| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to water resources; amending s. 163.3167, |
| 3 | F.S.; requiring local governments to include projected |
| 4 | water use in comprehensive plans; amending s. 163.3177, |
| 5 | F.S.; requiring local governments to consider regional |
| 6 | water supply plans in their work plans for building water |
| 7 | supply facilities; requiring the updating of work plans; |
| 8 | providing that amendments to incorporate the work plan do |
| 9 | not count toward the limitation on frequency of adoption |
| 10 | of amendments to the comprehensive plan; amending s. |
| 11 | 373.116, F.S.; providing that local governments may |
| 12 | receive electronic notices of applications for consumptive |
| 13 | use permits; creating s. 373.2234, F.S.; authorizing the |
| 14 | governing board of a water management district to adopt |
| 15 | rules identifying certain preferred water supply sources; |
| 16 | providing requirements with respect to such rules; |
| 17 | providing construction; amending s. 373.250, F.S.; |
| 18 | authorizing water management districts to require the use |
| 19 | of reclaimed water in lieu of surface or groundwater when |
| 20 | the use of uncommitted reclaimed water is environmentally, |
| 21 | economically, and technically feasible; providing |
| 22 | construction with respect to such authority; creating s. |
| 23 | 373.228; F.S.; providing legislative findings and intent |
| 24 | with regard to landscape irrigation design; requiring |
| 25 | water management districts to develop landscape irrigation |
| 26 | and xeriscape design standards; providing an effective |
| 27 | date. |
| 28 |
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| 29 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 30 |
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| 31 | Section 1. Subsection (13) is added to section 163.3167, |
| 32 | Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 33 | 163.3167 Scope of act.-- |
| 34 | (13) Each local government shall address in its |
| 35 | comprehensive plan, as enumerated in this chapter, the water |
| 36 | supply sources necessary to meet and achieve the existing and |
| 37 | projected water use demand for the established planning period, |
| 38 | considering the applicable plan developed pursuant to s. |
| 39 | 373.0361. |
| 40 | Section 2. Paragraph (c) of subsection (6) of section |
| 41 | 163.3177, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 42 | 163.3177 Required and optional elements of comprehensive |
| 43 | plan; studies and surveys.-- |
| 44 | (6) In addition to the requirements of subsections (1)- |
| 45 | (5), the comprehensive plan shall include the following |
| 46 | elements: |
| 47 | (c) A general sanitary sewer, solid waste, drainage, |
| 48 | potable water, and natural groundwater aquifer recharge element |
| 49 | correlated to principles and guidelines for future land use, |
| 50 | indicating ways to provide for future potable water, drainage, |
| 51 | sanitary sewer, solid waste, and aquifer recharge protection |
| 52 | requirements for the area. The element may be a detailed |
| 53 | engineering plan including a topographic map depicting areas of |
| 54 | prime groundwater recharge. The element shall describe the |
| 55 | problems and needs and the general facilities that will be |
| 56 | required for solution of the problems and needs. The element |
| 57 | shall also include a topographic map depicting any areas adopted |
| 58 | by a regional water management district as prime groundwater |
| 59 | recharge areas for the Floridan or Biscayne aquifers, pursuant |
| 60 | to s. 373.0395. These areas shall be given special |
| 61 | consideration when the local government is engaged in zoning or |
| 62 | considering future land use for said designated areas. For |
| 63 | areas served by septic tanks, soil surveys shall be provided |
| 64 | which indicate the suitability of soils for septic tanks. By |
| 65 | December 1, 2006 January 1, 2005, or the Evaluation and |
| 66 | Appraisal Report adoption deadline established for the local |
| 67 | government pursuant to s. 163.3191(a), whichever date occurs |
| 68 | first, the element must consider the appropriate water |
| 69 | management district's regional water supply plan approved |
| 70 | pursuant to s. 373.0361. The element must include a work plan, |
| 71 | covering at least a 10-year planning period, for building water |
| 72 | supply facilities that are identified in the element as |
| 73 | necessary to serve existing and new development and for which |
| 74 | the local government is responsible. The work plan shall be |
| 75 | updated, at a minimum, every 5 years within 12 months after the |
| 76 | governing board of a water management district approves an |
| 77 | updated regional water supply plan. Amendments to incorporate |
| 78 | the work plan do not count toward the limitation on frequency of |
| 79 | adoption of amendments to the comprehensive plan. |
| 80 | Section 3. Subsection (2) of section 373.116, Florida |
| 81 | Statutes, is amended to read: |
| 82 | 373.116 Procedure for water use and impoundment |
| 83 | construction permit applications.-- |
| 84 | (2) Upon receipt of an application for a permit of the |
| 85 | type referred to in subsection (1), the governing board shall |
| 86 | cause a notice thereof to be published in a newspaper having |
| 87 | general circulation within the affected area. In addition, the |
| 88 | governing board shall send, by regular or electronic mail, a |
| 89 | copy of such notice to any person who has filed a written |
| 90 | request for notification of any pending applications affecting |
| 91 | this particular designated area. At the option of the applicable |
| 92 | county or city government, notice of application for the |
| 93 | consumptive use of water shall be mailed by regular or |
| 94 | electronic mail to the county and appropriate city government |
| 95 | from which boundaries the withdrawal is proposed to be made. |
| 96 | Section 4. Section 373.2234, Florida Statutes, is created |
| 97 | to read: |
| 98 | 373.2234 Preferred water supply sources.--The governing |
| 99 | board of a water management district is authorized to adopt |
| 100 | rules that identify preferred water supply sources for |
| 101 | consumptive uses for which there is sufficient data to establish |
| 102 | that a preferred source will provide a substantial new water |
| 103 | supply to meet the existing and projected reasonable-beneficial |
| 104 | uses of a water supply planning region identified pursuant to s. |
| 105 | 373.0361(1), while sustaining existing water resources and |
| 106 | natural systems. At a minimum, such rules must contain a |
| 107 | description of the preferred water supply source and an |
| 108 | assessment of the water the preferred source is projected to |
| 109 | produce. If an applicant proposes to use a preferred water |
| 110 | supply source, that applicant's proposed water use is subject to |
| 111 | s. 373.223(1), except that the proposed use of a preferred water |
| 112 | supply source must be considered by a water management district |
| 113 | when determining whether a permit applicant's proposed use of |
| 114 | water is consistent with the public interest pursuant to s. |
| 115 | 373.223(1)(c). A consumptive use permit issued for the use of a |
| 116 | preferred water supply source must be granted, when requested by |
| 117 | the applicant, for at least a 20-year period and may be subject |
| 118 | to the compliance reporting provisions of s. 373.236(3). Nothing |
| 119 | in this section shall be construed to exempt the use of |
| 120 | preferred water supply sources from the provisions of ss. |
| 121 | 373.016(4) and 373.223(2) and (3), or be construed to provide |
| 122 | that permits issued for the use of a nonpreferred water supply |
| 123 | source must be issued for a duration of less than 20 years or |
| 124 | that the use of a nonpreferred water supply source is not |
| 125 | consistent with the public interest. Additionally, nothing in |
| 126 | this section shall be interpreted to require the use of a |
| 127 | preferred water supply source or to restrict or prohibit the use |
| 128 | of a nonpreferred water supply source. Rules adopted by the |
| 129 | governing board of a water management district to implement this |
| 130 | section shall specify that the use of a preferred water supply |
| 131 | source is not required, and that the use of a nonpreferred water |
| 132 | supply source is not restricted or prohibited. |
| 133 | Section 5. Paragraph (c) is added to subsection (2) of |
| 134 | section 373.250, Florida Statutes, to read: |
| 135 | 373.250 Reuse of reclaimed water.-- |
| 136 | (2) |
| 137 | (c) A water management district may require the use of |
| 138 | reclaimed water in lieu of surface water or groundwater when the |
| 139 | use of uncommitted reclaimed water is environmentally, |
| 140 | economically, and technically feasible and of such quality and |
| 141 | reliability as is necessary to the user. However, this paragraph |
| 142 | does not authorize a water management district to require a |
| 143 | provider of reclaimed water to redirect reclaimed water from one |
| 144 | user to another or to provide uncommitted water to a specific |
| 145 | user if such water is anticipated to be used by the provider, or |
| 146 | a different user selected by the provider, within a reasonable |
| 147 | amount of time. |
| 148 | Section 6. Section 373.228, Florida Statutes, is created |
| 149 | to read: |
| 150 | 373.228 Landscape irrigation design.-- |
| 151 | (1) The Legislature finds that multiple areas throughout |
| 152 | the state have been identified by water management districts as |
| 153 | water resource caution areas, which indicates that in the near |
| 154 | future water demand in those areas will exceed the current |
| 155 | available water supply and that conservation is one of the |
| 156 | mechanisms by which future water demand will be met. |
| 157 | (2) The Legislature finds that landscape irrigation |
| 158 | comprises a significant portion of water use and that the |
| 159 | current typical landscape irrigation system and xeriscape |
| 160 | designs offer significant potential water conservation benefits. |
| 161 | (3) It is the intent of the Legislature to improve |
| 162 | landscape irrigation water use efficiency by ensuring that |
| 163 | landscape irrigation systems meet or exceed minimum design |
| 164 | criteria. |
| 165 | (4) The water management districts shall work with the |
| 166 | Florida Nurserymen and Growers Association, the Florida Chapter |
| 167 | of the American Society of Landscape Architects, the Florida |
| 168 | Irrigation Society, the Department of Agriculture and Consumer |
| 169 | Services, the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, the |
| 170 | Department of Environmental Protection, the Department of |
| 171 | Transportation, the Florida League of Cities, the Florida |
| 172 | Association of Counties, and the Florida Association of |
| 173 | Community Developers to develop landscape irrigation and |
| 174 | xeriscape design standards for new construction which |
| 175 | incorporate a landscape irrigation system and develop |
| 176 | scientifically based model guidelines for urban, commercial, and |
| 177 | residential landscape irrigation, including drip irrigation, for |
| 178 | plants, trees, sod, and other landscaping. The landscape and |
| 179 | irrigation design standards shall be based on the irrigation |
| 180 | code defined in the Florida Building Code, Plumbing Volume, |
| 181 | Appendix F. Local governments shall use the standards and |
| 182 | guidelines when developing landscape irrigation and xeriscape |
| 183 | ordinances. Every 5 years, the agencies and entities specified |
| 184 | in this subsection shall review the standards and guidelines to |
| 185 | determine whether new research findings require a change or |
| 186 | modification of the standards and guidelines. |
| 187 | Section 7. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law. |