FL H0157

Water management districts must include reservations and water bodies in their priority lists and schedules, with the Department of Environmental Protection authorized to adopt reservations and minimum flows and levels by rule that districts apply without separate rulemaking.

Districts must provide technical information and staff support for development of reservations, minimum flows and levels, and recovery or prevention strategies adopted by the department.

Water management districts may enter into interagency agreements to designate a single district to conduct resource management activities crossing district boundaries, provided the funding district receives some or all of the benefits.

Water management districts are authorized to provide group insurance for employees of other water management districts under the same provisions as authorized for other public employees.

Regional water supply authorities and applicable water management districts must jointly develop the water supply component of regional water supply plans; the reference to Southwest Florida Water Management District is removed and replaced with "applicable water management district."

Cooperative funding programs are exempted from chapter 120 rulemaking requirements, effective July 1, 2012.