Two Alerts Contained in this Message!
Urge House Committee to Oppose CS/HB 1383 - B ert Harris Property Rights Act
On Tuesday, April 16, at 1:30 p.m., the House Judiciary Committee will consider CS/HB 1383
( J. Grant ), which amends the Bert J. Harris
Property Rights Act. 
This bill significantly amends the Bert J. Harris Act and substantially handicaps local government ability to resolve these claims.

  • The bill requires any settlement reached on a Harris claim that involves the issuance of a variance or exception to a regulation on a residential property be automatically applied by the government entity to all similarly situated residential properties that are subject to the same rules or regulations. Similarly situated is not defined in the bill. In essence, the bill will make an exception to a rule, the new rule. Variances are not handed out carte blanche by government entities.
  • The bill fails to take into account notice provisions, hearings, or even impacts on neighboring property owners when giving an across the board variance. Therefore, the legislation will have a severe chilling effect on the settlement of Harris claims.
  • The bill is a thinly veiled attack to cities and counties who have been dealing with Harris claims due to the enactment of vacation rental ordinances. However, the bill has a far reaching impacts on land use regulations, environmental regulations and code enforcement regulations.
  • The bill limits the time frame for government entities to respond to Harris claims from 150 days to 90 days, and increases the likelihood of paying the property owners attorney fees.
  • Under current law, a jury can award damages from a Harris claim based on the loss of property value and cannot consider any business damages relative to an activity, or use the government has restricted or prohibited. The bill would now allow for the compensation of business damages in addition to the loss of property.

Click here to view the Issue Brief.
CS/HB 1383 Talking Points
  • Protect residents, not special interests. Special interest groups are attempting to manipulate the Bert J. Harris Property Rights Protection Act to affect universal policy change for personal gain leaving taxpayers to pay the bill. The Legislature should prioritize what communities need, not what special interests want.
  • The process is deliberate by design. Bert Harris claims purposefully follow a well-detailed process, to ensure each claim meets the standards set forth in Florida law and does not adversely affect the property rights of other property owners. A variance is designed to be an exception to the rule with just cause, not become the rule itself.
  • Universal application of a variance has unintended consequences. If you apply a variance to all similarly situated properties, you run the risk of increased strain on supporting infrastructure, exacerbating environmental concerns and creating a knock-on effect affecting adjacent properties.
  • Changes to current law will hinder development. The Bert Harris Act currently provides a timeline for potential claims. This timeline allows cities to work with affected parties before commencing with a growth or redevelopment project contained in a community’s comprehensive plan. Changes to that timeline could dramatically impact the ability of a community to forge ahead with smart growth.
  • Changing the intent of the Bert J. Harris Act is short sighted and dangerous. Prioritize community needs.
Urge House Committee to Oppose
CS/CS/HB 829 - Attorney Fees and Costs 
The House Judiciary Committee will also consider CS/CS/HB 829 ( Sabatini ) relating to Attorney Fees and Costs on Tuesday.  
CS/CS/HB 829 would impose mandatory attorney fees and costs against a local government if the local government has adopted or enforced an ordinance that is determined by a court to have been preempted by state law.

The bill would allow the local government to avoid payment of attorney fees and costs by withdrawing or amending the ordinance.  
CS/CS/HB 829 Talking Points
This bill would:

  • Encourage needless litigation and frivolous lawsuits.
  • Apply to both “express” preemptions and preemptions that are “implied.”
  • Needlessly put public money at risk; statutory preemptions are not always express or explicit.
  • Punish local governments when legitimate questions of law exist and have a chilling effect on necessary and needed local actions.
  • Eliminate any judicial discretion to award fees and costs to legitimate abuses and bad actors.

CS/CS/HB 829 is one-sided – if the local government’s ordinance is upheld, it won’t recover its fees and costs.
Urge Committee Members to OPPOSE
CS/HB 1383 and CS/CS/HB 829!
Paul Renner (R-24), Chair              
(850) 717-5024 

Bob Rommel (R-106), Vice Chair
(850) 717-5106 

Ben Diamond (D-68), Ranking Member       
(850) 717-5068 
@BenDiamondFL

Ramon Alexander (D-8)
(850) 717-5008 
@RamonAlexander

Mike Beltran (R-57)         
(850) 717-5057 
 
Chuck Brannan (R-10)    
(850) 717-5010 

Fentrice Driskell (D-63)  
(850) 717-5063 
@FentriceD

Juan Fernandez-Barquin (R-119)
(850) 717-5119 
@RepJuanFBarquin

Heather Fitzenhagen (R-78)         
(850) 717-5078 
@RepFitzenhagen
Joe Geller (D-100)            
(850) 717-5100 
@JoeGellerFL

Mike Gottlieb (D-98)      
(850) 717-5098 
@BrowardCrimeLaw

J.W. Grant (R-64)              
(850) 717-5064 
@JamesGrantFL

Tommy Gregory (R-73) 
(850) 717-5073 
@tommygregoryFL

Mike Hill (R-1)  
(850) 717-5001 
@MikeHillfl

Sam Killebrew (R-41)      
(850) 717-5041 
@repsamkillebrew

Chip LaMarca (R-93)        
(850) 717-5093 
@ElectChip

Amy Mercado (D-48)     
(850) 717-5048 
@AmyMercado

Tyler Sirois (R-51)             
(850) 717-5051 
@TylerSiroisHD51
Click here to download a spreadsheet with committee contact information. You can also use the League’s Contact Your Legislator advocacy tool to email your legislators.
Watch Live on The Florida Channel
To watch this committee hearing, go to https://thefloridachannel.org , click on Live Streams and look for the House Judiciary Committee hearing on Tuesday at 1:30 p.m.
Thank You for Your Advocacy Efforts!