Florida Law Reauthorizes Certain Extensions Granted in 2009 and Authorizes an Additional Two-Year Extension for Building and Development Permits

December 31, 2010: Filing Deadline for Permit Extensions

On May 28, 2010, Florida Governor Charlie Crist signed into law Senate Bill 1752, also known as the “Jobs for Florida” bill. This law both reauthorizes certain extensions granted by the Legislature in 2009 and authorizes new two-year extensions for building and development permits issued by certain government entities with expiration dates between September 1, 2008 and January 1, 2012.

In 2009, the Legislature enacted Senate Bill 360. That law authorized two-year extensions for building and development permits. Recent challenges to the constitutionality of Senate Bill 360 raise questions concerning the validity of permit extensions granted pursuant to its provisions. Senate Bill 1752 seeks to resolve these uncertainties. It also creates another two-year extension, one that is similar to the one enacted in 2009. Taken together, these two provisions do the following:

• Allow permit holders granted two-year permit extensions under Senate Bill 360 to keep their extensions even if Senate Bill 360 is overturned.
• Clarify the type of permits eligible for the two-year extension. These permits include any development order or building permit issued by local governments (county or municipality), the Department of Environmental Protection or any water management district.
• Give permit holders until December 31, 2010 to apply for the new two-year extension.
• Clearly provide that the two-year permit extension in Senate Bill 1752 is in addition to the two-year extension enacted in Senate Bill 360. Therefore, a permit holder that obtained a permit extension in 2009 may be able to receive an additional two-year extension.
• Allow Developments of Regional Impact (DRIs) or pending DRI applications that were granted an extension in good faith under Senate Bill 360 to continue forward as exempt even if Senate Bill 360 is overturned.
• Allow amendments to comprehensive plans and land development regulations that were designed to implement transportation concurrency exception areas under Senate Bill 360 to remain in effect even if Senate Bill 360 is overturned.

If you have obtained one or more of these permits and wish to file the two-year extension, you must notify the appropriate local government or agency in writing on or before December 31, 2010. Please be advised that certain permits are excluded from the two-year extension, including, but not limited to, Army Corps of Engineers’ permits and permits held by owners or operators determined to be in significant noncompliance with the terms of their permits.

If you have any questions regarding the status of your permit or the applicability of Senate Bill 1752 to your existing permit approvals, please contact one of the attorneys listed here or your Holland & Knight representative.