| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to the Wekiva Onsite Sewage Treatment and |
| 3 | Disposal System Compliance Grant Program; creating the |
| 4 | program in the Department of Health; providing purposes; |
| 5 | authorizing certain property owners in certain areas of |
| 6 | the Wekiva basin to apply for grants for certain purposes; |
| 7 | providing grant limitations; providing for annual |
| 8 | adjustments of the amount of the grants; providing for the |
| 9 | grant as a rebate of costs incurred; requiring |
| 10 | documentation of costs; requiring the Department of Health |
| 11 | to adopt rules to administer the grant program; specifying |
| 12 | implementation as contingent upon appropriation; requiring |
| 13 | the Department of Environmental Protection to prepare and |
| 14 | submit a report to the Legislature relating to reducing |
| 15 | nitrogen inputs into the Wekiva River and associated |
| 16 | springs; requiring the Department of Health to prepare and |
| 17 | submit a report to the Governor and Legislature relating |
| 18 | to whether onsite wastewater treatment systems are a |
| 19 | significant source of nitrogen to the underlying |
| 20 | groundwater relative to other sources; providing an |
| 21 | effective date. |
| 22 |
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| 23 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 24 |
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| 25 | Section 1. Wekiva Onsite Sewage Treatment and Disposal |
| 26 | System Compliance Grant Program.-- |
| 27 | (1) The Wekiva Onsite Sewage Treatment and Disposal System |
| 28 | Compliance Grant Program is created within the Department of |
| 29 | Health, to be administered by the Department of Health. The |
| 30 | purpose of the program is to provide grants to low-income |
| 31 | property owners in the Wekiva Study Area or the Wekiva River |
| 32 | Protection Area using onsite sewage treatment and disposal |
| 33 | systems to assist the property owner in complying with rules for |
| 34 | onsite sewage treatment and disposal systems developed by the |
| 35 | Department of Health, the Department of Environmental |
| 36 | Protection, or the St. Johns River Water Management District to |
| 37 | enforce compliance with onsite sewage treatment and disposal |
| 38 | system standards. |
| 39 | (2) Any property owner in the Wekiva Study Area or the |
| 40 | Wekiva River Protection Area having an income less than or equal |
| 41 | to 200 percent of the federal poverty guideline who is required |
| 42 | by rule of the Department of Health, the Department of |
| 43 | Environmental Protection, or the St. Johns River Water |
| 44 | Management District to construct, reconstruct, alter, repair, or |
| 45 | modify any new or existing onsite sewage treatment and disposal |
| 46 | system on such property may apply to the Department of Health |
| 47 | for a grant to assist the owner with the cost of compliance. |
| 48 | (3) The amount of the grant is limited to $10,000 per |
| 49 | property and shall be increased each calendar year by the change |
| 50 | in the annual average of the "materials and components for |
| 51 | construction" series of the producer price index, as calculated |
| 52 | and published by the United States Department of Labor, Bureau |
| 53 | of Statistics, from the previous calendar year. |
| 54 | (4) The grant shall be in the form of a rebate to the |
| 55 | property owner for costs incurred in complying with requirements |
| 56 | for onsite sewage treatment and disposal systems. The property |
| 57 | owner shall provide to the Department of Health in the |
| 58 | application for a grant documentation of costs incurred in |
| 59 | complying with requirements for such systems. |
| 60 | (5) The Department of Health shall adopt rules pursuant to |
| 61 | ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54, Florida Statutes, providing forms, |
| 62 | procedures, and requirements for applying for and disbursing |
| 63 | grants under this section and for documenting compliance costs |
| 64 | incurred. |
| 65 | (6) Implementation of this section is contingent upon an |
| 66 | appropriation in the General Appropriations Act. |
| 67 | Section 2. (1) Based upon the results of the study funded |
| 68 | by the 2006 Regular Session of the Legislature, the Department |
| 69 | of Environmental Protection shall prepare a report recommending |
| 70 | actions to be taken by the Department of Environmental |
| 71 | Protection and the St. Johns Water Management District that will |
| 72 | provide the best use of economic resources to reduce nitrogen |
| 73 | inputs into the Wekiva River and associated springs. The |
| 74 | Department of Environmental Protection shall submit the report |
| 75 | to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of |
| 76 | Representative before the 2008 Regular Session of the |
| 77 | Legislature. |
| 78 | (2) Based upon the results of the study funded by the 2006 |
| 79 | Regular Session of the Legislature, the Department of Health |
| 80 | shall prepare a report assessing whether onsite wastewater |
| 81 | treatment systems are a significant source of nitrogen to the |
| 82 | underlying groundwater relative to other sources and shall |
| 83 | recommend a range of possible cost-effective onsite wastewater |
| 84 | treatment system nitrogen reduction strategies if contributions |
| 85 | are significant. The Department of Health shall submit the |
| 86 | report to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the |
| 87 | Speaker of the House of Representatives no later than February |
| 88 | 1, 2008. |
| 89 | Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2007. |