Tallahassee, FL -- Sierra Club Florida is celebrating the veto of SB620, a preemption bill that they had previously described as “one of the worst outcomes of this year’s legislative session.” The bill also marks a third and final victory in Sierra Club Florida’s priority veto requests to the governor this year.
CS/SB 620 would have allowed businesses to sue local governments for any adopted ordinance or charter amendment which the business perceived as having the potential to cause a loss of profit of 15% or more. Businesses could have been awarded up to seven years of projected lost profit, plus attorney’s costs and fees. This legislation would have had a chilling effect on local governments, and severely impacted their ability to respond to local issues.
In response to the veto of this bill, Luigi Guadarrama, Sierra Club Florida Political Director said, “Sierra Club Florida congratulates the thousands of people that made calls, wrote emails, and more with us and our partners. This is proof that voters do not want to curtail action on the environment, and the polls agree. Policymakers would be keen to pay attention.”
In 2017 the Florida Climate Institute said that “Local governments… have been some of the greatest centers of action on climate change, with many adopting extensive comprehensive plan policies that are increasingly being implemented through ordinances.” Over 100 local governments have passed ordinances that deal with fertilizers and water quality.
Emily Gorman, Sierra Club Florida Chapter Director said, "In Florida, local governments are leading the way in responding to the climate crisis. Protecting the ability of local governments to respond to local issues is critical to protecting our environment and ensuring our quality of life in the Sunshine State. Sierra Club Florida is thrilled to see this veto.”
This bill is the third of three bills Sierra Club Florida prioritized for veto this year. In addition to SB620, Sierra Club Florida urged Governor DeSantis to veto HB741, an anti-solar bill that would have eliminated tens of thousands of jobs, and SB2508, a bill that would have had broad consequences for conservation efforts in Florida.
After the passage of SB620 out of the state legislature, Sierra Club Florida sent a letter to Governor DeSantis requesting he veto the bill. The request can be found here. Local Governments are where a lot of solutions to environmental issues arise — binding their hands would be detrimental to Florida’s environment. Protecting the ability of local governments to respond to local issues should be a priority for any official serious about protecting the environment and quality of life of Floridians.
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Contact:
Luigi Guadarrama, Political Director, Sierra Club Florida
luigi.guadarrama@sierraclub.org, (720) 404-5714