TALAHASI - A controversial measure that would give companies the power to sue cities and counties to make up for lost profits was among five laws vetoed by Governor Ron DeSantis on Friday.
DeSantis
While the veto on the business measure (SB 620) has provoked praise from local governments and environmental groups, DeSantis has left the door open for lawmakers to consider similar but more targeted laws in the future.
DeSantis also signed 32 laws Friday, which were passed at a legislative session that ended in March. They included a bill that would allow cities and counties to restrict smoking on beaches and parks owned by them (HB 105) and a pandemic measure that would prevent emergency orders “directly or indirectly” blocking religious institutions from performing services or activities. (SB 254).
In addition to business law, DeSantis ’veto included rejecting a high-profile measure (SB 1796) that would override state alimony laws.
Senate leaders gave priority to the business law, which would allow companies to sue cities and counties if the ordinances caused a loss of at least 15 percent of profits. In a veto letter, DeSantis suggested lawmakers take a different approach in the future to help businesses.
DeSantis said that local authorities sometimes “unreasonably burden companies through policies that range from just the wrong ones to the politically motivated.”
“Indeed, this is illustrated by the bizarre and draconian measures adopted by some local governments during COVID-19, which is why the state had to repeal these regulations in order to protect freedom and opportunities for Florida residents,” DeSantis wrote.
But DeSantis disputed that the law was “broad and ambiguous”, which he said could lead to “unintended and unforeseen consequences and costly litigation”. He suggested lawmakers enforce “targeted prevention laws when local governments act in a way that frustrates public policy and / or undermines the rights of Florida residents.”
In general, draft laws give the state control over issues that could otherwise be decided by local governments.
Supporting the veto, Dominic Calabro, president and CEO of Tallahassee-based Florida TakWatch, reiterated that the law could have “many unintended but significant consequences.”
“In an already highly contentious state like Florida, that would result in an influx of financially motivated and malicious lawsuits, which would cost local governments more than $ 900 million a year,” Calabro said in a statement. “The only response of the local government would be either an increase in taxes or a reduction in services, and in both cases, this law would harm valuable taxpayers across the country.
Paul Owens, president of the growth management group of 1,000 friends of Florida, called the veto a “pure victory for local leaders and their constituents.”
1000 Friends had previously argued that the measure “would have a daunting effect on the ability of local authorities to regulate noise regulations, parking, puppy mills, working hours and more, and to address rising sea levels and other critical issues facing facing our communities.
The bill would apply to companies that have been in business for at least three years and would allow them to file lawsuits seeking lost profits during the seven years or number of years the companies have been operating, whichever is less.
Before the law was passed in March, Lawrence McClure, the sponsor of the House of Representatives, R-Dover, said that it would lead to a “pause” of local authorities before they pass regulations that would harm companies.
City and county governments have argued that this would tie the hands of local authorities to the changes sought by residents and even most businesses.
Local governments from Escambia County to Palm Beach County have asked DeSantis to veto the measure.
Of the 275 laws passed during the regular legislative session, two were still awaiting action by DeSantis on Friday. These were the draft law (HB 461) on student service requirements for the Bright Futures scholarship program and the law (SB 898) that would require landlords to conduct an inspection of all employees.
The bill to check the past is called “Mia’s law”, after Mia Markano, a college student in Valencia who was killed in September. The suspected killer, who later committed suicide, worked as a maintenance worker in her apartment complex in Orlando.