House Bill 73, part of the Safe Waterways Act, would require clearer public notification when beaches or swimming areas are unsafe.
If passed, the Florida Department of Health and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission would be responsible for placing warning signs at beaches when red tide or bacteria outbreaks are present. They could even close beaches until conditions improve.
Currently, the DOH provides water quality updates online, but there are no physical warnings at the beaches.
Visitors say better signage is needed to protect people who aren’t familiar with Florida’s water conditions.
“I think it'd be a great idea if they put signs up to warn people that there's a red tide in the ocean,” said Francesca Ford, who is visiting from out of town.
Danielle Danko, another visitor, agreed.
"Yeah, I think that is pretty crazy because it's such a concern. Like, if you do swim in it, it can lead to many health problems. So I think it's kind of concerning that they don't make it mandatory just because from people that aren't from around here and out of the area, they might not know what it is like myself," Danko said. "It's definitely important to make people aware before they get in."
Environmental advocates say the bill would make water safety information more accessible.
“When we have impacts to our beaches from red tide, we have the information out there. The problem is it's usually sitting on a website somewhere in a database that isn't readily available. I don't know about you, but when I'm going out to the beach in the morning, I don't necessarily pull up the red tide page before I head out there," said Matt DePaolis, the policy director for the Sanibel Captiva Conservation Foundation.
SCCF is backing the bill, saying it would help protect the public. The bill would also shift responsibility for bacteria testing from the DOH to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
A similar bill passed last year but was ultimately vetoed by the governor.
"I think that'll go a long way to protect people from the ramifications of some of these red tides, harmful algal blooms, bacteria, especially when you have situations where some people aren't as affected by red tide as others. So you might have people out on the beach that aren't even realizing that them and their families are breathing in these harmful toxins," DePaolis said.
Lawmakers brought up the bill this week as the legislative session began.
Count on Gulf Coast News to keep you updated on whether the bill is passed and becomes a law.