Florida Senate - 2009                                    SB 2026
       
       
       
       By Senator Altman
       
       
       
       
       24-01830-09                                           20092026__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to state and local government
    3         permitting; providing an extension for the expiration
    4         date of certain construction and operating permits and
    5         development orders; extending the period for
    6         completing required mitigation associated with such
    7         permits or orders; prohibiting additional permitting
    8         standards or criteria from being adopted or enforced
    9         during a specified period; providing for retroactive
   10         application; providing an effective date.
   11  
   12         WHEREAS, the current recession has drastically affected the
   13  economy, particularly the banking, real estate, and construction
   14  industries, has resulted in an extreme tightening of lending
   15  standards for real estate borrowers, and has reduced access to
   16  the capital markets, causing a severe decline in those
   17  industries in this state, and
   18         WHEREAS, the decline in demand for new construction,
   19  coupled with the tightening of the credit markets, has delayed
   20  the start of many previously approved projects that have a
   21  limited time within which to begin construction prior to the
   22  expiration of permits and other approvals, and
   23         WHEREAS, obtaining local and state planning and zoning
   24  approvals is time-consuming and expensive for the applicants and
   25  the respective governmental agencies, and if such approvals
   26  expire, they may be impossible to renew, which would exacerbate
   27  the losses of these industries and prolong any economic recovery
   28  in this state, and
   29         WHEREAS, property owners, builders, and developers are
   30  experiencing severe erosion of collateral and depreciation of
   31  assets as government permits and approvals for projects expire,
   32  and
   33         WHEREAS, the extension of time within which such permits
   34  and approvals must be acted upon is essential in order to
   35  maintain the value of the collateral and the solvency of
   36  financial institutions, builders, and developers, and
   37         WHEREAS, the extension of the term of such permits and
   38  approvals is necessary to prevent the abandonment of approved
   39  projects due to the present unfavorable economic conditions and
   40  will prevent a waste of public and private resources and
   41  unnecessary regulatory activity during a period when the economy
   42  is depressed, and will create a business climate that is
   43  conducive to accelerating the state’s economic recovery, NOW,
   44  THEREFORE,
   45  
   46  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   47  
   48         Section 1. (1) Any construction or operating permit,
   49  development order, building permit, or other land use
   50  application that has been approved by a state or local
   51  governmental agency pursuant to chapter 161, chapter 163,
   52  chapter 253, chapter 373, chapter 378, chapter 379, chapter 380,
   53  chapter 381, chapter 403, or chapter 553, Florida Statutes, or
   54  pursuant to a local ordinance, and that has an expiration date
   55  from October 1, 2008, through October 1, 2010, is extended and
   56  renewed for a period of 2 years following its date of
   57  expiration.
   58         (2) The 2-year extension also applies to the phase,
   59  commencement, and buildout date for any development order or
   60  local land use approval, including a certificate of concurrency
   61  or developer agreement. The completion date for any required
   62  mitigation associated with any phase of construction is
   63  similarly extended so that it takes place within the phase
   64  originally intended.
   65         (3) Additional or more stringent permitting standards,
   66  regulations, or criteria related to construction, development,
   67  building, or other land use activity may not be adopted or
   68  enforced by any governmental entity pursuant to chapter 161,
   69  chapter 163, chapter 253, chapter 373, chapter 378, chapter 379,
   70  chapter 380, chapter 381, chapter 403, or chapter 553, Florida
   71  Statutes, or pursuant to any local ordinance from May 1, 2009,
   72  through May 1, 2011, without authorization by the Legislature.
   73         Section 2. This act shall take upon becoming a law, and
   74  applies retroactively to October 1, 2008.