Manatee County Votes to Join Growing List of Local Governments in Lawsuit Challenging SB 180

BRADENTON — On Tuesday, Manatee County Commissioners voted 6-1 to authorize the county attorney to execute a contract with the Fort Lauderdale-based firm building a lawsuit to challenge Florida Senate Bill 180. Manatee County Government is the second county government to take such an action, joining multiple municipalities that have already signed on to the suit.

During nearly an hour's worth of public comment heard ahead of the vote, more than a dozen citizens urged commissioners to vote in favor of joining the suit; none spoke in opposition.

Florida Senate Bill 180, signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis in June, is a broad emergency management bill that includes vague language regarding "more restrictive or burdensome" changes to land development and building regulations in the wake of a destructive hurricane season.

Although SB 180 was ostensibly enacted to help communities recover and rebuild, its provisions are having broad implications for local governments seeking to adopt policies that help manage growth and development, and promote environmental conservation—the exact sorts of policies that could help strengthen communities and make them more resilient to hurricanes.

Since its passage, both state agencies and developers have argued that SB 180 applies to the addition of practically any development regulations by a local government, even in situations where the land or project proposed for development is not one that would be considered germane to post-hurricane “rebuilding” or “recovery.”

In the case of Manatee County Government, multiple actions commissioners have attempted to move forward, including raising impact fees, reinstating the local wetland protections, and the repeal of Policy 2.1.2.8—a policy that weakened the Future Development Area Boundary (FDAB), which was established to contain urban sprawl and preserve agricultural land—have faced threats of legal action under the provisions of SB 180.

Last month, BOCC Chair George Kruse used his authority as board chairman to unilaterally cancel a scheduled land use meeting under increasing pressure from the state, including the potential for commissioners to be removed from office. Had it been held, the meeting would have included two public hearings for the adoption of ordinances for the reinstatement of wetland buffer protections and the repeal of policy 2.1.2.8.

A week later, Kruse took to social media to inform the public that commissioners would officially consider whether to join the class action lawsuit being built against SB 180—that vote was held this Tuesday.

As commissioners deliberated the vote, Commissioner Mike Rahn stood alone in expressing reservations about taking action to join the suit.

“Why do we need to join this now?” Rahn asked. “We took a breather the other day on moving forward with the wetland rollback and the repealing of 2.1.2.8. My point is, is that… we’re poking a pretty big bear here.”

Rahn reminded the board that the governor had recently vetoed all of their requested funding appropriations, totaling $4 million in legislative advanced funding to the county.

“We can join this lawsuit at any time,” Rahn said. “I prefer to wait to see what the filing looks like to know what exactly is going to be in the lawsuit, so we can understand, and so our county attorney can review it.”

Rahn stated that his preference was for the board to continue working with the Florida Association of Counties to lobby for revisions to the bill’s language. He added that a lawsuit would be a lengthy process and unlikely to be concluded in less than a year or two. 

Commissioner Amanda Ballard agreed with Rahn on his point about the length of a lawsuit, offering caution to the board and members of the public—that litigation would not bring a quick resolution. However, despite that fact, Ballard said she supported directing the attorney’s office to move forward with executing a contract to join the county as a party to the suit.

“I do think that the lawsuit is the legal and proper way to clarify the meaning of the law (SB 180),” Ballard explained. “I think it would be great if it were enjoined on an emergency basis, but we don’t know that that is what’s going to happen… I will be voting to join the suit, but I do have significant concerns about what it is going to cost the county.”

Ballard described her concerns over potential costs, not only in terms of the likely length of the legal action, but also in relation to potential future funding denials at the state level.

Commissioners Carol Felts, Bob McCann, and Jason Bearden were firm in their positions, stating that, despite the risks of moving forward with joining the lawsuit coalition, it was the right thing to do.

“We all raised our right hands to defend the Constitution,” Bearden reminded. “Both the United States Constitution and the Florida Constitution, and when I see that our Constitutional Rights are being stomped on, all of us on this board should stand up against that… Whether you favor one party or not, you should stand up for the Constitutional Rights of the people that you represent.”

Bearden further went on to publicly call out local Senator Jim Boyd and State Representatives Will Robinson and Bill Connerly, stating that he is “deeply concerned” about their support for SB 180.

“By voting for SB 180, they undermined home rule and silenced the voices of the very communities that they all represent,” he pronounced affirmatively. “SB 180 denies local governments the power to, number one, safeguard our neighborhoods, and number two, protect our families.

“This is not just a policy disagreement; it’s defending the Constitutional Rights of the citizens to govern themselves locally,” he added.
 
“I hope that the representatives are listening to me right now,” he continued. “Because I’m calling on Representative Boyd, Connerly, and Robinson to explain to the people of Florida and Manatee County why they voted for this bill. To explain how they could fail to see this clear violation of their constituents' Constitutional Rights… our communities deserve an honest answer… I’m going to ask them to be humble. If you made a mistake, come out and say you made a mistake, and fix it.”

Just before the vote, Commissioner Bob McCann sought to clarify the motion to ensure that a majority vote of the commission would immediately move the county into joining the lawsuit as a party to the suit, and paying the required $10,000 for joining parties.

Because the suit has yet to be filed, the county attorney explained that a majority vote in favor would direct her office to execute the contract, which was already drafted. The funds would be paid in accordance with the contract’s terms.

Put to a vote, six of the seven Republican commissioners voted in favor of joining the class action suit, with only Commissioner Rahn voting in opposition.

Jamie Cole, with the Fort Lauderdale-based Weiss Serota Helfman Cole + Bierman, will represent the coalition of local Florida governments in the upcoming legal challenge. The firm is anticipated to file the case sometime this month.

Manatee County is the latest of multiple local governments to join as a party to the lawsuit, and the second county government to do so, following Orange County's decision to join last week.

The Cities of Alachua, Delray Beach, Deltona, Edgewater, Stuart, Weston, and Windermere are some of the other parties to the action, with other cities and counties reportedly strongly considering joining the case in the coming weeks.