Florida Senate - 2010 CS for SB 142
By the Committee on Governmental Oversight and Accountability;
and Senators Baker and Dean
585-04975-10 2010142c1
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to water management districts;
3 amending s. 298.66, F.S.; revising provisions relating
4 to the obstruction of public canals and drainage
5 works; amending s. 373.079, F.S.; revising the
6 requirement that the district governing board delegate
7 its authority to take final actions to the executive
8 director; requiring the board to provide a process for
9 referring denials to the board for final action;
10 amending s. 373.083, F.S.; revising the board’s
11 authority to delegate final actions to the executive
12 director; amending s. 373.085, F.S.; requiring the
13 districts and other governmental agencies to encourage
14 public-private partnerships in order to promote water
15 supply development and conservation of lands; amending
16 s. 373.118, F.S.; requiring the board to provide a
17 process for referring certain delegated actions to the
18 governing board for final action; providing an
19 effective date.
20
21 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
22
23 Section 1. Section 298.66, Florida Statutes, is amended to
24 read:
25 298.66 Obstruction of drainage canals, etc., prohibited;
26 damages; penalties.—
27 (1) A No person may not willfully, or otherwise, obstruct
28 any public canal, drain, ditch or watercourse or damage or
29 destroy any public drainage works constructed in, or maintained
30 by, a any district.
31 (2)(1) Any person who shall willfully obstructs obstruct
32 any public canal, drain, ditch or watercourse or damages or
33 destroys shall damage or destroy any public drainage works
34 constructed in, or maintained by, a any district is, shall be
35 liable to any person injured thereby for the full amount of the
36 injury occasioned to any land or crops or other property by
37 reason of such misconduct, and is shall be liable to the
38 district constructing the drainage said work for double the cost
39 of removing the such obstruction or repairing the such damage.
40 (3)(2) Any person who Whoever shall willfully, or
41 otherwise, obstructs obstruct any public canal, drain, ditch, or
42 watercourse, impedes or obstructs or impede or obstruct the flow
43 of water therein, or damages or destroys shall damage or destroy
44 any public drainage works constructed in, or maintained by, a
45 any district commits shall be guilty of a felony of the third
46 degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s.
47 775.084.
48 Section 2. Subsection (4) of section 373.079, Florida
49 Statutes, is amended to read:
50 373.079 Members of governing board; oath of office; staff.—
51 (4)(a) The governing board of the district shall is
52 authorized to employ:
53 (a) An executive director, ombudsman, and such engineers,
54 other professional persons, and other personnel and assistants
55 as it deems necessary and under such terms and conditions as it
56 may determine and to terminate such employment. The appointment
57 of an executive director by the governing board is subject to
58 approval by the Governor and must be initially confirmed by the
59 Florida Senate. The governing board may delegate all or part of
60 its authority under this paragraph to the executive director.
61 However, the governing board shall delegate to the executive
62 director all of its authority to take final action on permit
63 applications under part II or part IV or petitions for variances
64 or waivers of permitting requirements under part II or part IV,
65 except for denials of such actions as provided in s. 373.083(5).
66 The governing board must provide a process for referring the
67 denial of such application or petition to the governing board
68 for the purpose of taking final action. The executive director
69 may execute such delegated authority through designated staff
70 members. Such delegations are shall not be subject to the
71 rulemaking under requirements of chapter 120. The executive
72 director must be confirmed by the Senate upon employment and
73 must be confirmed or reconfirmed by the Senate during the second
74 regular session of the Legislature following a gubernatorial
75 election.
76 (b)1. The governing board of each water management district
77 shall employ An inspector general, who shall report directly to
78 the board. However, the governing boards of the Suwannee River
79 Water Management District and the Northwest Florida Water
80 Management District may jointly employ an inspector general, or
81 provide for inspector general services by interagency agreement
82 with a state agency or water management district inspector
83 general.
84 2. An inspector general must have the same qualifications
85 prescribed and perform the applicable duties of state agency
86 inspectors general as provided in s. 20.055.
87 Section 3. Subsection (5) of section 373.083, Florida
88 Statutes, is amended to read:
89 373.083 General powers and duties of the governing board.
90 In addition to other powers and duties allowed it by law, the
91 governing board is authorized to:
92 (5) Execute any of the powers, duties, and functions vested
93 in the governing board through a member or members thereof, the
94 executive director, or other district staff as designated by the
95 governing board. The governing board may establish the scope and
96 terms of any delegation. However, if the governing board
97 delegates shall delegate to the executive director all of its
98 authority to take final action on permit applications under part
99 II or part IV or petitions for variances or waivers of
100 permitting requirements under part II or part IV, and the
101 executive director may execute such delegated authority through
102 designated staff. Such delegations are shall not be subject to
103 the rulemaking under requirements of chapter 120. However, the
104 governing board must shall provide a process for referring a any
105 denial of such application or petition to the governing board
106 for the purpose of taking to take final action. Such process
107 shall expressly prohibit any member of a governing board from
108 intervening in any manner during the review of an application
109 prior to such application being referred to the governing board
110 for final action. The authority to delegate under in this
111 subsection is supplemental to any other provision of this
112 chapter granting authority to the governing board to delegate
113 specific powers, duties, or functions.
114 Section 4. Subsection (1) of section 373.085, Florida
115 Statutes, is amended to read:
116 373.085 Use of works or land by other districts or private
117 persons.—
118 (1) The governing board may has authority to prescribe the
119 manner in which local works provided by other districts or by
120 private persons will connect with and make use of the works or
121 land of the district, to issue permits therefor, and to cancel
122 the permits for noncompliance with the conditions thereof or for
123 other cause. It is unlawful to connect with or make use of the
124 works or land of the district without consent in writing from
125 its governing board, and the board may has authority to prevent
126 or, if done, estop or terminate the same. The use of the works
127 or land of the district for access is governed by this section
128 and is not subject to the provisions of s. 704.01. However, any
129 land or works of the district which have historically been used
130 for public access to the ocean by means of the North New River
131 Canal and its tributaries may not be closed for this purpose
132 unless the district can demonstrate that significant harm to the
133 resource would result from such public use. In order to promote
134 water quantity and resource development, projects that improve
135 flood control, and the conservation of lands, the districts and
136 other governmental agencies shall encourage public-private
137 partnerships by collaborating, if possible, with those
138 partnerships when procuring materials for infrastructure and
139 restoration works, consistent with district and state
140 procurement procedures.
141 Section 5. Subsection (5) is added to section 373.118,
142 Florida Statutes, to read:
143 373.118 General permits; delegation.—
144 (5) To improve efficiency, the governing board may delegate
145 by rule its powers and duties pertaining to general permits to
146 the executive director. The executive director may execute such
147 delegated authority through designated staff. However, when
148 delegating the authority to take final action on permit
149 applications under part II or part IV or petitions for variances
150 or waivers of permitting requirements under part II or part IV,
151 the governing board must provide a process for referring a
152 denial of such application or petition to the governing board
153 for the purpose of taking final action. Such delegations are not
154 subject to rulemaking under chapter 120.
155 Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.