The Department of Environmental Resources Management (DERM) is an agency governed by The Public Records Act Chapter 119, Florida Statutes.  Therefore, the records kept by DERM are open for public inspection and copying.  The DERM Records Management Section is the central storage and processing area for department records, and assists customers in locating, viewing and copying those records.  Records for various DERM programs can include, but not be limited to inspection reports, permit records, enforcement actions, contamination records, environmental monitoring records, contract records, and project information.  The following is a list of the DERM Programs.

Viewing DERM Public Records

You can view most DERM Public Records at the DERM main office located at the Overtown Transit Village-North 701 NW 1st Court , Miami, Fl 33136 and selected DERM Public Records are available online.

Online
Selected DERM records are available for viewing online.  The online information consists of those records currently stored in DERM's electronic records system.  This series of records contains primarily the more recent information for permitting and regulatory programs concerning air pollution, industrial waste, solid waste, storage tanks, and wastewater.  Access the online DERM records at derm.miamidade.gov.

In the Office
If you want to request a specific record, file or a specific type of records, you can contact the Records Management Section of DERM.  In order to locate a record, you will need to provide one or more of the following:  Facility or location name, program type, street address, folio number, DERM or DEP permit number, file number, or facility number.   Paper copies of records will be provided at $.15 cents per page and $.20 cents per double-sided page.  Copies of electronic records can be provided on compact disc at a minimal cost.

If you wish to review a record at the DERM office, then scheduling an appointment is suggested, but not required.  If you wish to review a record without an appointment, there may be a wait depending on the availability of the record and the number of customers requesting documents at the time.  Scheduling an appointment will allow staff adequate time to research and retrieve the records for your request and have them available for you at your scheduled time.  

If you wish to initiate a broad public records request for a department-wide search of records for a location, business, project, or program, contact the Enforcement Section of DERM. Staff from the Enforcement Section will coordinate these requests with the various Sections within the Department and gather all information identified by the Sections.  For these requests, based on the department -wide search conducted, the scope of the request or volume of the records requested, Enforcement staff will schedule an appointment for you to come in to review all assembled records.  Applicable fees may be charged pursuant to the provisions of Chapter 119 F.S.

Another option for obtaining DERM information is to request an Environmental Status Review (ESR).   When an ESR is requested for a specific property, the Enforcement Section of DERM will coordinate and compile all DERM environmental information on said property from the individual sections in the Department.  A DERM representative will also conduct an environmental site inspection of the property.   DERM will then send a letter providing you with the information obtained from all Sections of the Department along with the results of the on-site inspection.   This process takes approximately three to four weeks and a charge of $850 per folio is applied.  For further information please contact the DERM Enforcement Section.   You can also download and fill out an Environmental Status Review (ESR) form.  Then, submit it with the appropriate payment to the Enforcement Section of DERM.     

Enforcement Section Contact Information