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Senate Committee Passes Coast-to-Coast Comprehensive Water Resource Program

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Legislation would create southern storage to reduce harmful
discharges from Lake Okeechobee and further other critical
water resource protection and development programs

The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on The Environment and Natural Resources, chaired by Senator Rob Bradley (R-Fleming Island), today passed Senate Bill 10, Water Resources, by Senator Bradley. The bill addresses the critical need for water storage south of Lake Okeechobee, a priority of Senate President Joe Negron (R-Stuart), and was expanded today to include a Coast-to-Coast Comprehensive Water Resource Program to provide funding tools to implement water resource protection and development programs across Florida.
Statement by President Negron:
“Harmful discharges from Lake Okeechobee have flooded communities on the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee Rivers with massive amounts of toxic algae that destroyed estuaries and harmed the local and state economies. Unfortunately, incidences like these are not unique in our state and are a symptom of the lack of attention to water resource development. The lost summer must be a wakeup call for all Floridians.
“After listening to citizens from around the state, we are expanding this critical legislation to address an immediate response to the Lake Okeechobee crisis, along with other pressing water issues facing our state as a whole. In 2016, we made an impressive start by passing Legacy Florida and a comprehensive water bill. Through Senate Bill 10 we are backing up those commitments with funding investments to improve water resources throughout our state.
“The voters spoke about the urgency of this issue when they approved the Water and Land Conservation Initiative in 2014 by overwhelming margins. Senate Bill 10 ensures fidelity to the Constitution by utilizing resources set aside by that amendment to make the financial investments we need to meet the water infrastructure needs of families, businesses, agriculture and the environment.
Statement by Senator Bradley:
“As we developed this legislation, we have heard from thousands of Floridians, and they have been clear that we must have clean water for our families and businesses, sufficient water for our agriculture industry, and we must preserve our unique rivers, springs and natural systems for the enjoyment of future generations. We cannot fail in this effort.
“In addition to the environmental disaster around Lake Okeechobee, we recently experienced the massive sewage discharge in Tampa Bay. Meanwhile, each session Senate policy and budget committees review issues relating to water quality and quantity concerns with the St. John’s River, the Florida Keys, and a vast majority of our springs and rivers.
“For over a generation, Florida has focused on land acquisition for conservation with historic programs like Florida Forever and P2000. Senate Bill 10 recognizes that with approximately 30 percent of all land in the Florida already managed for conservation purposes, it is clearly time to meet the directive Florida voters gave the Legislature through the Water and Land Conservation Amendment by focusing land acquisition and conservation priorities on specific improvements related to water resources.
“These critical investments in water infrastructure will create jobs across our state and save a valuable resource to serve our state’s growing demand.”
The Coast-to-Coast Comprehensive Water Resource Program includes the following:

  • Acceleration of the timing and funding for the state share of the Everglades Agricultural Area Storage Reservoir Project.  The bill authorizes the purchase of land for the project from willing sellers in the EAA and does not authorize the use of eminent domain.
  • Funding of the state share of all existing Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan (CERP) projects in the integrated delivery schedule (IDS), including the Lake Okeechobee Watershed Project, the C-43 West Basin Storage Reservoir Project, the C-44 Reservoir Project, the Western Everglades Restoration Project, the C-111 South-Dade Project, and the Picayune Strand Restoration Project.
  • Direction to the Army Corps of Engineers to begin the reevaluation of the Lake Okeechobee Regulation Schedule to take into account repairs to the dike and new southern storage features to increase storage in the lake as early as possible.
  • A new bonding program, building on the Florida Forever model that recognizes the need to bond for water resource protection and development across Florida.  The bill transfers the remaining $3.3 billion of existing bonding authority from Florida Forever to the Florida Coast-to Coast Water Resources Initiative. The bill does not create additional bonding capacity.
  • A new revolving loan financing program and statutory tools to allow the state, water management districts and local governments, to develop and operate water storage and supply facilities to service regional populations addressing the growing need for water supply in the state.
  • Dedicated LATF funding to expand Legacy Florida to include projects addressing water quality and restoration with the St. John’s River and the Florida Keys.
  • Funding to aggressively address the retrofitting or conversion to central sewer systems of outdated septic systems consistent with Governor Scott’s leadership on this issue.
  • Provisions that encourage reuse by establishing a water reuse grant programs, specifically to assist wastewater treatment facilities to expand capacity to make reclaimed water available for reuse.

Senate Committee Advances Plan to Protect Coastal Counties from Polluted Discharges

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Legislation Would Reduce Harmful Discharges from
Lake Okeechobee, Increase Southern Water Storage

The Senate Committee on Environmental Preservation and Conservation today passed Senate Bill 10, Water Resources, by Senator Rob Bradley (R-Fleming Island). The legislation, a priority of Senate President Joe Negron (R-Stuart) authorizes bonding a portion of proceeds from the Land Acquisition Trust Fund, set aside by the voter-approved Water and Land Conservation Amendment (Amendment 1, 2014), to purchase land and construct a reservoir south of Lake Okeechobee to reduce harmful discharges to the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee estuaries.
“I am pleased to see this legislation earn the support of my Senate colleagues today,” said Senator Bradley. “I appreciate the input provided by many stakeholders during today’s committee meeting, and I look forward to continuing that important dialogue as the bill moves through the legislative process.”
“This legislation provides a solution to the plague of harmful, polluted discharges and toxic blue-green algae that respects both the interests of the agricultural community and the rights of private land owners,” said President Negron. “After twenty years of talking about southern storage, the time to act is now. This legislation will make an important difference in the quality of life for people in my community and many others across our state. I am very grateful to my fellow Senators for their support.”
Senate Bill 10 authorizes the issuance of bonds to raise over a billion dollars to acquire 60,000 acres of land and build a reservoir south of Lake Okeechobee to reduce harmful discharges to the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee estuaries. The reservoir is expected to hold 120 billion gallons of water, approximately as much water as was discharged from Lake Okeechobee into the St. Lucie Estuary between January and May of 2016.  The creation of significant storage capacity south of the Lake will help manage Lake levels in anticipation of periods of high rainfall like this year’s predicted El Nino weather pattern.  Storing water during the wet season provides the additional benefit of allowing water to be sent south to hydrate the Everglades and Florida Bay, or for agricultural use, during the dry season.
The estimated cost of a reservoir on 60,000 acres of land, providing 120 billion gallons of storage in the area south of Lake Okeechobee, is roughly $2.4 billion. With the federal government paying at least half of the cost of such a reservoir, the state’s commitment would be $1.2 billion. The bill authorizes the use of approximately $100 million of documentary stamp tax revenue set aside by the Water and Land Conversation Amendment (Amendment 1, 2014) annually over the next 20 years to finance land acquisition and construction of the reservoir.
The bill directs the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) to begin the formal process of purchasing land from willing sellers. The project is subject to Congressional approval to secure the 50/50 cost sharing agreement authorized for other Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan projects.
If the SFWMD is unable to identify sellers of land appropriate for a reservoir through an open solicitation by the end of CY 2017, the legislation authorizes the Board of Trustees to exercise the option with U.S. Sugar entered into in 2010 to buy 153,000 acres of land in the Everglades Agricultural Area, for the purpose of securing the 60,000 acres necessary for the reservoir and to begin the planning the construction of the reservoir.
If the state is ultimately unable to purchase land for the reservoir by November 30, 2018, the legislation increases the ongoing Legacy Florida appropriation by an additional $50 million for the Comprehensive Everglades Restoration Plan, which includes a reservoir in the Everglades Agricultural Area as a key component. This is in addition to Legacy Florida’s existing commitment of $200 million. Legacy Florida also requires preference among these projects to be given to projects that reduce the harmful discharges from Lake Okeechobee to the St. Lucie or Caloosahatchee Estuaries.
Background:
Record rainfall this past year resulted in unseasonably high water levels in Lake Okeechobee, which threatened the integrity of the Herbert Hoover Dike. To maintain safe water levels, the Army Corps of Engineers authorized the release of billions of gallons of water from the Lake to the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee Rivers. Such freshwater discharges cause significant environmental damage by lowering the salinity levels of the estuaries and introducing pollutants into coastal waters. Due to the discharges this summer, massive amounts of toxic algae that originated in Lake Okeechobee were sent to the estuaries and coastal waterways.
As a result of the high volume discharges, coastal communities experienced enormous harmful algal blooms with devastating impacts not only to the ecology of local waterways, but also to residents, fishermen, and local businesses. The extent and severity of the blooms resulted in Governor Scott declaring a state of emergency in four Florida counties.

Senate Committee Passes Legislation to Require Unanimous Verdict in Death Penalty Cases

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The Florida Senate Committee on Criminal Justice, chaired by Senator Randolph Bracy (D-Ocoee), today passed Senate Bill 280, Sentencing for Capital Felonies, which revises sentencing requirements in capital felony cases to require a unanimous jury verdict, rather than a certain number of jurors, for a sentencing recommendation of death.
“The Senate has supported a unanimous verdict requirement in the past, and now the Supreme Court has made it clear that if we are going to follow the Constitution, we need to amend our death penalty statute to require a unanimous jury verdict in death penalty cases,” said Senate President Joe Negron (R-Stuart).
“It is important that we have an orderly system of justice in place for both families of victims and individuals charged with serious crimes,” said Chair Bracy, sponsor of Senate Bill 280. “This legislation removes ambiguity from our death penalty statute, which will help reduce delays in due process for all parties involved in death penalty cases.”
Senate Bill 280 is now available for a hearing in the Senate Committee on Rules. If passed by the Rules Committee, the bill would be available to be heard on the Senate floor early in the 2017 Legislative Session.

Legislation to Protect Right to Self-Defense Passes First Senate Committee

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The Senate Committee on Judiciary, chaired by Senator Greg Steube (R-Sarasota), today passed Senate Bill 128, Self-defense Immunity, by Senator Rob Bradley (R-Fleming Island). The bill protects the right of self-defense for all Floridians by correcting a misinterpretation of the “Stand Your Ground” law in the 2015 Bretherick vs. State Florida Supreme Court decision.
“The Senate passed legislation to clarify this critical constitutional issue last year, and I am pleased to see Senator Bradley’s bill advance again today,” said Senate President Joe Negron (R-Stuart). “If the State of Florida is going to accuse a citizen of committing a crime, the State of Florida should have the burden of proof at each and every part of the proceeding to prove guilt beyond the exclusion of every reasonable doubt.”
Senate Bill 128 clarifies the government, not the accused, has the burden of proof in a “Stand Your Ground” immunity hearing. In a 5-2 decision, the Florida Supreme Court ruled otherwise.
“This is a fundamental American right guaranteed by our Constitution. A defendant always has the presumption of innocence and the state always has a burden of proof,” continued President Negron.
SB 128 changes the burden of proof and who must bear it during pretrial hearings to evaluate a defendant’s claim of immunity based on a justifiable use of force. Current law provides a defendant a right of immunity from criminal prosecution and civil action if he or she is justified in using force. Although the procedures to claim immunity are not specified by statute, the Florida Supreme Court has determined that defendants must prove by a preponderance of the evidence the entitlement to the immunity at a pretrial hearing. The bill places the burden of proof on the state and requires the state to overcome the immunity claim by offering evidence meeting the standard of beyond a reasonable doubt.
Senator Bradley sponsored the same legislation, Senate Bill 344 (2016) last session, and it passed the Florida Senate. The bill died in committee in the Florida House.