SB 360 Declared Unconstitutional

Florida State Sen. Mike Bennett was the sponsor of SB 360. The bill repealed the Growth Management Act of 1985. Bennett and Ron Reagan runs the the PAC Citizens For Housing & Urban Growth. The PAC receives contributions from construction and developers. The PAC uses the money to donate to Republican candidates.

Bennett got bad news: Tallahassee Circuit Judge Charles Francis overturned SB 360 unconstitutional. SB 360 allowed developers to be exempt from building or paying for construction of new roads. As policy, it is assinine for groth management and transportation. The taxpayer would be left paying for new roads.

The decision by Tallahassee Circuit Judge Charles Francis says the law is an "unfunded mandate" that would force cities and counties to spend at least $3.7 million to rewrite their land-use plans.

"The court finds this amount is not 'fiscally insignificant,' " Francis wrote in his ruling, noting that 264 communities would have to pay at least $15,000 to change their plans.

From SB 360.

providing legislative findings relating to transportation concurrency exception areas; providing for the applicability of transportation concurrency exception areas; deleting certain requirements for transportation concurrency exception areas; providing that the designation of a transportation concurrency exception area does not limit a local government’s home rule power to adopt ordinances or impose fees and does not affect any contract or agreement entered into or development order rendered before such designation;

The bill also revises requirements for adoption of impact fees." That translates into developers are off-the-hook from paying local governments. SB 360 is a horrible piece of legislation. Judge Francis did the right thing by declaring it unconstitutional.