| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to environmental permits; amending s. |
| 3 | 218.075, F.S.; providing for an entity created by special |
| 4 | act, local ordinance, or interlocal agreement of a county |
| 5 | or municipality to receive certain reduced or waived |
| 6 | permit processing fees; requiring that the project for |
| 7 | which such fee reduction or waiver is sought serves a |
| 8 | public purpose; amending s. 373.118, F.S.; requiring that |
| 9 | the Department of Environmental Protection initiate |
| 10 | rulemaking to adopt a general permit for stormwater |
| 11 | management systems serving airside activities at airports; |
| 12 | providing for statewide application of the general permit; |
| 13 | providing for any water management district or delegated |
| 14 | local government to administer the general permit; |
| 15 | providing that the rules are not subject to any special |
| 16 | rulemaking requirements relating to small business; |
| 17 | creating s. 373.4131, F.S.; authorizing certain |
| 18 | municipalities and counties to adopt stormwater adaptive |
| 19 | management plans and obtain conceptual permits for urban |
| 20 | redevelopment projects; providing requirements for |
| 21 | establishment of such permits by water management |
| 22 | districts in consultation with the Department of |
| 23 | Environmental Protection; providing that certain urban |
| 24 | redevelopment projects qualify for a noticed general |
| 25 | permit; providing an effective date. |
| 26 |
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| 27 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 28 |
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| 29 | Section 1. Section 218.075, Florida Statutes, is amended |
| 30 | to read: |
| 31 | 218.075 Reduction or waiver of permit processing fees.- |
| 32 | Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Department of |
| 33 | Environmental Protection and the water management districts |
| 34 | shall reduce or waive permit processing fees for counties with a |
| 35 | population of 50,000 or fewer less on April 1, 1994, until such |
| 36 | counties exceed a population of 75,000 and municipalities with a |
| 37 | population of 25,000 or fewer; an entity created by special act, |
| 38 | local ordinance, or interlocal agreement of such counties or |
| 39 | municipalities; less, or any county or municipality not included |
| 40 | within a metropolitan statistical area. Fee reductions or |
| 41 | waivers shall be approved on the basis of fiscal hardship or |
| 42 | environmental need for a particular project or activity. The |
| 43 | governing body must certify that the cost of the permit |
| 44 | processing fee is a fiscal hardship due to one of the following |
| 45 | factors: |
| 46 | (1) Per capita taxable value is less than the statewide |
| 47 | average for the current fiscal year; |
| 48 | (2) Percentage of assessed property value that is exempt |
| 49 | from ad valorem taxation is higher than the statewide average |
| 50 | for the current fiscal year; |
| 51 | (3) Any condition specified in s. 218.503(1) which results |
| 52 | in the county or municipality being in a state of financial |
| 53 | emergency; |
| 54 | (4) Ad valorem operating millage rate for the current |
| 55 | fiscal year is greater than 8 mills; or |
| 56 | (5) A financial condition that is documented in annual |
| 57 | financial statements at the end of the current fiscal year and |
| 58 | indicates an inability to pay the permit processing fee during |
| 59 | that fiscal year. |
| 60 |
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| 61 | The permit applicant must be the governing body of a county or |
| 62 | municipality, or a third party under contract with a county or |
| 63 | municipality, or an entity created by special act, local |
| 64 | ordinance, or interlocal agreement, and the project for which |
| 65 | the fee reduction or waiver is sought must serve a public |
| 66 | purpose. If a permit processing fee is reduced, the total fee |
| 67 | may shall not exceed $100. |
| 68 | Section 2. Subsection (6) is added to section 373.118, |
| 69 | Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 70 | 373.118 General permits; delegation.- |
| 71 | (6) By July 1, 2011, the department shall initiate |
| 72 | rulemaking to adopt a general permit for stormwater management |
| 73 | systems serving airside activities at airports. The general |
| 74 | permit applies statewide and shall be administered by any water |
| 75 | management district or any delegated local government pursuant |
| 76 | to the operating agreements applicable to part IV of this |
| 77 | chapter, with no additional rulemaking required. These rules are |
| 78 | not subject to any special rulemaking requirements related to |
| 79 | small business. |
| 80 | Section 3. Section 373.4131, Florida Statutes, is created |
| 81 | to read: |
| 82 | 373.4131 Conceptual permits for urban redevelopment |
| 83 | projects.- |
| 84 | (1) A municipality or county that has created a community |
| 85 | redevelopment area or an urban infill and redevelopment area |
| 86 | pursuant to chapter 163 may adopt a stormwater adaptive |
| 87 | management plan that addresses the quantity and quality of |
| 88 | stormwater discharges for the redevelopment or infill area and |
| 89 | may obtain a conceptual permit from the water management |
| 90 | district or the Department of Environmental Protection. |
| 91 | (2) The conceptual permit established by a water |
| 92 | management district in consultation with the department: |
| 93 | (a) Must allow for the rate and volume of stormwater |
| 94 | discharges for stormwater management systems of urban |
| 95 | redevelopment projects located within a community redevelopment |
| 96 | area created under part III of chapter 163 or an urban infill |
| 97 | and redevelopment area designated under s. 163.2517 to continue |
| 98 | up to the maximum rate and volume of stormwater discharges |
| 99 | within the area as of the date the stormwater adaptive |
| 100 | management plan was adopted. |
| 101 | (b) Must presume that stormwater discharges for stormwater |
| 102 | management systems of urban redevelopment projects located |
| 103 | within a community redevelopment area created under part III of |
| 104 | chapter 163 or an urban infill and redevelopment area designated |
| 105 | under s. 163.2517 that demonstrate a net improvement of the |
| 106 | quality of the discharged water that existed as of the date the |
| 107 | stormwater adaptive management plan was adopted for any |
| 108 | applicable pollutants of concern in the receiving water body do |
| 109 | not cause or contribute to violations of water quality criteria. |
| 110 | (c) May not prescribe additional or more stringent |
| 111 | limitations concerning the quantity and quality of stormwater |
| 112 | discharges from stormwater management systems than provided in |
| 113 | this section. |
| 114 | (d) Shall be issued for a duration of 20 years, and may be |
| 115 | renewed, unless a shorter duration is requested by the |
| 116 | applicant. |
| 117 | (3) Urban redevelopment projects that meet the criteria |
| 118 | established in the conceptual permit pursuant to this section |
| 119 | qualify for a noticed general permit that authorizes |
| 120 | construction and operation for the duration of the conceptual |
| 121 | permit. |
| 122 | Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2011. |