News Clips

Miami Herald

Florida Legislature should butt out of cities’ business — and mind its own | Editorial

Last year, it was plastic straws. Florida legislators said that cities couldn’t ban them. Gov. Ron DeSantis rightly pushed back on busybody lawmakers and vetoed the legislation. This year, the Legislature wants to prevent cities and counties from regulating growth management, homes used as vacation rentals, home-based businesses and too many other issues that municipalities should manage for themselves and, more important, their residents. It’s called “preemption.” A report from Integrity Florida, a nonpartisan, nonprofit research group and government watchdog, calls the overreach what is really is — “The Attack on Home Rule in Florida.”

TCPalm, South FL Sun Sentinel, Fort Myers News Press

Keep Vacation Rentals at Home

Making its way in the Florida’s Legislature is a new bill (HB 1011 and SB 1128) that seeks to restrict the ability of local governments, counties and municipalities, to regulate the use and operation of vacation rentals within the state. One can hardly overestimate the importance of tourism to our economy and culture, we receive every year over 100 million visitors. Undoubtedly, vacation rentals play an important role in providing lodging alternatives to our visitors. Many of us take our family vacations within the state, enjoying the sandy beaches and theme parks while staying at a vacation rental.

Florida Politics

Lawmakers seek grades for cities, counties

Florida cities and counties would get letter grades for economic and non-economic factors, under a bill that drew mostly bipartisan support Tuesday from the House Appropriations Committee. Another measure approved by the committee would ask voters in November to approve a proposed constitutional amendment that would require the state chief financial officer to annually provide to residents comparisons of their communities with others in Florida. Rep. Blaise Ingoglia, a Spring Hill Republican sponsoring both proposals (HB 7069 and HJR 7061) said the intent is to allow residents to easily compare economic and non-economic factors of their communities and to see how elected officials may be doing.