Bill Text: FL S1160 | 2013 | Regular Session | Comm Sub


Bill Title: Onsite Sewage Treatment and Disposal Systems

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (? 3-1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2013-04-24 - Laid on Table, companion bill(s) passed, see CS/CS/CS/HB 375 (Ch. 2013-79), CS/HB 7019 (Ch. 2013-213) [S1160 Detail]

Download: Florida-2013-S1160-Comm_Sub.html
       Florida Senate - 2013               CS for CS for CS for SB 1160
       
       
       
       By the Committees on Rules; Environmental Preservation and
       Conservation; and Health Policy; and Senator Bullard
       
       
       
       595-04604-13                                          20131160c3
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to onsite sewage treatment and
    3         disposal systems; amending s. 381.0065, F.S.; deleting
    4         provisions relating to the development of performance
    5         criteria applicable to engineer-designed systems;
    6         revising requirements for maintenance entity service
    7         agreements for certain engineer-designed systems;
    8         authorizing certain property owners to be approved and
    9         permitted as maintenance entities for performance
   10         based treatment systems under certain conditions;
   11         requiring owners of performance-based treatment unit
   12         systems to obtain certain permits; requiring onsite
   13         sewage treatment and disposal systems to comply with
   14         rules of the Department of Environmental Protection
   15         and provide a certain level of treatment; providing
   16         that certain onsite sewage treatment and disposal
   17         systems in Monroe County installed after a specified
   18         date are not required to connect to a sewer until a
   19         specified date; providing for nonapplicability;
   20         deleting a provision that requires a maintenance
   21         entity to obtain a system operating permit;
   22         authorizing the department to approve and permit a
   23         property owner of an owner-occupied, single-family
   24         residence as a maintenance entity for the property
   25         owner’s own aerobic treatment unit system under
   26         certain circumstances; requiring the maintenance
   27         entity service agreement to conspicuously disclose
   28         that the property owner has the right to maintain his
   29         or her own system and is exempt from certain
   30         contractor registration requirements; prohibiting a
   31         septic tank contractor from being denied access by the
   32         manufacturer to aerobic treatment unit system training
   33         or spare parts for maintenance entities; providing
   34         that component parts for an aerobic treatment unit
   35         system may be replaced with parts that meet
   36         manufacturer’s specifications; requiring the
   37         maintenance entity to maintain documentation for a
   38         specified period of time and to provide the
   39         documentation to the department upon request;
   40         requiring owners of performance-based treatment unit
   41         systems to obtain certain permits; providing an
   42         effective date.
   43  
   44  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   45  
   46         Section 1. Paragraphs (j), (l), and (u) of subsection (4)
   47  of section 381.0065, Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
   48         381.0065 Onsite sewage treatment and disposal systems;
   49  regulation.—
   50         (4) PERMITS; INSTALLATION; AND CONDITIONS.—A person may not
   51  construct, repair, modify, abandon, or operate an onsite sewage
   52  treatment and disposal system without first obtaining a permit
   53  approved by the department. The department may issue permits to
   54  carry out this section, but shall not make the issuance of such
   55  permits contingent upon prior approval by the Department of
   56  Environmental Protection, except that the issuance of a permit
   57  for work seaward of the coastal construction control line
   58  established under s. 161.053 shall be contingent upon receipt of
   59  any required coastal construction control line permit from the
   60  Department of Environmental Protection. A construction permit is
   61  valid for 18 months from the issuance date and may be extended
   62  by the department for one 90-day period under rules adopted by
   63  the department. A repair permit is valid for 90 days from the
   64  date of issuance. An operating permit must be obtained prior to
   65  the use of any aerobic treatment unit or if the establishment
   66  generates commercial waste. Buildings or establishments that use
   67  an aerobic treatment unit or generate commercial waste shall be
   68  inspected by the department at least annually to assure
   69  compliance with the terms of the operating permit. The operating
   70  permit for a commercial wastewater system is valid for 1 year
   71  from the date of issuance and must be renewed annually. The
   72  operating permit for an aerobic treatment unit is valid for 2
   73  years from the date of issuance and must be renewed every 2
   74  years. If all information pertaining to the siting, location,
   75  and installation conditions or repair of an onsite sewage
   76  treatment and disposal system remains the same, a construction
   77  or repair permit for the onsite sewage treatment and disposal
   78  system may be transferred to another person, if the transferee
   79  files, within 60 days after the transfer of ownership, an
   80  amended application providing all corrected information and
   81  proof of ownership of the property. There is no fee associated
   82  with the processing of this supplemental information. A person
   83  may not contract to construct, modify, alter, repair, service,
   84  abandon, or maintain any portion of an onsite sewage treatment
   85  and disposal system without being registered under part III of
   86  chapter 489. A property owner who personally performs
   87  construction, maintenance, or repairs to a system serving his or
   88  her own owner-occupied single-family residence is exempt from
   89  registration requirements for performing such construction,
   90  maintenance, or repairs on that residence, but is subject to all
   91  permitting requirements. A municipality or political subdivision
   92  of the state may not issue a building or plumbing permit for any
   93  building that requires the use of an onsite sewage treatment and
   94  disposal system unless the owner or builder has received a
   95  construction permit for such system from the department. A
   96  building or structure may not be occupied and a municipality,
   97  political subdivision, or any state or federal agency may not
   98  authorize occupancy until the department approves the final
   99  installation of the onsite sewage treatment and disposal system.
  100  A municipality or political subdivision of the state may not
  101  approve any change in occupancy or tenancy of a building that
  102  uses an onsite sewage treatment and disposal system until the
  103  department has reviewed the use of the system with the proposed
  104  change, approved the change, and amended the operating permit.
  105         (j) An onsite sewage treatment and disposal system for a
  106  single-family residence that is designed by a professional
  107  engineer registered in the state and certified by such engineer
  108  as complying with performance criteria adopted by the department
  109  must be approved by the department subject to the following:
  110         1. The performance criteria applicable to engineer-designed
  111  systems must be limited to those necessary to ensure that such
  112  systems do not adversely affect the public health or
  113  significantly degrade the groundwater or surface water. Such
  114  performance criteria shall include consideration of the quality
  115  of system effluent, the proposed total sewage flow per acre,
  116  wastewater treatment capabilities of the natural or replaced
  117  soil, water quality classification of the potential surface
  118  water-receiving body, and the structural and maintenance
  119  viability of the system for the treatment of domestic
  120  wastewater. However, performance criteria shall address only the
  121  performance of a system and not a system’s design.
  122         2. The technical review and advisory panel shall assist the
  123  department in the development of performance criteria applicable
  124  to engineer-designed systems.
  125         2.3. A person electing to utilize an engineer-designed
  126  system shall, upon completion of the system design, submit such
  127  design, certified by a registered professional engineer, to the
  128  county health department. The county health department may
  129  utilize an outside consultant to review the engineer-designed
  130  system, with the actual cost of such review to be borne by the
  131  applicant. Within 5 working days after receiving an engineer
  132  designed system permit application, the county health department
  133  shall request additional information if the application is not
  134  complete. Within 15 working days after receiving a complete
  135  application for an engineer-designed system, the county health
  136  department either shall issue the permit or, if it determines
  137  that the system does not comply with the performance criteria,
  138  shall notify the applicant of that determination and refer the
  139  application to the department for a determination as to whether
  140  the system should be approved, disapproved, or approved with
  141  modification. The department engineer’s determination shall
  142  prevail over the action of the county health department. The
  143  applicant shall be notified in writing of the department’s
  144  determination and of the applicant’s rights to pursue a variance
  145  or seek review under the provisions of chapter 120.
  146         3.4. The owner of an engineer-designed performance-based
  147  system must maintain a current maintenance service agreement
  148  with a maintenance entity permitted by the department. The
  149  maintenance entity shall obtain a biennial system operating
  150  permit from the department for each system under service
  151  contract. The department shall inspect the system at least
  152  annually, or on such periodic basis as the fee collected
  153  permits, and may collect system-effluent samples if appropriate
  154  to determine compliance with the performance criteria. The fee
  155  for the biennial operating permit shall be collected beginning
  156  with the second year of system operation. The maintenance entity
  157  shall inspect each system at least twice each year and shall
  158  report quarterly to the department on the number of systems
  159  inspected and serviced. The reports may be submitted
  160  electronically.
  161         4. The department may approve and permit a property owner
  162  of an owner-occupied, single-family residence as a maintenance
  163  entity for his or her own performance-based treatment system if
  164  the system manufacturer’s approved representative certifies in
  165  writing that the property owner has received training on the
  166  proper installation and service of the system. The maintenance
  167  service agreement must conspicuously disclose that the property
  168  owner has the right to maintain his or her own system and is
  169  exempt from contractor registration requirements for performing
  170  construction, maintenance, or repairs on the system but is
  171  subject to all permitting requirements.
  172         5. The property owner shall obtain a biennial system
  173  operating permit from the department for each system. The
  174  department shall inspect the system at least annually, or on
  175  such periodic basis as the fee collected allows, and may collect
  176  system-effluent samples if appropriate to determine compliance
  177  with the performance criteria. The fee for the biennial
  178  operating permit shall be collected beginning with the second
  179  year of system operation.
  180         6.5. If an engineer-designed system fails to properly
  181  function or fails to meet performance standards, the system
  182  shall be re-engineered, if necessary, to bring the system into
  183  compliance with the provisions of this section.
  184         (l) For the Florida Keys, the department shall adopt a
  185  special rule for the construction, installation, modification,
  186  operation, repair, maintenance, and performance of onsite sewage
  187  treatment and disposal systems which considers the unique soil
  188  conditions and water table elevations, densities, and setback
  189  requirements. On lots where a setback distance of 75 feet from
  190  surface waters, saltmarsh, and buttonwood association habitat
  191  areas cannot be met, an injection well, approved and permitted
  192  by the department, may be used for disposal of effluent from
  193  onsite sewage treatment and disposal systems. The following
  194  additional requirements apply to onsite sewage treatment and
  195  disposal systems in Monroe County:
  196         1. The county, each municipality, and those special
  197  districts established for the purpose of the collection,
  198  transmission, treatment, or disposal of sewage shall ensure, in
  199  accordance with the specific schedules adopted by the
  200  Administration Commission under s. 380.0552, the completion of
  201  onsite sewage treatment and disposal system upgrades to meet the
  202  requirements of this paragraph.
  203         2. Onsite sewage treatment and disposal systems must cease
  204  discharge by December 31, 2015, or must comply with department
  205  rules and provide the level of treatment which, on a permitted
  206  annual average basis, produces an effluent that contains no more
  207  than the following concentrations:
  208         a. Biochemical Oxygen Demand (CBOD5) of 10 mg/l.
  209         b. Suspended Solids of 10 mg/l.
  210         c. Total Nitrogen, expressed as N, of 10 mg/l, or a
  211  reduction in nitrogen of at least at 70 percent. A system that
  212  has been tested and certified to reduce nitrogen concentrations
  213  by at least 70 percent is deemed to be in compliance with this
  214  standard.
  215         d. Total Phosphorus, expressed as P, of 1 mg/l.
  216  
  217  In addition, onsite sewage treatment and disposal systems
  218  discharging to an injection well must provide basic disinfection
  219  as defined by department rule.
  220         3. In areas not scheduled to be served by a central sewer,
  221  onsite sewage treatment and disposal systems must, by December
  222  31, 2015, comply with department rules and provide the level of
  223  treatment described in subparagraph 2.
  224         4.3.On or after July 1, 2010, all new, modified, and
  225  repaired onsite sewage treatment and disposal systems must
  226  provide the level of treatment described in subparagraph 2.
  227  However, In areas scheduled to be served by central sewer by
  228  December 31, 2015, if the property owner has paid a connection
  229  fee or assessment for connection to the central sewer system,
  230  the property owner may install a holding tank with a high water
  231  alarm, or an onsite sewage treatment and disposal system that
  232  meets may be repaired to the following minimum standards:
  233         a. The existing tanks must be pumped and inspected and
  234  certified as being watertight and free of defects in accordance
  235  with department rule; and
  236         b. A sand-lined drainfield or injection well in accordance
  237  with department rule must be installed.
  238         5.4. Onsite sewage treatment and disposal systems must be
  239  monitored for total nitrogen and total phosphorus concentrations
  240  as required by department rule.
  241         6.5. The department shall enforce proper installation,
  242  operation, and maintenance of onsite sewage treatment and
  243  disposal systems pursuant to this chapter, including ensuring
  244  that the appropriate level of treatment described in sub
  245  subparagraph b. subparagraph 2. is met.
  246         7.6. The authority of a local government, including a
  247  special district, to mandate connection of an onsite sewage
  248  treatment and disposal system is governed by s. 4, chapter 99
  249  395, Laws of Florida.
  250         8. Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the
  251  contrary, an onsite sewage treatment and disposal system
  252  installed after July 1, 2010, in unincorporated Monroe County,
  253  excluding special wastewater districts, which complies with the
  254  standards in subparagraph 2., is not required to connect to a
  255  central sewer system until December 31, 2020.
  256         (u)1. The owner of an aerobic treatment unit system shall
  257  maintain a current maintenance service agreement with an aerobic
  258  treatment unit maintenance entity permitted by the department.
  259  The maintenance entity shall obtain a system operating permit
  260  from the department for each aerobic treatment unit under
  261  service contract. The maintenance entity shall inspect each
  262  aerobic treatment unit system at least twice each year and shall
  263  report quarterly to the department on the number of aerobic
  264  treatment unit systems inspected and serviced. The reports may
  265  be submitted electronically.
  266         2. The department may approve and permit a property owner
  267  of an owner-occupied, single-family residence as a maintenance
  268  entity for the property owner’s own aerobic treatment unit
  269  system if the system manufacturer’s approved representative
  270  certifies in writing that the property owner has received
  271  training on the proper installation and service of the system.
  272  The maintenance entity service agreement must conspicuously
  273  disclose that the property owner has the right to maintain his
  274  or her own system and is exempt from contractor registration
  275  requirements for performing construction, maintenance, or
  276  repairs on the system but is subject to all permitting
  277  requirements.
  278         3. A septic tank contractor licensed under part III of
  279  chapter 489, if approved by the manufacturer, may not be denied
  280  access by the manufacturer to aerobic treatment unit system
  281  training or spare parts for maintenance entities. After the
  282  original warranty period, component parts for an aerobic
  283  treatment unit system may be replaced with parts that meet
  284  manufacturer’s specifications but are manufactured by others.
  285  The maintenance entity shall maintain documentation for a period
  286  of 2 years of the substitute part’s equivalency and shall
  287  provide such documentation to the department upon request.
  288         4. The owner of an aerobic treatment unit system shall
  289  obtain a system operating permit from the department and allow
  290  the department to inspect during reasonable hours each aerobic
  291  treatment unit system at least annually, and such inspection may
  292  include collection and analysis of system-effluent samples for
  293  performance criteria established by rule of the department.
  294         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2013.

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