Title: Emergency Reporting

Summary: Requires DEM to create list of reportable incidents; requires political subdivision to report certain incidents; authorizes DEM to establish guidelines for reporting; requires DEM to annually provide list of reportable incidents to certain entities.

Full Text:
An act relating to emergency reporting; creating s. 252.351, F.S.; defining the term "office"; requiring the Division of Emergency Management to create a list of reportable incidents; requiring a political subdivision to report incidents contained on the list to the State Watch Office; authorizing the Division of Emergency Management to establish guidelines a political subdivision must follow to report an incident; requiring the Division of Emergency Management to annually provide the list of reportable incidents to each political subdivision; providing an effective date. Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: Section 1. Section 252.3 51, Florida Statutes, is created to read: 252.351 Mandatory reporting of certain incidents by political subdivisions. (1) For purposes of this section, the term "office" means the State Watch Office established within the division pursuant to s. 14.20 16. (2) The division shall create and maintain a list of reportable incidents. The list shall include, but is not limited CS/CS/HB 2020 to, the following events: (a) Major fires, including wildfires, commercial or multi unit residential fires, and industrial fires. (b) Search and rescue operations, including structure collapse or urban search and rescue response. (c) Bomb threat or threat to inflict harm on a large number of people or significant infrastructure, a suspicious device or device detonation. (d) Nat ural hazards and severe weather, including earthquake, landslide, or ground subsidence or sinkholes. (e) Public health and population protective actions, including public health hazards, evacuation orders, or emergency shelter openings. (f) Animal or a gricultural events, including suspected or confirmed animal disease, suspected or confirmed agricultural disease, crop failure, or food supply contamination. (g) Environmental concerns, including an incident of reportable pollution release as required in s. 403.077(2). (h) Nuclear power plant events, including events in process or that have occurred which indicate a potential degradation of the level of safety of the plant or which indicate a security threat to facility protection. (i) Major transportation events, including aircraft or airport incidents, passenger or commercial railroad incidents, major road or bridge closures, or marine incident involving a CS/CS/HB 2020 blocked navigable channel of a major waterway. (j) Major utility or infra structure events, including dam failure or overtopping, drinking water facility breach, or major utility outages or disruptions involving transmission lines or substations. (k) Military events, when information regarding such activity is provided to a po litical subdivision. (3) As soon as practicable following its initial response to an incident, a political subdivision shall provide notification to the office that an incident specified on the list of reportable incidents has occurred within its geographical boundaries. The division may establish guidelines specifying the method and format a political subdivision must use when reporting an incident. (4) Beginning December 1, 2020, and by December every year thereafter, the division must provide the list of reportable incidents to each political subdivision. Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2020.