| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to the regulation of releases from |
| 3 | gambling vessels; creating s. 376.25, F.S.; providing a |
| 4 | short title; providing definitions; requiring gambling |
| 5 | vessels operating in coastal waters of the state to |
| 6 | register with the Department of Environmental Protection; |
| 7 | specifying the requirements for vessel registration; |
| 8 | requiring the owners of certain waterfront-landing |
| 9 | facilities to establish procedures concerning the release |
| 10 | of waste from gambling vessels; requiring that such owners |
| 11 | make available a waste-management service meeting |
| 12 | specified criteria; requiring that such owners establish |
| 13 | certain procedures and collect certain fees; requiring |
| 14 | that the department maintain on its website an estimate of |
| 15 | the minimum waste-service demand of such waterfront- |
| 16 | landing facilities; providing criteria governing the |
| 17 | estimate; requiring notification of the release of certain |
| 18 | substances into coastal waters by gambling vessels; |
| 19 | providing requirements for such notification; providing |
| 20 | civil penalties for violations; providing for the |
| 21 | department to establish and collect fees meeting specified |
| 22 | criteria; providing exemptions and legislative intent; |
| 23 | requiring the department to adopt rules; directing the |
| 24 | department to seek federal approval to amend the Florida |
| 25 | Coastal Zone Management Program and, upon such approval, |
| 26 | to petition the Federal Government, via consistency review |
| 27 | under the federal Coastal Zone Management Act, to prohibit |
| 28 | certain releases from gambling vessels within the federal |
| 29 | territorial waters off the shores of the state; directing |
| 30 | the department to petition the Federal Government to |
| 31 | prohibit certain releases from gambling vessels |
| 32 | independently of such approval; providing an effective |
| 33 | date. |
| 34 |
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| 35 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 36 |
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| 37 | Section 1. Section 376.25, Florida Statutes, is created to |
| 38 | read: |
| 39 | 376.25 Gambling vessels; registration; required and |
| 40 | prohibited releases.-- |
| 41 | (1) SHORT TITLE.--This section may be cited as the "Clean |
| 42 | Ocean Act." |
| 43 | (2) DEFINITIONS.--As used in this section, the term: |
| 44 | (a) "Berth" means a site in this state where a gambling |
| 45 | vessel moors to embark or disembark its passengers. |
| 46 | (b) "Coastal waters" means waters of the Atlantic Ocean |
| 47 | within 3 nautical miles of the coastline of the state and waters |
| 48 | of the Gulf of Mexico within 9 nautical miles of the coastline |
| 49 | of the state. |
| 50 | (c) "Coastline" has the same meaning as in the Submerged |
| 51 | Lands Act, 43 U.S.C. ss. 1301 et seq. |
| 52 | (d) "Department" means the Department of Environmental |
| 53 | Protection. |
| 54 | (e) "Gambling vessel" means a boat, ship, casino boat, |
| 55 | watercraft, or barge that is kept, operated, or maintained for |
| 56 | the purpose of gambling and that carries or operates gambling |
| 57 | devices for the use of its passengers or otherwise provides |
| 58 | facilities for the purpose of gambling, whether within or |
| 59 | without the jurisdiction of this state, and whether the vessel |
| 60 | is at berth, lying to, or navigating, and the sailing, voyaging, |
| 61 | or cruising, or any segment of the sailing, voyaging, or |
| 62 | cruising, begins and ends within this state. The term does not |
| 63 | include a cruise ship as defined in 33 C.F.R. s. 101.105. |
| 64 | (f) "Hazardous waste" has the same meaning as in s. |
| 65 | 403.703. |
| 66 | (g) "Oily bilge water" means liquid from the bilge of a |
| 67 | gambling vessel which contains used lubrication oils, oil sludge |
| 68 | and slops, fuel and oil sludge, used oil, used fuel and fuel |
| 69 | filters, and oily waste. |
| 70 | (h) "Release" means any discharge of liquids or solids, |
| 71 | however caused, from a gambling vessel and includes any escape, |
| 72 | disposal, spilling, leaking, pumping, emitting, or emptying. |
| 73 | (i) "Sewage" means human body waste and the waste from |
| 74 | toilets and other receptacles intended to receive or retain |
| 75 | human body waste and includes any material that has been |
| 76 | collected or treated through a marine sanitation device, as that |
| 77 | term is used in s. 312 of the Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. s. |
| 78 | 1322, or that is a byproduct of sewage treatment. |
| 79 | (j) "Treated blackwater" means that part of treated sewage |
| 80 | carried off by toilets, urinals, and kitchen drains. |
| 81 | (k) "Treated graywater" means that part of treated sewage |
| 82 | that is not blackwater, including waste from the bath, lavatory, |
| 83 | laundry, and sink, except kitchen sink waste. |
| 84 | (l) "Untreated blackwater" means that part of untreated |
| 85 | sewage carried off by toilets, urinals, and kitchen drains. |
| 86 | (m) "Untreated graywater" means that part of untreated |
| 87 | sewage that is not blackwater, including waste from bath, |
| 88 | lavatory, laundry, and sink, except kitchen sink waste. |
| 89 | (n) "Waste" means sewage, oily bilge water, treated |
| 90 | graywater, untreated graywater, treated blackwater, untreated |
| 91 | blackwater, or hazardous waste. |
| 92 | (3) REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS.-- |
| 93 | (a) For each calendar year in which the owner or operator |
| 94 | of a gambling vessel intends to operate, or cause or allow to be |
| 95 | operated, a gambling vessel in coastal waters, the owner or |
| 96 | operator of the vessel shall register with the department. The |
| 97 | registration shall be completed before the gambling vessel |
| 98 | enters the coastal waters of the state in that calendar year. |
| 99 | The registration shall include the following information: |
| 100 | 1. The vessel owner's business name and, if different, the |
| 101 | vessel operator's business name for each gambling vessel of the |
| 102 | owner or operator which is scheduled to be in coastal waters |
| 103 | during the calendar year. |
| 104 | 2. The postal address, e-mail address, telephone number, |
| 105 | and facsimile number of the principal place of each business |
| 106 | identified under subparagraph 1. |
| 107 | 3. The name and address of an agent for service of process |
| 108 | for each business identified under subparagraph 1. The owner and |
| 109 | operator shall continuously maintain a designated agent for |
| 110 | service of process whenever a gambling vessel of the owner or |
| 111 | operator is in coastal waters, and the agent must be an |
| 112 | individual resident of this state, a domestic corporation, or a |
| 113 | foreign corporation having a place of business in and authorized |
| 114 | to do business in this state. |
| 115 | 4. The name or call sign, port of registry, berth |
| 116 | location, passenger and crew capacity, and weekly schedule of |
| 117 | when passengers are to be onboard for each of the owner's or |
| 118 | operator's vessels scheduled to be in coastal waters during the |
| 119 | calendar year and after the date of registration. If passengers |
| 120 | embark or disembark a gambling vessel from another vessel while |
| 121 | the gambling vessel is in coastal waters but not moored to a |
| 122 | waterfront landing, a waterfront-landing facility in this state |
| 123 | where the other vessel moors while such passengers embark or |
| 124 | disembark for the gambling-vessel voyage must also be registered |
| 125 | as a berth location of the gambling vessel. |
| 126 | 5. A description of all waste management systems, |
| 127 | including systems for the treatment, storage, or disposal of |
| 128 | waste for each gambling vessel identified under subparagraph 4., |
| 129 | including, but not limited to, system type, design, operation, |
| 130 | location, and capacity of all discharge pipes and valves, and |
| 131 | the number and capacity of all storage areas and holding tanks. |
| 132 | (b) Registration under paragraph (a) shall be executed |
| 133 | under oath by the owner or operator or designated representative |
| 134 | thereof. |
| 135 | (c) Upon request of the department, the registrant shall |
| 136 | submit registration information required under this subsection |
| 137 | electronically. |
| 138 | (d) The registrant shall promptly advise the department of |
| 139 | a change in the information provided by the registrant under |
| 140 | paragraph (a) during the period that a registration is valid. |
| 141 | (4) RELEASE PROCEDURES; DISPOSAL FEE.-- |
| 142 | (a) The owner of each waterfront-landing facility that is |
| 143 | registered as a gambling vessel's berth location shall: |
| 144 | 1. Establish procedures for the release of waste from |
| 145 | gambling vessels at the facility. |
| 146 | 2. Make available a waste-management service that has the |
| 147 | capability, at minimum, of handling and disposing of the |
| 148 | facility's minimum waste-service demand as calculated by the |
| 149 | department under paragraph (b). |
| 150 | 3. Collect a fee not to exceed the costs associated with |
| 151 | making such waste-management service available from each |
| 152 | gambling vessel for which the waterfront-landing facility is a |
| 153 | registered berth. |
| 154 | (b) The department shall maintain on its website a current |
| 155 | estimate of the minimum waste-service demand for each |
| 156 | waterfront-landing facility that is a registered berth for a |
| 157 | gambling vessel. The minimum waste-service demand is the volume |
| 158 | of waste that is reasonably expected to be released at the |
| 159 | facility over a calendar year from gambling vessels that have a |
| 160 | registered berth at the facility. In estimating a facility's |
| 161 | minimum waste-service demand, the department shall consider, for |
| 162 | each gambling vessel that has a registered berth at the |
| 163 | facility: |
| 164 | 1. The registered capacity of the vessel's systems for |
| 165 | treating, holding, or disposing of waste; and |
| 166 | 2. Other appropriate information, including, but not |
| 167 | limited to, other information provided during registration of |
| 168 | the vessel. |
| 169 | (5) NOTIFICATION OF RELEASES.--If a gambling vessel |
| 170 | releases any waste into coastal waters, the owner or operator |
| 171 | shall immediately, but no later than 24 hours after the release, |
| 172 | notify the department of the release. The owner or operator |
| 173 | shall include all of the following information in the |
| 174 | notification: |
| 175 | (a) Date of the release. |
| 176 | (b) Time of the release. |
| 177 | (c) Location of the release. |
| 178 | (d) Volume of the release. |
| 179 | (e) Source of the release. |
| 180 | (f) Remedial actions taken to prevent future releases. |
| 181 | (6) PENALTIES.-- |
| 182 | (a) A person who violates this section is subject to a |
| 183 | civil penalty of not more than $50,000 for each violation. |
| 184 | (b) The civil penalty imposed for each separate violation |
| 185 | of this section is separate from, and in addition to, any other |
| 186 | civil penalty imposed for a separate violation under this |
| 187 | subsection or any other law. |
| 188 | (c) In determining the amount of a civil penalty imposed |
| 189 | under this subsection, the department shall consider all |
| 190 | relevant circumstances, including, but not limited to, the |
| 191 | nature, circumstances, extent, and gravity of the violation. In |
| 192 | making this determination, the department shall consider the |
| 193 | degree of toxicity and volume of the release, the extent of harm |
| 194 | caused by the violation, whether the effects of the violation |
| 195 | can be reversed or mitigated, and, with respect to the |
| 196 | defendant, the ability to pay, the effect of a civil penalty on |
| 197 | the ability to continue in business, all voluntary cleanup |
| 198 | efforts undertaken in the past, the prior history of violations, |
| 199 | the gravity of the behavior, the economic benefit, if any, |
| 200 | resulting from the violation, and all other matters the |
| 201 | department determines justice may require. |
| 202 | (7) FEES.--The department shall establish and collect fees |
| 203 | that are adequate to cover the entire cost to the department of |
| 204 | developing and implementing its responsibilities, as required or |
| 205 | authorized under this section, which concern registration of |
| 206 | gambling vessels, tracking of releases, compliance with this |
| 207 | section, and enforcement of this section. |
| 208 | (8) APPLICABILITY.--This section: |
| 209 | (a) Does not apply to releases made for the purpose of |
| 210 | securing the safety of the gambling vessel or saving life at sea |
| 211 | if all reasonable precautions have been taken for the purpose of |
| 212 | preventing or minimizing the release. |
| 213 | (b) Is intended to supplement and not conflict with |
| 214 | federal law. |
| 215 | (c) Does not apply to vessels of any branch of the United |
| 216 | States Armed Services. |
| 217 | (d) Does not require a person who holds a valid NPDES |
| 218 | permit governing releases from a gambling vessel to violate such |
| 219 | permit. As used in this paragraph, the term "NPDES permit" means |
| 220 | a permit issued by the United States Environmental Protection |
| 221 | Agency under s. 402 of the Clean Water Act, Pub. L. No. 92-500, |
| 222 | as amended, 33 U.S.C. ss. 1251 et seq., or by the department |
| 223 | under s. 403.0885. |
| 224 | (e) Does not apply to any gambling vessel that can |
| 225 | annually verify to the department that it operates a marine |
| 226 | waste treatment system that produces sterile, clear, and |
| 227 | odorless reuse water without generating solid waste and that |
| 228 | eliminates the need to pump out or dump wastewater. |
| 229 | (9) RULES.--The department shall adopt rules pursuant to |
| 230 | ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to administer this section. |
| 231 | (10) FEDERAL ACTIVITIES.-- |
| 232 | (a) The department shall submit a request to the United |
| 233 | States Secretary of Commerce proposing that the Florida Coastal |
| 234 | Zone Management Program be amended to include this section. |
| 235 | 1. The request must be submitted by August 1, 2008, and |
| 236 | must comply with the federal Coastal Zone Management Act and |
| 237 | implementing regulations, including, but not limited to, the |
| 238 | procedures in 16 U.S.C. s. 1455(c). |
| 239 | 2. If the Secretary of Commerce approves the amendment of |
| 240 | the Florida Coastal Zone Management Program to include this |
| 241 | section, the department shall request the appropriate federal |
| 242 | agencies to prohibit the release of waste from any gambling |
| 243 | vessel in any waters which could affect the coastal waters of |
| 244 | the state in accordance with 16 U.S.C. s. 1456(c)(1). |
| 245 | (b) Independent of the process to amend the Florida |
| 246 | Coastal Zone Management Program under paragraph (a), the |
| 247 | department shall request the appropriate federal agencies to |
| 248 | prohibit the release of waste from any gambling vessel within |
| 249 | the federal territorial waters off the shores of this state. |
| 250 | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2008. |