| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to contamination notification; amending s. |
| 3 | 376.30702, F.S.; revising contamination notification |
| 4 | provisions; requiring individuals responsible for site |
| 5 | rehabilitation to provide notice of site rehabilitation to |
| 6 | specified entities; revising provisions relating to the |
| 7 | content and delivery of such notice; requiring local |
| 8 | governments to provide specified notice of site |
| 9 | rehabilitation; requiring the Department of Environmental |
| 10 | Protection to verify compliance with notice requirements; |
| 11 | authorizing the department to pursue enforcement measures |
| 12 | for noncompliance with notice requirements; requiring the |
| 13 | department to provide specified notice to certain property |
| 14 | owners; revising the department's contamination |
| 15 | notification requirements for certain public schools; |
| 16 | requiring the department to provide specified notice to |
| 17 | private K-12 schools and child care facilities; requiring |
| 18 | the department to provide specified notice to public |
| 19 | schools within a specified area; providing notice |
| 20 | requirements; providing an effective date. |
| 21 |
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| 22 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 23 |
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| 24 | Section 1. Section 376.30702, Florida Statutes, is amended |
| 25 | to read: |
| 26 | 376.30702 Contamination notification.-- |
| 27 | (1) FINDINGS; INTENT; APPLICABILITY.--The Legislature |
| 28 | finds and declares that when contamination is discovered by any |
| 29 | person as a result of site rehabilitation activities conducted |
| 30 | pursuant to the risk-based corrective action provisions found in |
| 31 | s. 376.3071(5), s. 376.3078(4), s. 376.81, or s. 376.30701, or |
| 32 | pursuant to an administrative or court order, it is in the |
| 33 | public's best interest that potentially affected persons be |
| 34 | notified of the existence of such contamination. Therefore, |
| 35 | persons discovering such contamination shall notify the |
| 36 | department and potentially affected persons of such discovery in |
| 37 | accordance with the requirements of this section, and the |
| 38 | department shall be responsible for notifying the affected |
| 39 | public. The Legislature intends for the provisions of this |
| 40 | section to govern the notice requirements for early notification |
| 41 | of the discovery of contamination. |
| 42 | (2)(a) INITIAL NOTICE OF CONTAMINATION BEYOND PROPERTY |
| 43 | BOUNDARIES.--If at any time during site rehabilitation conducted |
| 44 | pursuant to s. 376.3071(5), s. 376.3078(4), s. 376.81, or s. |
| 45 | 376.30701, or an administrative or court order the person |
| 46 | responsible for site rehabilitation, the person's authorized |
| 47 | agent, or another representative of the person discovers from |
| 48 | laboratory analytical results that comply with appropriate |
| 49 | quality assurance protocols specified in department rules that |
| 50 | contamination as defined in applicable department rules exists |
| 51 | in any groundwater, surface water, or soil either within or |
| 52 | medium beyond the boundaries of the property at which site |
| 53 | rehabilitation was initiated pursuant to s. 376.3071(5), s. |
| 54 | 376.3078(4), s. 376.81, or s. 376.30701, or an administrative or |
| 55 | court order, the person responsible for site rehabilitation |
| 56 | shall give actual notice as soon as possible, but no later than |
| 57 | 10 days from such discovery, to the Division of Waste Management |
| 58 | at the department's Tallahassee office. The actual notice shall |
| 59 | be provided on a form adopted by department rule and mailed by |
| 60 | certified mail, return receipt requested. The person responsible |
| 61 | for site rehabilitation shall simultaneously provide mail a copy |
| 62 | of such notice to: |
| 63 | 1. The appropriate department district office;, |
| 64 | 2. The appropriate county health department;, |
| 65 | 3. The mayor, the chair of the county commission, or the |
| 66 | comparable senior elected official representing the affected |
| 67 | area; |
| 68 | 4. The city manager, the county administrator, or the |
| 69 | comparable senior elected official representing the affected |
| 70 | area; |
| 71 | 5. The state senator, state representative, United States |
| 72 | Senator, and United States Representative representing the |
| 73 | affected area; and |
| 74 | 6. All real property owners, known lessees, and tenants of |
| 75 | the source property at which site rehabilitation is being |
| 76 | conducted, if different from the person responsible for site |
| 77 | rehabilitation, and all real property owners, lessees, and |
| 78 | tenants of any properties within a 500-foot radius of each |
| 79 | sampling point at which contamination is discovered. |
| 80 | (b) The notice shall include the following information: |
| 81 | 1.(a) The location of the property at which site |
| 82 | rehabilitation was initiated pursuant to s. 376.3071(5), s. |
| 83 | 376.3078(4), s. 376.81, or s. 376.30701, or an administrative or |
| 84 | court order and contact information for the person responsible |
| 85 | for site rehabilitation, the person's authorized agent, or |
| 86 | another representative of the person. |
| 87 | 2.(b) A listing of all record owners of any real property |
| 88 | owners, other than the property at which site rehabilitation was |
| 89 | initiated pursuant to s. 376.3071(5), s. 376.3078(4), s. 376.81, |
| 90 | or s. 376.30701, at which contamination has been discovered; the |
| 91 | parcel identification number for any such real property; the |
| 92 | owner's address listed in the current county property tax office |
| 93 | records; and the owner's telephone number. The requirements of |
| 94 | this paragraph do not apply to the notice to known tenants and |
| 95 | lessees of the source property. |
| 96 | 3.(c) Separate tables for by medium, such as groundwater, |
| 97 | soil, or surface water, or sediment, that list sampling |
| 98 | locations identified on the vicinity map as provided in |
| 99 | subparagraph 4.; sampling dates; names of contaminants detected |
| 100 | above cleanup target levels; their corresponding cleanup target |
| 101 | levels; the contaminant concentrations; and whether the cleanup |
| 102 | target level is based on health, nuisance, organoleptic, or |
| 103 | aesthetic concerns. |
| 104 | 4.(d) A vicinity map that shows each sampling location |
| 105 | with corresponding laboratory analytical results pursuant to |
| 106 | subparagraph 3. and the date on which the sample was collected |
| 107 | and that identifies the property boundaries of the property at |
| 108 | which site rehabilitation was initiated pursuant to s. |
| 109 | 376.3071(5), s. 376.3078(4), s. 376.81, or s. 376.30701, or an |
| 110 | administrative or court order and any the other properties at |
| 111 | which contamination has been discovered during such site |
| 112 | rehabilitation. |
| 113 | (c) The notice provided to local government officials |
| 114 | shall be mailed by certified mail, return receipt requested, and |
| 115 | shall advise the local government of its responsibilities under |
| 116 | subsection (3). Copies of the notices and receipts shall be |
| 117 | provided to the department as proof of compliance with this |
| 118 | subsection. |
| 119 | (d) The notice provided to real property owners, lessees, |
| 120 | and tenants may be delivered by certified mail, return receipt |
| 121 | requested, hand delivery, or door-hanger. Copies of the notices |
| 122 | and receipts, or a copy or sample of the hand-delivered notice |
| 123 | or door-hanger and a list of addresses to which the notice or |
| 124 | door-hanger was distributed, shall be provided to the department |
| 125 | as proof of compliance with this subsection. |
| 126 | (3) LOCAL GOVERNMENT'S NOTICE RESPONSIBILITIES.--Within 30 |
| 127 | days after receiving the actual notice required under subsection |
| 128 | (2), the local government shall mail a copy of the notice to the |
| 129 | president or comparable executive officer of each homeowners' |
| 130 | association or neighborhood association within the potentially |
| 131 | affected area as described in subsection (2). |
| 132 | (4)(3) DEPARTMENT'S NOTICE RESPONSIBILITIES.-- |
| 133 | (a) Within 30 days after receiving the actual notice |
| 134 | required under pursuant to subsection (2), or within 30 days of |
| 135 | the effective date of this act if the department already |
| 136 | possesses information equivalent to that required by the notice, |
| 137 | the department shall verify that the person responsible for site |
| 138 | rehabilitation has complied with the notice requirements of this |
| 139 | section send a copy of such notice, or an equivalent |
| 140 | notification, to all record owners of any real property, other |
| 141 | than the property at which site rehabilitation was initiated |
| 142 | pursuant to s. 376.3071(5), s. 376.3078(4), s. 376.81, or s. |
| 143 | 376.30701, at which contamination has been discovered. If the |
| 144 | person responsible for site rehabilitation has not complied with |
| 145 | the notice requirements of this section, the department may |
| 146 | pursue enforcement as provided under this chapter and chapter |
| 147 | 403. |
| 148 | (b) Within 60 days after receiving the actual notice |
| 149 | required under subsection (2), for sites conducting |
| 150 | rehabilitation activities pursuant to the risk-based corrective |
| 151 | action provisions found in s. 376.30701, the department shall |
| 152 | mail a copy of such notice to all real property owners at which |
| 153 | site rehabilitation is being conducted. |
| 154 | (c) If the property at which contamination has been |
| 155 | discovered is the site of a school as defined in s. 1003.01, the |
| 156 | department shall mail also send a copy of the notice to the |
| 157 | superintendent chair of the school board of the school district |
| 158 | in which the property is located and direct the superintendent |
| 159 | said school board to provide actual notice annually to teachers |
| 160 | and parents or guardians of students attending the school during |
| 161 | the period of site rehabilitation. |
| 162 | (d) If the property at which contamination has been |
| 163 | discovered is the site of a private K-12 school or a child care |
| 164 | facility as defined in s. 402.302, the department shall mail a |
| 165 | copy of the notice to the governing board, principal, or owner |
| 166 | of the school or child care facility and direct the governing |
| 167 | board, principal, or owner to provide actual notice annually to |
| 168 | teachers and parents or guardians of students or children |
| 169 | attending the school or child care facility during the period of |
| 170 | site rehabilitation. |
| 171 | (e) If any property within a 1-mile radius of the property |
| 172 | at which contamination has been discovered is the site of a |
| 173 | school as defined in s. 1003.01, the department shall mail a |
| 174 | copy of the notice to the superintendent of the school district |
| 175 | in which the property is located and direct the superintendent |
| 176 | to provide actual notice annually to the principal of the |
| 177 | school. |
| 178 | (f) Along with the copy of the notice or its equivalent, |
| 179 | the department shall include a letter identifying sources of |
| 180 | additional information about the contamination and a telephone |
| 181 | number to which further inquiries should be directed. The |
| 182 | department may collaborate with the Department of Health to |
| 183 | develop such sources of information and to establish procedures |
| 184 | for responding to public inquiries about health risks associated |
| 185 | with contaminated sites. |
| 186 | (5)(4) RULEMAKING AUTHORITY.--The department shall adopt |
| 187 | rules and forms pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to |
| 188 | implement the requirements of this section. |
| 189 | Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2009. |