HB 1097 - Florida Communities Trust

• Adds flood mitigation projects to the list of permissible activities the Florida Communities Trust may undertake, coordinate, or fund.

• Establishes a maximum grant award of $5 million per calendar year for flood mitigation projects, with exceptions requiring Department of Environmental Protection approval and Legislative Budget Commission authorization for higher amounts.

• Requires flood mitigation funds to be identified separately from other trust funds and limits grant recipients to no more than 8 percent of awarded funds for administrative costs.

• Directs the Department of Environmental Protection to establish an application process with annual deadlines and rank applications based on six specified priorities, including CRS scoring improvement and protection of structures from frequent flooding.

• Requires the department to develop reporting requirements for grant recipients and make all reports publicly available; effective date July 1, 2018.