1000 Friends Legislative Update - NOT GOOD

 

Dear Thomas, We are more than halfway through the 2024 Florida Legislative Session, which is slated to end on Friday, March 8th. Fewer and fewer bills are making it through the process, yet several concerning bills for community planning in Florida are moving ahead.

SB 1628 / HB 1547 – Local Government Actions A couple of weeks ago, we alerted you to SB 1628 / HB 1547, which hands individual businesses – including foreign corporations – a way to defy the will of local leaders and their constituents by suspending local ordinances. City or county ordinances can be a way for local governments to regulate land use decisions in adherence to their comprehensive plan. The bill increases the burden on local governments to draft business impact statements for additional categories of ordinances, and could create a chilling effect for local oversight of businesses. Concerns have been raised that this unfunded mandate is unconstitutional. SB 1628 was temporarily postponed last week, but is again scheduled for a committee hearing on Tuesday, February 20th.

Contact members of the Senate Fiscal Policy Committee

HB 1221 / SB 1184 - Land Use & Development Regulations

HB 1221 / SB 1184 would redefine terms like “urban sprawl,” and land use “intensity,” making them less recognizable for local governments trying to evaluate development proposals. After all, what can’t be measured, can’t be managed.  The bill would also remove “community goals and vision” from the type of information that needs to be included in comprehensive plans. Equally troubling, it would require certain developments to be approved administratively; effectively eliminating community local land use and zoning designations, and citizen involvement, throughout entire swaths of a community. Since this bill has passed all of its assigned House committees, we continue to ask that you call on your local Representative and Senator to stop the Sprawl Free for All.

Please call your representatives to STOP THE SPRAWL FREE FOR ALL

SB 1624 / HB 1645 - Energy Resources

HB 1645 / SB 1624 would make significant changes to Florida’s energy policy and remove a local community’s authority over where intrusive infrastructure, such as natural gas lines and storage facilities can be located. The House version of this bill has made it through all its committee stops, while its Senate companion is being heard at its second committee next Tuesday, Feb. 20. Please contact HB 1645 co-sponsors Representative Bobby Payne and Representative Webster Barnaby and ask them to remove paragraphs (3) and (4) from Section 1 of HB 1645. Click here to contact Representatives Payne and Barnaby

Please make sure legislators on these committees hear from you that a thoughtful and citizen-engaged local planning process must not be weakened. As Florida's population continues to grow, community planning is critical to protecting our natural environment and quality of life. Thank you, Kim Dinkins Policy & Planning Director