TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- The Florida legislature agreed Thursday to spend $151.7 million on a massive hurricane-preparation package designed to help ready the state for future storm seasons. But convenience store retailers aren't thrilled about the plan, according to a report in the Palm Beach Post.
The bills (HB7121, SB862) would set aside nearly $53 million for power generators in public special-needs shelters, $45 million to strengthen county emergency operations centers and $29 million for hurricane evacuation planning.
The legislation, [image-nocss] which now heads to Gov. Jeb Bush for his signature, also would require certain gasoline stations to be wired for generators and ready to use them in the event that a hurricane causes extended power outages. Condominiums and apartments also would be required to have a generator to operate at least one public elevator.
In addition, owners of 10 or more gas stations would be required to have one portable generator that can be moved around to serve those stations. The most important thing is this is not going to be a cure-all, but it's a step to make the state better prepared for emergencies, said Dave Mica, director of the Florida Petroleum Council. It does give us a coordinated approach.
But Jim Smith, president of the Tallahassee-based Florida Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Stores Association, said the 1-in-10 generator requirement means a $30 million burden on gas station owners, and that's without working out important issues such as how gas station employees will get to work.
It was a hastily amended bill that was unfortunately created to give citizens a false sense that everything is going to be normal after a hurricane, when nothing can be further from the truth, Smith told the newspaper.
Bush, asked whether state money should be given to gas station owners to buy generators, dismissed the idea. If you look at other retailers Publix, Home Depot, Wal-Mart they make a commitment to serving their customers, Bush said. They don't ask for a subsidy or a line item in the budget.
Sen. Alex Diaz de la Portilla, chairman of the Senate Committee on Domestic Security, shepherded the hurricane bills through and said he was pleased the 1-in-10 generator provision remained in the final package. The House realized that people needed to be protected, said Diaz de la Portilla.
The state has been walloped by back-to-back hurricanes for two years, and meteorologists have predicted another 10 to 20 years of intense storms to come.
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