(1) Upon receipt of all statements and other documents specified above, the Boating and Waterways Section will determine whether or not the application is complete.
    (a) If the application is not substantially complete or has not been completed substantially correctly, the Boating and Waterways Section will within 30 days of receipt return it to the applicant with a statement of the items that are missing or that must be corrected.
    (b) If the application is substantially complete and only minor additions or corrections are required, the Boating and Waterways Section will within 30 days following receipt notify the applicant of the apparent errors or omissions and request the required additional or corrected information. If the requested additional or corrected information is not received within 30 days, the Boating and Waterways Section will return the application to the applicant with a statement of the items that are missing or that must be corrected.
    (2) Within 30 days following receipt of a completed application, the Boating and Waterways Section will provide notice of such receipt to the applicant by mail or by email using the same method by which the application was submitted and to the public as provided in Fl. Admin. Code R. 68D-21.003
    (3) The Boating and Waterways Section will within 90 days following receipt of a completed application, review and act upon the application as follows:
    (a) The Boating and Waterways Section will determine whether or not each boating-restricted area created in the ordinance is authorized under Section 327.46(1)(b) or (c), F.S. If any boating-restricted area created in the ordinance is not authorized pursuant to one of those paragraphs, the application will be denied. As provided in subsection 68D-21.001(1), F.A.C., approval is not required for ordinances in which every boating-restricted area established therein is authorized under Section 327.46(1)(b), F.S.
    (b) The Boating and Waterways Section will determine whether or not each boating-restricted area established in the ordinance was developed prior to adoption of the ordinance:
    1. For municipal ordinances, in consultation and coordination with the governing body of the county in which the boating-restricted area is located,
    2. For county ordinances, in consultation and coordination with the governing body of each municipality in which a boating-restricted area is located unless all boating-restricted areas are located in unincorporated portions of the county,
    3. For boating-restricted area on navigable waters of the United States, in consultation and coordination with the United States Coast Guard and the United States Army Corps of Engineers.
If the required consultation and coordination has not taken place, the application will be denied. This paragraph shall not be construed to require an applicant to wait indefinitely for a response to a request for consultation and coordination. If a municipality or county has made such a request for consultation and coordination in writing and has not received a response within 30 days, the Boating and Waterways Section will, if requested, attempt to facilitate such consultation and coordination. If a response is still not forthcoming, the Boating and Waterways Section will conclude that the municipality, county, or federal agency to whom the request was addressed has no objection to the proposed ordinance and no further consultation or coordination will be required.
    (c) The Boating and Waterways Section will determine whether or not the application and appendix establish a prima facie showing that the ordinance is necessary to protect public safety by evaluating if at least one of the criteria in Fl. Admin. Code R. 68D-21.004, has been met.
    (d) If there is a prima facie showing that the ordinance is necessary to protect public safety and that at least one of the criteria in Fl. Admin. Code R. 68D-21.004, has been met, the Boating and Waterways Section will:
    1. Review all written public comments received within 21 days following the notice provided to the public as required in Fl. Admin. Code R. 68D-21.003, and all testimony, evidence, and exhibits presented at a public hearing if one was requested,
    2. Review all comments provided by the United States Coast Guard and the United States Army Corps of Engineers received prior to the determination.
    3. Conduct a public hearing within the applicant’s jurisdiction if a written request for such a hearing is received within 21 days following the notice provided to the public as required in Fl. Admin. Code R. 68D-21.003
    (e) Based on the totality of the information received, the Boating and Waterways Section will determine whether or not there is substantial competent evidence that the ordinance is necessary to protect public safety.
    1. An ordinance will be considered necessary to protect public safety only if it is required for the purposes of protecting human life and limb, vessel traffic safety, and, as defined in Fl. Admin. Code R. 68D-23.103, maritime property.
    2. No ordinance establishing a boating restricted area will be approved for the purpose of noise abatement or for the protection of shoreline, shore-based structures, or upland property from vessel wake or shoreline wash. As provided in Florida Statutes § 327.33(2), “”vessel wake and shoreline wash resulting from the reasonable and prudent operation of a vessel shall, absent negligence, not constitute damage or endangerment to property.”” The wake resulting from the reasonable and prudent operation of a vessel is a force which should be anticipated by the owners of property adjacent to the navigable waters of this state.
    (4) The Boating and Waterways Section will act to approve or deny the application within the time limits specified in Section 327.46(1)(c), F.S. Upon approval or denial of the application, the Boating and Waterways Section will provide notice of the approval or denial as provided in Fl. Admin. Code R. 68D-21.003 If no request for review is timely received, this notice will constitute final agency action.
    (5) The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, sitting as agency head at its next available regularly scheduled meeting, will review any approval or denial determination made by the Boating and Waterways Section upon timely receipt of a request for review. Any substantially affected person may request review of the approval or denial; the request must be received by the Boating and Waterway Section within 21 days following the notice provided to the public as required in Fl. Admin. Code R. 68D-21.003
Rulemaking Authority 327.04, 327.46 FS. Law Implemented Florida Statutes § 327.46. History-New 10-6-10.