ACTION NEEDED: Support These Two Stormwater Bills

Please support Florida Senate Bill 1344 by Senator Janet Cruz, Statewide Environmental Permitting Rules.

SB 1344 Background:

• Design and permitting criteria for non-point stormwater treatment in Florida have not been updated and codified since 2007 despite new criteria that was developed in 2010.
• Current stormwater design and permitting criteria are outdated and allow pollution, especially for nutrients like nitrogen that cause harmful algal blooms, to reach impairment levels statewide.
• The new criteria proposed in SB 1344 would not present a direct cost to the public.
• Proposes the most significant statewide water pollutant reduction of any legislation currently being considered.

SB 1344 requires:

• that new pollutant loadings from stormwater systems are not discharged into impaired water bodies.
• by December 1, 2019 that FDEP and the water management districts revise best management practice design criteria and low impact design best management practices and design criteria that increase the removal of nutrients from stormwater discharge from all new development and redevelopment projects and measures for consistent application of the net improvement performance standard to ensure that new pollutant loadings are not discharged into impaired waters.

Primary ask:

Please support the revision language in SB 1344 and ask that additional language be included that applies the new criteria to all relevant waters of the state, not just for impaired waters.

SB 1344 will be reviewed by the Senate Environment and Natural Resources Committee, Tuesday April 2 at 2:00 PM. Please contact members of the committee and urge them to forward SB 1344 legislation to revise statewide stormwater permitting criteria. Comments have the best chance of being considered if submitted before April 1.

Committee member contact information:

Committee Chair: Senator Bill Montford (D): (850) 487-5003 / [email protected]
Senator Ben Albritton (R): (850) 487-5026 / [email protected]
Senator Lori Berman (D): (850) 487-5031 / [email protected]
Senator Debbie Mayfield (R): (850) 487-5017 / [email protected]
Senator Tom A. Wright (R): (850) 487-5014 / [email protected]”>[email protected]

http://www.flsenate.gov/Committees/Show/EN?pref=full

Please also consider supporting Florida H1343 Stormwater Management Systems by Rep. Margaret Good. H1343 is the companion bill to SB 1344 and has been referred to the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Subcommittee but has not yet been put on the agenda of that committee. Please contact members of the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Subcommittee and ask that the bill be considered as an action item for the next scheduled meeting.

Committee member contact information:

Committee Chair: Charles Wesley “Chuck” Clemons, Sr. [R](850) 717-5021 / [email protected]
Holly Raschein [R]: (850) 717-5120 / [email protected]
Delores D. “D” Hogan Johnson [D]: (850) 717-5084 / [email protected]
Robert Charles “Chuck” Brannan III [R]: (850) 717-5010 / [email protected]
Elizabeth Anne Fetterhoff [R]: (850) 717-5026 / [email protected]
Walter Bryan “Mike” Hill [R]: (850) 717-5001 / [email protected]
Kristin Diane Jacobs [D]: (850) 717-5096 / [email protected]
Chris Latvala [R]: (850) 717-5067 / [email protected]
Lawrence McClure [R]: (850) 717-5058 / [email protected]
Anika Tene Omphroy [D]: (850) 717-5095 / [email protected]
Daniel Perez [R]: (850) 717-5116 / [email protected]
Sharon Pritchett [D]: (850) 717-5102 / [email protected]
William Cloud “Will” Robinson, Jr. [R]: (850) 717-5071 / [email protected]
Tyler I. Sirois [R]: (850) 717-5051 / [email protected]
Clovis Watson, Jr. [D]: (850) 717-5020 / [email protected]

https://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Committees/committeesdetail.aspx?
SessionId=87&CommitteeId=3024