The Florida Senate

There is hereby created the Florida Land and Water Adjudicatory Commission, which shall consist of the Administration Commission. The commission may adopt rules necessary to ensure compliance with the area of critical state concern program and the requirements for developments of regional impact as set forth in this chapter.

Whenever any local government issues any development order in any area of critical state concern, or in regard to any development of regional impact, copies of such orders as prescribed by rule by the state land planning agency shall be transmitted to the state land planning agency, the regional planning agency, and the owner or developer of the property affected by such order. The state land planning agency shall adopt rules describing development order rendition and effectiveness in designated areas of critical state concern. Within 45 days after the order is rendered, the owner, the developer, or the state land planning agency may appeal the order to the Florida Land and Water Adjudicatory Commission by filing a petition alleging that the development order is not consistent with the provisions of this part. The appropriate regional planning agency by vote at a regularly scheduled meeting may recommend that the state land planning agency undertake an appeal of a development-of-regional-impact development order. Upon the request of an appropriate regional planning council, affected local government, or any citizen, the state land planning agency shall consider whether to appeal the order and shall respond to the request within the 45-day appeal period.

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an appeal of a development order by the state land planning agency under this section may include consistency of the development order with the local comprehensive plan. However, if a development order relating to a development of regional impact has been challenged in a proceeding under s. 163.3215 and a party to the proceeding serves notice to the state land planning agency of the pending proceeding under s. 163.3215, the state land planning agency shall:

The appellant shall furnish a copy of the petition to the opposing party, as the case may be, and to the local government that issued the order. The filing of the petition stays the effectiveness of the order until after the completion of the appeal process.

The 45-day appeal period for a development of regional impact within the jurisdiction of more than one local government shall not commence until after all the local governments having jurisdiction over the proposed development of regional impact have rendered their development orders. The appellant shall furnish a copy of the notice of appeal to the opposing party, as the case may be, and to the local government which issued the order. The filing of the notice of appeal shall stay the effectiveness of the order until after the completion of the appeal process.

Prior to issuing an order, the Florida Land and Water Adjudicatory Commission shall hold a hearing pursuant to the provisions of chapter 120. The commission shall encourage the submission of appeals on the record made below in cases in which the development order was issued after a full and complete hearing before the local government or an agency thereof.

The Florida Land and Water Adjudicatory Commission shall issue a decision granting or denying permission to develop pursuant to the standards of this chapter and may attach conditions and restrictions to its decisions.

If an appeal is filed with respect to any issues within the scope of a permitting program authorized by chapter 161, chapter 373, or chapter 403 and for which a permit or conceptual review approval has been obtained prior to the issuance of a development order, any such issue shall be specifically identified in the notice of appeal which is filed pursuant to this section, together with other issues which constitute grounds for the appeal. The appeal may proceed with respect to issues within the scope of permitting programs for which a permit or conceptual review approval has been obtained prior to the issuance of a development order only after the commission determines by majority vote at a regularly scheduled commission meeting that statewide or regional interests may be adversely affected by the development. In making this determination, there shall be a rebuttable presumption that statewide and regional interests relating to issues within the scope of the permitting programs for which a permit or conceptual approval has been obtained are not adversely affected.