SUBJECT
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Approve the Heartland Headwaters Protection and Sustainability Act Annual Comprehensive Water Resources Report FY 2025-2026 (Action)
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DESCRIPTION
The Florida Legislature passed HB 573, known as the Heartland Headwaters Protection and Sustainability Act, which recognizes the importance of the water resources in and around Polk County. The Act declared that fostering partnerships between Regional Water Supply Authority and local governments is in the state interest, and in doing so requires that the Polk Regional Water Cooperative (PRWC) prepare an annual comprehensive report listing projects that are needed to protect and restore the region’s water resources so that these may be considered for state funding support. The Annual Report must be submitted to the State by December 1 of each year.
The Legislature has appropriated a grand total of $39,956,665 to the PRWC and its members. Historically, these funds have been used to advance the Southeast Wellfield, West Polk Wellfield alternative supply projects, and individual member projects.
The FY 2025-2026 Annual Report presents summaries for 29 projects submitted by the PRWC and its membership, totaling over $930 million. The projects have been ranked and prioritize the Southeast Wellfield, the Demand Management Plan, and Southeast member receiving facilities. The Annual Report requests approximately $37 million in state funding support for their implementation in FY 2024-2025.
Staff met with the FDEP earlier this year to discuss the project approach and to emphasize the critical need for member receiving facility funding. Staff are awaiting feedback on the draft report. This agenda item will approve the report funding request, but edits to the document may be necessary to address FDEP feedback.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends that the board approve the Annual Report, which would then be presented to the Governor, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, and the Southwest Florida Water Management District by December 1, 2023.
FISCAL IMPACT
No fiscal impact.
CONTACT INFORMATION
Mary Thomas, Carollo Engineers