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11/10/1999 C/e.rk'"J or.:)(n~/ MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING NO. DOH 01-1999 BETWEEN MONROE COUNTY AND THE FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, MONROE COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT, TO IMPLEMENT A HOMEOWNERS WASTEWATER SYSTEM ASSISTANCE PROGRAM This Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) is entered into between Monroe County ( County) and the Florida Department of Health, Monroe County Health Department (MCHD), under the authority granted in Section 163.01, F.S. :J: 0 ~ -rt ~l>_r % - FT1 :::0 (") _,:; ,.." ...... 0,-- n '-' I. PURPOSE ~?';:: N -rt 0('"')' C 0 c:: - -".. :::0 ;:0,.."--.... The purpose of this MOU is to outline the shared responsibilities o~in~+~ County Board of Commissioners (BOCC) and the MCHD coace~in~ t~ implementation of: !" C C . Ordinance 031-1999, the Cesspool Identification and Elimination Ordinance, and . a grant assistance program for the replacement of cesspools and other unknown on-site wastewater systems. II. BACKGROUND On 15 April 1993, the Board of County Commissioners adopted its 2010 Comprehensive Plan as required under Chapters 163 and 380 of the Florida Statutes. After lengthy litigation through two separate administrative hearing processes, the final adoption of the Monroe County 2010 Comprehensive Plan (2010 Plan) occurred on 17 July 1997. The Comprehensive Plan, including the seven-year work program, were recently revised in Rule 28-20.100, by the Governor and Cabinet in the June of 1999. The seven-year work program and Comprehensive Plan policies require that the County cause cesspools and unknown systems to be replaced with permitted On- site Wastewater Nutrient Reduction Systems (OWNRS) in areas which are not identified for central sewer service systems (referred to as "Cold Spots"). This program has been re-codified recently in Ordinance 031-1999 (revising Chapter 15.5, Monroe County Code), known as the Cesspool Identification and document/wastewater/ dohcesspoo Imou3 .doc Page 1 0[8 Elimination Ordinance. That Ordinance focuses on areas that will not receive sewer service within the next ten years. As required in the seven-year work program, the program to eliminate all cesspools and unknown systems outside "Hot Spots" must be completed by 12 July 2003. The BOCC and the State of Florida retain a concern that those individuals who must replace a cesspool or unknown, unpermitted system under the requirements of Ordinance 031-1999, should be provided an opportunity for grant funding in order to assist in their replacement efforts. Thus, the County and the State have initially set aside up to $2.65 million for a cesspool and inadequate unknown systems replacement grant assistance program. Under the three-party Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) Contract SP527, approved by the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) in October 1999, the FDEP has agreed to provide $850,000 in funding to the grant assistance program, which is to be distributed to eligible residential property owners in an amount comparable to the subsidy to be received by property owners in the Little Venice Wastewater Project. Little Venice residential property owners will receive approximately a sixty-two percent (62%) subsidy for that wastewater project. The Florida Department of Community Affairs (FDCA) has agreed to provide up to $600,750 in funding to the grant assistance program. These funds are expected to be granted to eligible property owners in accordance with FDEP guidelines specified in FDEP Contract SP527. The cost of constructing an OWNRS under current standards is estimated to be approximately $13,500 (including engineering fees and removal of any cesspool). Sixty-two percent of this amount is approximately $8,400, which will be provided as a flat subsidy to residential property owners replacing cesspools or other unknown systems under Ordinance 031-1999. Using its infrastructure funds, the County has agreed to provide a sliding-scale subsidy in addition to the flat subsidy provided using state funds. The County will provide at least $959,000 of infrastructure sales tax money toward this effort. The amount provided to each residential property owner will be based on the current assessed value of improvements to the subject property. document/wastewater/dohcesspoolmou3.doc Page 2 of8 The MCHD through FDEP Contract SP527, has agreed to administer the Homeowners Wastewater System Assistance Program (HWSAP) using State and County grant funds for ten (10) percent of the grant funds to be applied under the grant assistance program. At its October 14, 1999, regular meeting, the BOCC preliminarily approved providing the MCHD with up to $240,975 (10 percent of grant funds) from infrastructure tax and County Growth Management Division (GMD) funds to assist in funding the administrative requirements of the program. III. AGREEMENT A. Implementation of the Cesspool Identification and Elimination Ordinance. 1. The County and MCHD agree to coordinate implementation of the Cesspool Identification and Elimination Ordinance, Ordinance 031-1999, revising Chapter 15.5, Monroe County Code. 2. The MCHD shall prepare notification packages and official notification letters to be sent to property owners under the Cesspool Identification and Elimination Ordinance. The notification packages shall contain basic consumer information on the HWSAP. The official notification letters shall constitute formal notice to the property owners requiring them to come into compliance with the requirements of the Cesspool Identification and Elimination Ordinance. Included with each official notification letter shall be necessary forms and instructions for complying with MCHD requirements and instructions on how to receive grant assistance for the replacement of the cesspool or inadequate unknown system. 3. The MCHD shall have responsibility for sending out notification packages to owners of all properties identified on the MCHD "unknown systems" list within Cesspool Identification and Elimination Areas ("CIEAs") delineated by resolution of the BOCC, as specified in Ordinance 031-1999. After consultation with the Monroe County staff, the MCHD shall send official notification letters to all owners of non-residential properties and some portion or all of the owners of residential properties identified on the MCDH "unknown systems" within a "CIEA." The number of official notification letters sent to owners of residential properties shall be limited to the number of cesspools and unknown systems anticipated to document/wastewater/ dohcesspoolmou3 .doc Page 3 of8 be replaced for which grant funding is available. Wherever possible, the official notification letters shall be sent to concentrated geographic areas and subdivisions. 4. The County and MCHD shall cooperate to develop the content of the mail-out to those property owners receiving notification packages and official notification letters as noted in Section III. A. 2. above. 5. The County and MCHD shall develop a public outreach effort to inform the County's citizens about the implementation of the Cesspool Identification and Elimination program - who will be affected, where, what will be required of them, and what it is expected to cost. This program will be carried out in fulfillment of task requirements identified in the seven-year work program adopted by the Governor and Cabinet in Rule 28-20.100. B. Implementation of the Homeowners Wastewater System Assistance Program. 1. General Provisions a.) The County and MCHD agree to coordinate a grant assistance program for replacement of cesspools and unknown systems on residential properties in accordance with the provisions of the three-party contract SP527 and this Agreement. b.) The County shall assist MCHD in completing an initial report to FDEP as required in Attachment A, Section 6.A. of FDEP Contract SP527. This effort will be completed on or before the end of December 1999. The County shall assist in the development of policies and procedures for the selection of eligible grant recipients and in the development of procurement procedures for the acquisition of contractors and materials. c.) The MCHD shall administer the grants assistance program in accordance with all the terms and provisions of FDEP Contract SP527 and this Agreement. The payment conditions, schedules, record keeping and audit requirements of FDEP Contract SP527 also apply to this Agreement. A copy of FDEP Contract SP527 is hereby attached to this document/wastewater/ dohcesspoolmou3 .doc Page 4 of8 Agreement (Attachment I). In furtherance of the objectives of this Agreement, the MCHD shall provide the County with a copy of all reports required by FDEP Contract SP527 and provide quarterly status reports to the County beginning with the calendar year beginning on January I, 2000. The quarterly reports shall outline the grant assistance program's administrative activities and expenditures for the reporting period. 2. County Funding Sources a.) Monroe County shall make available to MCHD up to $959,000 in infrastructure sales tax funds (Fund 304) as the County's share of the eligible cost to eliminate cesspools and unknown inadequate on-site waste treatment and disposal systems under this grant assistance program. b.) Monroe County shall make available to MCHD up to $240,975, $200,000 from Fund 148, Account 51000-530340,2010 Comprehensive Plan and $40,975 from the one-cent infrastructure sales tax (Fund 304) for funding the administrative costs of this grant assistance program. 3. Administrative Funds a.) During the duration of this grant assistance program, and unless otherwise modified by an amendment to this Agreement, the County shall provide ten percent of the cumulative total of all available grant funds to MCHD for administration of the cesspool replacement grant assistance program. b.) Within 30 days of the execution of this agreement, the County shall provide $180,900 in a lump sum amount to MCHD; an amount equaling ten percent (10%) of the current available grant funds ($959,000 - County; and, $850,000 - FDEP) for replacement of cesspools and inadequate unknown systems. c.) When FDCA grant funds become available, the County shall provide MCHD within 60 days of the executed contract with FDCA, a lump sum amount, not to exceed $60,075, equal to 10 percent of the document/wastewater/ dohcesspoolmou3.doc Page 5 of8 grant funds provided by FDCA for the replacement of cesspools and inadequate unknown systems. d.) As additional funds become available to be used in the grant assistance program, the County will make additional funds available to MCHD for program administration and replacement of cesspools and inadequate unknown systems through amendments to this Agreement. 4. Homeowners Wastewater System Assistance Program (HWSAP) a.) The MCHD shall administer a sliding scale, improved property value based, HWSAP on behalf of Monroe County and the State of Florida. b.) The grant assistance program shall be available to property owners of all eligible residential properties, including mobile home and trailer parks. These funds shall be used to partially defray the costs for the replacement of cesspools or unknown systems with an approved OWNRS, small off-site cluster systems, or DEP approved wastewater treatment facilities, in accordance with FDEP Contract SP527 and this Agreement. c.) Only owners of residential properties identified through implementation of Ordinance 031-1999 shall be eligible for the grant assistance program. These properties must be listed on the MCHD's "unknown systems" list and subsequently identified as existing within a "CIEA" as defined in Ordinance 031-1999 and adopted by Resolution of the BOCC. Owners of residential properties identified on the "unknown systems" list within a designated "CIEA" that receive an official notification letter from MCHD shall be eligible to receive grant assistance funding. Owners of other residential properties on the "unknown systems" list situated within a "CIEA" shall not be eligible for grant funding until they receive an official notification letter from MCHD. Commercial properties shall be ineligible for any grant assistance funding under this program. d.) The grant assistance levels provided per each replaced on-site system through this grant program are identified in Attachment 2 and document/wastewater/dohcesspoolmou3.doc Page 60f8 may be modified through amendments to this Agreement. These assistance levels shall be the maximum amounts that may be granted to an eligible property owner per system replaced. e.) If the actual cost of construction of an OWNRS or eligible replacement system is less than the $13,500 average cost estimated by the County, the grant assistance applicant shall only be eligible to receive a proportionate share of the costs for reimbursement. This share shall be calculated as follows: sixty-two percent (62%) of total costs for properties with improvements valued over $200,000; seventy percent (70%) of total costs for properties with improvements valued between $100,000 and $200,000; and eighty-four percent (84%) of the total costs for properties with improvements valued less than $100,000. f.) MCHD shall not provide grant funds to any property owner, who has been found to be in violation by the County Code Enforcement Special Master of failing to comply with any of the provisions of Chapter 15.5 of the Monroe County Code. 5. Effective Date and Termination a.) This Agreement shall be effective on the date the last party signs this agreement. It shall remain in effect until July 12, 2003, unless modified in writing between the two parties; or terminated as provided in Section III 5. b.) below; or, unless the FDEP Contract SP 527 is terminated. b.) This Agreement may be terminated in whole or part by any of the signed parties for convenience without cause, provided that no termination may be effected unless the other party is given (1) not less than sixty (60) calendar days written notice (delivered by certified mail, return receipt requested) of the intent to terminate and (2) an opportunity for consultation with the terminating party. If termination for convenience is effected by the County, the MCHD shall return to the County all unexpended County funds adjusted for work performed and settlement costs reasonably incurred by MCHD relating to any commitments or contracts (e.g. suppliers, contractors), which had become binding prior to receipt of the notice of intent to terminate. document/wastewater/ dohcesspoolmou3 .doc Page 7 of8 THE PARTIES, by their duly authorized undersigned representatives have executed this Agreement on the dates and year below written. BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS MONROE~C~UNTY' ~ORIDA BY: cS' ,---,-7~ MA OR/CHAIR PERSON DATE: t1~ It), I'" FLORIDA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH, MONROE COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT G, iJJJ2; AUTHORIZED SIGNATORY BY: DATE: / J.. ' /5- . 9 9 BY: document/wastewater/dohcesspoolmou3.doc Page 8 of8 Attachment 1 FDEP Contract SP 527 Attachment 2 Sliding Scale Homeowners Wastewater System Assistance Program Grant Assistance Levels Improved Property Value State Subsidy County Subsidy Total Percent of Cost < $100,000 $8,400 $3,000 $11,440 84 $100,000 - $200,000 $8,400 $1,000 $9,400 70 > $200,000 $8,400 $0 $8,400 62 Estimated Total Cost of Construction Construction Cost: Engineering Fees: Removal of Cesspool: $11,500 $ 1,500 $ 500 $13,500 Total Cost