Read the full stored bill text
Florida Senate
-
2026
CS for CS for CS for SB 1066
By
the Committee on Appropriations; the Appropriations Committee
on Agriculture, Environment, and General Government; the
Committee on Environment and Natural Resources; and Senator
Brodeur
576-02814-26 20261066c3
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to tributaries of the St. Johns River;
3 providing a short title; creating s. 373.464, F.S.;
4 requiring the Department of Environmental Protection,
5 by a specified date, to hire a project lead to oversee
6 the implementation of the act; requiring that the
7 project lead have certain expertise; requiring the
8 department to develop, by a specified date, a project
9 plan for the restoration of the Ocklawaha River;
10 specifying requirements for the project plan;
11 providing that the project plan is an environmental
12 restoration or enhancement project subject to a
13 general permit from the department and water
14 management districts; requiring the department to
15 complete the project plan by a specified date, subject
16 to the provision of funds; providing for the creation
17 of the Northeast Florida River and Springs Recreation
18 and Economic Development Advisory Council by a
19 specified date; assigning the council to the
20 Department of Environmental Protection; providing that
21 the project lead is the chair of the council;
22 providing for council membership, meetings, and
23 duties; requiring the council to submit an advisory
24 report to the Governor, the Legislature, and the
25 department by a specified date; specifying
26 requirements for the advisory report; providing for
27 future repeal; requiring the department to develop an
28 outdoor recreation plan, in collaboration with certain
29 commissions, councils, and local governments of river
30 communities; specifying requirements for the outdoor
31 recreation plan; requiring the department to implement
32 the plan by a specified date; requiring the department
33 to complete projects on state-owned lands in the
34 outdoor recreation plan by a specified date, subject
35 to certain funding; requiring the department to
36 develop a grant program for a specified purpose;
37 requiring that the grant program be compatible with
38 certain plans; requiring the department to implement
39 the grant program by a specified date; requiring the
40 Department of Commerce to develop guidelines and
41 processes for and implement an economic development
42 program for Marion and Putnam Counties for a specified
43 purpose by a specified date; requiring that the
44 economic development plan be compatible with certain
45 plans and programs; requiring the Department of
46 Commerce to implement the economic development program
47 by a specified date; providing an effective date.
48
49 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
50
51 Section 1.
This act may
be
cited as the “Northeast Florida
52
Rivers, Springs, and Community Investment Act.”
53 Section 2. Section 373.464, Florida Statutes, is created to
54 read:
55
373.464
Ocklawaha River restoration, recreation, and
56
economic development
.—
57
(1)
PROJECT LEAD.—The department shall, no later than
58
August 31, 2026, hire a full-time equivalent contractor or
59
employee, whose position title will be project lead,
to oversee
60
the implementation of this act. The project lead must have
61
subject matter expertise in conservation and recreation
62
planning.
63
(
2
)
PROJECT PLAN.—
64
(a)
By July
1, 2027, the
d
epartment shall develop a
project
65
plan for the restoration of the Ocklawaha River
. The project
66
plan must
provi
de for
restoration
and increased
resiliency
and
67
recreation benefits
of
the Ocklawaha
and
St. Johns Rivers and
68
Silver Springs. The project plan must
be designed to restore the
69
Ocklawaha River
’s natural flow,
hydrology
,
and floodplain
70
function to the approximate conditions that existed before the
71
construction of the
C
ross
Florida Barge Canal project and its
72
associated project works
by implementing measures that include
73
breaching the Kirkpatrick Dam and decommissioning the Buckman
74
Lock
. The project plan must incorporate
the
best
available
75
science an
d in
clude engineering and design updates, including
76
topographic and bathymetric surveys, and precise estimates of
77
material to be dredged or excavated. In addition, the project
78
plan must provide recommendations for road and bridge
79
construction which are compatible with the partial restoration
80
plan and ensure continued access for the communities west of the
81
project. The project plan must include estimates by fiscal year
82
of the cost of implementing the project plan and potential
83
sources of funding for such costs.
84
(b)
Notwithstanding any law or rule, the project plan for
85
the restoration of the Ocklawaha River is an environmental
86
restoration or enhancement project subject to a general permit
87
from the department and water management districts for
88
environmental restoration or enhancement pursuant to rule 62
89
330.405, Florida Administrative Code, and rule 62-330.485,
90
Florida Administrative Code.
91
(c)
Subject to the provision of state, federal, or other
92
funds, the department shall complete the restoration project
93
plan by December 31, 2032.
94
(3)
NORTHEAST FLORIDA RIVER AND SPRINGS RECREATION AND
95
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ADVISORY COUNCIL.—
96
(a)
Establishment of the council
.
—
97
1. By October 31, 2026, the Northeast Florida River and
98
Springs Recreation and Economic Development Advisory Council, an
99
advisory council as defined in s. 20.03(7), shall be established
100
and assigned to the
department. The council shall be
101
administratively housed within the department.
The project lead
102
shall serve as the council chair, and the members shall meet at
103
the call of the project lead. Members shall serve without
104
compensation but are entitled to reimbursement for per diem and
105
travel expenses pursuant to s. 112.061.
Council members shall
106
serve 4-year terms, except that the initial terms shall be
107
staggered.
108
2.
The council shall be composed of the following 16
109
members:
110
a.
Nine members of the council shall be appointed by and
111
serve at the pleasure of the Governor and shall include:
112
(I)
Two representatives of river recreation-related
113
businesses local to Marion or Putnam County.
114
(II)
Two representatives of outdoor recreation user groups,
115
one of whom represents fishing interests local to Marion or
116
Putnam County.
117
(III)
One representative of the department’s Office of
118
Greenways and Trails.
119
(IV)
One representative of the Florida Fish and Wildlife
120
Conservation Commission’s Division of Freshwater Fisheries
121
Management.
122
(V)
One representative of the Florida Fish and Wildlife
123
Conservation Commission’s Imperiled Species Management Section.
124
(VI)
One representative of the Department of Commerce.
125
(VII)
One representative of an environmental community
126
support organization who has subject matter expertise in springs
127
or rivers.
128
b.
Six members of the council shall be appointed by the
129
boards of county commissioners for the following counties:
130
(I)
Putnam County shall appoint two members, one of whom
131
oversees parks and recreation for the county.
132
(II)
Marion County shall appoint two members, one of whom
133
oversees parks and recreation for the county.
134
(III)
Clay County shall appoint one member.
135
(IV)
St. Johns County shall appoint one member.
136
c.
One member shall be the commanding officer of Naval Air
137
Station Jacksonville or his or her designee.
138
(b)
Report
.
—The council shall submit an advisory report to
139
the Governor, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the
140
House
of Representatives
, and
the d
epartment by February 1,
141
2027. The report must include all of the following:
142
1.
Recommendations for projects to be included in the
143
outdoor recreation plan created in subsection (4)
, including
144
priorities for state-funded land projects.
145
2.
Recommendations to the department for the creation of
146
guidelines to govern the
g
rant
p
rogram
created in subsection
147
(5)
.
148
3.
Recommendations to the Department of Commerce for the
149
creation of guidelines to administer the
e
conomic
d
evelopment
150
program
created in subsection (6)
.
151
4.
Recommendations for measures to minimize the impact of
152
the restoration plan on property owners or businesses directly
153
affected by the restoration project.
154
(c)
Repeal
.
—In accordance with s. 20.052(8), this
155
subsection is repealed October 2, 2029, unless reviewed and
156
saved from repeal through reenactment by the Legislature.
157
(4)
OUTDOOR RECREATION PLAN.—
158
(a)
T
he
d
epartment
,
in collaboration with the Fish and
159
Wildlife
Conservation
Commission,
the
Northeast Florida River
160
and Springs Recreation and Economic Development Advisory
161
Council
, and
the
local government
s of
river communities in Clay
,
162
Marion, Putnam,
and St. Johns
C
ounties
,
shall
develop an
o
utdoor
163
r
ecreation
p
lan.
164
(b)
The outdoor recreation plan
must
identify and implement
165
projects for
enhanced and expanded
river and springs access
for
166
recreational activities
,
such
as
fishing, hunting, swimming,
167
wildlife viewing, paddling, and hiking
. Such projects must be
168
compatible with the project pla
n and applicable statutes
. The
169
o
utdoor
r
ecreation
p
lan
must
be made available for public
170
comment before
its
implementation.
171
(c)
The department shall implement the outdoor recreation
172
plan by January 1, 2028.
173
(d)
Subject to the provision of state, federal, or other
174
funds
, the department shall
complete projects on state-owned
175
lands identified in
the outdoor recreation plan by December 31,
176
2035
.
177
(
5
)
GRANT PROGRAM.—
178
(a)
By January 1, 2028, the
d
epartment shall
develop
a
179
grant program for river communities in Clay
, Marion, Putnam,
and
180
St. Johns Counties to
implement
the
o
utdoor
r
ecreation
plan
.
181
(b)
The
grant
program must be compatible with the project
182
plan and outdoor recreation plan.
183
(c)
The department shall implement the grant program by
184
February 1, 2028.
185
(
6
)
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM.—
186
(a)
T
he Department of Commerce shall develop guidelines and
187
processes for an
e
conomic development program
for Marion and
188
Putnam Counties
.
The
economic development
program
must
support
189
projects
that
encourage job creation, capital investment
,
and
190
strengthening and diversification of
each county’s
economy.
191
(b)
The economic development program
must be compatible
192
with the
project plan, the o
utdoor
r
ecreation
p
lan
, and the
193
grant program
.
194
(c)
The Department of Commerce shall implement the economic
195
development program by January 1, 2028.
196 Section 3. This act shall take effect upon becoming a law.