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Lawmakers Plan Repeal of Septic Tank Inspection Bill
October 7, 2010
A pair of lawmakers from the Florida Panhandle have said that they will file a bill for the 2011 session that would repeal legislation passed earlier this year to require septic tank inspections every five years to protect Florida springs.
Sen. Don Gaetz, R-Niceville, and Rep. Marti Coley, R-Marianna, said the requirement, which they say could cost residents $500 or more, was secretly inserted into a wide-ranging springs protection bill (SB 550) passed late in session this year.
“The proper management of septic systems is important to our environment,” Gaetz said in a statement. “But this mandate is not supported by scientific necessity. Moreover, it works a special hardship on many people in rural areas who are struggling to make it financially in these exceptionally hard times.”
“One of the many problems with this requirement is that it was crafted by the companies that will be paid to do the inspections,” Coley added. “This is a clear conflict of interest.”
The wide-ranging spring bill, SB 550, would require inspections of the state’s 2.6 million septic tanks once every five years by 2016. The bill would ban solid and liquid residuals created by septic tanks that are currently allowed in other unrestricted public places and expand the definition of alternative water supply projects, which opponents have said would require some septic tanks to be replaced altogether.
The bill also calls for the creation of regional bodies to handle the septic tank inspections, instead of a state agency or “water czar,” as had been floated in previous proposals that ran into opposition in the Legislature. The new requirements are scheduled to go into effect Jan. 1.
The planned repeal bill, which would only affect the septic tank provision, follows a comment last month from Gov. Charlie Crist that he would not delay implementation of the bill despite requests to do so by two other Panhandle lawmakers, Sen. Durrell Peaden, R-Crestview, and Rep. Greg Evers, R-Baker. Peaden and Evers wanted Crist to push back the effective date of the requirement to July 2011 so lawmakers could study the effects of the mandate when they return to Tallahassee next March.
However, Crist spokesman Sterling Ivey noted “it was a Senate bill that passed both houses and he signed into law” and told the News Service of Florida recently that the governor had no plans to wade back into the septic tank debate this fall, his last at the head of state government.
Backers of SB 550 say the septic requirements will cost much less than possible federal water regulations from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA is currently considering limits on the amount of chemical pollution that would be allowed in state water bodies. SB 550 supporters argued the federal agency may consider letting Florida have more of a say in septic tank monitoring if the state showed it was serious about protecting its water resources.
But Gaetz and Coley said that was not enough reason to ignore the burden they said requiring the inspections would put on taxpayers.
“County governments, taxpayer organizations and hundreds of concerned citizens have asked for relief from this intrusive, unnecessary expense,” both lawmakers said.
Sen. Lee Constantine, R-Altamonte Springs, declined to comment Tuesday because he will not be in the Legislature next year after facing term-limits. Constantine has said he considered SB 550 to be a capstone of his career in the Legislature and lawmakers presented him with a framed copy of the bill after he made farewell remarks on the floor of the Senate this year.
Earlier this summer, another term-limited senator, Democratic Leader Al Lawson, D-Tallahassee, said the bill should be repealed.
“Tallahassee simply cannot impose such a high financial burden on homeowners at this time,” Lawson said in August.
By Keith Laing
The News Service Florida
Comments
32 Responses to “Lawmakers Plan Repeal of Septic Tank Inspection Bill”
I do not and will not support any of this. How much more can we take. You
are draining our pockets. I think there are to many other things that need to be
corrected before you make a decision to force us to have a Septic Tank
Inspection. We make sure our systems is serviced and pay dearly for it.
Are you going to start telling us how many times we can use our own bathrooms
so we don’t fill up our septic tanks.
This is preposterous, rediculous and most important a slap in the face.
Your law makers must have so much money they are trying to find a way to spend
it. Well, thats you and most of us are lucky to be able to pay our bills and eat.
I hope the lawmakers of Florida will repeal this and change their decision.
We are all struggling out here – we need help not more problems.
REGARDING:
” Nancy P. said “we have to pass it to see whats in it”. ”
Did she really say that? Sounds a bit stupid doesn’t it? And she’s third in line of Presidential succession. with Joe #2, it makes me hope President Obama lives a long and healthy life.
This is another special interest bill. I am so tired of special interest bills getting back doored by ataching them to larger bills. This bill should be repealed. This is the reason there is a wave of backlash from the voters in the country. You guys pass this stuff and dont take the time to see whats in it. If you dont care enough to read the entire bill than get a different job cause you are not a responsible representative if you cant take the time to read the entire bill than we the tax payer have to suffer the conciquences. Like the health care bill, Nancy P. said “we have to pass it to see whats in it”. So now we know whats in it and how messed up it it is we repeal it. What a great job our elected officials are doing. No wonder our county is so messed up.
God help us.
I certainly hope this bill is repealed. This is just another way to give more money to the state. People have to make tough choices already about how to best spend their money. We certainly DO NOT need the state telling us when we need to have work done on our septic tanks. We are smart enough to figure this out ourselves. This is just another example of BIG BROTHER “helping” us. Don’t need it or want it.
a blessing behind every hardship
Hey.
Im not worried about my septic tank being too full, You would have to be able to afford to eat. Something that is getting harder and harder to do do
only North Korea is like North Korea
Well said Walnut Hill Citizen….
The problem is THERE ARE NO GOOD POLITICIANS!
IF this bill should ever be repealed it will take another act of Congress and\
you all know how long that takes.
New politicians will be voted in and maybe they will keep their campaign
promises and maybe they won’t, but the fact will remain we will all have
already been inspected and charged and for many that very well may be
the straw that broke the camels back.
SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE ABOUT THIS LAW BEFORE JANUARY
1, OR SOME OF YOUR MOTHERS, BROTHERS, AND CHILDREN MAY BE HOMELESS!
all citizens of the us!we need to take a stand for our freedoms grab some signs,your brothers,sisters,every one if we don’t we will be like north korea 100%communist before it is over.our lovely governmet folks don’t care about us little folks all they want is our hard earned money,looks like we gonna stand around and let them take it.what those crazy law makers need to do is start shelling out some of the money they have taken from us bring them to dang near poverty like me and most of the people i know.if you make a hundred thousand a year or better forty thousand should go to taxes.thanxs for the inconvience all greedy politicians people lets take back what is ours!!!!!!!!!take that law makers
Any day now: You asked why we call it socialism I only explained how some other methods work, unfortunately not every one pulls their weight in a commune or a socialist, communist societhy, ….but they still reap the benefits.
ABC-but what the bill does, in regards to septic tanks, is turn the inspection and permitting of the tank over to business. That’s capitalism.
Communism is a system of government or operation in which everyone pools their resource and labor together in pursuit of a common goal. That only works on a very small scale such as a commune. Some of the communes that were established in the 50s through the 70s still exist and are functioning well. It does not work well with large groups or with national governments because there are many people with different needs and desires. Take North Korea so example, a communist country. There are many people working for the interests and benefit of a few wealthy individuals. The needs and desires of the many are sacrificed thereby keeping them powerless and subject to the will of the few.
This is a fine example of what some politicians think of rural citizens. When times get tough and all the wasteful spending has caught up they start reaching out to rural area pockets to make up for it. Lawmakers know that most voters in cities will not be affected by this expense and won’t care since they have city sewer lines. What some city citizens don’t understand is we have many expenses that they do not. We had to pay $1700.00 plus permits and fees up front for a new septic tank 12 years ago to bring our tank up to code. If we want to purchase land we have to buy at least 5 acres and forced to pay taxes on it!!! but in the city you are allowed to buy small lots. Also, rural areas are extremely low wage areas with little employment available. Now it is almost impossible for someone to get a job unless you drive 45 miles to Pensacola and by the time you subtract expenses for fuel and wear & tear on vehicles let alone the 2 hrs round trip per day to Pensacola to work. How much money do you think we have left in our paycheck! let alone the 2 hours spent on the road!!!You do the math!! What would it cost in fuel alone to drive 90 miles a day to work?? We don’t have the convenience of just riding down the road to the store anytime when the nearest store is 15 – 30 miles away and if you want clothing or items not found in a small town you drive 45 miles. Also we don’t have the luxury of cable in our areas so we are forced to pay for a home phone land line in order to get internet and dish network or direct TV which is our only options in most rural areas. We cannot just drop our home phone expense to save and pay for a cell phone expense as in the city. Some politicians think rural areas don’t have enough votes to hurt them come election time. Think again!!! It is articles as this that drive us to the poles let alone the economy now! Thanks NorthEscambia.com
REGARDING:
“eradication of private enterprise, a direct opposite of Diplomacy”
Are you sure you don’t mean Capitalism? Diplomacy is when nations talk rather than shoot at each other. Capitalism is when people use privately owned capital to earn money by producing goods and services others desire.
Realistically Diplomacy is not supposed to work, but it has worked for us since the founding of the Declaration of Independence. Thats why we have been the Greatest Country in the World, unfortunately we are losing ground rapidly.
To any day now………….Look up Socialism in the dictionary, it is basically the eradication of private enterprise, a direct opposite of Diplomacy. Its like operating in a commune where everyone works,,,everyone recieves equal distribution of the fruits of the labor………. its akin to private ownership is eliminated.
Thanks for the website listing voters for this proponderous bill, this county is famous for laws that support the pockets of the powers to be, anyway they can fill them……….. You can bet that no one in our household will cast a vote for any one who voted to pass this ridiculous bill, retired folks and folks unemployed cannot afford any more costs piled on their existence, nor should they have to accept any…….. Its time everyone, understood what they vote for instead of reading the ballot and voting theres always more to these issues than they put on a ballot. Thanks again
Stephanie Ecklund _ I don’t understand why you say this is socialist
thanks, Mandatory
Repeal the Bill, and vote out the bad actors that voted for this in the first place.
And I noticed that Gaetz was an “Aye” vote when this first passed.
The links below will show you all of the votes in the Florida house and senate for this terribly unfair, socialist bill:
http://e-lobbyist.com/gaits/rollcall/19540
http://e-lobbyist.com/gaits/rollcall/19542
If someone would let me know of any way we can fight this & support Gaetz and Coley, please post. Thanks!
David,
My aerobic system is a three tank system. First tank is where waste water and solids arrive from the house and are broken down by aerobic bacteria. The process is expedited by the addition of an aereator which is basically just a high power mixer that increases the amount of oxygen in the tank. From this tank the water passes through a filter to tank #2 where the bacteria continues to breakdown and remove the unwanted stuff. When the waste water reaches tank #3 it is “suppossed” to be 99% pure and it is then pumped to a traditional leach field. Great system for the environment, but costly to the homeowner.
SB 550 is part of the UN’s Agenda 21 project. http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=52
It is time we let our lawmakers know we are Americans first, Floridian’s second, an we are not “People of the world.”
I’m happy to read that changes to the bill are being considered, as I believe the septic tank provision was too broad and was designed to turn over government functions to private, for profit businesses. I am all for profitable businesses, but it is not government’s role to facilitate the transfer of government functions into the hands of for profit business interests. All that does in insert profit margins into the costs of infrastructure.
I DO fully support measures to clean up our water as contamination levels are so high that it threatens both public health and public safety, but they really need to focus first on the major contributors to that pollution instead of laying blame on homeowners septic systems. Some of those systems do indeed contaminate some local waters depending on their locations, but most septic systems don’t adjoin creeks and rivers.
To Mandatory Inspections:
Being forced by Escambia County to pay $450 per year, for 2 times a year inspections is totally rediculous and sounds like a legal scam for many to
make lots of money at the home owners expense. That mandatory requirement should be re-visited with changes made to that law also.
No matter if both Senate houses voted for it, Charlie Crist should NOT have signed a bill that was “secretly inserted” without public discussion, as that is just plain dirty politics. I have zero tolerance for anyone who accepts and operates by those guidelines and standards. Good to see how he is now, as we surely don’t need a person like that as a U.S Senator.
Dirty moves like this one Charlie Crist is the reason why your are now 2nd in the running and not in the lead. I hope both Rubeo and Meek whip your behind and you loose both Florida’s Governor and U.S Senator seats. Then justice will be served!
REGARDING:
“Aerobic Septic Systems ”
Just curious, do aerobic systems pump air to bottom of septic tank and provide oxygen so aerobic bacteria can digest waste?
Sounds like a good system other than the $450 per year part
David wondering
For those of us with Aerobic Septic Systems are already forced by Escambia County to maintain a service contract with a local septic company at the cost of $350 per year plus another $100 annually for the permit to operate the systems. For $450 dollars per year, my septic company comes out twice per year and the Health Department once per year to “inspect” my system,, which entails lifting a concrete lid and verifying that the aereator and pump are functioning. Aerobic Systems are far more efficent at removing the nasty stuff than traditional septic systems, so it only makes sense that traditional systems should be inspected too. Either that or remove the requirement for the inspections of aerobic systems.
Bill,
I would like to see email, or phone numbers to voice support for repeal of this foolish bill.
Thanks for your awesome reporting on this travesty!
OK Representative Greg Evers, time to step up and help Senator Gaetz and Representative Coley!!!! Your district needs you now! This is how to win votes for next time…..
It’s all a money game.
THIS PORK EAR CRAP HAS NO PLACE IN BILLS,AND THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE SHOULD BE REPLACED. THIS IS JUST ONE MORE REASON WE VOTERS ARE GOING TO VOTE OUT THE ONES THAT DID NOT LISTEN TO WHAT THE PEOPLE WANT.
This subject still makes blood shoot out of my eyes! I will NEVER knowingly vote for anyone who supported this bill. Socialistic greed at it’s best!!!