The legislature passed a bill (S.B. 360) that gives some extra money for infrastructure, but it’s not enough to cover all the needs. The bill was being changed and negotiated up until the last minute, so no one really knows what’s in it. It’s likely that there will be another bill in 2006 to fix any mistakes. The bill provides $1.5 billion for infrastructure, but most of it is for state and regional roads, and there’s no dedicated funding for future needs. Local governments didn’t get any direct funding, and they also didn’t get any more flexibility with existing funding. The Department of Community Affairs got $3 million to help local governments and school boards with these changes. The bill also made some big changes to rules for local governments and how they plan for growth. S.B. 360 now requires that any plans for building and improving public facilities and services be financially feasible. This means that all projects must have funding in place, and if a project requires a public vote to get funding, alternative ways to pay for it must also be identified. The plan also needs to make sure that public services and facilities can meet the needs of the community. The update of the plan must now be done through a comprehensive plan amendment, and local governments can’t change the timing of when projects will be built without making a plan amendment. In addition, the update of the plan will now dictate when local governments can make changes to their future land use map. The new requirements also make it easier for people to challenge the plan if they think it’s not consistent with the law.
S.B. 360 also encourages communities to come up with a vision for how they want to grow, and to designate areas for future development. It also suggests using a special accounting model to figure out if new development is a good idea. Under new law S.B. 360, local governments can make changes to their plans without needing approval from the state. This includes changes to areas for development and exemptions from certain review processes. The law also exempts certain developments from review if they meet certain criteria, such as being in designated urban or rural areas. Additionally, the law addresses the issue of overcrowded schools by allowing local governments to take action to address it. In the 90s, the government made some new laws about schools and buildings. Palm Beach County was the only one that could use the new rules at first. In 2002, the government said that the county, school board, and most local governments had to make agreements about sharing information and planning for schools. The new rules also say that local governments have to make plans to fix any problems with schools because of new buildings. If a developer promises to help fix the problem, then the local government can’t stop them from building. And any help the developer gives can reduce the money they have to pay for school impacts. One issue is about how school boards can spend money given to them for school improvements. The new law requires that the money be used for schools affected by new developments. It also changes the rules for when new schools need to be built. If the school rules are not followed, then the government can’t approve more houses in that area. S.B. 360 requires new developments to have enough water to serve them when they are ready to be used. The comprehensive plan must include a plan for building water facilities over the next 10 years. Local governments also have to have a way to figure out how much developers should pay to help with road impacts, and they can’t stop a development just because they don’t have enough money for all the road improvements. The transportation concurrency policy originally led to people moving away from downtown areas and into suburban areas with less traffic. To address this, the DCA implemented an anti-sprawl policy and made exceptions to the policy for urban areas. However, as these exceptions were used too frequently, the DCA made the process for approval more strict. S.B. 360 now requires all existing exception areas to meet these new requirements by a certain date and also requires evaluation of their impact on state roads. The law also sets time limits for when transportation facilities must be in place after a new development is built. Local governments now have to follow FDOT’s levels of service for state-funded roads and implement a concurrency management system. They are also encouraged to use the same methods for measuring roadway impacts. A new law called S.B. 360 has been passed to make changes to planning in rural areas. It requires designated rural areas to have plans for mixed use development and affordable housing, as well as protection for listed species. The law also creates a system for creating and using “stewardship credits” to achieve long-term goals for the area. S.B. 360 also changes the requirements for local comprehensive plans and creates task forces to study and improve different aspects of planning in Florida. Basically, local governments have a lot of new things to do because of the changes in the law. They have to plan for things like transportation, schools, and water supply, and they have deadlines to meet for these plans. There are also some new task forces and studies that might lead to more changes in the future. So, local governments have to keep an eye on whatâs happening and be ready for more changes. The changes in the bill are meant to protect public facilities and services, but it’s not clear how it will affect things yet. Some people are worried that it might make it harder to build affordable housing and improve existing schools. The bill also tightens rules for building in certain areas, which could encourage more suburban development instead of focusing on downtown areas. But there are some exceptions that might encourage development in urban areas. Overall, it’s not clear what the impact of the bill will be just yet. The Senate proposed a plan to spend $4.5 billion in urban areas. An additional $3.35 million is also set aside for help. The governor vetoed some of this money. The bill also includes requirements for determining financial feasibility and exemptions for certain developments. It also creates a commission for long-term growth planning and a task force for impact fees. Some deadlines for implementation have been set, and workshops and incentives are being planned. Susan L. Trevarthen and Chad Friedman are lawyers who help local governments with laws about land use and zoning. They work for a law firm in Ft. Lauderdale. This article is written on behalf of a section that focuses on city, county, and local government law. They aim to teach their members about serving the public and improving the justice system.
Source: https://www.floridabar.org/the-florida-bar-journal/senate-bill-360-growth-management-reform-arrives-and-it-is-all-about-infrastructure/
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