Florida Senate - 2022 SB 518
By Senator Brodeur
9-00555-22 2022518__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to residential home protection;
3 amending s. 163.045, F.S.; defining terms; revising
4 conditions under which a local government may not
5 require a notice, application, approval, permit, fee,
6 or mitigation for the pruning, trimming, or removal of
7 a tree on a residential property; specifying when a
8 tree poses an unacceptable risk; providing an
9 effective date.
10
11 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
12
13 Section 1. Section 163.045, Florida Statutes, is amended to
14 read:
15 163.045 Tree pruning, trimming, or removal on residential
16 property.—
17 (1) As used in this section, the term:
18 (a) “Documentation” means an onsite assessment performed by
19 an arborist certified by the International Society of
20 Arboriculture (ISA) or a registered landscape architect licensed
21 under part II of chapter 481 in accordance with tree risk
22 assessment processes and guidelines established by the ISA, the
23 American National Standards Institute (ANSI), or the
24 International Organization for Standardization and signed by the
25 certified arborist or registered landscape architect.
26 (b) “Residential property” means an existing single-family,
27 detached building located on an existing lot of record, actively
28 used for single-family residential purposes, and which is either
29 an existing conforming use or a legally recognized nonconforming
30 use in accordance with the local jurisdiction’s applicable land
31 development regulations.
32 (2) A local government may not require a notice,
33 application, approval, permit, fee, or mitigation for the
34 pruning, trimming, or removal of a tree on a residential
35 property if the property owner possesses obtains documentation
36 from an arborist certified by the ISA International Society of
37 Arboriculture or a registered Florida licensed landscape
38 architect licensed under part II of chapter 481 that the tree
39 poses an unacceptable risk presents a danger to persons or
40 property. A tree poses an unacceptable risk if removal is the
41 only means of practically mitigating its risk below moderate, as
42 defined by the ANSI A300 (Part 9)—2017 tree risk assessment
43 standards, using a 2-year timeframe.
44 (3)(2) A local government may not require a property owner
45 to replant a tree that was pruned, trimmed, or removed in
46 accordance with this section.
47 (4)(3) This section does not apply to the exercise of
48 specifically delegated authority for mangrove protection
49 pursuant to ss. 403.9321-403.9333.
50 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2022.