Bill Text: FL S1172 | 2019 | Regular Session | Introduced

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Bill Title: Sanitary Sewer Laterals

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Failed) 2019-05-03 - Died in Judiciary [S1172 Detail]

Download: Florida-2019-S1172-Introduced.html

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       Florida Senate - 2019                                    SB 1172
       
       
        
       By Senator Brandes
       
       
       
       
       
       24-01499C-19                                          20191172__
    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 establish a sanitary
    5         sewer lateral inspection program by a specified date;
    6         providing parameters for such a program; creating s.
    7         689.301, F.S.; requiring a seller of real property to
    8         disclose any actually known defects of the property’s
    9         sanitary sewer lateral; defining the term “sanitary
   10         sewer 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 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, can
   24  contribute to water pollution, and can have a significant impact
   25  on 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, 2021, 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 a county or a
   50  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 on properties where a defective, damaged,
   56  or deteriorated sanitary sewer lateral has been identified. The
   57  database must include, but is not limited to, the address of the
   58  property, the names of any persons notified by the county or
   59  municipality of the faulty sanitary sewer lateral, and the date
   60  and method of such notification.
   61         Section 2. Section 689.301, Florida Statutes, is created to
   62  read:
   63         689.301 Disclosure of known defects of sanitary sewer
   64  laterals to prospective purchaser.—Before executing a contract
   65  for sale, a seller of real property shall disclose to a
   66  prospective purchaser any defects of the property’s sanitary
   67  sewer lateral which are actually known to the seller. As used in
   68  this section, the term “sanitary sewer lateral” means the
   69  privately owned pipeline connecting a property to the main sewer
   70  line.
   71         Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019.