CS/CS/HB 309 2022
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to private provider inspections of 2
onsite sewage treatment and disposal systems; amending 3
s. 381.0065, F.S.; authorizing private provider 4
inspections of onsite sewage treatment and disposal 5
systems under certain conditions; specifying 6
requirements for private providers and onsite sewage 7
treatment and disposal system owners and authorized 8
contractors; authorizing the department to audit the 9
performance of a specified percentage of such 10
inspections; providing audit conditions and 11
construction; requiring the department to adopt rules 12
and to initiate rulemaking by a specified date; 13
amending s. 381.00651, F.S.; revising the list of 14
providers authorized to perform evaluations and 15
assessments of onsite sewage treatment and disposal 16
systems; providing an effective date. 17
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Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 19
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Section 1. Subsection (8) is added to section 381.0065, 21
Florida Statutes, to read: 22
381.0065 Onsite sewage treatment and disposal systems; 23
regulation.— 24
(8) PRIVATE PROVIDER INSPECTIONS. - 25
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
(a) Notwithstanding any other law, ordinance, or policy, 26
the owner of an onsite sewage treatment and disposal system or a 27
contractor upon the owner's written authorization may hire a 28
private provider to perform an inspection that follows 29
applicable regulatory requirements of the onsite sewage 30
treatment and disposal system. 31
(b) An inspection of an onsite sewage treatment and 32
disposal system required under this section may not be conducted 33
by the private provider or authorized representative of the 34
private provider that installed the onsite sewage treatment and 35
disposal system. 36
(c) A private provider or an authorized representative of 37
a private provider may perform onsite sewage treatment and 38
disposal system inspections if they are: 39
1. An environmental health professional certified under s. 40
381.0101; 41
2. A master septic tank contractor registered under part 42
III of chapter 489; 43
3. A professional engineer licensed under chapter 471 and 44
have passed all parts of the Onsite Sewage Treatment and 45
Disposal System Accelerated Certification Training; or 46
4. Working under the supervision of a licensed 47
professional engineer and have passed all parts of the Onsite 48
Sewage Treatment and Disposal System Accelerated Certification 49
Training. 50
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
(d) An owner or authorized contractor using a private 51
provider for an onsite sewage treatment and disposal system 52
inspection must provide notice to the depa rtment at the time of 53
permit application or by 2 p.m. local time, 2 business days 54
before the first scheduled inspection by the department. The 55
notice must include all of the following information: 56
1. For each private provider or authorized representative 57
performing the inspection: 58
a. Name and firm name, address, telephone number, and e -59
mail address. 60
b. Professional license or certification number. 61
c. Qualification statement or resume. 62
2. An acknowledgement from the owner in substantially the 63
following form: 64
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I HAVE ELECTED TO USE ONE OR MORE PRIVATE PROVIDERS TO PERFORM 66
AN ONSITE SEWAGE TREATMENT AND DISPOSAL SYSTEM INSPECTION THAT 67
IS THE SUBJECT OF THE ENCLOSED PERMIT APPLICATION. I UNDERSTAND 68
THAT THE DEPARTMENT MAY NOT PERFORM THE REQUIRED ONSIT E SEWAGE 69
TREATMENT AND DISPOSAL SYSTEM INSPECTION TO DETERMINE COMPLIANCE 70
WITH THE APPLICABLE CODES, EXCEPT TO THE EXTENT AUTHORIZED BY 71
LAW. INSTEAD, THE INSPECTION WILL BE PERFORMED BY THE LICENSED 72
OR CERTIFIED PRIVATE PROVIDER IDENTIFIED IN THE APPLICATI ON. BY 73
EXECUTING THIS FORM, I ACKNOWLEDGE THAT I HAVE MADE INQUIRY 74
REGARDING THE COMPETENCE OF THE LICENSED OR CERTIFIED PRIVATE 75
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
PROVIDER AND AM SATISFIED THAT MY INTERESTS ARE ADEQUATELY 76
PROTECTED. I AGREE TO INDEMNIFY, DEFEND, AND HOLD HARMLESS THE 77
DEPARTMENT FROM ANY CLAIMS ARISING FROM MY USE OF THE LICENSED 78
OR CERTIFIED PRIVATE PROVIDER IDENTIFIED IN THE APPLICATION TO 79
PERFORM THE ONSITE SEWAGE TREATMENT AND DISPOSAL SYSTEM 80
INSPECTION THAT IS THE SUBJECT OF THE ENCLOSED PERMIT 81
APPLICATION. ADDITIONALLY , I UNDERSTAND THAT IN THE EVENT THE 82
ONSITE SEWAGE TREATMENT AND DISPOSAL SYSTEM DOES NOT COMPLY WITH 83
APPLICABLE RULES AND LAW, I WILL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR REMEDIATING 84
THE SYSTEM IN ACCORDANCE WITH EXISTING LAW. 85
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If an owner or authorized contractor makes an y changes to the 87
listed private provider or the service to be performed by the 88
private provider, the owner or the authorized contractor must 89
update the notice to reflect the change within 1 business day 90
after the change. The change of an authorized represe ntative 91
identified in the permit application does not require a revision 92
of the permit and the department may not charge a fee for making 93
such change. 94
(e) The department may audit up to 25 percent of private 95
providers each year to ensure the accurate per formance of onsite 96
sewage treatment and disposal system inspections. Work on an 97
onsite sewage treatment and disposal system may proceed after 98
inspection and approval by a private provider if the owner or 99
authorized contractor has given notice of the inspec tion 100
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
pursuant to paragraph (d) and, subsequent to such inspection and 101
approval, such work may not be delayed for completion of an 102
inspection audit by the department unless deficiencies are found 103
in the audit. 104
(f) This subsection does not prevent the depa rtment from 105
investigating complaints. 106
(g) The department shall adopt rules to implement this 107
subsection and must initiate such rulemaking by August 31, 2022. 108
Section 2. Paragraph (b) of subsection (6) of section 109
381.00651, Florida Statutes, is amende d to read: 110
381.00651 Periodic evaluation and assessment of onsite 111
sewage treatment and disposal systems. — 112
(6) The requirements for an onsite sewage treatment and 113
disposal system evaluation and assessment program are as 114
follows: 115
(b) Qualified contract ors.—Each evaluation required under 116
this subsection must be performed by a qualified contractor, who 117
may be a private provider or an authorized representative of a 118
private provider as described in s. 381.0065(8)(c) septic tank 119
contractor or master septic t ank contractor registered under 120
part III of chapter 489, a professional engineer having 121
wastewater treatment system experience and licensed under 122
chapter 471, or an environmental health professional certified 123
under this chapter in the area of onsite sewage treatment and 124
disposal system evaluation . Evaluations and pump -outs may also 125
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
be performed by an authorized employee working under the 126
supervision of an individual listed in this paragraph; however, 127
all evaluation forms must be signed by a qualified contra ctor in 128
writing or by electronic signature. 129
Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2022. 130