The 2023 Version of Local Preemption Bills
Here We Go Again
In 2022, Senate Bill 620 was the big bear looming over local governments as it took away the ability of local municipalities to pass ordinances in the best interests of ALL local residents. This bill cast a blanket view that all counties and local governments in the State of Florida have the same needs.
Governor DeSantis vetoed this bill in June of 2022 because of its “broad and ambiguous” nature; something raised by many opponents as it made its way through the Legislature last year.
Governor DeSantis SB 620 Veto Letter
The Governor did suggest that if the bill were fine-tuned and included targeted preemption, when local governments undermined State policy or the rights of Floridians, he would be in favor
And that brings us to the 2023 Legislative session and Senate Bill 170,
Local Ordinances; Authorizing courts to assess and award
reasonable attorney fees and costs and damages in certain civil actions filed
against local governments; requiring a board of county commissioners to prepare or cause to be prepared a business impact estimate before the enactment of a proposed ordinance; requiring a county to suspend enforcement of an ordinance that is the subject of a certain legal action if certain conditions are met; requiring a governing body of a municipality to prepare or cause to be prepared a business impact estimate before the enactment of a proposed ordinance, etc.
Residents of Florida should be paying attention to this bill and what it will cost local governments. The bill mandates a business impact statement to be filed before any ordinance can be adopted by a county or city.
Here in St. Johns County, that means the City of St. Augustine, City of St. Augustine Beach, and the County would need staff to review and prepare that business impact statement before every ordinance they consider. Our local governments are already stretched to meet current needs. This bill would add labor costs that then flow back to taxpayers as the budget would need to be increased to accommodate the additional workload. Even the Legislative Analysis says the financial impact is “indeterminate.”
What’s good for the goose is good for the gander
A full cost analysis and business impact analysis should be performed on this bill before it is passed!
Cause and Effect
If SB 170 is passed, one individual or business plaintiff could object to a local ordinance and then sue the local municipality, thus stopping the ordinance completely. If the plaintiff prevails, the attorney fees,
costs and damages would be borne by the local government; that means us taxpayers would foot the bill.
How might that play out? Let’s consider a local ordinance now being reviewed by St. Johns County. This local ordinance would raise the minimum cost of Affordable Workforce Housing from $240,000 to $260,000. What if a local business owner decided that was negatively impacting his business and ability to hire workers? He could sue the county and stop the ordinance in its tracks while it makes its way through the courts.
St. Johns County is not like Hillsborough County or Broward County or even Duval County. Local governments need to be able to pass local ordinances that are suited to local resident’s needs.
The next stop for this bill is the Senate Rules Committee. I expect it will sail through there just as SB 620 did in 2022. And this year, with the revisions based on feedback from Governor DeSantis in 2022, it is more likely to be signed.
If you are concerned about this local preemption bill, you can:
Read more about it here:
Contact our St. Johns County Legislators Here:
- Representative Cyndi Stevenson – cyndi.stevenson@myfloridahouse.gov
- Representative Paul Renner – paul.renner@myfloridahouse.gov
- Representative Bobby Payne – bobby.payne@myfloridahouse.gov
- Senator Travis Hutson – hutson.travis.web@flsenate.gov
Contact the Rules Committee at the email addresses in this link:
Beth Tate 