Florida SB 544: Drug-related Overdose Prevention

Bill Text

544 
Golf Courses 
2026-01-14T04:40:32Z 
Creating the “Golf Course Best Management Practices Certification Act”; providing legislative findings and intent regarding golf course best management practices certification; providing for a type two transfer of the Golf Course Best Management Practices Certification program in the Department of Environmental Protection to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, etc. 
Committee Substitute 1 
2026 
S 
2026-07-01T00:00:00Z 
GB 
General Bill 
c1 

 Florida Senate - 2026 CS for SB 544 

 By the Committee on Environment and Natural Resources; and 
 Senator Truenow 

 592-01911-26 2026544c1 
 1 A bill to be entitled 
 2 An act relating to golf courses; transferring, 
 3 renumbering, and amending s. 403.9339, F.S.; providing 
 4 a short title; providing legislative findings and 
 5 intent regarding golf course best management practices 
 6 certification; defining the term “department”; 
 7 providing for a type two transfer of the Golf Course 
 8 Best Management Practices Certification program in the 
 9 Department of Environmental Protection to the 
 10 Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; 
 11 providing an effective date. 
 12 
 13 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 
 14 
 15 Section 1. Section 403.9339, Florida Statutes, is 
 16 transferred, renumbered as section 604.75, Florida Statutes, and 
 17 amended to read: 
 18 604.75 403.9339 Golf course best management practices 
 19 certification.— 
 20 (1) This section shall be known and may be cited as the 
 21 “Golf Course Best Management Practices Certification Act.” 
 22 (2) The Legislature finds that, due to the foundational 
 23 agricultural nature of golf courses and since the Department of 
 24 Agriculture and Consumer Services oversees best management 
 25 practices programs for sod growing operations and for the green 
 26 industry, it is appropriate for the department to oversee golf 
 27 course best management practices certification. Certified 
 28 participants must abide by the best management practices 
 29 governing the application of fertilizer on sod. 
 30 (3) As used in this section, the term “department” means 
 31 the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. 
 32 (4)(1) To provide a means of documenting and ensuring 
 33 compliance with best management practices for fertilizer 
 34 application to golf courses, the turfgrass science program at 
 35 the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural 
 36 Sciences, in coordination with the department, shall administer 
 37 a certification for golf course best management practices. 
 38 (5)(2) The turfgrass science program, in cooperation with 
 39 the department, shall: 
 40 (a) Provide training and testing programs in golf course 
 41 best management practices and may issue certificates 
 42 demonstrating satisfactory completion of the training. 
 43 (b) Approve training and testing programs in golf course 
 44 best management practices that are equivalent to or more 
 45 comprehensive than the programs provided by the turfgrass 
 46 science program under this subsection paragraph (a). Such 
 47 programs must be reviewed and reapproved by the turfgrass 
 48 science program if significant changes are made. 
 49 (6)(3) To obtain a golf course best management practices 
 50 certification, an applicant must submit to the turfgrass science 
 51 program a copy of the training certificate issued under 
 52 subsection (5)(2). 
 53 (7)(4) A golf course best management practices 
 54 certification issued under this section expires 4 years after 
 55 the date of issuance. Upon expiration of the certification, or 
 56 after a grace period of not more than 30 days after the 
 57 expiration date, a recertification may be issued. 
 58 (8)(5) To obtain a golf course best management practices 
 59 recertification, an applicant must submit to the turfgrass 
 60 science program proof of having completed 8 classroom hours of 
 61 continuing education, of which at least 2 hours must address 
 62 fertilizer best management practices. 
 63 (9)(6) A person certified under this section is exempt 
 64 from: 
 65 (a) Additional local training. 
 66 (b) Local ordinances relating to water and fertilizer use 
 67 blackout periods or restrictions, unless a state of emergency is 
 68 declared. The certified person must continue to coordinate with 
 69 the local government to ensure that he or she adheres to the 
 70 comprehensive best management practices for that specific 
 71 community. 
 72 (10)(7) This section does not exempt a person certified 
 73 under this section from complying with the rules and 
 74 requirements for basin management action plans set forth in s. 
 75 403.067(7) if the golf course is located in an area within a 
 76 basin management action plan. 
 77 (11)(a)(8)(a) The turfgrass science program may provide the 
 78 certification status of persons certified under this section to 
 79 local and state