| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to fertilizer; amending s. 403.9336, F.S.; |
| 3 | revising legislative findings relating to implementation |
| 4 | of the Model Ordinance for Florida-Friendly Fertilizer Use |
| 5 | on Urban Landscapes; updating reference to the version of |
| 6 | the model ordinance; amending s. 403.9337, F.S.; revising |
| 7 | the authority of county and municipal governments to adopt |
| 8 | fertilizer standards that are in addition to or more |
| 9 | stringent than standards of the model ordinance; requiring |
| 10 | county and municipal governments to report the adoption of |
| 11 | such standards to the Department of Environmental |
| 12 | Protection; providing for applicability of specified |
| 13 | provisions; amending ss. 570.07 and 576.181, F.S.; |
| 14 | requiring the Department of Agriculture and Consumer |
| 15 | Services to regulate the sale, composition, packaging, |
| 16 | labeling, retail and wholesale distribution, and |
| 17 | formulation of fertilizer; preempting such regulation of |
| 18 | fertilizer to the state; exempting certain ordinances |
| 19 | adopted before a specified date from such preemption; |
| 20 | authorizing county and municipal governments to enforce |
| 21 | such ordinances exempt from preemption; providing an |
| 22 | effective date. |
| 23 |
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| 24 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 25 |
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| 26 | Section 1. Section 403.9336, Florida Statutes, is amended |
| 27 | to read: |
| 28 | 403.9336 Legislative findings.-The Legislature finds that |
| 29 | the implementation of the Model Ordinance for Florida-Friendly |
| 30 | Fertilizer Use on Urban Landscapes 2010 (2008), which was |
| 31 | developed by the department in conjunction with the Consumer |
| 32 | Fertilizer Task Force, the Department of Agriculture and |
| 33 | Consumer Services, and the University of Florida Institute of |
| 34 | Food and Agricultural Sciences, will assist in protecting the |
| 35 | quality of the state's Florida's surface water and groundwater |
| 36 | resources. The Legislature further finds that local conditions, |
| 37 | including variations in the types and quality of water bodies, |
| 38 | site-specific soils and geology, and urban or rural densities |
| 39 | and characteristics, may necessitate the implementation of |
| 40 | additional or more stringent fertilizer management practices at |
| 41 | the local government level. |
| 42 | Section 2. Section 403.9337, Florida Statutes, is amended |
| 43 | to read: |
| 44 | 403.9337 Model Ordinance for Florida-Friendly Fertilizer |
| 45 | Use on Urban Landscapes.- |
| 46 | (1) All county and municipal governments are encouraged to |
| 47 | adopt and enforce the most recent version of the Model Ordinance |
| 48 | for Florida-Friendly Fertilizer Use on Urban Landscapes or an |
| 49 | equivalent requirement as a mechanism for protecting local |
| 50 | surface and groundwater quality. |
| 51 | (2) Unless exempt under paragraph (4)(a), each county and |
| 52 | municipal government located within the watershed of a water |
| 53 | body or water segment that is listed as impaired by nutrients |
| 54 | pursuant to s. 403.067, shall, at a minimum, adopt and enforce |
| 55 | the most recent version of the department's Model Ordinance for |
| 56 | Florida-Friendly Fertilizer Use on Urban Landscapes. |
| 57 | (3) Notwithstanding subsection (2), a county or municipal |
| 58 | local government may adopt fertilizer ordinances that establish |
| 59 | standards that are in addition to additional or more stringent |
| 60 | standards than the model ordinance if each of the following |
| 61 | criteria is are met: |
| 62 | (a) The county or municipal local government has |
| 63 | demonstrated, as part of a comprehensive program to address |
| 64 | multiple nonpoint sources of nutrient pollution which is |
| 65 | science-based, and economically and technically feasible, and |
| 66 | the that additional or more stringent standards than the model |
| 67 | ordinance are necessary in order to adequately address urban |
| 68 | fertilizer contributions to nonpoint source nutrient loading to |
| 69 | a water body;. |
| 70 | (b) The county or municipal local government documents |
| 71 | that it has considered all relevant scientific information, |
| 72 | including input from the department, the institute, the |
| 73 | Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, and the |
| 74 | University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural |
| 75 | Sciences, if provided, on the need for additional or more |
| 76 | stringent provisions to address fertilizer use as a contributor |
| 77 | to water quality degradation. All documentation must become part |
| 78 | of the public record before adoption of the additional or more |
| 79 | stringent criteria; and |
| 80 | (c) The county or municipal government reports the |
| 81 | adoption of its fertilizer ordinances to the department. |
| 82 | (4)(a)(3) This section does not apply to any fertilizer |
| 83 | ordinances of a Any county or municipal government that adopted |
| 84 | such ordinances before July 1, 2011 its own fertilizer use |
| 85 | ordinance before January 1, 2009, is exempt from this section. |
| 86 | Ordinances adopted or amended on or after January 1, 2009, must |
| 87 | substantively conform to the most recent version of the model |
| 88 | fertilizer ordinance and are subject to subsections (1) and (2), |
| 89 | as applicable. |
| 90 | (b)(4) This section does not apply to the use of |
| 91 | fertilizer on farm operations as defined in s. 823.14 or on |
| 92 | lands classified as agricultural lands pursuant to s. 193.461. |
| 93 | Section 3. Subsection (16) of section 570.07, Florida |
| 94 | Statutes, is amended, present subsection (41) is renumbered as |
| 95 | subsection (42), and a new subsection (41) is added to that |
| 96 | section, to read: |
| 97 | 570.07 Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; |
| 98 | functions, powers, and duties.-The department shall have and |
| 99 | exercise the following functions, powers, and duties: |
| 100 | (16) To enforce the state laws and rules relating to: |
| 101 | (a) Fruit and vegetable inspection and grading; |
| 102 | (b) Pesticide spray, residue inspection, and removal; |
| 103 | (c) Registration, labeling, inspection, and analysis of |
| 104 | commercial stock feeds and commercial fertilizers; |
| 105 | (d) Classification, inspection, and sale of poultry and |
| 106 | eggs; |
| 107 | (e) Registration, inspection, and analysis of gasolines |
| 108 | and oils; |
| 109 | (f) Registration, labeling, inspection, and analysis of |
| 110 | pesticides; |
| 111 | (g) Registration, labeling, inspection, germination |
| 112 | testing, and sale of seeds, both common and certified; |
| 113 | (h) Weights, measures, and standards; |
| 114 | (i) Foods, as set forth in the Florida Food Safety Act; |
| 115 | (j) Inspection and certification of honey; |
| 116 | (k) Sale of liquid fuels; |
| 117 | (l) Licensing of dealers in agricultural products; |
| 118 | (m) Administration and enforcement of all regulatory |
| 119 | legislation applying to milk and milk products, ice cream, and |
| 120 | frozen desserts; |
| 121 | (n) Recordation and inspection of marks and brands of |
| 122 | livestock; and |
| 123 | (o) Regulation of fertilizer, including its sale, |
| 124 | composition, packaging, labeling, retail and wholesale |
| 125 | distribution, and formulation, including nutrient content level |
| 126 | and release rates; and |
| 127 | (p)(o) All other regulatory laws relating to agriculture. |
| 128 |
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| 129 | In order to ensure uniform health and safety standards, the |
| 130 | adoption of standards and fines in the subject areas of |
| 131 | paragraphs (a)-(n) is expressly preempted to the state and the |
| 132 | department. Any local government enforcing the subject areas of |
| 133 | paragraphs (a)-(n) must use the standards and fines set forth in |
| 134 | the pertinent statutes or any rules adopted by the department |
| 135 | pursuant to those statutes. |
| 136 | (41)(a) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (b), the |
| 137 | department has exclusive authority to regulate the sale, |
| 138 | composition, packaging, labeling, retail and wholesale |
| 139 | distribution, and formulation, including nutrient content level |
| 140 | and release rates, of fertilizer under chapter 576. This |
| 141 | subsection expressly preempts such regulation of fertilizer to |
| 142 | the state. |
| 143 | (b) An ordinance regulating the sale of fertilizer adopted |
| 144 | by a county or municipal government before July 1, 2011, is |
| 145 | exempt from this subsection, and the county or municipal |
| 146 | government is authorized to enforce such ordinance within its |
| 147 | respective jurisdiction. |
| 148 | (42)(41) Notwithstanding the provisions of s. 287.057(22) |
| 149 | that require all agencies to use the online procurement system |
| 150 | developed by the Department of Management Services, the |
| 151 | department may continue to use its own online system. However, |
| 152 | vendors utilizing such system shall be prequalified as meeting |
| 153 | mandatory requirements and qualifications and shall remit fees |
| 154 | pursuant to s. 287.057(22), and any rules implementing s. |
| 155 | 287.057. |
| 156 | Section 4. Subsection (5) is added to section 576.181, |
| 157 | Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 158 | 576.181 Administration; rules; procedure.- |
| 159 | (5)(a) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (b), the |
| 160 | department has exclusive authority to regulate the sale, |
| 161 | composition, packaging, labeling, retail and wholesale |
| 162 | distribution, and formulation, including nutrient content level |
| 163 | and release rates, of fertilizer. This subsection expressly |
| 164 | preempts such regulation of fertilizer to the state. |
| 165 | (b) An ordinance regulating the sale of fertilizer adopted |
| 166 | by a county or municipal government before July 1, 2011, is |
| 167 | exempt from this subsection, and the county or municipal |
| 168 | government is authorized to enforce such ordinance within its |
| 169 | respective jurisdiction. |
| 170 | Section 5. This act shall take effect July 1, 2011. |