Jacob Ogles
The Senate has rejected a bill that would have made moot a rural boundary in Orange County and similar ones in other jurisdictions.
After drawing bipartisan opposition, the Senate voted 19-18 to kill the zoning bill (SB 1080). Nine Republicans joined with all Democrats in the chamber to stop legislation that had already cleared three committee stops with strong support.
“I just have to stand up for my local people,” said Sen. Jay Collins, a Tampa Republican who voted against the bill.
Sen. Stan McClain, the Ocala Republican sponsoring the legislation, argued the bill was necessary to protect property rights.
As written, the bill would have established state criteria on zoning applications and required time frames for approving local government. McClain had presented the bill as an important way to address an affordable housing crisis in the state, as builders say burdensome regulations have made it impossible to bring cheaper homes online.
He spoke about owners of agricultural properties who are told they cannot develop the land as they see fit.
“Most of the time, people show up who’ve moved in on top of him and say, ‘We don’t think this is a good idea, local government,’” McClain said, “and therefore the local government then says, ‘I’m sorry, Mr. Agricultural guy, even though you for generations have continued to farm a piece of property, now you can’t have that right.’ And they strip him of all his rights.”
But Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith, an Orlando Democrat, said the legislation would undermine local government efforts to manage growth in ways that protect rural communities, often with overwhelming voter support. For example, 73% of Orange County voters in November passed a rural boundary amendment to the county charter. Seminole County has a similar rural boundary that was approved by voters in 2004.
“This is going to be bad for the mission of protecting our agricultural and rural lands,” Smith said. “It silences the voices of community stakeholders and residents who have spoken out against this process and need to have a voice, and it paves the way for unchecked residential sprawl.”
In a strange bedfellows political moment, Smith united with many Republican Senators from rural and agrarian parts of the state. The vote took place after the Senate shot down an amendment on voice vote that had been offered by Sen. Blaise Ingoglia, a Spring Hill Republican, that would have addressed some concerns with rural enclaves. Smith praised the amendment, and Ingoglia joined with Democrats in voting down the legislation.
The bill previously advanced through the Senate Community Affairs Committee on a 6-2 vote, the Senate Judiciary Committee on an 8-3 vote, and the Senate Rules Committee on an 18-4 vote.
