Fla. Stat. § 403.503 — Florida Code / Title XXIX / Chapter 403 / Part II / Section 403.503
403.503 Definitions relating to Florida Electrical Power Plant Siting Act.
Status: in_force

As used in this act:

(1) “Act” means the Florida Electrical Power Plant Siting Act.

(2) “Agency,” as the context requires, means an official, officer, commission, authority, council, committee, department, division, bureau, board, section, or other unit or entity of government, including a regional or local governmental entity.

(3) “Alternate corridor” means an area that is proposed by the applicant or a third party within which all or part of an associated electrical transmission line right-of-way is to be located and that is different from the preferred transmission line corridor proposed by the applicant. The width of the alternate corridor proposed for certification for an associated electrical transmission line may be the width of the proposed right-of-way or a wider boundary not to exceed a width of 1 mile. The area within the alternate corridor may be further restricted as a condition of certification. The alternate corridor may include alternate electrical substation sites if the applicant has proposed an electrical substation as part of the portion of the proposed electrical transmission line.

(4) “Amendment” means a material change in the information provided by the applicant to the application for certification made after the initial application filing.

(5) “Applicant” means any electric utility which applies for certification pursuant to the provisions of this act.

(6) “Application” means the documents required by the department to be filed to initiate a certification review and evaluation, including the initial document filing, amendments, and responses to requests from the department for additional data and information.

(7) “Associated facilities” means, for the purpose of certification, those onsite and offsite facilities which directly support the construction and operation of the electrical power plant such as electrical transmission lines, substations, and fuel unloading facilities; pipelines necessary for transporting fuel for the operation of the facility or other fuel transportation facilities; water or wastewater transport pipelines; construction, maintenance, and access roads; and railway lines necessary for transport of construction equipment or fuel for the operation of the facility.

(8) “Board” means the Governor and Cabinet sitting as the siting board.

(9) “Certification” means the written order of the board, or secretary when applicable, approving an application for the licensing of an electrical power plant, in whole or with such changes or conditions as the board may deem appropriate.

(10) “Completeness” means that the application has addressed all applicable sections of the prescribed application format, and that those sections are sufficient in comprehensiveness of data or in quality of information provided to allow the department to determine whether the application provides the reviewing agencies adequate information to prepare the reports required by s. 403.507.

(11) “Corridor” means the proposed area within which an associated linear facility right-of-way is to be located. The width of the corridor proposed for certification as an associated facility, at the option of the applicant, may be the width of the right-of-way or a wider boundary, not to exceed a width of 1 mile. The area within the corridor in which a right-of-way may be located may be further restricted by a condition of certification. After all property interests required for the right-of-way have been acquired by the licensee, the boundaries of the area certified shall narrow to only that land within the boundaries of the right-of-way. The corridors proper for certification shall be those addressed in the application, in amendments to the application filed under s. 403.5064, and in notices of acceptance of proposed alternate corridors filed by an applicant and the department pursuant to s. 403.5271 as incorporated by reference in s. 403.5064(1)(b) for which the required information for the preparation of agency supplemental reports was filed.

(12) “Department” means the Department of Environmental Protection.

(13) “Designated administrative law judge” means the administrative law judge assigned by the Division of Administrative Hearings pursuant to chapter 120 to conduct the hearings required by this act.

(14) “Electrical power plant” means, for the purpose of certification, any steam or solar electrical generating facility using any process or fuel, including nuclear materials, except that this term does not include any steam or solar electrical generating facility of less than 75 megawatts in capacity unless the applicant for such a facility elects to apply for certification under this act. This term also includes the site; all associated facilities that will be owned by the applicant that are physically connected to the site; all associated facilities that are indirectly connected to the site by other proposed associated facilities that will be owned by the applicant; and associated transmission lines that will be owned by the applicant which connect the electrical power plant to an existing transmission network or rights-of-way to which the applicant intends to connect. At the applicant’s option, this term may include any offsite associated facilities that will not be owned by the applicant; offsite associated facilities that are owned by the applicant but that are not directly connected to the site; any proposed terminal or intermediate substations or substation expansions connected to the associated transmission line; or new transmission lines, upgrades, or improvements of an existing transmission line on any portion of the applicant’s electrical transmission system necessary to support the generation injected into the system from the proposed electrical power plant.

(15) “Electric utility” means cities and towns, counties, public utility districts, regulated electric companies, electric cooperatives, and joint operating agencies, or combinations thereof, engaged in, or authorized to engage in, the business of generating, transmitting, or distributing electric energy.

(16) “Federally delegated or approved permit program” means any environmental regulatory program approved by an agency of the Federal Government so as to authorize the department to administer and issue licenses pursuant to federal law, including, but not limited to, new source review permits, operation permits for major sources of air pollution, and prevention of significant deterioration permits under the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. ss. 7401 et seq.), permits under ss. 402 and 404 of the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. ss. 1251 et seq.), and permits under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (42 U.S.C. ss. 6901 et seq.).

(17) “Gross capacity” means, for a steam facility, the maximum generating capacity based on nameplate generator rating, and for a solar electrical generating facility, the capacity measured as alternating current which is independently metered prior to the point of interconnection to the transmission grid.

(18) “License” means a franchise, permit, certification, registration, charter, comprehensive plan amendment, development order or permit as defined in chapters 163 and 380, or similar form of authorization required by law, including permits issued under federally delegated or approved permit programs, but it does not include a license required primarily for revenue purposes when issuance of the license is merely a ministerial act.

(19) “Licensee” means an applicant that has obtained a certification order for the subject project.

(20) “Local government” means a municipality or county in the jurisdiction of which the electrical power plant is proposed to be located.

(21) “Modification” means any change in the certification order after issuance, including a change in the conditions of certification.

(22) “Nonprocedural requirements of agencies” means any agency’s regulatory requirements established by statute, rule, ordinance, zoning ordinance, land development code, or comprehensive plan, excluding any provisions prescribing forms, fees, procedures, or time limits for the review or processing of information submitted to demonstrate compliance with such regulatory requirements.

(23) “Notice of intent” means that notice which is filed with the department on behalf of an applicant prior to submission of an application pursuant to this act and which notifies the department of an intent to file an application.

(24) “Person” means an individual, partnership, joint venture, private or public corporation, association, firm, public service company, political subdivision, municipal corporation, government agency, public utility district, or any other entity, public or private, however organized.

(25) “Preliminary statement of issues” means a listing and explanation of those issues within the agency’s jurisdiction which are of major concern to the agency in relation to the proposed electrical power plant.

(26) “Public Service Commission” or “commission” means the agency created pursuant to chapter 350.

(27) “Regional planning council” means a regional planning council as defined in s. 186.503(4) in the jurisdiction of which the electrical power plant is proposed to be located.

(28) “Right-of-way” means land necessary for the construction and maintenance of a connected associated linear facility, such as a railroad line, pipeline, or transmission line as owned by or proposed to be certified by the applicant. The typical width of the right-of-way shall be identified in the application. The right-of-way shall be located within the certified corridor and shall be identified by the applicant subsequent to certification in documents filed with the department prior to construction.

(29) “Site” means any proposed location within which will be located an electrical power plant’s generating facility and onsite support facilities, or an alteration or addition of electrical generating facilities and onsite support facilities resulting in an increase in generating capacity, including offshore sites within state jurisdiction.

(30) “State comprehensive plan” means that plan set forth in chapter 187.

(31) “Ultimate site capacity” means the maximum gross generating capacity for a site as certified by the board, unless otherwise specified as net generating capacity.

(32) “Water management district” means a water management district, created pursuant to chapter 373, in the jurisdiction of which the electrical power plant is proposed to be located.

History: s. 1, ch. 73-33; s. 1, ch. 76-76; s. 1, ch. 79-76; s. 3, ch. 81-131; s. 14, ch. 86-173; s. 22, ch. 86-186; s. 3, ch. 90-331; s. 6, ch. 93-94; s. 383, ch. 94-356; s. 134, ch. 96-410; s. 20, ch. 2006-230; s. 67, ch. 2008-227; s. 7, ch. 2024-186.