Bill Text: FL S0994 | 2012 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Federal Environmental Permitting
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-02-29 - Laid on Table, refer to HB 4123 [S0994 Detail]
Download: Florida-2012-S0994-Introduced.html
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 of37the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate a38report proposing any required federal and state statutory39changes that would be necessary to accomplish the directives40listed in this section and to coordinate with the Florida41Congressional Delegation on any necessary changes to federal law42to implement the directives.43 (2)(3)Nothing inThis section does notshall be construed44topreclude 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.