§ 380.093 — Resilient Florida Grant Program; comprehensive statewide flood vulnerability and sea level rise data set and assessment; Statewide Flooding and Sea Level Rise Resilience Plan; regional resilience entities

Florida § 380.093

• Jurisdiction: Florida
• Title: XXVIII
• Ch. 380: LAND AND WATER MANAGEMENT

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(1) LEGISLATIVE INTENT. — (a) The Legislature recognizes that the state is particularly vulnerable to adverse impacts from flooding resulting from increases in frequency and duration of rainfall events, storm surge from more frequent and severe weather systems, and sea level rise. Such adverse impacts pose economic, social, environmental, and public health and safety challenges to the state. To most effectively address these challenges, funding should be allocated in a manner that prioritizes addressing the most significant risks. (b) The Legislature further recognizes that the adverse impacts of flooding and sea level rise affect coastal and inland communities all across the state. Consequently, a coordinated approach is necessary to maximize the benefit of efforts to address such impacts and to improve the state’s resilience to flooding and sea level rise. (c) The Legislature further recognizes that to effectively and efficiently address and prepare for the adverse impacts of flooding and sea level rise in the state, it is necessary to conduct a comprehensive statewide assessment of the specific risks posed to the state by flooding and sea level rise and develop a statewide coordinated approach to addressing such risks.

(2) DEFINITIONS. — As used in this section, the term: (a) “Critical asset” includes: 1. Transportation assets and evacuation routes, including airports, bridges, bus terminals, ports, major roadways, marinas, rail facilities, and railroad bridges. 2. Critical infrastructure, including wastewater treatment facilities and lift stations, stormwater treatment facilities and pump stations, drinking water facilities, water utility conveyance systems, electric production and supply facilities, solid and hazardous waste facilities, military installations, communications facilities, and disaster debris management sites. 3. Critical community and emergency facilities, including schools, colleges, universities, community centers, correctional facilities, disaster recovery centers, emergency medical service facilities, emergency operation centers, fire stations, health care facilities, hospitals, law enforcement facilities, local government facilities, logistical staging areas, affordable public housing, risk shelter inventory, and state government facilities. 4. Natural, cultural, and historical resources, including conservation lands, parks, shorelines, surface waters, wetlands, and historical and cultural assets. (b) “Department” means the Department of Environmental Protection. (c) “Florida Flood Hub” means the Florida Flood Hub for Applied Research and Innovation established pursuant to s. 380.0933. (d) “Preconstruction activities” means activities associated with a project that addresses the risks of flooding and sea level rise that occur before construction begins, including, but not limited to, design of the project, permitting for the project, surveys and data collection, site development, solicitation, public hearings, local code or comprehensive plan amendments, establishing local funding sources, and easement acquisition. (e) “Regionally significant assets” means critical assets that support the needs of communities spanning multiple geopolitical jurisdictions, including, but not limited to, water resource facilities, regional medical centers, emergency operations centers, regional utilities, major transportation hubs and corridors, airports, and seaports.

(3) RESILIENT FLORIDA GRANT PROGRAM. — (a) The Resilient Florida Grant Program is established within the department. (b) Subject to appropriation, the department may provide grants to each of the following entities: 1. A county or municipality to fund: a. The costs of community resilience planning and necessary data collection for such planning, including comprehensive plan amendments and necessary corresponding analyses that address the requirements of s. 163.3178(2)(f). b. Vulnerability assessments that identify or address risks of inland or coastal flooding and sea level rise. c. Updates to the county’s or municipality’s inventory of critical assets, including regionally significant assets that are currently or reasonably expected to be impacted by flooding and sea level rise. The updated inventory must be submitted to the department and, at the time of submission, must reflect all such assets that are currently, or within 50 years may reasonably be expected to be, impacted by flooding and sea level rise. d. The development of projects, plans, strategies, and policies that enhance community preparations for threats from flooding and sea level rise, including adaptation plans that help local governments prioritize project development and implementation across one or more jurisdictions in a manner consistent with departmental guidance. e. Preconstruction activities for projects to be submitted for inclusion in the Statewide Flooding and Sea Level Rise Resilience Plan. Only communities eligible for a reduced cost share as defined in paragraph (5)(e) are eligible for such preconstruction activities. f. Feasibility studies for nature-based solutions that reduce the impact of flooding and sea level rise. g. The cost of permitting for projects designed to achieve reductions in the risks or impacts of flooding and sea level rise using nature-based solutions. 2. A water management district identified in s. 373.069 to support local government adaptation planning, which may be conducted by the water management district or by a third party on behalf of the water management district. Such grants must be used for the express purpose of supporting the Florida Flood Hub and the department in implementing this section through data creation and collection, modeling, and the implementation of statewide standards. Priority must be given to filling critical data gaps identified by the Florida Flood Hub under s. 380.0933(2)(a). (c) A vulnerability assessment conducted pursuant to paragraph (b) must encompass the entire county or municipality; include all critical assets owned or maintained by the grant applicant; and use the most recent publicly available Digital Elevation Model and generally accepted analysis and modeling techniques. An assessment may encompass a smaller geographic area or include only a portion of the critical assets owned or maintained by the grant applicant with appropriate rationale and upon approval by the department. Locally collected elevation data may also be included as part of the assessment as long as it is submitted to the department pursuant to this paragraph. 1. The assessment must include an analysis of the vulnerability of and risks to critical assets, including regionally significant assets, owned or managed by the county or municipality. 2. Upon completion of a vulnerability assessment, the county or municipality shall submit to the department all of the following: a. A report detailing the findings of the assessment. b. All electronic mapping data used to illustrate flooding and sea level rise impacts identified in the assessment. When submitting such data, the county or municipality shall include: (I) Geospatial data in an electronic file format suitable for input to the department’s mapping tool. (II) Geographic information system (GIS) data that has been projected into the appropriate Florida State Plane Coordinate System and that is suitable for the department’s mapping tool. The county or municipality must also submit metadata using standards prescribed by the department. c. An inventory of critical assets, including regionally significant assets, that are currently, or within 50 years are reasonably expected to be, impacted by flooding and sea level rise. (d) A vulnerability assessment conducted pursuant to paragraph (b) must do all of the following: 1. Include peril of flood comprehensive plan amendments that address the requirements of s. 163.3178(2)(f), if the county or municipality is subject to such requirements and has not complied with such requirements as determined by the Department of Commerce. 2. Make use of the best available information through the Florida Flood Hub as certified by the Chief Science Officer, in consultation with the Chief Resilience Officer, including, as applicable, analyzing impacts related to the depth of: a. Tidal flooding, including future high tide flooding, which must use thresholds published and provided by the department. To the extent practicable, the analysis should also geographically display the number of tidal flood days expected for each scenario and planning horizon. b. Current and future storm surge flooding. The initial storm surge event used must equal or exceed the current 100-year flood event. Higher frequency storm events may be analyzed to understand the exposure of a critical asset or regionally significant asset. Publicly available National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) or Federal Emergency Management Agency storm surge data may be used in the absence of applicable data from the Florida Flood Hub. c. To the extent practicable, rainfall-induced flooding using a GIS-based spatiotemporal analysis or existing hydrologic and hydraulic modeling results. Future boundary conditions should be modified to consider sea level rise and high tide conditions. Vulnerability assessments for rainfall-induced flooding must include the depth of rainfall-induced flooding for a 100-year storm and a 500-year storm, as defined by the applicable water management district or, if necessary, the appropriate federal agency. Future rainfall conditions should be used, if available. Noncoastal communities must perform a rainfall-induced flooding assessment. d. To the extent practicable, compound flooding or the combination of tidal, storm surge, and rainfall-induced flooding. 3. Apply the following scenarios and standards: a. All analyses in the North American Vertical Datum of 1988. b. For a vulnerability assessment initiated after July 1, 2024, at a minimum, the 2022 NOAA intermediate-low and intermediate sea level rise scenarios or the statewide sea level rise projections developed pursuant to paragraph (4)(a). c. At least two planning horizons identified in the following table which correspond with the appropriate comprehensive statewide flood vulnerability and sea level rise assessment for which the department, at the time of award, determines such local vulnerability assessment will be incorporated: Year of assessment 20-year planning horizon 50-year planning horizon 2024 2040 2070 2029 2050 2080 2034 2055 2085 2039 2060 2090 2044 2065 2095 2049 2070 2100 d. Local sea level data maintained by the Florida Flood Hub which reflect the best available scientific information as certified by the Chief Science Officer, in consultation with the Chief Resilience Officer. If such data is not available, local sea level data may be interpolated between the two closest NOAA tide gauges; however, such data may be taken from only one of the two closest NOAA tide gauges if the gauge has a higher mean sea level or may be taken from an alternate tide gauge with appropriate rationale and department approval, as long as it is publicly available or submitted to the department pursuant to paragraph (b).

(4) COMPREHENSIVE STATEWIDE FLOOD VULNERABILITY AND SEA LEVEL RISE DATA SET AND ASSESSMENT. — (a) The department shall develop and maintain a comprehensive statewide flood vulnerability and sea level rise data set sufficient to conduct a comprehensive statewide flood vulnerability and sea level rise assessment. In developing and maintaining the data set, the department shall, in coordination with the Chief Resilience Officer and the Florida Flood Hub, compile, analyze, and incorporate, as appropriate, information related to vulnerability assessments and critical asset inventories submitted to the department pursuant to subsection (3) or any previously completed assessments that meet the requirements of subsection (3). 1. The Chief Science Officer shall, in coordination with the Chief Resilience Officer and the Florida Flood Hub, develop statewide sea level rise projections that incorporate temporal and spatial variability, to the extent practicable, for inclusion in the data set. This subparagraph does not supersede regionally adopted projections. 2. The data set must include information necessary to determine the risks to inland and coastal communities, including, but not limited to, elevation, tidal levels, and precipitation. (b) The department, in coordination with the Chief Resilience Officer and the Florida Flood Hub, shall complete a comprehensive statewide flood vulnerability and sea level rise assessment that identifies inland and coastal infrastructure, geographic areas, and communities in this state which are vulnerable to flooding and sea level rise and the associated risks. 1. The department shall use the comprehensive statewide flood vulnerability and sea level rise data set to conduct the assessment. 2. The assessment must incorporate local and regional analyses of vulnerabilities and risks, including, as appropriate, local mitigation strategies and postdisaster redevelopment plans. 3. The assessment must include an inventory of critical assets, including regionally significant assets, that are essential for critical government and business functions, national security, public health and safety, the economy, flood and storm protection, water quality management, and wildlife habitat management, and must identify and analyze the vulnerability of and risks to such critical assets. When identifying critical assets for inclusion in the assessment, the department shall also take into consideration the critical assets identified by local governments and submitted to the department pursuant to subsection (3). 4. The assessment must include the 20-year and 50-year projected sea level rise at each active NOAA tidal gauge off the coast of this state as derived from the statewide sea level rise projections developed pursuant to paragraph (a). (c) The department, in coordination with the Chief Resilience Officer and the Florida Flood Hub, shall update the comprehensive statewide flood vulnerability and sea level rise data set with the best available information each year and shall update the assessment at least every 5 years.

(5) STATEWIDE FLOODING AND SEA LEVEL RISE RESILIENCE PLAN. — (a) By December 1 of each year, the department shall develop a Statewide Flooding and Sea Level Rise Resilience Plan on a 3-year planning horizon and submit it to the Governor, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives. The plan must consist of ranked projects that address risks of flooding and sea level rise to coastal and inland communities in the state. All eligible projects submitted to the department pursuant to this section must be ranked and included in the plan. Each plan must include a detailed narrative overview describing how the plan was developed, including a description of the methodology used by the department to determine project eligibility, a description of the methodology used to rank projects, the specific scoring system used, the project proposal application form, a copy of each submitted project proposal application form separated by eligible projects and ineligible projects, the total number of project proposals received and deemed eligible, the total funding requested, and the total funding requested for eligible projects. (b) The plan submitted by December 1, 2024, and each plan submitted by December 1 thereafter: 1. Shall primarily address risks of flooding and sea level rise identified in the comprehensive statewide flood vulnerability and sea level rise assessment; and 2. May include, at the discretion of the department in consultation with the Chief Resilience Officer, other projects submitted pursuant to paragraph (d) which address risks of flooding and sea level rise to critical assets not yet identified in the comprehensive statewide flood vulnerability and sea level rise assessment. (c) Each plan submitted by the department pursuant to this subsection must include all of the following information for each recommended project: 1. A description of the project. 2. The location of the project. 3. An estimate of how long the project will take to complete. 4. An estimate of the cost of the project. 5. The cost-share percentage available for the project. 6. A summary of the priority score assigned to the project. 7. The project sponsor. (d)1. By September 1 of each year, all of the following entities may submit to the department a list of proposed projects that address risks of flooding or sea level rise identified in the comprehensive statewide flood vulnerability and sea level rise assessment or vulnerability assessments that meet the requirements of subsection (3): a. Counties. b. Municipalities. c. Special districts as defined in s. 189.012 which are responsible for the management and maintenance of inlets and intracoastal waterways or for the operation and maintenance of a potable water facility, a wastewater facility, an airport, or a seaport facility. d. Regional resilience entities acting on behalf of one or more member counties or municipalities. For the plans submitted by December 1, 2024, such entities may submit projects identified in existing vulnerability assessments that do not comply with subsection (3) only if the entity is actively developing a vulnerability assessment that is either under a signed grant agreement with the department pursuant to subsection (3) or funded by another state or federal agency, or is self-funded and intended to meet the requirements of paragraph (3)(d) or if the existing vulnerability assessment was completed using previously compliant statutory requirements. Projects identified from this category of vulnerability assessments will be eligible for submittal until the prior vulnerability assessment has been updated to meet most recent statutory requirements. 2. By September 1 of each year, all of the following entities may submit to the department a list of any proposed projects that address risks of flooding or sea level rise identified in the comprehensive statewide flood vulnerability and sea level rise assessment or vulnerability assessments that meet the requirements of subsection (3), or that mitigate the risks of flooding or sea level rise on water supplies or water resources of the state and a corresponding evaluation of each project: a. Water management districts. b. Drainage districts. c. Erosion control districts. d. Flood control districts. e. Regional water supply authorities. 3. Each project submitted to the department pursuant to this paragraph for consideration by the department for inclusion in the plan must include all of the following information: a. A description of the project. b. The location of the project. c. An estimate of how long the project will take to complete. d. An estimate of the cost of the project. e. The cost-share percentage available for the project. f. The project sponsor. (e) Each project included in the plan must have a minimum 50 percent cost share unless the project assists or is within a community eligible for a reduced cost share. For purposes of this section, the term “community eligible for a reduced cost share” means: 1. A municipality that has a population of 10,000 or fewer, according to the most recent April 1 population estimates posted on the Office of Economic and Demographic Research’s website, and a per capita annual income that is less than the state’s per capita annual income as shown in the most recent release from the Bureau of the Census of the United States Department of Commerce that includes both measurements; 2. A county that has a population of 50,000 or fewer, according to the most recent April 1 population estimates posted on the Office of Economic and Demographic Research’s website, and a per capita annual income that is less than the state’s per capita annual income as shown in the most recent release from the Bureau of the Census of the United States Department of Commerce that includes both measurements; or 3. A municipality or county that has a per capita annual income that is equal to or less than 75 percent of the state’s per capita annual income as shown in the most recent release from the Bureau of the Census of the United States Department of Commerce. (f) Expenses ineligible for inclusion in the plan include, but are not limited to, expenses associated with any of the following: 1. Aesthetic vegetation. 2. Recreational structures such as piers, docks, and boardwalks. 3. Water quality components of stormwater and wastewater management systems, except for expenses to mitigate water quality impacts caused by the project or expenses related to water quality which are necessary to obtain a permit for the project. 4. Maintenance and repair of over-walks. 5. Park activities and facilities, except expenses to control flooding or erosion. 6. Navigation construction, operation, and maintenance activities. 7. Projects that provide only recreational benefits. (g) The department shall implement a scoring system for assessing each project eligible for inclusion in the plan pursuant to this subsection. The scoring system must include the following tiers and associated criteria: 1. Tier 1 must account for 40 percent of the total score and consist of all of the following criteria: a. The degree to which the project addresses the risks posed by flooding and sea level rise identified in the local government vulnerability assessments or the comprehensive statewide flood vulnerability and sea level rise assessment, as applicable. b. The degree to which the project addresses risks to regionally significant assets. c. The degree to which the project reduces risks to areas with an overall higher percentage of vulnerable critical assets. d. The degree to which the project contributes to existing flooding mitigation projects that reduce upland damage costs by incorporating new or enhanced structures or restoration and revegetation projects. e. The degree to which the project reduces the flood risk, and thereby increases the credits awarded, to a community participating in the National Flood Insurance Program’s Community Rating System. 2. Tier 2 must account for 30 percent of the total score and consist of all of the following criteria: a. The degree to which flooding and erosion currently affect the condition of the project area. b. The overall readiness of the project to proceed in a timely manner, considering the project’s readiness for the construction phase of development, the status of required permits, the status of any needed easement acquisition, and the availability of local funding sources. c. The environmental habitat enhancement or inclusion of nature-based options for resilience, with priority given to state or federal critical habitat areas for threatened or endangered species. d. The cost-effectiveness of the project. 3. Tier 3 must account for 20 percent of the total score and consist of all of the following criteria: a. The availability of local, state, and federal matching funds, considering the status of the funding award, and federal authorization, if applicable. b. Previous state commitment and involvement in the project, considering previously funded phases, the total amount of previous state funding, and previous partial appropriations for the proposed project. c. The exceedance of the flood-resistant construction requirements of the Florida Building Code and applicable flood plain management regulations. 4. Tier 4 must account for 10 percent of the total score and consist of all of the following criteria: a. The proposed innovative technologies designed to reduce project costs and provide regional collaboration. b. The extent to which the project assists financially disadvantaged communities. (h) The total amount of funding proposed for each year of the plan may not be less than $100 million. Upon review and subject to appropriation, the Legislature shall approve funding for the projects as specified in the plan. Multiyear projects that receive funding for the first year of the project must be included in subsequent plans and funded until the project is complete, provided that the project sponsor has complied with all contractual obligations and funds are available. (i) The department shall adopt rules to implement this section.

(6) REGIONAL RESILIENCE ENTITIES. — Subject to specific legislative appropriation, the department may provide funding for all of the following purposes to regional entities, including regional planning councils and estuary partnerships, that are established by general purpose local governments and whose responsibilities include planning for the resilience needs of communities and coordinating intergovernmental solutions to mitigate adverse impacts of flooding and sea level rise: (a) Providing technical assistance to counties and municipalities. (b) Coordinating and conducting activities authorized by subsection (3) with broad regional benefit or on behalf of multiple member counties and municipalities. (c) Developing project proposals to be submitted for inclusion in the Statewide Flooding and Sea Level Rise Resilience Plan.

Legislative History

s. 1, ch. 2021-28; s. 4, ch. 2022-89; s. 1, ch. 2023-231; s. 121, ch. 2024-6; s. 4, ch. 2024-180; s. 9, ch. 2025-201.