(1) Subject to the conditions set forth therein, certification shall constitute the sole license of the state and any agency as to the approval of the location of transmission line corridors and the construction, operation, and maintenance of transmission lines. The certification is valid for the life of the transmission line, if construction on, or condemnation or acquisition of, the right-of-way is commenced within 5 years after the date of certification or such later date as may be authorized by the board.
(2)(a) The certification authorizes the licensee to locate the transmission line corridor and to construct and maintain the transmission lines subject only to the conditions of certification set forth in the certification.
(b) In consideration of the standard for granting variances pursuant to s. 403.201, the certification may include conditions that constitute variances and exemptions from nonprocedural standards or rules of the department or any other agency which were expressly considered during the certification review unless waived by the agency as provided in s. 403.526 and which otherwise would be applicable to the location of the proposed transmission line corridor or the construction, operation, and maintenance of the transmission lines. (3)(a) The certification shall be in lieu of any license, permit, certificate, or similar document required by any state, regional, or local agency under, but not limited to, chapter 125, chapter 161, chapter 163, chapter 166, chapter 186, chapter 253, chapter 258, chapter 298, chapter 373, chapter 376, chapter 379, chapter 380, chapter 381, chapter 403, chapter 404, the Florida Transportation Code, or 33 U.S.C. s. 1341.
(b) On certification, any license, easement, or other interest in state lands, except those the title of which is vested in the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund, shall be issued by the appropriate agency as a ministerial act. The applicant shall seek any necessary interest in state lands the title to which is vested in the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund from the board of trustees before, during, or after the certification proceeding, and certification may be made contingent upon issuance of the appropriate interest in realty. However, the applicant and any party to the certification proceeding may not directly or indirectly raise or relitigate any matter that was or could have been an issue in the certification proceeding in any proceeding before the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund wherein the applicant is seeking a necessary interest in state lands, but the information presented in the certification proceeding shall be available for review by the board of trustees and its staff.
(4) This act does not in any way affect the commission’s ratemaking powers or its exclusive jurisdiction to require transmission lines to be located underground under chapter 366. This act does not in any way affect the right of any local government to charge appropriate fees or require that construction be in compliance with the National Electrical Safety Code, as prescribed by the commission.
(5) A term or condition of certification may not be interpreted to preclude the postcertification exercise by any party of whatever procedural rights it may have under chapter 120, including those related to rulemaking proceedings.
