BILL SUMMARY DETAILS

Florida League of Cities

Florida Forever (Watch)

SB 7024 (Committee on the Environment & Natural Resources) adds connection of wildlife habitat with wildlife crossings as a permissible purpose for land acquisition under the Florida Forever program. It requires the Department of Environmental Protection to consult with other state agencies about the acquisitions of lands subject to coastal flooding as a result of sea-level rise to complement other agencies’ projects. The bill allocates $10 million annually from the Florida Forever Trust Fund for conservation lands or lands subject to coastal flooding from sea-level rise in areas impacted by hurricanes in the immediately preceding five-year fiscal year. It directs the state Acquisition and Restoration Council to give increasing priority to acquiring lands subject to coastal flooding from sea-level rise. (O’Hara)