CS/CS/CS/HB 981

1
A bill to be entitled
2An act relating to agriculture; amending s. 193.461, F.S.;
3clarifying that land classified as agricultural retains
4that classification when offered for sale under certain
5circumstances; providing for retroactive application;
6providing the methodology for assessing certain structures
7and improvements used for horticultural production;
8amending s. 369.20, F.S.; authorizing the Fish and
9Wildlife Conservation Commission to enter into an
10agreement with the Department of Environmental Protection
11for the uniform regulation of pesticides applied to waters
12of the state; revising exemptions from water pollution
13permits; amending s. 403.088, F.S.; providing permits for
14applying pesticides to the waters of the state; requiring
15the Department of Environmental Protection to enter into
16agreements with the Department of Agriculture and Consumer
17Services and the commission for the uniform regulation of
18pesticides applied to the waters of the state; authorizing
19temporary deviations from certain rule provisions adopted
20by the Department of Environmental Protection for certain
21pesticides under certain conditions; amending s. 487.163,
22F.S.; requiring the Department of Agriculture and Consumer
23Services to enter into an agreement with the Department of
24Environmental Protection for the uniform regulation of
25pesticides applied to the waters of the state; amending s.
26573.112, F.S.; providing that the Citrus Research and
27Development Foundation shall provide advice to the
28Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services with
29respect to citrus research marketing orders, conduct
30citrus research, and perform other duties assigned by the
31department; amending s. 573.118, F.S.; providing for the
32deposit of certain agricultural assessments; revising the
33assessment rate on citrus fruit; amending s. 581.031,
34F.S.; expanding the type of research projects that may be
35conducted by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer
36Services; amending s. 601.07, F.S.; revising the location
37of the executive offices of the Department of Citrus;
38requiring the department and representatives of the state
39pest control industry to submit a report to the
40Legislature; requiring that the report include
41recommendations for changes in the law to provide for
42disciplinary action against licensees of the pest control
43industry under certain circumstances; providing that the
44report may also address additional issues of concern to
45the department and members of the industry; providing an
46effective date.
47
48Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
49
50     Section 1.  Paragraph (b) of subsection (3) and paragraph
51(c) of subsection (6) of section 193.461, Florida Statutes, are
52amended to read:
53     193.461  Agricultural lands; classification and assessment;
54mandated eradication or quarantine program.-
55     (3)
56     (b)  Subject to the restrictions specified set out in this
57section, only lands that which are used primarily for bona fide
58agricultural purposes shall be classified agricultural. The term
59"bona fide agricultural purposes" means good faith commercial
60agricultural use of the land.
61     1.  In determining whether the use of the land for
62agricultural purposes is bona fide, the following factors may be
63taken into consideration:
64     a.1.  The length of time the land has been so used.
65     b.2.  Whether the use has been continuous.
66     c.3.  The purchase price paid.
67     d.4.  Size, as it relates to specific agricultural use, but
68in no event shall a minimum acreage may not be required for
69agricultural assessment.
70     e.5.  Whether an indicated effort has been made to care
71sufficiently and adequately for the land in accordance with
72accepted commercial agricultural practices, including, without
73limitation, fertilizing, liming, tilling, mowing, reforesting,
74and other accepted agricultural practices.
75     f.6.  Whether the such land is under lease and, if so, the
76effective length, terms, and conditions of the lease.
77     g.7.  Such other factors as may from time to time become
78applicable.
79     2.  Offering property for sale does not constitute a
80primary use of land and may not be the basis for denying an
81agricultural classification if the land continues to be used
82primarily for bona fide agricultural purposes while it is being
83offered for sale.
84     (6)
85     (c)1.  For purposes of the income methodology approach to
86assessment of property used for agricultural purposes,
87irrigation systems, including pumps and motors, physically
88attached to the land shall be considered a part of the average
89yields per acre and shall have no separately assessable
90contributory value.
91     2.  Litter containment structures located on producing
92poultry farms and animal waste nutrient containment structures
93located on producing dairy farms shall be assessed by the
94methodology described in subparagraph 1.
95     3.  Structures or improvements used in horticultural
96production for frost or freeze protection, which structures or
97improvements are consistent with the Department of Agriculture
98and Consumer Services' interim measures or best management
99practices adopted pursuant to s. 570.085 or s. 403.067(7)(c),
100shall be assessed by the methodology described in subparagraph
1011.
102     Section 2.  The amendment by this act to s. 193.461(3)(b),
103Florida Statutes, is remedial and clarifying in nature and
104applies retroactively to all parcels for which a final court
105order has not yet been entered as of the effective date of this
106act.
107     Section 3.  Subsections (4) and (9) of section 369.20,
108Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
109     369.20  Florida Aquatic Weed Control Act.-
110     (4)  The commission shall also promote, develop, and
111support research activities directed toward the more effective
112and efficient control of aquatic plants. In the furtherance of
113this purpose, the commission may is authorized to:
114     (a)  Accept donations and grants of funds and services from
115both public and private sources;
116     (b)  Contract or enter into agreements with public or
117private agencies or corporations for research and development of
118aquatic plant control methods or for the performance of aquatic
119plant control activities. The commission may enter into an
120agreement with the Department of Environmental Protection to
121ensure that pesticides applied to the waters of the state are
122regulated uniformly, including provisions for the coordination
123of agency staff and resources, through the implementation of
124permitting, compliance, and enforcement activities under ss.
125403.088 and 403.0885;
126     (c)  Construct, acquire, operate, and maintain facilities
127and equipment; and
128     (d)  Enter upon, or authorize the entry upon, private
129property for purposes of making surveys and examinations and to
130engage in aquatic plant control activities; and such entry shall
131not be deemed a trespass.
132     (9)  A permit issued pursuant to this section for The
133application of herbicides to waters of in the state for the
134control of aquatic plants, algae, or invasive exotic plants is
135exempt from the requirement to obtain a water pollution
136operation permit except as provided in ss. pursuant to s.
137403.088 and 403.0885.
138     Section 4.  Subsection (1) of section 403.088, Florida
139Statutes, is amended to read:
140     403.088  Water pollution operation permits; conditions.-
141     (1)  No person, Without the written authorization of the
142department, a person may not shall discharge any waste into the
143waters of within the state any waste which, by itself or in
144combination with the wastes of other sources, reduces the
145quality of the receiving waters below the classification
146established for such waters them. However, this section does
147shall not be deemed to prohibit the application of pesticides to
148such waters in the state for the control of insects, aquatic
149weeds, or algae, or other pests if provided the application is
150performed in accordance with this section.
151     (a)  Upon execution of the agreement required in s.
152487.163(3), the department may develop a permit or other
153authorization as required by 33 U.S.C. s. 1342 for the
154application of pesticides. A person must obtain such permit or
155other authorization before applying pesticides to the waters of
156the state.
157     (b)  In consultation with the Department of Agriculture and
158Consumer Services and the Fish and Wildlife Conservation
159Commission, the department shall also develop a general permit
160under s. 403.0885(2), for the application of pesticides.
161     (c)  The department shall also enter into agreements with
162the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services pursuant to
163a program approved by the Department of Health, in the case of
164insect or other pest control, and with or the Fish and Wildlife
165Conservation Commission, in the case of aquatic weed, other
166aquatic pests, or algae control. The department is directed to
167enter into interagency agreements to establish the procedures
168for program approval. Such agreements must shall provide for
169public health, welfare, and safety, as well as
170factors, and must ensure that pesticides applied
171the state are regulated uniformly, including provisions for the
172coordination of agency staff and resources, through the
173implementation of permitting, compliance, and enforcement
174activities under s. 403.0885 and this section. Pesticides that
175are Approved programs must provide that only chemicals approved
176for a the particular use by the United States Environmental
177Protection Agency or by the Department of Agriculture and
178Consumer Services may be employed and that they be applied in
179accordance with registered label instructions, state standards
180for such application, including any permit or other
181authorization required by this subsection, and the provisions of
182the Florida Pesticide Law, part I of chapter 487, are allowed a
183temporary deviation from the acute toxicity provisions of the
184department's rule establishing surface water quality standards,
185not to exceed the time necessary to control the target pests and
186only if the application does not reduce the quality of the
187receiving waters below the classification for such waters and is
188not likely to adversely affect any threatened or endangered
189species.
190     Section 5.  Subsection (3) is added to section 487.163,
191Florida Statutes, to read:
192     487.163  Information; interagency cooperation.-
193     (3)  The department shall enter into an agreement with the
194Department of Environmental Protection to ensure that pesticides
195applied to waters of the state are regulated uniformly,
196including provisions for the coordination of agency staff and
197resources, through the implementation of permitting, compliance,
198and enforcement activities under ss. 403.088 and 403.0885.
199     Section 6.  Subsection (7) is added to section 573.112,
200Florida Statutes, to read:
201     573.112  Advisory council.-
202     (7)  Notwithstanding any provision of this section, the
203Citrus Research and Development Foundation, Inc., a direct-
204support organization of the University of Florida established
205pursuant to s. 1004.28, shall serve as the advisory council for
206a citrus research marketing order, provide the department with
207advice on administering the order, and, in accordance with the
208order, conduct citrus research and perform other duties assigned
209by the department. Notwithstanding s. 1004.28(3), the
210foundation's board of directors shall be composed of 13 members,
211including 10 citrus growers, 2 representatives of the
212university's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, and 1
213member appointed by the Commissioner of Agriculture.
214     Section 7.  Subsections (1) and (6) of section 573.118,
215Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
216     573.118  Assessment; funds; audit; loans.-
217     (1)  To provide funds to defray the necessary expenses
218incurred by the department in the formulation, issuance,
219administration, and enforcement of any marketing order, every
220person engaged in the production, distributing, or handling of
221agricultural commodities within this state, and directly
222affected by any marketing order, shall pay to the department, at
223such times and in such installments as the department may
224prescribe, such person's pro rata share of necessary expenses.
225Each person's share of expenses shall be that proportion which
226the total volume of agricultural commodities produced,
227distributed, or handled by the person during the current
228marketing season, or part thereof covered by such marketing
229order, is of the total volume of the commodities produced,
230distributed, or handled by all such persons during the same
231current marketing season or part thereof. The department, after
232receiving the recommendations of the advisory council, shall fix
233the rate of assessment on the volume of agricultural commodities
234sold or some other equitable basis. For convenience of
235collection, upon request of the department, handlers of the
236commodities shall pay any producer assessments. Handlers paying
237assessments for and on behalf of any producers may shall, at
238their discretion, collect the producer assessments from any
239moneys owed by the handlers to the producers. The collected
240assessments shall be deposited into the appropriate General
241Inspection trust fund and shall be used for the sole purpose of
242implementing the marketing order for which the assessment was
243collected. The department is not subject to the procedures found
244in s. 287.057 in the expenditure of these funds. However, the
245director of the Division of Marketing and Development shall file
246with the internal auditor of the department a certification of
247conditions and circumstances justifying each contract or
248agreement entered into without competitive bidding.
249     (6)  An Any assessment levied upon citrus fruit under this
250section may not exceed the rate established in the marketing
251order and shall be at a rate not to exceed 1 cent per standard-
252packed box of citrus fruit grown and placed into the primary
253channel of trade in this state. All revenues from such
254assessment collected by the department shall be deposited into
255the Citrus Inspection Trust Fund.
256     Section 8.  Subsection (32) of section 581.031, Florida
257Statutes, is amended to read:
258     581.031  Department; powers and duties.-The department has
259the following powers and duties:
260     (32)  To The Department of Agriculture and Consumer
261Services shall conduct or cause to be conducted those research
262projects on citrus diseases, including, but not limited to,
263citrus canker and citrus greening, which are recommended by the
264Florida Citrus Production Research and Development Foundation,
265Inc. Advisory Council, within the limits of appropriations made
266specifically for such purpose.
267     Section 9.  Section 601.07, Florida Statutes, is amended to
268read:
269     601.07  Location of executive offices.-The executive
270offices of the Department of Citrus shall be established and
271maintained at Bartow Lakeland.
272     Section 10.  The Department of Agriculture and Consumer
273Services shall meet with duly authorized representatives of
274established organizations representing the state's pest control
275industry and shall prepare and submit a report to the President
276of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the
277chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, and the chair of
278the House Committee on Agribusiness by January 1, 2011. The
279report shall include recommended amendments to chapter 482,
280Florida Statutes, that provide for disciplinary action to be
281taken against licensees who violate laws or rules pertaining to
282the pretreatment of soil to protect newly constructed homes,
283pest control at sensitive facilities such as schools and nursing
284homes, and the fumigation of existing homes for protection
285against termite damage, thereby providing additional safeguards
286for consumers. The report may also address other issues of
287concern to the department and to members of the industry, such
288as changes to requirements for professional liability insurance
289coverage or the amount of bond required, duties and
290responsibilities of a certified operator, issuance of a
291centralized pest control service center license, and limited
292certification for commercial wildlife management personnel.
293     Section 11.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2010.


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