Florida Senate - 2021                        COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
       Bill No. SB 628
       
       
       
       
       
       
                                Ì372958YÎ372958                         
       
                              LEGISLATIVE ACTION                        
                    Senate             .             House              
                  Comm: RCS            .                                
                  04/07/2021           .                                
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       The Committee on Rules (Rouson) recommended the following:
       
    1         Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
    2  
    3         Delete lines 25 - 90
    4  and insert:
    5  propelled equipment used on a farm or used to transport farm
    6  products may be stored, maintained, or repaired by the owner
    7  within the boundaries of the owner’s farm and at least 50 feet
    8  away from any public road without limitation.
    9         (2)This section does not apply to farm equipment that is
   10  used in urban agriculture, as defined in s. 604.73(3).
   11         Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 604.50, Florida
   12  Statutes, is amended, and paragraph (e) is added to subsection
   13  (2) of that section, to read:
   14         604.50 Nonresidential farm buildings; farm fences; farm
   15  signs.—
   16         (1) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary,
   17  any nonresidential farm building, farm fence, or farm sign that
   18  is located on lands used for bona fide agricultural purposes,
   19  not including those lands used for urban agriculture, is exempt
   20  from the Florida Building Code and any county or municipal code
   21  or fee, except for code provisions implementing local, state, or
   22  federal floodplain management regulations. A farm sign located
   23  on a public road may not be erected, used, operated, or
   24  maintained in a manner that violates any of the standards
   25  provided in s. 479.11(4), (5)(a), and (6)-(8).
   26         (2) As used in this section, the term:
   27         (e)“Urban agriculture” has the same meaning as in s.
   28  604.73(3).
   29         Section 3. Section 604.73, Florida Statutes, is created to
   30  read:
   31         604.73Urban agriculture pilot projects; local regulation
   32  of urban agriculture.—
   33         (1)SHORT TITLE.—This section shall be known and may be
   34  cited as the “Urban Agriculture Pilot Project Act.”
   35         (2)LEGISLATIVE FINDINGS AND INTENT.—The Legislature finds
   36  that, due to the application of laws relating to agricultural
   37  activities, it is necessary to distinguish between farms on
   38  traditional rural farm land and the emerging trends towards
   39  urban agriculture. The Legislature acknowledges that the “coming
   40  to the nuisance” defense is reversed when residents bring
   41  agricultural uses to already-established, dense urbanized areas,
   42  and that municipalities should retain the right to reasonably
   43  regulate urban agriculture to protect existing urban land uses.
   44  The Legislature recognizes the ability of urban agriculture to
   45  spur economic development by providing for fresh foods in city
   46  centers, community revitalization, and the adaptive reuse of
   47  vacant lands. It is the intent of the Legislature that local
   48  governments be authorized to create urban agriculture pilot
   49  projects to regulate urban agriculture under certain conditions
   50  and to determine the effectiveness and impact of the pilot
   51  projects on the farming operations in the selected dense
   52  urbanized land areas of the state.
   53         (3)DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section, the term:
   54         (a)“Department” means the Department of Agriculture and
   55  Consumer Services.
   56         (b)“Urban agriculture” means any new or existing
   57  noncommercial agricultural uses on land that is:
   58         1.Within a dense urban land area, as described in s.
   59  380.0651(3)(a).
   60         2.Not classified as agricultural pursuant to s. 193.461.
   61         3.Not zoned as agricultural as its principal use.
   62         4.Designated by a municipality for inclusion in an urban
   63  agricultural pilot project that has been approved by the
   64  department.
   65  
   66  The term does not include vegetable gardens, as defined in s.
   67  604.71(4), for personal consumption on residential properties.
   68         (4)URBAN AGRICULTURAL PILOT PROJECTS.—
   69         (a)The department may approve five urban agricultural
   70  pilot projects that meet the requirements of this section and
   71  requirements adopted by department rule. The rules adopted by
   72  the department must require, at a minimum, that a municipal
   73  applicant:
   74         1.Has a population of 250,000 or more.
   75         2.Submits to the department a proposal that includes a
   76  narrative description of the proposed pilot project, including
   77  the project location, farm products to be cultivated, community
   78  involvement, anticipated outcomes, nutrition and water use,
   79  fertilization management, and any other requirements specified
   80  by department rules.
   81         (b)A pilot project shall be approved for an initial 3-year
   82  period and may be renewed for additional 3-year periods by
   83  mutual agreement between the department and municipality.
   84         (c)At the end of the first 3-year period, the department
   85  may increase the number of pilot projects to ten.
   86         (d)A municipality shall submit a report providing a
   87  narrative explanation of the outcomes and impact of the pilot
   88  project to the department by January 1 for each year of the
   89  pilot project. The department shall submit a report on the
   90  outcomes and impacts of the pilot projects to the President of
   91  the Senate and Speaker of the House of Representatives.
   92         (5)LOCAL REGULATION.—Notwithstanding s. 604.50, s. 823.14,
   93  or any other law to the contrary, urban agriculture is subject
   94  to applicable municipal regulations if:
   95         (a)The urban agriculture activities occur on land included
   96  by a municipality in a pilot project approved by the department
   97  pursuant to this section.
   98         (b)The municipality duly enacts local regulations
   99  applicable to urban agriculture.
  100         (c)Before the reenactment of the regulations under
  101  paragraph (b), the municipality designates existing farm
  102  operations, as defined in s. 823.14(3)(b), within its
  103  jurisdiction as legally nonconforming.
  104  
  105  ================= T I T L E  A M E N D M E N T ================
  106  And the title is amended as follows:
  107         Delete lines 3 - 15
  108  and insert:
  109         604.40, F.S.; authorizing farm equipment used to
  110         transport farm products to be stored, maintained, or
  111         repaired within specified boundaries; exempting farm
  112         equipment used in urban agriculture from provisions
  113         requiring farm equipment to be located within
  114         specified boundaries; amending s. 604.50, F.S.;
  115         providing that nonresidential farm buildings, fences,
  116         or signs located on lands used for urban agriculture
  117         are not exempt from the Florida Building Code or local
  118         governmental regulations; defining the term “urban
  119         agriculture”; creating s. 604.73, F.S.; providing a
  120         short title; providing legislative findings and
  121         intent; defining terms; authorizing the Department of
  122         Agriculture and Consumer Services to approve municipal
  123         urban agricultural pilot projects; providing
  124         application requirements; providing for the number,
  125         duration, and renewal of pilot projects; requiring
  126         municipalities to submit annual reports to the
  127         department; requiring the department to submit an
  128         annual report to the Legislature; providing that urban
  129         agriculture is subject to specified municipal
  130         regulation under certain