TALLAHASSEE – The fate of the Florida Legislature’s latest attempt to reserve the regulation of vacation rentals to the state lies in the hands of Gov. Ron DeSantis.
On June 17, DeSantis received the vacation rental preemption bill proposed by the Florida Legislature in the form of Senate Bill 280 and its matching House bill.
The proposed legislation seeks to assign vacation rental regulation and vacation rental advertising regulation to the state and take those regulatory rights away from local city and county governments.
As of June 23, DeSantis had not yet signed the bill into law or vetoed it. He also has the option to allow the bill to become a new state law without his signature.
As part of its ongoing efforts to maintain the right to regulate short-term vacation rentals and advertising at the local level, the city of Anna Maria immediately initiated an opposition campaign directed at the governor.
The campaign uses the city-owned Home Rule Florida website which has more than 2,000 subscribers statewide. On June 17, Home Rule Florida issued an email to subscribers encouraging them to express their opposition to the proposed legislation by emailing DeSantis or calling his office.
The June 17 Home Rule Florida email said, “Vacation rental bill SB 280 is on the governor’s desk. Now is the time to let Gov. DeSantis know how this bill can destroy our delicate coastal communities. Ask him to veto SB 280.”
The email also said, “Lend your voice in asking our governor to carefully consider the implications of this bill and not try to fix something that’s not broken. The elimination of occupancy limitations can cripple the infrastructure of some of our coastal communities. The actual population of people residing in these coastal communities can increase by up to 35% overnight, hampering law enforcement, sewer and water resources, as well as creating traffic congestion and impacting public safety. The required and exclusive methods set out in the bill for enforcement make enforcement of those standards virtually impossible.”
The email also addresses the carve-out exemption that would allow Flagler County to continue regulating short-term vacation rentals at the county level.
“There is a carve-out for one county. No one seems to be able to explain why Flagler County was the only county in Florida to be exempted from this draconian piece of legislation. No need exists for this legislation. Cities and counties do not need new enforcement means and restrictions only applicable to enforcement against vacation rentals since the current enforcement methods available under current Florida law are certainly sufficient,” the email said.
Additional Home Rule Florida emails were distributed on June 18, 19 and 21.
When contacted on June 22, Anna Maria Mayor Dan Murphy said, “Our lobbyist is very optimistic that he (DeSantis) will veto the bill but we need to keep the pressure on. If he signs it or doesn’t sign it and it becomes state law, we are weighing our options on what our next move will be. The Flagler carve-out seems to hit a raw nerve with the governor’s staff and we have been emphasizing that in the campaigns we’ve run so far. In just one week, our campaigns generated over 2,000 letters (emails) and numerous phone calls opposing SB 280. I know our message is hitting home with the governor’s office and I’m hoping this ‘pork chop’ piece of legislation fails.”
