county's economic development agency, or such other
60	agency that provides advice to the governing board on economic
61	matters, to review and recommend whether the project meets the
62	definition of a target industry business as defined in s.
63	288.106 and to identify the tangible benefits and impacts of the
64	project. The governing board's decision shall be made without
65	consideration of the project's geographic location within the
66	charter county. If the governing board designates the project as
67	a target industry business, the permit application for the
68	project shall be approved or denied within the timeframe
69	provided in subsection (4).
70	Section 3.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2009.

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.