The Florida Senate

403.861  Department; powers and duties.--The department shall have the power and the duty to carry out the provisions and purposes of this act and, for this purpose, to:

(1)  Administer and enforce the provisions of this act and all rules and orders adopted, issued, or made effective hereunder.

(2)  Enter into agreements, contracts, or cooperative arrangements, under such terms and conditions as it deems appropriate, with other local, state, federal, or interstate agencies; municipalities; political subdivisions; educational institutions; or other organizations or persons.

(3)  Receive financial and technical assistance from the Federal Government and other public or private agencies.

(4)  Participate in related programs conducted by federal agencies, other states, interstate agencies, or other public or private agencies or organizations.

(5)  Establish adequate fiscal controls and accounting procedures to assure proper disbursement of, and accounting for, funds appropriated or otherwise provided for the purpose of carrying out provisions of this act.

(6)  Delegate those responsibilities and duties deemed appropriate for the purpose of administering requirements of this act.

(7)  Issue permits for constructing or operating a public water supply system, based upon the size, type of treatment, or population served by the system.

(8)  Require a fee in an amount sufficient to cover the costs of viewing and acting upon any application for the construction and operation of a public water supply system and the costs of surveillance and other field services associated with any permit issued, but the amount in no case shall exceed $7,500. The fee schedule shall be adopted by rule based on a sliding scale relating to the size, type of treatment, or population served by the system that is proposed by the applicant.

(9)  Adopt, modify, and repeal such rules as are necessary or appropriate to carry out its functions under this act.

(10)  Require department or county health department review and approval of complete plans and specifications prior to the installation, operation, alteration, or extension of any public water system.

(11)  Establish and maintain laboratories for radiological, microbiological, and chemical analyses of water samples from public water systems, if the department determines that an additional laboratory capability beyond that provided by the ¹Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services is necessary.

(12)  Plan, develop, and coordinate program activities for the management and implementation of the state primary and secondary drinking water regulations, including taking sanitary surveys.

(13)  Collect and disseminate information and conduct educational and training programs relating to drinking water and public water systems.

(14)  Conduct data management activities to maintain essential records needed for administration of the public water system supervision program and for submission to the administrator, including the maintenance of an inventory for all public water systems.

(15)  Establish and collect fees for conducting state laboratory analyses as may be necessary, to be collected and used by either the department or the ¹Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services in conducting its public water supply laboratory functions.

(16)  Require suppliers of water to collect samples of water as required by state primary drinking water regulations, to submit such samples to an appropriate laboratory for analysis, and to keep sampling records as required under the federal act and make such records available to the department upon request.

(17)  Require suppliers of water to submit periodic operating reports and testing data which the department determines are reasonably necessary to ascertain the adequacy of water supply systems.

(18)  Issue such orders as may be necessary to effectuate the intent and purposes of this act.

(19)  Assist state and local agencies in the determination and investigation of suspected waterborne disease outbreaks, including diseases associated with chemical contaminants.

(20)  Encourage public involvement and participation in the planning and implementation of the state public water system supervisory plans.

History.--s. 12, ch. 77-337; s. 165, ch. 79-400; s. 46, ch. 86-186; s. 40, ch. 91-305.

¹Note.--The Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services was redesignated as the Department of Children and Family Services by s. 5, ch. 96-403, and the Department of Health was created by s. 8, ch. 96-403.