On March 21, 2007, PCB 07-12 "Aggregate Mining" sponsored by the Environment and Natural Resources Council was approved by the Environmental Protection Committee and sent on to the Council. This bill provides that local governments may not adopt or enforce ordinances that prohibit or prevent the construction or operation of a limestone mine on lands that were approved for use in mining, classified as mining lands, or zoned for mining as of March 1, 2007.

Here is the language as of that date:

A bill to be entitled

An act relating to aggregate mining; providing legislative findings regarding construction aggregate materials; creating the Strategic Aggregates Review Task Force; providing for appointments by the Governor, the Senate President, and the Speaker of the House; providing for other membership criteria; providing for reimbursement for members; providing direction to the Department of Transportation to provide support; amending s. 378.412, F.S., prohibiting local governments from enforcing ordinances prohibiting mining in lands zoned for mining as of March 1, 2007; providing for expedited permitting for limerock environmental resource mining and reclamation applications filed after March 1, 2007; providing an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

     Section 1.           , Florida Statutes is created to read:

Construction Aggregate Materials--

     (1)  The Legislature finds there is a strategic and critical need for construction aggregate materials within the State of Florida and disruption of the supply of these materials would cause significant detriment to the state’s construction industry, transportation system, and overall health, safety, and welfare of the state.  “Construction Aggregate Materials” means crushed stone, limestone, dolomite, limerock, shell rock, high quality sand, and other mined resources providing the basic materials of concrete, asphalt, and road base.

     (2)  The Legislature hereby creates the Strategic Aggregates Review Task Force to evaluate the present situation and disposition of construction aggregate materials, and mining practices.  The Task Force shall report their findings, identify locations with significant concentrations of construction aggregate materials, and recommend actions intended to ensure the continued extraction and availability of construction aggregate materials to the Governor, the Speaker of the House, and the President of the Senate by February 1, 2008.  The Task Force shall expire one year from the effective date of this act unless re-created by the Legislature.

     (3)  The Strategic Aggregates Review Task Force shall be composed of 15 members as follows:

     (a)  The President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House, and the Governor shall each appoint one member each of the following groups:

1.   mining or construction industries;

2.   transportation industries including seaports, trucking, railroads, or road buildings;

3.   elected county government;

4.   environmental advocacy groups.

(b)  The Secretary of the Department of Environmental Protection or designee;

(c)  The Secretary of the Department of Community Affairs or designee;

(d)  The Secretary of Department of Transportation or designee.

Appointments to the Task Force must be made no later than 30 days after the effective date of this section.

(4)  Members of the Task Force shall serve without compensation but are entitled to receive reimbursement for travel and per diem expenses incurred in connection with the official conduct of the Task Force as provided in s. 112.061.

(5)  The Department of Transportation is directed to organize and provide support for the Task Force and to coordinate with other agencies of government to provide supporting information as may be needed for review by the Task Force.  The Department of Transportation is authorized to work cooperatively with other agencies to conduct supporting studies as may be required to provide information to or otherwise assist the Task Force in its review and deliberations.  The Department of Transportation is directed to be a clearing house for information related to construction aggregate materials and to provide technical and supporting information regarding the amount of such materials used by the department on road infrastructure projects.

     Section 2.  Section 378.412, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:

378.412  Relationship with other laws.--

(a)  It is the intent of the Legislature that ss. 378.202-378.804 supplement other laws regarding resource extraction.  Nothing contained in such sections shall be construed to limit, abridge, or alter any agency’s duties, authority, and responsibilities granted pursuant to another statute.  Nothing in ss. 378.202-378.804 shall be deemed to preempt local ordinances that impose stricter reclamation standards., provided however, no county or municipality shall enact or enforce any ordinance, resolution, regulation, rule, policy, or other action which prohibits or prevents the construction or operation of a limestone mine on lands where mining is a permissible use or on lands zoned or classified as mining lands as of March 1, 2007.

(b)  Due to the state’s critical infrastructure needs and the potential shortfall in available construction aggregate materials, limerock environmental resource permitting and reclamation applications filed after March 1, 2007, are eligible for the expedited permitting process contained in s. 403.973.  Challenges to state agency action in the expedited permitting process for establishment of a limerock mine in this state under s. 403.973 are subject to the same requirements as challenges brought under s. 403.973(15)(a), except that, notwithstanding s. 120.574, summary proceedings must be conducted within 30 days after a party files the motion for summary hearing, regardless of whether the parties agree to the summary proceeding.

     Section 3.  This act shall take effect upon becoming law.

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