The Florida Senate
BILL ANALYSIS AND FISCAL IMPACT STATEMENT
(This document is based on the provisions contained in the legislation as of the latest date listed below.)
Prepared By: The Professional Staff of the Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Environment, and General
Government
BILL: CS/SB 1538
INTRODUCER: Environment and Natural Resources Committee and Senator Stewart
SUBJECT: Implementation of the Recommendations of the Blue-Green Algae Task Force
DATE: April 17, 2023 REVISED:
ANALYST STAFF DIRECTOR REFERENCE ACTION
1. Carroll Rogers EN Fav/CS
2. Reagan Betta AEG Favorable
3. FP
Please see Section IX. for Additional Information:
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE - Substantial Changes
I. Summary:
CS/SB 1538 requires that each project listed in a new or revised basin management action plan
(BMAP) with a total cost exceeding $1 million must be monitored to determine if it is working
to reduce nutrient pollution or water use, or both, as intended. The monitoring assessments must
be completed expeditiously and included in each BMAP update.
The Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) may incur indeterminate costs in monitoring
and assessing certain projects for reductions in nutrient pollution or water use, or both. These
costs can be absorbed within existing resources.
The bill takes effect July 1, 2023.
II. Present Situation:
Blue-Green Algae Task Force
In 2019, Governor DeSantis directed the DEP to establish a Blue-Green Algae Task Force to
expedite reduction of nutrient pollution and cyanobacteria blooms in the state.1 The task force
provides guidance and specific, science-based recommendations to expedite the restoration of
1
State of Florida, Office of the Governor, Executive Order Number 19-12 (2019), available at https://www.flgov.com/wp-
content/uploads/orders/2019/EO_19-12.pdf; DEP, Blue-Green Algae Task Force, https://protectingfloridatogether.gov/state-
action/blue-green-algae-task-force (last visited Mar. 13, 2023).
BILL: CS/SB 1538 Page 2
water bodies that have been adversely affected by cyanobacteria blooms.2 The task force has
focused on source identification, nutrient reduction and remediation efforts, algal toxins and
human health effects, and innovative technologies for the prevention, cleanup, and mitigation of
harmful algal blooms.3
Water Quality and Nutrients
Phosphorus and nitrogen are naturally present in water and are essential nutrients for the healthy
growth of plant and animal life.4 The correct balance of both nutrients is necessary for a healthy
ecosystem; however, excessive nitrogen and phosphorus can cause significant water quality
problems.5
Phosphorus and nitrogen are derived from natural and human-made sources.6 Human-made
sources include sewage disposal systems (wastewater treatment facilities and septic systems),
overflows of storm and sanitary sewers (untreated sewage), agricultural production and irrigation
practices, and stormwater runoff.7
Excessive nutrient loads may result in harmful algal blooms, nuisance aquatic weeds, and the
alteration of the natural community of plants and animals.8 Dense, harmful algal blooms can also
cause human health problems, fish kills, problems for water treatment plants, and impairment of
the aesthetics and taste of waters. Growth of nuisance aquatic weeds tends to increase in
nutrient-enriched waters, which can impact recreational activities.9
Basin Management Action Plans
The DEP is the lead agency in coordinating the development and implementation of total
maximum daily loads (TMDLs).10 Basin management action plans (BMAPs) are one of the
primary mechanisms the DEP uses to achieve TMDLs.11 BMAPs are plans that address the entire
pollution load, including point and nonpoint discharges,12 for a watershed. BMAPs generally
include:
2
DEP, Blue-Green Algae Task Force Consensus Document #1 (Dec. 2, 2019), available at
https://floridadep.gov/sites/default/files/Final%20Consensus%20%231_0.pdf.
3
Id.
4
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, The Issue, https://www.epa.gov/nutrientpollution/issue (last visited Feb. 10, 2023).
5
Id.
6
Id.
7
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Sources and Solutions, https://www.epa.gov/nutrientpollution/sources-and-
solutions (last visited Feb 10, 2023).
8
EPA, The Issue, https://www.epa.gov/nutrientpollution/issue (last visited Feb. 10, 2023).
9
Id.
10
Section 403.061, F.S. DEP has the power and the duty to control and prohibit pollution of air and water in accordance with
the law and rules adopted and promulgated by it. Furthermore, s. 403.061(21), F.S., allows DEP to advise, consult, cooperate,
and enter into agreements with other state agencies, the federal government, other states, interstate agencies, etc.
11
A TMDL is a scientific determination of the maximum amount of a given pollutant that can be absorbed by a waterbody
and still meet water quality standards. DEP, Total Maximum Daily Loads Program, https://floridadep.gov/TMDL (last visited
Mar. 24, 2023).
12
Fla. Admin. Code R. 62-620.200(37). “Point source” is defined as “any discernible, confined, and discrete conveyance,
including any pipe, ditch, channel, tunnel, conduit, well, discrete fissure, container, rolling stock, concentrated animal feeding
BILL: CS/SB 1538 Page 3
Permitting and other existing regulatory programs, including water quality based effluent
limitations;
Best management practices and non-regulatory and incentive-based programs, including
cost-sharing, waste minimization, pollution prevention, agreements, and public education;
Public works projects, including capital facilities; and
Land acquisition.13
The DEP may establish a BMAP as part of the development and implementation of a TMDL for
a specific waterbody. First, the BMAP equitably allocates pollutant reductions to individual
basins, to all basins as a whole, or to each identified point source or category of nonpoint
sources.14 Then, the BMAP establishes the schedule for implementing projects and activities to
meet the pollution reduction allocations.15 The BMAP development process provides an
opportunity for local stakeholders, local government, community leaders, and the public to
collectively determine and share water quality cleanup responsibilities collectively.16 BMAPs are
adopted by secretarial order.17
BMAPs must include milestones for implementation and water quality improvement. They must
also include an associated water quality monitoring component sufficient to evaluate whether
reasonable progress in pollutant load reductions is being achieved over time. An assessment of
progress toward these milestones must be conducted every five years and revisions to the BMAP
must be made as appropriate.18
The DEP delineates priority focus areas, in coordination with the water management districts, for
Outstanding Florida Springs in BMAPs.19 A priority focus area is the area or areas of a basin
where the Floridan Aquifer is generally most vulnerable to pollutant inputs and where there is a
known connectivity between groundwater pathways and an Outstanding Florida Spring.20 In
delineating priority focus areas, the DEP must consider groundwater travel time to the spring,
hydrogeology, nutrient load, and any other factors that may lead to degradation of an
Outstanding Florida Spring.21
In 2019, the Blue-Green Algae Task Force made the following recommendations for BMAPs:
Include regional storage and treatment infrastructure in South Florida watersheds;
Consider land use changes, legacy nutrients, and the impact of the BMAP on downstream
waterbodies;
Develop a more targeted approach to project selection; and
operation, landfill leachate collection system, vessel or other floating craft from which pollutants are or may be discharged.”
Nonpoint sources of pollution are sources of pollution that are not point sources.
13
Section 403.067(7), F.S.
14
Id.
15
Id.
16
DEP, Basin Management Action Plans (BMAPs), https://floridadep.gov/dear/water-quality-restoration/content/basin-
management-action-plans-bmaps (last visited Mar. 13, 2023).
17
Section 403.067(7), F.S.
18
Id.
19
Section 373.803, F.S. Outstanding Florida Springs include all historic first magnitude springs and associated spring runs, as
well as De Leon, Peacock, Poe, Rock, Wekiwa, and Gemini springs and their associated spring runs. Section 373.802, F.S.
20
Section 373.802, F.S. Outstanding Florida Springs
21
Section 373.803, F.S.
BILL: CS/SB 1538 Page 4
Evaluate project effectiveness through monitoring.22
III. Effect of Proposed Changes:
Section 1 amends s. 403.067, F.S., which governs establishment and implementation of total
maximum daily loads. The bill requires that for each project listed in a new or revised BMAP
with a total cost exceeding $1 million, the DEP must assess through integrated and
comprehensive monitoring whether the project is working to reduce nutrient pollution or water
use, or both, as intended. The bill provides that the assessments must be completed expeditiously
and included in each BMAP update.
The bill makes technical changes.
Section 2 provides an effective date of July 1, 2023.
IV. Constitutional Issues:
A. Municipality/County Mandates Restrictions:
None.
B. Public Records/Open Meetings Issues:
None.
C. Trust Funds Restrictions:
None.
D. State Tax or Fee Increases:
None.
E. Other Constitutional Issues:
None.
V. Fiscal Impact Statement:
A. Tax/Fee Issues:
None.
B. Private Sector Impact:
None.
22
DEP, Blue-Green Algae Task Force Consensus Document #1 at 2-4.
BILL: CS/SB 1538 Page 5
C. Government Sector Impact:
The DEP may incur indeterminate costs in monitoring and assessing certain projects for
reductions in nutrient pollution or water use, or both.
VI. Technical Deficiencies:
None.
VII. Related Issues:
None.
VIII. Statutes Affected:
This bill substantially amends section 403.067 of the Florida Statutes.
IX. Additional Information:
A. Committee Substitute – Statement of Changes:
(Summarizing differences between the Committee Substitute and the prior version of the bill.)
CS by Environment and Natural Resources on April 4, 2023:
The committee substitute removes provisions requiring periodic inspections of onsite
sewage treatment and disposal systems. It also removes language requiring new or
revised basin management action plans to include a list that identifies and prioritizes
spatially focused suites of projects in areas likely to yield maximum pollutant reductions.
B. Amendments:
None.
This Senate Bill Analysis does not reflect the intent or official position of the bill’s introducer or the Florida Senate.
Statutes affected: S 1538 Filed: 403.067
S 1538 c1: 403.067