Florida Senate - 2012                                     SB 994
       
       
       
       By Senator Dean
       
       
       
       
       3-00855-12                                             2012994__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to federal environmental permitting;
    3         amending s. 373.4144, F.S.; repealing provisions
    4         directing the Department of Environmental Protection
    5         to file specified reports with the Speaker of the
    6         House of Representatives and the President of the
    7         Senate and to coordinate with the Florida
    8         Congressional Delegation on certain matters; providing
    9         an effective date.
   10  
   11  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   12  
   13         Section 1. Section 373.4144, Florida Statutes, is amended
   14  to read:
   15         373.4144 Federal environmental permitting.—
   16         (1) The department is directed to develop, on or before
   17  October 1, 2005, a mechanism or plan to consolidate, to the
   18  maximum extent practicable, the federal and state wetland
   19  permitting programs. It is the intent of the Legislature that
   20  all dredge and fill activities impacting 10 acres or less of
   21  wetlands or waters, including navigable waters, be processed by
   22  the state as part of the environmental resource permitting
   23  program implemented by the department and the water management
   24  districts. The resulting mechanism or plan shall analyze and
   25  propose the development of an expanded state programmatic
   26  general permit program in conjunction with the United States
   27  Army Corps of Engineers pursuant to s. 404 of the Clean Water
   28  Act, Pub. L. No. 92-500, as amended, 33 U.S.C. ss. 1251 et seq.,
   29  and s. 10 of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899. Alternatively,
   30  or in combination with an expanded state programmatic general
   31  permit, the mechanism or plan may propose the creation of a
   32  series of regional general permits issued by the United States
   33  Army Corps of Engineers pursuant to the referenced statutes. All
   34  of the regional general permits must be administered by the
   35  department or the water management districts or their designees.
   36         (2) The department is directed to file with the Speaker of
   37  the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate a
   38  report proposing any required federal and state statutory
   39  changes that would be necessary to accomplish the directives
   40  listed in this section and to coordinate with the Florida
   41  Congressional Delegation on any necessary changes to federal law
   42  to implement the directives.
   43         (2)(3) Nothing in This section does not shall be construed
   44  to preclude the department from pursuing complete assumption of
   45  federal permitting programs regulating the discharge of dredged
   46  or fill material pursuant to s. 404 of the Clean Water Act, Pub.
   47  L. No. 92-500, as amended, 33 U.S.C. ss. 1251 et seq., and s. 10
   48  of the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899, so long as the assumption
   49  encompasses all dredge and fill activities in, on, or over
   50  jurisdictional wetlands or waters, including navigable waters,
   51  within the state.
   52         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.