TALLAHASSEE Beach restoration is the latest area targeted for a slice of the money voters set aside two years ago for environmental preservation. <\/p>\n
Sen. Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, and Rep. Kathleen Peters, R-Treasure Island, announced Friday they want to match Gov. Rick Scott's request to allocate $50 million a year for beach restoration. The money would come from the state's Land Acquisition Trust Fund, which handles money from a 2014 constitutional amendment aimed at boosting land and water conservation. <\/p>\n
The proposal (SB 1590 and HB 1213) would require the Department of Environmental Protection to develop a three-year plan for beach repairs. It also would refocus attention on sand management at inlets and rank the most serious erosion problems as priorities. <\/p>\n
Unfortunately, over half of Florida's sandy beaches are eroding, and only half of these miles of eroded beaches are part of a beach project,\" Latvala, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said in a prepared statement. \"We can point fingers or offer excuses, but the simple answer is not enough funding, and this bill addresses that.\" <\/p>\n
In recent years, the Legislature has provided $30 million a year to fight beach erosion. Scott in January requested $50 million for beach restoration as part of his proposed $83.5 billion budget. <\/p>\n
Scott's proposal was in addition to $15.8 million he released last year through an emergency order and another $61 million that is in his proposed budget to help communities struck by hurricanes Hermine and Matthew. <\/p>\n
Backers of the 2014 constitutional amendment, known as Amendment 1, said while they support efforts to safeguard water and land resources, they would like to see $150 million a year go to land conservation. <\/p>\n
\"These bills reflect a piecemeal approach to environmental spending,\" said Eric Draper, executive director of Audubon Florida. \"Amendment 1 was an invitation to legislators to review and prioritize land and water conservation, Everglades restoration and coastal protection. But the big question of environmental infrastructure spending suffers from short-term thinking.\" <\/p>\n
The trust fund dollars are raised through real-estate documentary-stamp taxes, known as \"doc stamps.\" The voter-approved constitutional amendment directs 33 percent of the \"doc stamp\" tax revenue into the trust fund for 20 years. <\/p>\n
Some key lawmakers have objected to using the money for land acquisition, contending the state already has more land in its inventory that it can manage. Meanwhile, they started to slice parts of the trust fund into long-term commitments last year. <\/p>\n
A law titled Legacy Florida dedicates up to $200 million a year toward Everglades and Lake Okeechobee projects out of the money put into the trust fund annually. The law also directs $50 million a year for the state's natural springs and $5 million each year for Lake Apopka. <\/p>\n
Legislature has full plate ahead of it <\/p>\n
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The rest is here: <\/p>\n
Lawmakers propose $50 million to restore beaches - Orlando Sentinel<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" TALLAHASSEE Beach restoration is the latest area targeted for a slice of the money voters set aside two years ago for environmental preservation. Sen. Continue reading