Bill Text: FL S0150 | 2020 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Sanitary Sewer Laterals

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Failed) 2020-03-14 - Died in Rules [S0150 Detail]

Download: Florida-2020-S0150-Introduced.html

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       Florida Senate - 2020                                     SB 150
       
       
        
       By Senator Brandes
       
       
       
       
       
       24-00157-20                                            2020150__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to sanitary sewer laterals; defining
    3         the term “sanitary sewer lateral”; encouraging
    4         counties and municipalities to, by a specified date,
    5         establish a sanitary sewer lateral inspection program;
    6         providing parameters for such a program; creating s.
    7         689.301, F.S.; requiring a seller of real property to
    8         disclose any known defects in the property’s sanitary
    9         sewer lateral; defining the term “sanitary sewer
   10         lateral”; providing an effective date.
   11  
   12         WHEREAS, a sanitary sewer lateral is the portion of the
   13  sewer network which connects private properties to the public
   14  sewer system, conveying wastewater from homes and businesses to
   15  centralized wastewater treatment plants, and
   16         WHEREAS, a property owner is typically responsible for all
   17  maintenance, operation, cleaning, repair, and reconstruction of
   18  a sanitary sewer lateral on his or her private property, and
   19         WHEREAS, defects in private sanitary sewer laterals may
   20  occur due to system aging, structural failure, lack of proper
   21  maintenance, or poor construction and design practices, and
   22         WHEREAS, defective sanitary sewer laterals can cause
   23  blockages, backups, or overflows into the environment;
   24  contribute to water pollution; and have a significant impact on
   25  the performance of a sewer system and treatment plant, and
   26         WHEREAS, defective sanitary sewer laterals on private
   27  property can be difficult to detect, and
   28         WHEREAS, inspections of sanitary sewer laterals are not
   29  required by state law, and
   30         WHEREAS, facts that materially affect the value of real
   31  estate must be disclosed in real estate transactions, NOW,
   32  THEREFORE,
   33  
   34  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   35  
   36         Section 1. Sanitary sewer lateral inspection program.—
   37         (1) As used in this section, the term “sanitary sewer
   38  lateral” means a privately owned pipeline connecting a property
   39  to the main sewer line and which is maintained and repaired by
   40  the property owner.
   41         (2) By July 1, 2022, counties and municipalities are
   42  encouraged to establish an evaluation and rehabilitation program
   43  for sanitary sewer laterals on residential and commercial
   44  properties within the county’s or municipality’s jurisdiction to
   45  identify and reduce extraneous flow from leaking sanitary sewer
   46  laterals. At a minimum, the program may do all of the following:
   47         (a) Establish a system to identify defective, damaged, or
   48  deteriorated sanitary sewer laterals on residential and
   49  commercial properties within the jurisdiction of the county or
   50  the municipality.
   51         (b) Consider economical methods for a property owner to
   52  repair or replace a defective, damaged, or deteriorated sanitary
   53  sewer lateral.
   54         (c) Establish and maintain a publicly accessible database
   55  to store information concerning properties where a defective,
   56  damaged, or deteriorated sanitary sewer lateral has been
   57  identified. For each property, the database must include, but is
   58  not limited to, the address of the property, the names of any
   59  persons the county or municipality notified concerning the
   60  faulty sanitary sewer lateral, and the date and method of such
   61  notification.
   62         Section 2. Section 689.301, Florida Statutes, is created to
   63  read:
   64         689.301 Disclosure of known defects in sanitary sewer
   65  laterals to prospective purchaser.—Before executing a contract
   66  for sale, a seller of real property shall disclose to a
   67  prospective purchaser any defects in the property’s sanitary
   68  sewer lateral which are known to the seller. As used in this
   69  section, the term “sanitary sewer lateral” means the privately
   70  owned pipeline connecting a property to the main sewer line.
   71         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2020.