Manatee, Don't Let the State Legislature Block Protecting Our County's Wetlands

Please take action. Click on the link below to contact your state legislators and ask them to strip harmful sections from SB 180 before it's too late. https://scwk.good.do/fixsb180/

Representative Fiona McFarland has taken a strong bill and inserted last-minute amendments, section 28 and 18, that threaten the very protections communities need to shield themselves from the next storm. By copying and pasting harmful language from a previous bill, McFarland is stopping local governments from passing development plans needed to prevent future flooding and protect water quality. The same language McFarland slipped into SB 180, an otherwise good bill, is being used by the state to block Manatee County Commissioners from restoring wetland protections that residents overwhelmingly supported at the ballot box.

In short, these amendments would stop local governments from saying no to risky development on land that keeps us safe from floods and storm surge as well as enhances water quality and wildlife habitat.

Here’s what the amendments would do:

• Section 28 would freeze local land-use authority from August 2024 through October 2027, blocking any changes to growth plans or land-use rules that developers might consider “more restrictive or burdensome.”

• Section 18 would go even further—automatically banning such changes for a whole year in any area within 100 miles of a hurricane, effectively tying the hands of local governments across the state.