Gov. Ron DeSantis has signed legislation supporters say boosts property rights and helps address Florida's housing shortage, while critics warn it may increase sprawl and weaken local control.
The new law, SB 686, applies to cases where farmland is surrounded by development. It speeds up the application process for landowners to get something called an "agricultural enclave" designation, which opens the door for development similar to what's close by.
“We’ve continued to work with the stakeholders on this and try to come up with a good balance of ensuring that people’s property rights are protected and yet still allow for the public to be involved,” said Sen. Stan McClain, R-Summerfield, a bill sponsor.
The law is mostly focused on single-family housing. In some cases, it can also lead to commercial and industrial use, like when farmland sits next to an interstate and nearby land already has similar projects.
Gil Smart, policy director for Friends of the Everglades, said it’s an erosion of local control.
"It's just going to enable more sprawling development on parcels that you know, you thought were maybe a firewall against that sort of thing,” he said. "At a time when legislators talk a lot about saving farms in Florida, this is another way of eliminating farms.”
The law says whenever a landowner applies for an agricultural enclave designation, a local government must provide a compliance report within 30 days and hold a hearing within another 30 days after that. If a decision is not made in 90 days, the land must receive the designation.
The law takes effect on July 1. The changes would go away in January 2028 if lawmakers don't vote to extend them.
The enclave designation changes would apply only in counties with populations of 1.75 million or less. Most Florida counties fall below that.
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This story was produced by WUSF as part of a statewide journalism initiative funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting
