Memorandum
DATE: July 7, 2005
TO: Interested Media
FROM: Alia Faraj, Governor’s Communications Director
RE: Governor’s Executive Order Number 05-139
Please see the attached Executive Order 05-139
regarding Hurricane Dennis.
If you have any questions or need additional
information, please call the Governor’s press office at
(850) 488-5394.
# # #
state of florida
OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
executive order number 05-139
WHEREAS, on July 5, 2005 the National Hurricane
Center advised that Tropical Storm Dennis formed in the
Caribbean Sea; and
WHEREAS, on July 7, 2005, the National Hurricane
Center advised Dennis has become a category two
hurricane with sustained surface winds of approximately
105 miles per hour and has forecast further
strengthening during the next twenty-four hours with the
potential for Hurricane Dennis to become a major
hurricane within the next forty-eight hours; and
WHEREAS, at present, Hurricane Dennis threatens a
number of communities in the State of Florida with
extreme weather conditions that pose an immediate danger
to the lives and property of the residents of those
communities; and
WHEREAS, the threatened communities continue their
efforts to recover from the 2004 hurricane season
leaving them more vulnerable to harm; and
WHEREAS, it is likely that Hurricane Dennis will
strike those communities within a matter of days, so
that the immediate evacuation of persons from those
communities is vital to the safety of the residents; and
WHEREAS, special equipment, personnel and other
resources may be needed in order to ensure the timely
evacuation of persons from the threatened communities
and the safe movement of the evacuees to other
communities in the State acting as destinations for the
evacuees; and
WHEREAS, central coordination and direction of the
use of such resources for the local evacuation measures
are needed to ensure the timely evacuation of the
threatened communities; and
WHEREAS, yet other emergency measures may be needed
to protect the lives and property of the people in the
threatened communities, and the general welfare of the
State of Florida;
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JEB BUSH, as Governor of Florida,
by virtue of the authority vested in me by Article IV,
Section 1(a) of the Florida Constitution and by the
Florida Emergency Management Act, as amended, and all
other applicable laws, do hereby promulgate the
following Executive Order, to take immediate effect:
Section 1. Because of the foregoing conditions, I
hereby find that Hurricane Dennis threatens the State of
Florida with a major disaster. I therefore declare that
a state of emergency exists in the State of Florida, and
that the evacuation of multiple counties in the State
may be necessary because of Hurricane Dennis. I further
find that central authority over the evacuation of these
counties is needed to coordinate these evacuations, that
these evacuations exceed the capability of the local
governments in these communities, and that shelters in
other counties are needed to accommodate the evacuees. I
therefore declare that a state of emergency also exists
in all destination counties that open shelters to
accommodate evacuees from the communities threatened by
Hurricane Dennis.
Section 2. I hereby designate the Director of the
Division of Emergency Management as the State
Coordinating Officer for the duration of this emergency
and as my Authorized Representative. In exercising the
powers delegated by this Executive Order, the State
Coordinating Officer shall confer with the Governor to
the fullest extent practicable. In accordance with
Sections 252.36(1)(a) and 252.36(5), Florida Statutes, I
hereby delegate to the State Coordinating Officer the
following powers, which he shall exercise as needed to
meet this emergency:
A. The authority to activate the Comprehensive
Emergency Management Plan; B. The authority to invoke
and administer the Statewide Mutual Aid Agreement, and
the further authority to coordinate the allocation of
resources under that Agreement so as best to meet this
emergency;
C. The authority to invoke and administer the
Emergency Management Assistance Compact and other
Compacts and Agreements existing between the State of
Florida and other States, and the further authority to
coordinate the allocation of resources from such other
States that are made available to the State of Florida
under such Compacts and Agreements so as best to meet
this emergency;
D. The authority to seek direct assistance from any
and all agencies of the United States Government as may
be needed to meet the emergency;
E. The authority to distribute any and all supplies
stockpiled to meet the emergency; F. In accordance with
Sections 252.36(5)(a) and 252.46(2), Florida Statutes,
the authority to suspend existing statutes, rules,
ordinances, and orders for the duration of this
emergency to the extent that literal compliance with
such statutes, rules, ordinances, and orders may be
inconsistent with the timely performance of disaster
response functions;
G. The authority to direct all state, regional and
local governmental agencies, including law enforcement
agencies, to identify personnel needed from those
agencies to assist in meeting the needs created by this
emergency, and to place all such personnel under the
direct command of the State Coordinating Officer to meet
this emergency;
H. The authority to activate the Continuity of
Operations Plans of all state, regional and local
governmental agencies;
I. The authority to seize and utilize any and all
real or personal property as needed to meet this
emergency, subject always to the duty of the State to
compensate the owner;
J. The authority to order the evacuation of all
persons from any portions of the State threatened by the
disaster, the authority to direct the sequence in which
such evacuations shall be carried out, and the further
authority to regulate the movement of persons and
traffic to, from, or within any location in the State to
the extent needed to cope with this emergency;
K. The authority to reverse the flow of traffic on
any and all highways or portions of highways of the
State Highway System as needed to facilitate the
evacuation of the affected communities;
L. The authority to regulate the return of the
evacuees to their home communities; M. The authority to
designate such Deputy State Coordinating Officers as the
State Coordinating Officer may deem necessary to cope
with the emergency; and
N. The authority to enter such orders as may be
needed to implement any or all of the foregoing powers.
Section 3. I hereby order the Adjutant General to
activate the Florida National Guard for the duration of
this emergency, and I hereby place the National Guard
under the authority of the State Coordinating Officer
for the duration of this emergency.
Section 4. I hereby direct each county in the State
of Florida, at the discretion of the State Coordinating
Officer, to activate its Emergency Operations Center and
its County Emergency Management Plan, as needed to
ensure an immediate state of operational readiness, and
I further direct each county in the State, at the
discretion of the State Coordinating Officer, to open
and activate all shelters to accommodate all evacuees.
Section 5. I hereby direct all state, regional and
local agencies to place any and all available resources
under the authority of the State Coordinating Officer as
needed to meet this emergency.
Section 6. I hereby designate all state, regional and
local governmental facilities including, without
limiting the generality of the foregoing, all public
elementary and secondary schools, all Community
Colleges, and all State Universities, for use as
shelters to ensure the proper reception and care of all
evacuees.
Section 7. I find that the special duties and
responsibilities resting upon some state, regional and
local agencies and other governmental bodies in
responding to the disaster may require them to deviate
from the statutes, rules, ordinances, and orders they
administer, and I hereby give such agencies and other
governmental bodies the authority to take formal action
by emergency rule or order in accordance with Sections
120.54(4) and 252.46(2), Florida Statutes, to the extent
that such actions are needed to cope with this
emergency. Without limiting the generality of the
foregoing, I hereby order the following:
A. I hereby give all agencies of the State, including
the collegial bodies within those agencies, the
authority to suspend the effect of any statute, rule,
ordinance, or order of any state, regional, or local
governmental entity, to the extent needed to procure any
and all necessary supplies, commodities, services,
temporary premises, and other resources, to include,
without limiting the generality of the foregoing, any
and all statutes and rules which affect budgeting,
printing, purchasing, leasing, and the conditions of
employment and the compensation of employees, but any
such statute, rule, ordinance, or order shall be
suspended only to the extent necessary to ensure the
timely performance of disaster response functions as
directed by the State Coordinating Officer.
B. I hereby give all agencies of the State with
employees certified by the American Red Cross as
disaster service volunteers within the meaning of
Section 110.120(3), Florida Statutes, the authority to
release any such employees for such service as requested
by the American Red Cross as needed to meet the
emergency.
C. I hereby direct the Department of Transportation
to waive the collection of tolls and other fees and
charges for the use of the Turnpike and all other
transportation facilities, regardless of whether such
facilities are components of the State Highway System,
to the extent such waiver may be needed to facilitate
the evacuation of the affected communities; to reverse
the flow of traffic on any and all highways or portions
of highways of the State Highway System as may be needed
to facilitate the evacuation of the affected
communities; to close any and all highways or portions
of highways as may be needed for the safe and efficient
transportation of evacuees to those counties the State
Coordinating Officer may designate as destination
counties for evacuees in this emergency; to waive fuel
taxes levied on vehicles registered in other States and
to waive the registration requirements and the hours of
service requirements for such vehicles and any vehicles
transporting emergency equipment, services and supplies;
by special permit to designate alternate size and weight
restrictions for all such vehicles for the duration of
the emergency; and to waive by special permit the
warning signal requirements in the Utility
Accommodations Manual to accommodate public utility
companies from other jurisdictions which render
assistance in restoring vital services, to the extent
such waivers are needed to meet this emergency.
D. At the request of the Director of Emergency
Management of any county, I hereby direct the Department
of Health to take over the operation of all shelters in
that county that are intended for use by those evacuees
with special personal, medical or psychological needs,
and to station licensed medical professional and
paraprofessional personnel at those shelters as needed
to provide appropriate reception and care for such
evacuees.
E. I hereby give all agencies of the State the
authority to allow overnight stays by employees of the
State who travel a distance of less than fifty (50)
miles for the performance of official duties in
connection with this emergency, and the authority to
allow employees of the State reimbursement for the cost
of meals during Class C travel incurred in connection
with this emergency.
F. I hereby give all agencies of the State
responsible for the use of state buildings and
facilities the authority to close such buildings and
facilities in those portions of the State affected by
the emergency, to the extent needed to meet this
emergency.
G. I hereby give all agencies of the State, including
the collegial bodies within those agencies, the
authority to abrogate the time requirements, notice
requirements, and deadlines for final action on
applications for permits, licenses, rates, and other
approvals under any statutes or rules under which such
applications are deemed to be approved unless
disapproved in writing by specified deadlines, and all
such time requirements that have not yet expired as of
the date of this Executive Order are hereby suspended
and tolled to the extent needed to meet this emergency.
Section 8. I hereby find that the demands placed upon
the funds appropriated to the agencies of the State of
Florida and to local agencies may be inadequate to pay
the costs of this disaster. In accordance with Section
252.37(2), Florida Statutes, to the extent that funds
appropriated to the agencies of the State and to local
agencies may be inadequate to defray the costs of this
disaster, I hereby direct the transfer of sufficient
funds from any unappropriated surplus from the Budget
Stabilization Fund.
Section 9. Medical professionals and workers, social
workers, and counselors with good and valid professional
licenses issued by States other than the State of
Florida shall be allowed to render such services in the
State of Florida during this emergency for persons
affected by the disaster, with the condition that such
services be rendered to such persons free of charge, and
with the further condition that such services be
rendered under the auspices of the American Red Cross or
the Florida Department of Health.
Section 10. In accordance with Sections 501.160(2)
and 501.160(3), Florida Statutes, I hereby place all
persons on notice that it is unlawful for any person in
the State of Florida to rent or sell, or offer to rent
or sell at an unconscionable price, any essential
equipment, services, or supplies whose consumption or
use is necessary because of the emergency. Such services
shall include, without limiting the generality of the
foregoing, any rental of hotel, motel, or other
transient lodging facilities, and any rental of storage
facilities. In accordance with Section 501.160(1)(b),
Florida Statutes, any price exceeding the average price
for such essential equipment, services, or supplies for
the thirty (30) days immediately preceding the date of
this Executive Order shall create a presumption that the
price is unconscionable unless such increase is caused
by actual costs incurred in connection with such
essential equipment, services, or supplies, or is caused
by national or international economic trends.
Section 11. All state agencies that enter emergency
final orders or rules, or take other final actions based
on the existence of this emergency shall advise the
State Coordinating Officer in writing of the action
taken as soon as practicable, but in no event later than
the expiration of sixty (60) days from the date of this
Executive Order.
Section 12. This Executive Order shall be deemed to
have taken effect on July 7, 2005, and all actions taken
by the Director of the Division of Emergency Management
with respect to Hurricane Dennis before the issuance of
this Executive Order are hereby ratified. This Executive
Order shall expire sixty (60) days from the date hereof
unless extended.
IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and
caused the Great Seal of the State of Florida to be
affixed, at Tallahassee, the Capitol, this 7th day of
July, 2005.
____________________________________ GOVERNOR ATTEST:
_____________________________ SECRETARY OF STATE
top
2012 State of Florida