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Board holds public hearing on parks camping ban ordinance, continues vote to April 21
Summary
Staff opened a public hearing on an ordinance amending county code related to sleeping or camping on county parks and facilities to align with a 2024 state law but asked the board to continue the item because a required business impact statement was missing from the website; the board unanimously agreed to continue to the April 21 meeting.
WAKULLA COUNTY, Fla. — County staff opened a public hearing on an ordinance to amend Chapter 23 of the county code to reflect a 2024 state law preempting counties from permitting sleeping or camping on public facilities, but asked commissioners to continue the item because a statutorily required business impact statement had been omitted from the online materials.
Staff said House Bill 1365 from the 2024 legislative session preempts the county from allowing sleeping or camping on public facilities, including parks and rights-of-way, and that the county's proposed code amendment was intended to align local ordinance language with the state law. Staff explained that the business impact statement was inadvertently removed from the website and that it had been republished; for transparency and to allow public review, staff asked the board to hold the hearing and continue the item to the April 21 meeting at 5 p.m.
A commissioner moved to accept staff's recommendation to hold the hearing and continue the item; the motion received a second and passed by voice vote, 5-0.
Ending: The public hearing was opened and continued to the April 21 meeting; staff will ensure the business impact statement and updated materials remain available online ahead of the continued hearing.
