Florida Senate - 2021 SB 1058
By Senator Burgess
20-00710A-21 20211058__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to sanitary sewer lateral inspection
3 programs; amending ss. 125.569 and 166.0481, F.S.;
4 defining the term “continuous monolithic pipe system”;
5 authorizing counties and municipalities, respectively,
6 to access sanitary sewer laterals within their
7 jurisdiction for specified purposes; requiring
8 counties and municipalities to notify private property
9 owners within a specified timeframe if the county or
10 municipality intends to access the owner’s sanitary
11 sewer lateral; providing that the counties and
12 municipalities that establish programs are legally and
13 financially responsible for all work done; requiring
14 the counties and municipalities that establish
15 programs to consider economical methods for the
16 counties and municipalities, rather than the property
17 owners, to complete such work; authorizing a program
18 established by a county to evaluate and rehabilitate
19 sanitary sewer laterals on residential and commercial
20 properties to use state or local funds allocated for
21 environmental preservation or the protection of a
22 clean water supply; providing an effective date.
23
24 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
25
26 Section 1. Section 125.569, Florida Statutes, is amended to
27 read:
28 125.569 County sanitary sewer lateral inspections
29 inspection programs for counties.—
30 (1) As used in this section, the term:
31 (a) “Sanitary sewer lateral” means a privately owned
32 pipeline connecting a property to the main sewer line which is
33 maintained and repaired by the property owner.
34 (b) “Continuous monolithic pipe system” means a pipe system
35 with no joints or seams anywhere, including all points where it
36 connects to the structure, the mainline, and the cleanout.
37 (2) A county may access any sanitary sewer lateral within
38 its jurisdiction to investigate, clean, repair, recondition, or
39 replace the sanitary sewer lateral.
40 (3) By July 1, 2022, each county is encouraged to establish
41 an evaluation and rehabilitation program for sanitary sewer
42 laterals on residential and commercial properties within the
43 county’s jurisdiction to identify and reduce extraneous flow
44 from leaking sanitary sewer laterals. At a minimum, the program
45 may do all of the following:
46 (a) Establish a system to identify defective, damaged, or
47 deteriorated sanitary sewer laterals on residential and
48 commercial properties within the jurisdiction of the county. If
49 a county identifies a defective, damaged, or deteriorated
50 sanitary sewer lateral and initiates a program to eliminate
51 extraneous flow, the county:
52 1. Shall notify the property owner of the issue by mail.
53 The notice must specify that within 14 days after receiving the
54 notice, the county intends to access the owner’s property to
55 address the defective, damaged, or deteriorated sanitary sewer
56 lateral. The notice must identify the issue, inform the property
57 owner that he or she will be indemnified and held harmless in
58 the repair process, and provide a proposed timeline and plan for
59 the duration of the project, including start and completion
60 dates.
61 2. Is responsible for any repair work done on the private
62 property. If any disruption of the property is necessary to
63 access the sanitary sewer lateral, the county shall ensure that
64 the property is restored to at least its pre-work conditions
65 after the repair is complete. Any repair work done to a sanitary
66 sewer lateral must meet all of the following requirements:
67 a. Provide one continuous monolithic pipe system. The
68 connections for the structure, mainline, and cleanout must be
69 installed and integrated into the continuous monolithic pipe
70 system by a Florida-licensed plumber; and
71 b. Be inspected using a lateral launch or similar CCTV
72 camera system conducted by a Pipeline Assessment Certification
73 Program (PACP) and Lateral Assessment and Certification Program
74 (LACP)-certified camera operator. The contractor must produce
75 and provide the county with a PACP- and LACP-certified report
76 describing the conditions of the continuous monolithic pipe
77 system and the respective connections to the main sewer pipe and
78 the structure.
79 (b) Consider economical methods for the county a property
80 owner to repair or replace a defective, damaged, or deteriorated
81 sanitary sewer lateral.
82 (c) Establish and maintain a publicly accessible database
83 to store information concerning properties where a defective,
84 damaged, or deteriorated sanitary sewer lateral has been
85 identified. For each property, the database must include, but is
86 not limited to, the address of the property, the names of any
87 persons the county notified concerning the faulty sanitary sewer
88 lateral, and the date and method of such notification.
89 (d) Use state or local funds allocated for the purpose of
90 environmental preservation or the protection of a clean water
91 supply.
92 Section 2. Section 166.0481, Florida Statutes, is amended
93 to read:
94 166.0481 Municipal sanitary sewer lateral inspections
95 inspection programs for municipalities.—
96 (1) As used in this section, the term:
97 (a) “Sanitary sewer lateral” means a privately owned
98 pipeline connecting a property to the main sewer line which is
99 maintained and repaired by the property owner.
100 (b) “Continuous monolithic pipe system” means a pipe system
101 with no joints or seams anywhere, including all points where it
102 connects to the structure, the mainline, and the cleanout.
103 (2) A municipality may access any sanitary sewer lateral
104 within its jurisdiction to investigate, clean, repair,
105 recondition, or replace the sanitary sewer lateral.
106 (3) By July 1, 2022, each municipality is encouraged to
107 establish an evaluation and rehabilitation program for sanitary
108 sewer laterals on residential and commercial properties within
109 the municipality’s jurisdiction to identify and reduce
110 extraneous flow from leaking sanitary sewer laterals. At a
111 minimum, the program may do all of the following:
112 (a) Establish a system to identify defective, damaged, or
113 deteriorated sanitary sewer laterals on residential and
114 commercial properties within the jurisdiction of the
115 municipality. If a municipality identifies such a defective,
116 damaged, or deteriorated sanitary sewer lateral and initiates a
117 program to eliminate extraneous flow, the municipality:
118 1. Shall notify the property owner of the issue by mail.
119 The notice must specify that within 14 days after receiving the
120 notice, the municipality intends to access the owner’s property
121 to address the defective, damaged, or deteriorated sanitary
122 sewer lateral. The notice must identify the issue, inform the
123 property owner that he or she will be indemnified and held
124 harmless in the repair process, and provide a proposed timeline
125 and plan for the duration of the project, including start and
126 completion dates.
127 2. Is responsible for any repair work done on the private
128 property. If any disruption of the property is necessary to
129 access the sanitary sewer lateral, the municipality must ensure
130 that the property is restored to at least its pre-work
131 conditions after the repair is complete. Any repair work done to
132 a sanitary sewer lateral must meet all of the following
133 requirements:
134 a. Provide one continuous monolithic pipe system. The
135 connections for the structure, mainline, and cleanout must be
136 installed and integrated into the continuous monolithic pipe
137 system by a Florida-licensed plumber; and
138 b. Be inspected using a lateral launch or similar CCTV
139 camera system and conducted by a Pipeline Assessment
140 Certification Program (PACP) and Lateral Assessment and
141 Certification Program (LACP)-certified camera operator. The
142 contractor must produce and provide the county with a PACP- and
143 LACP-certified report stating the conditions of the continuous
144 monolithic pipe system and the respective connections to the
145 main sewer pipe and the structure.
146 (b) Consider economical methods for the municipality a
147 property owner to repair or replace a defective, damaged, or
148 deteriorated sanitary sewer lateral.
149 (c) Establish and maintain a publicly accessible database
150 to store information concerning properties where a defective,
151 damaged, or deteriorated sanitary sewer lateral has been
152 identified. For each property, the database must include, but is
153 not limited to, the address of the property, the names of any
154 persons the municipality notified concerning the faulty sanitary
155 sewer lateral, and the date and method of such notification.
156 (d) Use state or local funds allocated for the purpose of
157 environmental preservation or the protection of a clean water
158 supply.
159 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2021.