The Department will follow the guidelines established by this rule to solicit, evaluate and select lands to be acquired for the Florida Greenways and Trails System.
    (1) Eligibility. Prior to submittal of an application, a sponsor must apply for and receive a “”Certificate of Eligibility,”” DEP Form #OGT-1, effective July 10, 2003. The Certificate of Eligibility is prescribed for use with these rules and is hereby incorporated by reference. The Certificate of Eligibility form may be obtained by writing to the Office of Greenways and Trails, Department of Environmental Protection, 3900 Commonwealth Blvd., Mail Station #795, Tallahassee, FL 32399-3000, or through OGT’s website address, www.floridagreenwaysandtrails.com. A Certificate of Eligibility will be provided to the sponsor if the sponsor’s proposed project meets all of the following criteria:
    (a) The project meets the definition of a “”greenway”” or “”trail”” in Florida Statutes § 260.013;
    (b) The planned project corridor is located within or adjacent to at least one opportunity segment on one or more of the Recreational Prioritization Maps;
    (c) At least 80 percent of the planned project corridor has a landowner or landowners willing to negotiate OGT’s acquisition of their property; and,
    (d) The project has a willing managing entity.
A Certificate of Eligibility form may be submitted to OGT at any time during the year, and will be valid for a period of twelve (12) months from the date of issuance by OGT.
    (2) Solicitation and Submission of Project Applications. OGT will solicit and accept applications for acquisition funding in the following manner:
    (a) To initiate each acquisition funding cycle, OGT will publish a “”Notice of Project Solicitation”” in the Florida Administrative Register and on the Department’s website address, www.dep.state.fl.us, under the link entitled “”Official Notices,”” to announce a period of not less than sixty (60) consecutive days during which it will accept applications for acquisition funding under the Florida Greenways and Trails program. The notice shall state the commencement and deadline dates for application acceptance and the approximate amount of funds available for acquisition projects. The amount of available funds stated in the notice shall be based on the anticipated allocation from the Florida Forever Trust Fund to the Florida Greenways and Trails program reflected in the most recent Trust Fund Status and Activity Reports of the Department’s Bureau of Finance and Accounting.
    (b) All requests for land acquisition funding under the Florida Greenways and Trails program must be submitted on OGT’s “”Application for Acquisition of Land,”” DEP Form #OGT-2, effective July 10, 2003 (the “”Application””), which is prescribed for use with these rules and is hereby incorporated by reference. The Application may be obtained by writing to the Office of Greenways and Trails, Department of Environmental Protection, 3900 Commonwealth Blvd., Mail Station #795, Tallahassee, FL 32399-3000, or through OGT’s website address, www.floridagreenwaysandtrails.com.
    (3) Review for Completeness. Each timely submitted acquisition application shall, within thirty (30) days after the Application submission deadline, be reviewed by OGT to verify completeness of information in accordance with this section. Incomplete Applications, along with a letter citing each deficiency, shall be returned to the sponsor for completion and resubmission within a period of not less than twenty-one (21) days from the date of the letter. The submission deadline shall be stated in the deficiency letter. A sponsor’s failure to provide the requested information shall be deemed a withdrawal of the Application from further consideration for the advertised acquisition funding cycle. No additional information will be accepted after the deadline stated in the deficiency letter, unless specifically requested by OGT for purposes of clarification.
    (4) Evaluation and Selection Criteria. Following the Application submission deadline, OGT will evaluate all timely submitted Applications for conformity with the criteria set forth in this subsection and determine the individual and relative merits of the proposed acquisition projects. During the evaluation period, OGT may conduct site visits or request technical advisory comments from other state agencies, regional planning councils, water management districts, not-for-profit conservation or recreation organizations, or other public or private groups generally recognized as authorities on certain aspects of the acquisition, development and management of greenways and trails. Projects will be grouped as described in subsection 62S-1.300(5), F.A.C. OGT will utilize the information contained within the Application and its attachments, unless such information is contradicted or superceded by data obtained during a site visit or documentary evidence received from one of the technical advisory bodies mentioned above.
    (5) Project Grouping.
    (a) Upon completion of the project evaluations, OGT shall group each project based on the following criteria:
    1. The rank (high, medium, or low) assigned to the project based on the Recreational Prioritization Maps.
    2. The percentage of any matching funds available or committed to the project based on the estimated project cost.
    3. The percentage of acreage within the planned project corridor that is proposed for less-than-fee acquisition.
    4. The project’s ecological values, including forest and wildlife resources.
    5. The project’s recreational attributes.
    6. The project’s historical and cultural resources.
    (b) The projects shall be grouped as follows:
    1. Group A: Those projects proposed for approval that will receive the highest priority for acquisition, based on the criteria in this subsection.
    2. Group B: Those acquisition projects proposed for approval that are considered by OGT to be important, but not of the highest priority, based on the criteria in this subsection.
    (6) Evaluation Report. Upon completion of the project grouping, OGT shall prepare a written evaluation report for consideration by the Council. Upon completion, a copy of the evaluation report shall be provided to members of the Council and the sponsor of each evaluated project. The report shall state the total amount of funds available for acquisition in the current Application cycle and any restrictions (time or otherwise) on the expenditure of said funds. In addition, the report shall provide the following information for each evaluated project, plus any supplementary data relevant to the particular acquisition application:
    (a) A general description of the project (including proposed uses) and an area map depicting its location, size, configuration, and connections with other greenways, trails, parks or corridors (if any).
    (b) Any condition(s) that should be imposed on the project to protect or sustain the purposes for which the project would be acquired or managed.
    (c) A current estimate of the amount of funding necessary to acquire the project.
    (d) Any recommended modifications to the project boundary needed for resource protection, acquisition planning, or management.
    (e) The project’s recommended grouping.
    (7) Council Review and Recommendation of Projects. Within sixty (60) days after its receipt of the evaluation report and recommended project grouping from OGT, the Council shall submit its recommendation to the Secretary in accordance with the following provisions:
    (a) The Council shall hold at least one public meeting to discuss the evaluated acquisition projects, during which the public may submit written or verbal comments in support of or in opposition to any project. Notice of each meeting shall be mailed to the sponsors of all evaluated projects, published in the Florida Administrative Register, and published on the Department’s website, www.dep.state.fl.us, under the link entitled “”Official Notices,”” at least seven (7) days in advance of the meeting date.
    (b) At the noticed meeting(s), OGT will present to the Council a verbal summary of the relevant information submitted for each evaluated project and respond to the Council’s questions. Thereafter, the Council shall permit oral or written comments by project sponsors, supporters, and members of the general public. These comments shall be limited in duration if necessary to ensure equal time for all interested parties and projects.
    (c) Following the close of the comment period at the final public meeting held for purposes of project review, the Council shall consider the information submitted and either:
    1. Approve the project grouping recommended by OGT, or
    2. Recommend modification of the project grouping based on the Council’s review of all project applications submitted and evaluated during the current funding cycle, oral presentations by OGT, and written or verbal comments by project sponsors, supporters, or the general public. In addition, taking into account the amount of funding available and types and sizes of projects proposed, the Council may recommend a higher or lower funding level than requested by the sponsor of a project and may also determine that a large project should be acquired or developed in phases to permit a broader allocation of available acquisition funds among projects.
    (d) The Council’s recommendations must be ratified by a majority of Council members present and voting at the Council’s final public meeting held for purposes of project review; a quorum must be present when the ratification vote is taken.
    (8) Secretarial Approval of Acquisition Projects. Following receipt of the Council’s recommendation, the Secretary shall either approve the Council’s recommendations or modify them based on the Department’s acquisition priorities and thereafter approve a grouped list of acquisition projects. OGT shall provide a copy of the final list of acquisition projects to the sponsors of all evaluated projects and to the Division of State Lands. Upon approval of the project grouping list by the Secretary, the Division of State Lands shall proceed with the acquisition of the projects contained thereon in accordance with the acquisition procedures of Florida Statutes Chapter 259
Rulemaking Authority 260.016(1)(c) FS. Law Implemented 260.0142, 260.015, 260.016 FS. History-New 7-11-00, Amended 7-10-03.