Florida Senate - 2020 CS for SB 168
By the Committee on Education; and Senators Cruz, Pizzo, Berman,
Gibson, Book, Stewart, Rader, Rouson, Taddeo, Torres, and Farmer
581-01392-20 2020168c1
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to drinking water in public schools;
3 creating s. 1013.29, F.S.; providing legislative
4 findings; defining terms; subject to legislative
5 appropriation, requiring district boards to coordinate
6 with district school boards to identify certain
7 schools and to provide funding to such schools;
8 requiring certain school districts to install filters
9 that meet certain specifications on drinking water
10 sources; requiring such schools to post certain
11 signage on certain water sources and school boards to
12 publish specified information on school district
13 websites; authorizing district boards to request
14 additional funding to compensate school district staff
15 for the installation or replacement of filters;
16 limiting the additional funding to not more than the
17 amount appropriated; requiring the State Board of
18 Education to adopt rules; providing an appropriation;
19 providing an effective date.
20
21 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
22
23 Section 1. Section 1013.29, Florida Statutes, is created to
24 read:
25 1013.29 Prevention of lead in drinking water in public
26 schools.—
27 (1) The Legislature finds that:
28 (a) The adverse health effects of lead exposure in children
29 and adults are well documented and no safe blood lead level in
30 children has been identified;
31 (b) Lead accumulates in the body and can be ingested from
32 various sources, including water sources used for drinking, food
33 preparation, or cooking; and
34 (c) All sources of lead should be controlled or eliminated
35 to prevent childhood lead poisoning.
36 (2) As used in this section, the term:
37 (a) “Drinking water source” means any water source used for
38 drinking, food preparation, or cooking. The term also includes
39 water fountains, ice makers, and kitchen sinks.
40 (b) “Point of use filter” or “filter” means a water
41 filtration system that treats water at a single tap.
42 (3) Subject to the appropriation of funds by the
43 Legislature, each district board as defined in s. 153.52 shall
44 coordinate with its local district school board to determine
45 which district schools were built before 1986 and shall provide
46 funding to such schools for the purposes specified under this
47 section. As applicable, each school district shall:
48 (a) Install a point of use filter that reduces the lead
49 content in drinking water on each drinking water source and
50 maintain such filters in a manner consistent with the
51 manufacturer’s recommendations.
52 1. The filter must be installed by a school district staff
53 member.
54 2. The filter or all of its component parts must meet the
55 NSF International/American National Standards Institute Standard
56 53: Drinking Water Treatment Units-Health Effects.
57 3. The filter must have a certified capacity of 7,900
58 gallons and, at a minimum, must be changed or replaced annually.
59 (b) Post a conspicuous sign near each school water source
60 that is not a drinking water source. The sign must include
61 wording and an image that clearly communicate that water from
62 the source should not be used for human consumption or, if
63 applicable, for food preparation or cooking.
64 (c) The district school board shall publish on its website
65 a list of drinking water sources at such schools. At a minimum,
66 the list must include, for each drinking water source, all of
67 the following:
68 1. The date on which the current filter was installed.
69 2. The date on which the current filter is scheduled to be
70 replaced.
71 3. The location of each drinking water source.
72 4. Any actions necessary to comply with the requirements of
73 this section which have been completed or are pending.
74 (4) Each district board as defined in s. 153.52 may request
75 additional funds for the purpose of compensating school district
76 staff for the installation or replacement of filters. Funds
77 provided pursuant to this subsection may not be more than the
78 total appropriation provided to implement this section.
79 (5) The State Board of Education shall adopt rules to
80 administer this section.
81 Section 2. For the 2020-2021 fiscal year, the sum of $3
82 million in nonrecurring funds is appropriated from the Drinking
83 Water Revolving Loan Trust Fund to district boards as defined in
84 s. 153.52, Florida Statutes, for the purpose of implementing s.
85 1013.29, Florida Statutes, as created by this act.
86 Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2020.
87