Florida Senate - 2021 CS for CS for SB 426
By the Committees on Community Affairs; and Transportation; and
Senator Boyd
578-03314-21 2021426c2
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to state preemption of seaport
3 regulations; creating s. 311.25, F.S.; prohibiting a
4 local ballot initiative or referendum from restricting
5 maritime commerce in the seaports of this state;
6 providing that such a local ballot initiative,
7 referendum, or action adopted therein is prohibited,
8 void, and expressly preempted to the state;
9 prohibiting municipalities and certain special
10 districts from restricting maritime commerce in the
11 seaports of this state with respect to any federally
12 authorized passenger cruise vessel; providing that
13 certain actions relating to such restrictions are
14 prohibited, void, and expressly preempted to the
15 state; providing applicability; clarifying remaining
16 authority of certain local entities; providing a
17 directive to the Division of Law Revision; providing
18 an effective date.
19
20 WHEREAS, maritime commerce between and among seaports, both
21 foreign and domestic, is the subject of extensive federal and
22 state regulation designed to protect the marine environment and
23 the health, safety, and welfare of the general public and those
24 involved in conducting that commerce, and
25 WHEREAS, the economic impact of a seaport extends far
26 beyond the boundaries of the local jurisdiction in which the
27 port is located, materially contributing to the economies of
28 multiple cities and counties within the region and to the
29 economy of this state as a whole, and
30 WHEREAS, Florida seaports currently generate nearly 900,000
31 direct and indirect jobs and contribute $117.6 billion in
32 economic value to this state through cargo and cruise
33 activities, accounting for approximately 13 percent of this
34 state’s gross domestic product and $4.2 billion in state and
35 local taxes, and
36 WHEREAS, because this state is a peninsula, much of this
37 state is highly dependent upon the unimpeded flow of maritime
38 commerce through its seaports, which is made even more critical
39 when this state is threatened or impacted by natural disasters,
40 such as tropical storms and hurricanes, and
41 WHEREAS, because of its geographic location, this state is
42 a hub for global maritime commerce and is uniquely positioned to
43 capture an even larger share of this commerce as global trade
44 routes shift, and
45 WHEREAS, the international, national, statewide, and
46 regional importance of Florida seaports has long been recognized
47 in federal and state law with respect to the regulation,
48 planning, and public financing of seaport operations and
49 facilities, and
50 WHEREAS, this state is widely known as the cruise capital
51 of the world, and the cruise industry is vital to this state’s
52 economy, contributing more than $9 billion in direct spending on
53 an annual basis and supporting 159,000 jobs with more than $8
54 billion in total wages and salaries before the current pandemic,
55 and
56 WHEREAS, 8.3 million passengers boarded cruises from one of
57 this state’s five cruise ports in 2019, accounting for 60
58 percent of embarkations in the United States, generating 11
59 million passenger and crew onshore visits in both home port and
60 transit port calls in this state, and
61 WHEREAS, allowing a ballot initiative or referendum in each
62 local seaport jurisdiction to impose its own requirements on the
63 maritime commerce conducted in that port could result in abrupt
64 changes in the supply lines bringing goods into and out of this
65 state and could reasonably be expected to suppress such commerce
66 and potentially drive it out of the port and out of this state
67 in search of a more consistent and predictable operating
68 environment, thus disrupting this state’s economy and
69 threatening the public’s health, safety, and welfare, and
70 WHEREAS, allowing a ballot initiative or referendum in each
71 local seaport jurisdiction to impose its own requirements on the
72 maritime commerce conducted in that port could result in abrupt
73 changes in vessel traffic, frustrating the multiyear planning
74 process for all Florida seaports and the assumptions and
75 forecasts underlying federal and state financing of port
76 improvement projects, and
77 WHEREAS, there are similar concerns regarding the capacity
78 of a municipality and certain special districts to impose such
79 requirements on the maritime commerce conducted in a port, as
80 the more limited geographic and political scope of a
81 municipality and certain special districts may make such entity
82 less sensitive to the negative impact of such requirements on
83 neighboring municipalities and on the county, region, and state,
84 and
85 WHEREAS, many local economies in this state depend heavily
86 on tourism, on which the surrounding politics can be
87 particularly complex at the municipal level, which significantly
88 heightens concerns that surrounding municipalities and certain
89 special districts may impose local requirements affecting
90 passenger cruise vessels or cruise lines, and
91 WHEREAS, in light of these potential negative impacts, the
92 permissible scope of local ballot initiatives or referendums and
93 of the powers of a municipality and certain special districts
94 must be appropriately limited, NOW, THEREFORE,
95
96 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
97
98 Section 1. Section 311.25, Florida Statutes, is created to
99 read:
100 311.25 Regulation of commerce in Florida seaports.—
101 (1)(a) A local ballot initiative or referendum may not
102 restrict maritime commerce in the seaports of this state,
103 including, but not limited to, restricting such commerce based
104 on any of the following:
105 1. Vessel type, size, number, or capacity.
106 2. Number, origin, nationality, embarkation, or
107 disembarkation of passengers or crew or their entry into this
108 state or any local jurisdiction.
109 3. Source, type, loading, or unloading of cargo.
110 4. Environmental or health records of a particular vessel
111 or vessel line.
112 (b) Any local ballot initiative or referendum, or any local
113 law, charter amendment, ordinance, resolution, regulation, or
114 policy adopted in a local ballot initiative or referendum, in
115 violation of paragraph (a) which was adopted before, on, or
116 after the effective date of this act is prohibited, void, and
117 expressly preempted to the state.
118 (2)(a) A municipality or political subdivision thereof, or
119 a special district other than one established for port
120 management by special act of the Legislature, may not restrict
121 maritime commerce in the seaports of this state with respect to
122 any federally authorized passenger cruise vessel, including, but
123 not limited to, a restriction based on any of the following:
124 1. Vessel type, size, number, or capacity, except when the
125 port, by virtue of the physical limitations of its docking,
126 berthing, or navigational capabilities, is unable to accommodate
127 a passenger cruise vessel pursuant to applicable federal or
128 state laws or regulations.
129 2. Number, origin, nationality, embarkation, or
130 disembarkation of passengers or crew or their entry into this
131 state or any local jurisdiction.
132 3. Source, type, loading, or unloading of cargo related or
133 incidental to its use as a passenger cruise vessel.
134 4. Environmental or health records of a particular
135 passenger cruise vessel or cruise line.
136 (b) Any provision of a law, a charter, an ordinance, a
137 resolution, a regulation, a policy, an initiative, or a
138 referendum which is in conflict with paragraph (a) and which
139 existed before, on, or after the effective date of this act is
140 prohibited, void, and expressly preempted to the state.
141 (c) This subsection does not apply to a municipality the
142 government of which has been consolidated with that of a county
143 or to a municipal government that is a county as defined in s.
144 125.011(1).
145 (d) Except as provided in paragraph (a), this subsection
146 does not otherwise limit the authority of a subject
147 municipality, political subdivision thereof, or special district
148 to:
149 1. Engage in any activity authorized under this chapter,
150 chapter 315, s. 313.22, or s. 313.23, including those
151 surrounding the continued operation and development of the port
152 and port facilities and the implementation of seaport security
153 measures pursuant to ss. 311.12-311.124.
154 2. Issue and enforce tariffs properly filed with the
155 Federal Maritime Commission.
156 3. Enter into leases, terminal agreements, or other
157 contracts with tenants, customers, and other users of port
158 facilities.
159 Section 2. The Division of Law Revision is directed to
160 replace the phrase “the effective date of this act” wherever it
161 occurs in this act with the date this act becomes a law.
162 Section 3. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.