Transportation Planning
OPPOSE SB972 — 1000 Friends of Florida continues to OBJECT to this bill because it curtails local governments’ ability to deal with transportation impacts associated with new development. It would MANDATE (1) local governments choosing to retain transportation concurrency to include a “pay and go” provision and (2) that those choosing to opt out of transportation concurrency in favor of some alternative, such as mobility fees, must also include a “pay and go” provision. Pay and go means that if a developer is willing to pay a proportionate share of the cost to make improvements, the local government is prohibited from denying a project solely due to transportation impacts. We have argued that this decision should be made by each local government, and not mandated as a one-size-fits-all solution. APRIL 3 UPDATE: The bill passed out of the Senate Transportation Committee on April 2 and has only a single stop remaining in the Rules Committee. So far the argument that this intrudes into local home rule authority, which the Association of Counties agrees, is not having any impact, but we will make the argument again at this last committee stop. The House companion, HB319, has cleared all of its committees and is going to the floor for a final vote. We will advise you on the best date to contact your Representative. A new concern was surfaced over what is included in “transportation impacts” regarding what is or is not covered in proportionate share calculations. ACTION NEEDED: Please contact members of the Senate Rules Committee as soon as possible as it will probably take up the bill in the next few days. Let them know you OPPOSE SB972 and that you prefer your local government to make this choice, not Tallahassee!
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