1999 Florida Code
TITLE XXVIII NATURAL RESOURCES; CONSERVATION, RECLAMATION, AND USE
Chapter 370 Saltwater Fisheries  
370.0805   Net ban assistance program.

370.0805  Net ban assistance program.--

(1)  INTENT.--

(a)  In response to the adoption of s. 16, Art. X of the State Constitution, it is the intent of this section to establish a program, which shall be administered and enforced by the Department of Labor and Employment Security, in accordance with the provisions of this section, to provide economic assistance to commercial saltwater products licensees suffering certain losses in income as a result of the amendment, to purchase commercial fishing gear rendered illegal or useless by the amendment, and to retrain commercial fishers economically displaced by the amendment.

(b)  It is further the intent of this section that the Department of Labor and Employment Security work to clarify the eligibility of affected saltwater products workers for Job Training Partnership Act services and direct that they be given every priority as dislocated workers, including special outreach efforts, expanded accessibility through one-stop service centers, and enrollment in performance-based incentive training courses, where available.

(c)  It is further the intent of this section that the 1Department of Commerce, the Department of Community Affairs, the Department of Labor and Employment Security, Enterprise Florida, Inc., and other economic development entities develop alternative industries, employment opportunities, and entrepreneurial ventures in the coastal communities directly or indirectly impacted by the new limitations on saltwater products workers. These economic development entities should place a special emphasis on utilizing the expertise of the Department of Environmental Protection, the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, and Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute to establish viable aquaculture operations in those affected communities.

(d)  It is further the intent of this section that the Department of Environmental Protection work with the 1Department of Commerce and the Department of Community Affairs in identifying existing grants and low-interest loan programs which may be appropriate for the conversion of gear or vessels which are rendered useless under the constitutional limitation on marine net fishing, but which require conversion to be legally used for commercial saltwater fishing purposes.

(2)  ELIGIBILITY FOR ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE.--The Department of Labor and Employment Security shall determine the eligibility of applicants for economic assistance under this section.

(a)  Any person who has been convicted of more than two violations of any rule of the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission or of any provision of this chapter in any single license year since 1991, or of more than four such violations from the period of 1991 through 1995, inclusive, shall not be eligible for economic assistance under this section.

(b)  Only a person who was a resident of this state on November 8, 1994, is eligible to receive, or designate another resident to receive, economic assistance under this section.

(3)  APPLICATION FOR ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE.--

(a)  For economic assistance for lost income under this section, each saltwater products licensee shall apply to the Department of Labor and Employment Security on or before December 31, 1995. Lost income assistance under this section shall be provided based on a first-come, first-served basis determined by the date of receipt of each completed application.

(b)  Each commercial saltwater products licensee, and each person holding a resident commercial fishing license pursuant to s. 372.65, who seeks economic assistance through the net buy-back program under this section shall apply to the Department of Labor and Employment Security beginning July 1, 1995, and ending December 31, 1995. Upon receipt of a completed application, eligibility will be established and the applicant will be scheduled to present eligible nets at the nearest available net-recovery facility. Nets will be purchased according to availability of funds on a first-come, first-served basis determined by the date of receipt of each completed application.

(4)  ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE FOR LOSS OF INCOME.--

(a)  Any fisher who is partially or totally unemployed as a result of the implementation of the net ban amendment in s. 16, Art. X of the State Constitution, notwithstanding s. 443.036(21)(n)3., is eligible for retroactive elective coverage pursuant to s. 443.121(3)(a). Retroactive elective coverage shall be limited to fishers who, during the base period, as defined in s. 443.036, possessed a valid saltwater products license issued under s. 370.06 and had recorded landings of the species affected by the net ban. Eligible fishers may apply for retroactive elective coverage any time on or before December 31, 1995. Liability for contributions due as a result of retroactive coverage must be satisfied prior to the payment of unemployment benefits.

(b)  In determining benefits under this subsection, wages shall be determined under chapter 443, but if wages cannot otherwise be determined, they shall be determined by multiplying total pounds of catch per calendar year as recorded on trip tickets by the unadjusted average annual coded species-grouping values published in the Marine Fisheries Information System's Annual Landings Summary limited to the following species and areas:

1.  Bait Fish (Code 102).

2.  Ballyhoo (Code 105).

3.  Bluefish (Code 107).

4.  Bluerunner (Code 109).

5.  Croaker (Code 119).

6.  Black Drum (Code 123).

7.  Flounders (Codes 127, 291, 292, and 293).

8.  Grunts (Code 151).

9.  Jacks (Codes 157, 159, and 161).

10.  Ladyfish (Code 167).

11.  Spanish Mackerel (Code 219), if landed on the west coast of Florida.

12.  Menhaden (Code 173), if not landed on the east coast of Florida or in Tampa Bay.

13.  Mullet (Codes 175, 176, 177, 178, and 475).

14.  Pinfish (Code 412).

15.  Pompano (Code 183).

16.  Spanish Sardines (Code 221), if not landed in Tampa Bay.

17.  Scaled Sardines (Code 413).

18.  Scad (Codes 129 and 117).

19.  Shad (Codes 197 and 461).

20.  Sheepshead (Code 201).

21.  Spot (Code 225).

22.  Sea Trouts (Codes 191, 192, 193, and 195).

23.  Whiting (Code 249).

24.  Miscellaneous Industrial Fish (Code 253).

25.  White Shrimp (Codes 335 and 336).

26.  Spanish Mackerel (Code 219), if landed on the east coast of Florida and if the trip ticket amounts do not exceed 1,500 pounds per ticket.

27.  Brown Shrimp (Codes 337 and 338), if the trip ticket amounts do not exceed 500 pounds per ticket.

28.  Pink Shrimp (Codes 333 and 334), if the trip ticket amounts do not exceed 500 pounds per ticket.

29.  Bait Shrimp (Codes 345 and 346), if landed on the east coast of Florida.

(c)  Only landings reflected on trip tickets submitted to the Department of Environmental Protection and recorded by the Marine Fisheries Information System shall be used to determine eligibility for economic assistance. As used in this section, "trip tickets" means Marine Fisheries Trip Tickets, FDEP Form #33-610, submitted to the Department of Environmental Protection and edited and compiled in the Marine Fisheries Information System.

(d)  To receive economic assistance under this subsection, a person eligible under paragraph (a) must be accepted and enrolled in an approved training program or have satisfactorily completed such a program, or have registered in a job-search program operated by the Department of Labor and Employment Security. Approved training programs shall include, but not be limited to, aquaculture research and training programs, opportunities provided by the Job Training Partnership Act and similar programs managed by the Department of Labor and Employment Security, and course offerings at state universities, vocational-technical schools, and community colleges.

(5)  NET BUY-BACK PROGRAM.--

(a)  All commercial saltwater products licensees and persons holding a resident commercial fishing license pursuant to s. 372.65 shall, upon application to and approval of the Department of Labor and Employment Security, receive economic assistance to compensate them for nets rendered illegal or useless by the constitutional limitation on marine net fishing; provided, however, that only commercial saltwater products licensees and persons holding a resident commercial fishing license pursuant to s. 372.65 who can document an annual gross income of $2,500 or more from net-caught landings of saltwater products during the period beginning July 1, 1991, and ending June 30, 1995. Such assistance shall be in nonnegotiable amounts not intended to reflect the actual value of the nets. Economic assistance to compensate such licensees for such nets, to be known as the net buy-back program, shall be as follows:

1.  Deepwater gill nets at least 600 yards in length and composed of 50 mesh or more, $1,000.

2.  Shallow-water gill nets at least 600 yards in length and composed of less than 50 mesh, $500.

3.  Trammel nets at least 600 yards in length, $1,000.

4.  Beach, purse, and seine nets at least 600 yards in length, $3,500.

5.  Shrimp trawls of at least 500 square feet, $500.

Nets described in subparagraphs 1. through 4. which are less than 600 yards in length shall be valued proportionately.

(b)  Economic assistance shall be available only for nets that could have been legally fished on June 30, 1995, and that are presented to the Department of Labor and Employment Security in the following manner:

1.  Each net presented shall include only float line, webbing, and leadline.

2.  Each net presented shall be cleaned of all debris, containments, and fish and shall be devoid of all ferous metals, doors, and "let go" weights.

(c)  The number of qualifying nets for which a licensee may be paid shall be limited based on the licensee's average annual gross income attributable to the sale of eligible saltwater products during the 3-year period of July 1, 1991, through June 30, 1994, as follows:

1.  Licensees averaging from $2,500 to $4,999 annually may not be paid for more than four nets.

2.  Licensees averaging from $5,000 to $9,999 annually may not be paid for more than six nets.

3.  Licensees averaging from $10,000 to $19,999 annually may not be paid for more than eight nets.

4.  Licensees averaging from $20,000 to $29,000 annually may not be paid for more than eight nets.

5.  Licensees averaging more than $30,000 annually may not be paid for more than 10 nets.

(d)  No licensee may be paid for more than two shrimp trawls.

(e)  Any net for which a licensee receives payment shall become the property of the department and shall be destroyed or disposed of in a manner that is not harmful to Florida's environment.

(6)  RETRAINING PROGRAMS.--Retraining and job-search and placement programs shall be made available by the Department of Labor and Employment Security, to the extent that federal assistance funds are available, to retrain all commercial saltwater products licensees and saltwater products workers who are unable to continue their occupation under the constitutional limitation on marine net fishing and who apply for such a program. Such retraining programs may not be restricted to retraining solely in occupations relating to saltwater fisheries.

(7)  RULES.--The Department of Labor and Employment Security shall adopt rules to carry out the provisions of this section and may enter into an interagency agreement with the Department of Environmental Protection to administer any provisions of this section.

History.--s. 1, ch. 95-414; s. 16, ch. 97-96; s. 1, ch. 98-149; s. 101, ch. 99-245.

1Note.--Section 20.17, which created the Department of Commerce, was repealed effective December 31, 1996, by s. 3, ch. 96-320.