The first two weeks of the 2011 Legislative Session drew to a close today. While teacher merit pay bills and initial budget discussions were of particular focus, proposals related to comprehensive planning were also given legislative attention. There are at least a dozen bills that deal with growth management issues filed to date. The following paragraphs summarize the bills that have had some activity during this period. (To see a summary of all the bills that APA Florida is following, click on the bill tracking report in the section above.)
Arguments were made before the Florida Supreme Court yesterday, March 3rd.
Arguments were made before the Florida Supreme Court yesterday, March 3r
Growth Management:
Senator Bennett (R-District 21) filed three bills intended to resolve issues related to the constitutionality of SB 360. SB 174 basically reenacts the growth management provisions and SB 176 reenacts the affordable housing provisions. Both bills have been placed on the Senate calendar on second reading. Companion bills HB 7001 and HB 7003 were passed by the House on March 16, 2011.
The House Community and Military Affairs Subcommittee moved favorably its growth management overhaul bill yesterday. Among its many significant changes to Chapter 163, the bill would do the following:
- repeal 9J-5 but include some of its provisions in the bill language
- require that, at a minimum, local governments plan for at least the medium BEBR projections and need is not an issue
- expand the alternative plan review process to cover most plan amendments. State agencies can comment but only relative to state resources/facilities under their jurisdiction
. - removes consistency with the state comprehensive plan as a consideration for compliance review
- simplifies the EAR process
- removes the state mandate for concurrency for transportation, schools, parks & recreation, but includes guidance for local governments who choose to do them as an option
- removes financial feasibility requirements ,
- removes the pilot project status from the optional sector planning process, and makes changes to both it and the rural land stewardship area process
- eliminates the certified planning process and provisions related to the Century Commission
This is a significant bill which can be reviewed by clicking here and then clicking on Meeting Packets to get to the Revosed Meeting Packet for the March 17th meeting.
The Senate Budget Subcommittee on Transportation, Tourism, and Economic Development Appropriations outlined proposed cuts and funding shifts to comply with budget allocations during its meeting on March 11th. To view this bill, click here and then click on the Meeting Packet for the March 11 Meeting. This proposal would create a new agency called Jobs Florida, headed by a commissioner reporting directly to the Governor. Functions from the Agency for Workforce Innovation, the Office of Tourism, Trade and Economic Development and the Department of Community Affairs (DCA) would be transferred to Jobs Florida. Specifically the Florida Housing Finance Corporation, the Division of Housing and Community Development and the Division of Community Planning would be transferred from DCA. The Florida Communities Trust program and the Stan Mayfield Working Waterfronts program would be transferred to the Department of Environmental Protection. The Division of Emergency Management would be transferred to the Governor’s Office.
The proposal also contains changes to the growth management process relative to the EAR process, optional sector planning, and the alternative state review process. The latter two series of changes are similar to those proposed in the House bill discussed above.
SB 1512 (Senator Bennett, R- District 21) deals with a number of issues. It adds definitions of mobility plan and transit-oriented development to Chapter 163.3164, F.S. It also amends the definition of financial feasibility to include committed or planned funding sources of a local government for years 4-10 of a 10 year capital improvement schedule. The bill would require that amendments to address military base compatibility to be submitted by June 30, 2011.
The bill also changes the use of population with respect to future growth, stating that “The amount of land required to accommodate anticipated growth may not be limited solely by the projected population. At a minimum, the future land use plan must provide at least the amount of land needed for each land use category in order to accommodate anticipated growth using medium population projections for a 25-year planning period from the Bureau of Economic and Business Research (BEBR) of the University of Florida and incorporating a minimum 25 percent market factor based upon the total population of the jurisdiction…” It would require that population projections be reconciled on a county basis, and that counties and the municipalities within enter into an allocation agreement by December 1, 2011.
The bill also changes the transportation backlog concept to a transportation deficiency concept which includes both existing deficiencies and deficiencies projected to occur with 10 years. It changes the formula for calculating transportation proportionate share for DRIS, making it a two step process where any road projected to be deficient without any DRI project traffic is eliminated from the calculation. It would require each local government to adopt by ordinance a methodology for assessing proportionate fair-share mitigation options by December 1, 2011. The bill also exempts transit –oriented developments from being reviewed for transportation impacts in the DRI process.
This bill is on the agenda of the Senate Community Affairs Committee (the first of four committes of reference) on March 21st.
Regional Planning:
Senator Diaz de la Portilla (R-District 36) filed SB 1910 which would repeal the provisions relating to the Florida Regional Council Act. This bill was filed on March 7th and has not been referred to any committees yet.
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Impact Fees:
SB 410 (Senator Bennett, R-District 21) reenacts a provision relating to the burden of proof in an action challenging an impact fee. In any action challenging an impact fee, the government would have the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence that the imposition or amount of the fee meets the requirements of state legal precedent or the bill. A court may not use a deferential standard. This bill was placed on the Senate Calendar on Second Reading on March 16th.
Environmental Permitting:
CS/HB 991 (Representative Patronis, R-District 6) makes a number of changes to permit applications and procedures. However it also proposes several changes related to the comprehensive planning process:
- defines the construction and operation of a biofuel processing facility or a renewable energy generating facility, as defined in s. 366.91(2)(d), and the cultivation and production of bioenergy, as defined pursuant to s. 163.3177, shall be considered by a local government to be a valid industrial, agricultural, and silvicultural use permitted within those land use categories in the local comprehensive land use plan.
- prohibits a local government from requiring, as a condition of approval for a development permit, that an applicant obtain a permit or approval from any other state or federal agency.
- amends Section 373.441 to requires a county having a population of 75,000 or more or a municipality with local pollution control programs serving populations of more than 50,000 must apply for delegation of state environmental resource permitting on or before June 1, 2012.
- amends Section 380.06(24) to exempt mines and mine expansions from the DRI process.
- amends Section 380.0657 to make any inland multimodal facility, receiving or sending cargo to or from Florida ports, eligible for the expedited permitting process for economic development projects
-amends Section 163.3180 to create a limited exemption from Strategic Intermodal System adopted level-or-service standards for new or redevelopment projects that are inland multimodal facilities receiving or sending cargo for distribution
This bill was moved favorably by the House Agriculture and Natural Resources Subcommittee on March 15th. It has four more committees of reference.
Century Commission:
SB 232 (Senator Bennett, R- District 21) would revise the makeup of the Century Commission and task it with creating a 10 year, 25-year and 50-year strategic action plan which focuses on essential state interests, accommodates the projections for an increase in population while maintaining the state’s natural, historical, cultural, and manmade life qualities; and is developed through a coordinated, integrated, and comprehensive effort across agencies, local governments, and nongovernmental stakeholders. The plan would be due to Governor and Legislature by November 15, 2012. This bill was moved favorably by the Senate Community Affairs Committee and is now in the Senate Government and Oversight Accountability Committee.
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