Bill Text: FL S1772 | 2012 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Water Protection and Sustainability Program
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Failed) 2012-03-09 - Died in Environmental Preservation and Conservation [S1772 Detail]
Download: Florida-2012-S1772-Introduced.html
Florida Senate - 2012 SB 1772 By Senator Ring 32-01280A-12 20121772__ 1 A bill to be entitled 2 An act relating to the Water Protection and 3 Sustainability Program; amending s. 403.890, F.S.; 4 providing for the deposit of specified revenues into 5 the Water Protection and Sustainability Program Trust 6 Fund; revising the funding formula for the 7 distribution of revenues deposited into or 8 appropriated to the trust fund; providing for such 9 revenues to be used for specified purposes; providing 10 for legislative review of the Water Protection and 11 Sustainability Program and funding formula; providing 12 for the distribution of revenues for the 2012-2013 13 fiscal year; amending s. 201.15, F.S.; requiring 14 revenues to be paid to the credit of the Water 15 Protection and Sustainability Program Trust Fund in 16 the Department of Environmental Protection; providing 17 an effective date. 18 19 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 20 21 Section 1. Section 403.890, Florida Statutes, is amended to 22 read: 23 403.890 Water Protection and Sustainability Program.— 24 (1) Effective July 1, 2013, revenues transferred from the 25 Department of Revenue pursuant to s. 201.15(1)(d)1. shall be 26 deposited into the Water Protection and Sustainability Program 27 Trust Fund in the Department of Environmental Protection. These 28 revenues and any other additional revenues deposited into or 29 appropriated to the Water Protection and Sustainability Program 30 Trust Fund shall be distributed by the Department of 31 Environmental Protection in the following manner: 32 (a)(1)SixtySixty-fivepercent to the Department of 33 Environmental Protection for the implementation of an 34 alternative water supply program as provided in s. 373.707. 35 (b)(2)TwentyTwenty-two and five-tenthspercent for the 36 implementation of best management practices and capital project 37 expenditures necessary for the implementation of the goals of 38 the total maximum daily load program established in s. 403.067. 39 Of these funds, 8583.33percent shall be transferred to the 40 credit of the Department of Environmental Protection Water 41 Quality Assurance Trust Fund to address water quality impacts 42 associated with nonagricultural nonpoint sources. Fifteen 43Sixteen and sixty-seven hundredthspercent of these funds shall 44 be transferred to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer 45 Services General Inspection Trust Fund to address water quality 46 impacts associated with agricultural nonpoint sources. These 47 funds shall be used for research, development, demonstration, 48 and implementation of the total maximum daily load program under 49 s. 403.067, suitable best management practices, or other 50 measures used to achieve water quality standards in surface 51 waters and water segments identified pursuant to s. 303(d) of 52 the Clean Water Act, Pub. L. No. 92-500, 33 U.S.C. ss. 1251 et 53 seq. Implementation of best management practices and other 54 measures may include cost-share grants, technical assistance, 55 implementation tracking, and conservation leases or other 56 agreements for water quality improvement. The Department of 57 Environmental Protection and the Department of Agriculture and 58 Consumer Services may adopt rules governing the distribution of 59 funds for implementation of capital projects, best management 60 practices, and other measures. These funds shall not be used to 61 abrogate the financial responsibility of those point and 62 nonpoint sources that have contributed to the degradation of 63 water or land areas. Increased priority shall be given by the 64 department and the water management district governing boards to 65 those projects that have secured a cost-sharing agreement 66 allocating responsibility for the cleanup of point and nonpoint 67 sources. 68 (c) Ten percent shall be disbursed for the purposes of 69 funding projects pursuant to ss. 373.451-373.459 or surface 70 water restoration activities in water-management-district 71 designated priority water bodies. The Secretary of Environmental 72 Protection shall ensure that each water management district 73 receives the following percentage of funds annually: 74 1. Thirty-five percent to the South Florida Water 75 Management District. 76 2. Twenty-five percent to the Southwest Florida Water 77 Management District. 78 3. Twenty-five percent to the St. Johns River Water 79 Management District. 80 4. Seven and one-half percent to the Suwannee River Water 81 Management District. 82 5. Seven and one-half percent to the Northwest Florida 83 Water Management District. 84 (d)(3)TenTwelve and five-tenthspercent to the Department 85 of Environmental Protection for the Disadvantaged Small 86 Community Wastewater Grant Program as provided in s. 403.1838. 87 (2)(4)On June 30, 20132009, and every 24 months 88 thereafter, the Department of Environmental Protection shall 89 request the return of all unencumbered funds distributed 90 pursuant to this section. These funds shall be deposited into 91 the Water Protection and Sustainability Program Trust Fund and 92 redistributed pursuant tothe provisions ofthis section. 93 (3) Prior to the end of the 2015 Regular Session, the 94 Legislature must review the distribution of funds under the 95 Water Protection and Sustainability Program to determine if 96 revisions to the funding formula are required. At the discretion 97 of the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of 98 Representatives, the appropriate substantive committees of the 99 Legislature may conduct an interim project to review the Water 100 Protection and Sustainability Program and the funding formula 101 and make written recommendations to the Legislature proposing 102 necessary changes, if any. 103 (4) For fiscal year 2012-2013, funds deposited or 104 appropriated into the Water Protection and Sustainability Trust 105 Fund shall be distributed as follows: 106 (a) One hundred million dollars to the Department of 107 Environmental Protection for the development and implementation 108 of alternative water supply projects as provided in s. 373.707. 109 (b) Funds remaining after the distribution provided for in 110 paragraph (a) shall be distributed as follows: 111 1. Fifty percent for the implementation of best management 112 practices and capital project expenditures necessary for the 113 implementation of the goals of the total maximum daily load 114 program established in s. 403.067. Of these funds, 85 percent 115 shall be transferred to the credit of the Department of 116 Environmental Protection Water Quality Assurance Trust Fund to 117 address water quality impacts associated with nonagricultural 118 nonpoint sources. Fifteen percent of these funds shall be 119 transferred to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer 120 Services General Inspection Trust Fund to address water quality 121 impacts associated with agricultural nonpoint sources. These 122 funds shall be used for research, development, demonstration, 123 and implementation of suitable best management practices or 124 other measures used to achieve water quality standards in 125 surface waters and water segments identified pursuant to s. 126 303(d) of the Clean Water Act, Pub. L. No. 92-500, 33 U.S.C. ss. 127 1251 et seq. Implementation of best management practices and 128 other measures may include cost-share grants, technical 129 assistance, implementation tracking, and conservation leases or 130 other agreements for water quality improvement. The Department 131 of Environmental Protection and the Department of Agriculture 132 and Consumer Services may adopt rules governing the distribution 133 of funds for implementation of best management practices. These 134 funds shall not be used to abrogate the financial responsibility 135 of those point and nonpoint sources that have contributed to the 136 degradation of water or land areas. Increased priority shall be 137 given by the department and the water management district 138 governing boards to those projects that have secured a cost 139 sharing agreement allocating responsibility for the cleanup of 140 point and nonpoint sources. 141 2. Twenty-five percent for the purposes of funding projects 142 pursuant to ss. 373.451-373.459 or surface water restoration 143 activities in water-management-district-designated priority 144 water bodies. The Secretary of Environmental Protection shall 145 ensure that each water management district receives the 146 following percentage of funds: 147 a. Thirty-five percent to the South Florida Water 148 Management District. 149 b. Twenty-five percent to the Southwest Florida Water 150 Management District. 151 c. Twenty-five percent to the St. Johns River Water 152 Management District. 153 d. Seven and one-half percent to the Suwannee River Water 154 Management District. 155 e. Seven and one-half percent to the Northwest Florida 156 Water Management District. 157 3. Twenty-five percent to the Department of Environmental 158 Protection for the Disadvantaged Small Community Wastewater 159 Grant Program as provided in s. 403.1838. 160 Section 2. Paragraph (d) of subsection (1) of section 161 201.15, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 162 201.15 Distribution of taxes collected.—All taxes collected 163 under this chapter are subject to the service charge imposed in 164 s. 215.20(1). Prior to distribution under this section, the 165 Department of Revenue shall deduct amounts necessary to pay the 166 costs of the collection and enforcement of the tax levied by 167 this chapter. Such costs and the service charge may not be 168 levied against any portion of taxes pledged to debt service on 169 bonds to the extent that the costs and service charge are 170 required to pay any amounts relating to the bonds. After 171 distributions are made pursuant to subsection (1), all of the 172 costs of the collection and enforcement of the tax levied by 173 this chapter and the service charge shall be available and 174 transferred to the extent necessary to pay debt service and any 175 other amounts payable with respect to bonds authorized before 176 January 1, 2010, secured by revenues distributed pursuant to 177 subsection (1). All taxes remaining after deduction of costs and 178 the service charge shall be distributed as follows: 179 (1) Sixty-three and thirty-one hundredths percent of the 180 remaining taxes shall be used for the following purposes: 181 (d) After the required payments under paragraphs (a), (b), 182 and (c), the remainder shall be paid into the State Treasury to 183 the credit of: 184 1. The Water Protection and Sustainability Program Trust 185 Fund in the Department of Environmental Protection in the amount 186 of $100 million in each fiscal year, to be paid in quarterly 187 installments and used as required by s. 403.890. 188 2. The General Revenue Fund to be used and expended for the 189 purposes for which the General Revenue Fund was created and 190 exists by law. 191 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2012.