Latest news with #SB250
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Florida lawmakers must take local land-use change limit off legislative agenda
In the last scheduled days of their tumultuous 2025 session, Florida legislators passed Senate Bill 180 'to bolster hurricane relief and recovery and enhance response efforts in Florida,' according to a Senate press release trumpeting the legislation. But among some healthy policy prescriptions, SB 180 includes a poison pill conspicuously missing from that press release: a provision that would prevent any local government in Florida from adopting any amendment that could be deemed more 'restrictive or burdensome' to its comprehensive plan — its blueprint for orderly and sustainable growth — along with its land development regulations (LDRs) and procedures. This is a sweeping, undefined provision that could rule out any changes to local growth guidelines in Florida unless developers agree and sponsor the change. And under the bill, this provision would apply retroactively from Aug. 1, 2024, through Oct. 1, 2027. Which means that if SB 180 becomes law without any amendments, much if not most local land-use planning in Florida will be suspended for three years. When state lawmakers passed Florida's Community Planning Act in 2011, their justification for eliminating the state's land planning oversight agency, the Department of Community Affairs, was that they wanted to empower local leaders to make planning decisions. But with SB 180, they have severely curtailed that power. Ironically for a bill that purports to promote emergency planning and disaster recovery, this provision could prevent local governments from making the kinds of changes to their comp plans and LDRs that would make their communities more resilient to future storms. A comp plan change that would steer future development away from storm-vulnerable areas, for example, would be considered more restrictive and burdensome. Ditto, updated regulations on stormwater management to prevent flooding. Even periodic, state-required updates to comprehensive plans could be called into question. Protest Florida state parks: USA Today Network-Florida Opinion campaign to preserve and protect our state parks These scenarios are not hypothetical. In 2023, the Legislature passed SB 250, a law with a similar though narrower three-year ban on more restrictive or burdensome changes to comp plans and LDRs for 11 counties that had been in the path of Hurricane Ian. This month, Manatee County commissioners were told by the state Department of Commerce that they would be violating that 2023 law if they voted to restore the county's strong wetland protections in its comprehensive plan. As reported by the Bradenton Herald, an incredulous Commissioner Bob McCann said, 'SB 250 was for hurricane disaster relief. How can you say getting rid of wetlands … has anything to do with disaster relief?' It is hard to imagine any reasonable limit on growth and development through a comp plan amendment or LDR change that would not be considered restrictive or burdensome unless a developer proposed it. And if developers object to limits, the bill creates grounds for them to sue. Communities at that point are given two choices under the bill: either withdraw their amendment to a plan or regulation, or go to court, and risk paying the legal costs of the developer who sued them. We'll give legislators the benefit of the doubt, and assume they didn't realize the deeply damaging impact of this provision when they voted for the bill. After all, the final version is 48 pages, with nearly 1,400 lines of text. And it was amended no less than 10 times between its introduction and final passage, likely making its details a mystery to many of the members who voted to approve it. This is but one example of the deeply flawed process that repeatedly leads to laws laced with unintended consequences. Legislative budget battle: Florida lawmakers paralyzed over tax breaks they can't afford to give Legislative leaders are currently deadlocked over tax cuts and other budget-related issues. SB 180 passed with only one negative vote each in the Senate and House. Though the session has been extended, the agenda is currently limited to budget-related items and the Senate president's Rural Renaissance bill. But with a two-thirds majority in both houses, the presiding officers could expand the agenda to address the existential threat to local land-use planning in Florida, while preserving the good elements in SB 180. We urge them to do so, not only for the fate of local land-use planning in Florida, but for the millions of Floridians who deserve a meaningful say in the future of their communities. Paul Owens is the president of 1000 Friends of Florida, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization dedicated to planning for fiscally and environmentally sustainable communities. This opinion piece was distributed by The Invading Sea website. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Florida set to disrupt orderly, sustainable local growth | Opinion
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Manatee County wetland protections on hold after response from state
The Brief Four state agencies are questioning the legality of efforts to restore wetland buffers in Manatee County. County Commissioners are not holding back in their feelings about this. "This is ridiculous. This is weaponizing unelected bureaucrats. Nothing we are doing is wrong. We are just putting back something that was there," said Commissioner George Kruse. BRADENTON, Fla. - It was supposed to be a final vote to restore wetland buffers in Manatee County. But four state agencies are now questioning the legality of those efforts, calling them restrictive and burdensome. The backstory Manatee County Commissioners were trying to reinstate extra protections that a previous board removed two years ago. From the commissioners to environmentalists, each are questioning the pushback and who it really benefits. Manatee County Commissioners did not hold their words back. "This is ridiculous. This is weaponizing unelected bureaucrats. Nothing we are doing is wrong. We are just putting back something that was there," said Commissioner George Kruse. As staff read letters from Southwest Florida Water Management District, Florida Department of Environmental Protection, Florida Department of Commerce and the Florida Department of Transportation, each said restoring wetland buffers of 30 to 50 feet and requiring developers to maintain the natural barriers would be more burdensome or restrictive. "This is bat sh** crazy. I don't think it's legal," said Commissioner Dr. Bob McCann. Dig deeper The agencies had no complaints, until a few hours before a final vote by commissioners. They cited a law passed in 2023. "SB250 was for hurricane disaster relief. How can it say protecting wetlands is more restrictive? How does it have anything to do with disaster relief?" said McCann. That's what Suncoast Waterkeeper also questions. What they're saying "Why have another billion-dollar storm if we can protect ourselves with our comprehensive plan language that really protects the ecology and ecosystems that are there to buffer the storm," said Abbey Tyrna, executive director of Suncoast Waterkeeper. Senate Bill 250 expires in October of 2026. Tyrna now has concerns about Senate Bill 180. "There's two sections within that bill that puts a moratorium on any a blockage on any moratorium on building, any increased protections in a comprehensive plan. You aren't allowed to do that until 2027. Manatee County won't be able to protect wetlands until 2027," said Tyrna. The bill passed both the House and Senate. It's designed to help residents with the aftermath of a disaster, but there are concerns that a section of the bill takes away local power. "My colleagues and all are wondering who does this benefit? Why was this language snuck in on the 11th hour of the last day of session? The bill is otherwise good. That bill alone would benefit all of Floridians, but this language doesn't benefit anybody," said Tyrna. What's next As for Manatee County, if commissioners don't hear back from the state, they said they'll handle developers on a case-by-case basis. "If you come in front of us and say you want 15-20-foot buffers, you will get denied because that's not what this board wants," said Commissioner Kruse. Representative Fiona McFarland helped sponsor the House companion bill of Senate Bill 180 said its main purpose is to help property owners rebuild after a storm, not restrict them. She said the bill also makes huge investments to help local governments plan and prepare for future emergencies. The Source FOX 13 reporter Kimberly Kuison gathered the information for this report. STAY CONNECTED WITH FOX 13 TAMPA: Download the FOX Local app for your smart TV Download FOX Local mobile app: Apple | Android Download the FOX 13 News app for breaking news alerts, latest headlines Download the SkyTower Radar app Sign up for FOX 13's daily newsletter Follow FOX 13 on YouTube
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Kansas Democrat attempts to insert narrow medical marijuana legalization into treatment bill
Sen. Cindy Holscher, an Overland Park Democrat on Dec. 2, 2024. (Sherman Smith/Kansas Reflector) TOPEKA — A Senate Democrat unsuccessfully attempted to insert 'medicinal cannabis' among treatments allowed under a bill meant to broaden Kansans' access to experimental drugs. Democratic Sen. Cindy Holscher, who introduced Wednesday the amendment that would have legalized medicinal cannabis for terminally ill patients, later emphasized her intention was not to create a public medical marijuana program. 'I think most of you realize I would not bring something of that magnitude to an important bill like SB 250,' said Holscher, of Overland Park, Wednesday evening. 'That amendment, rather, was to mirror what was approved by President Trump in the Right to Try Act, which is a very defined, narrow scope only for terminally ill patients.' Senate Bill 250, introduced and carried on the Senate floor by Eudora Republican Sen. Beverly Gossage, would create the Right to Try for Individualized Investigative Treatments Act. Investigational treatments can also be referred to as experimental drugs, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The bill would permit people who are unable to find relief from rare, life-threatening or debilitating conditions to access individualized, genetics-based medical treatment. The drug trial evaluation system in the U.S. is designed to evaluate medications meant to help larger populations leaving behind drugs that can be individually tailored to a patient's unique genetic makeup, Gossage said. 'Individualized treatments are being pioneered in the U.S. and abroad, but often patients in the U.S. travel thousands of miles,' she said. The bill passed the Senate and is awaiting approval in the House. Holscher supported the bill as a whole but voiced concerns. 'I don't want to give people false hope,' she said, 'yet I certainly would not stand in the way of a parent or individual trying to get medical help for a family member.' Her amendment added medicinal cannabis to the list of treatments allowed under the definition of individualized investigative treatment. Cannabis 'has been found to have proven benefits for those with life-threatening or debilitating diseases,' Holscher said. During floor debate on the amendment, Sen. Mike Thompson, a Shawnee Republican who sat on the two-day 2024 interim committee that evaluated the possibility of medical marijuana in Kansas, said adding legislation opens a door to unintended consequences. 'We've examined medical cannabis for quite some time,' Thompson said, 'and the term medical cannabis is nothing but a marketing ploy.' Medical marijuana is legal in 39 states and Washington, D.C., and recreational use is legal in 24 states and Washington, D.C. Recreational use of marijuana is legal in 24 states and the District of Columbia. Kansas and Idaho are the only states without any form of marijuana legalization. In 2023, of the four proposed bills in Kansas related to medical marijuana, one received a hearing and died in committee. In 2024, two were introduced and both died in committee. Gossage admonished Holscher's amendment after nine Democrats voted in favor and all 31 Republicans voted against it. 'I just think it's tragic that we would turn a discussion on a right to try for individualized treatment for patients with ultra-rare, life-threatening, debilitating diseases that could be life-saving to a debate on so-called medical marijuana,' she said. 'That should be a completely separate bill.'
Yahoo
13-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Could Utah's inland ports help provide low-income housing? What a new bill would do
Help for low-income Utahns seeking to become homeowners near Utah Inland Port Authority project areas could be coming under a bill advanced by state lawmakers Wednesday. State law already permits the use of up to 10% of the general differential revenue collected through inland port developments to be used to pay for affordable housing in or near one of the dozen project areas throughout Utah, including 16,000 acres in the northwest quadrant of Salt Lake County. But SB250, sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Kirk Cullimore, R-Draper, gets more specific, calling for the revenue to be used to 'assist low-income individuals and families who would qualify for income targeted housing to achieve homeownership, or retain homeownership, within a 15-mile radius of the project area.' Cullimore told the Deseret News the new language 'expands this to more home ownership,' as opposed to helping Utahns get into apartments or other rental properties. He said it's part of the Utah Legislature's efforts this session to add more 'little tools, here and there' to address the state's housing needs. 'We need all types of products in the housing market. But we've actually seen a pretty big proliferation of rental housing,' the majority leader said. 'Our rents are still high, but they've actually stabilized. But home ownership has not stabilized. So I think the focus will be on more, what incentives can we do for attainable type home ownership housing.' His bill passed unanimously out of the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee and now heads to the full Senate. The committee's chairman, Sen. Dan McCay, R-Riverton, asked Cullimore about limiting the housing that could be funded to within a 15-mile radius of an inland port project area. 'For the inland port, it's all permissive,' Cullimore answered, adding that 'because oftentimes an inland port area that might be subject to tax increment financing may or may not be appropriate for housing, it just gave them a little bit more parameters to do housing should they choose to do it.' He said the option to use the revenues for housing could be transferred to a local housing authority or other nonprofit. McCay also wanted to know if the inland port authority could zone property to develop low-income housing. When he was told that's not the case, McCay said, 'that's good to know. I just wasn't sure how we were expanding the scope of the inland port.' Utah Inland Port Authority Executive Director Ben Hart told the Deseret News that housing 'is in the conversation in every project area.' Hart said the inland port authority did not seek the change in the law. Nor has it taken a position on the bill, although Hart noted he doesn't 'see any red flags. If it was compulsory and we were being forced to do something, we would probably take a little stronger stand one way or the other.' Some entities that share in the inland port project revenues are already contributing funds to local housing authorities, he said. As for housing fits into the inland port authority's mission, Hart said that's left 'up to the collaborative processes for cities to work through. Obviously, we're primarily industrially oriented, so trying to fit and co-locate housing nearby can be a little bit difficult. But several of our project areas are working to include housing.' The inland port authority 'may not necessarily provide financial support for those efforts but it's certainly something that we are pro, and for. Because housing and workforce go together. Workforce is the lifeblood of the economy and so having well-planned communities really makes sense,' he said, expressing interest in supporting 'economic areas of strength wherever we can. And that definitely includes housing.' Still, how money is used in the project areas is often 'predetermined. So it's hard for us to go back and say we're going to pry 10% loose from other projects,' Hart said. 'We're already very focused on industrial properties. We already are focused on logistics projects.'
