DeSantis signs coastal protections banning commercial port dredging near Terracea Bay and streamlines environmental rulemaking

Governor DeSantis signed Senate Bill 302 and House Bill 1417 in Manatee County, announcing measures he said will protect Terracea Bay from being dredged into a commercial cruise terminal and speed environmental rulemaking across the state. DeSantis said SB302 prohibits the dredging that would be necessary to convert the conserved area into a commercial cruise terminal while permitting limited dredging for passive recreational fishing, boating and water-quality purposes and requiring state approval and public notice for related permits. (SEG 237–266)

"The bill would not allow the dredging that would be necessary to convert this into a commercial cruise ship terminal," DeSantis said, adding the measure expands the state's ability to implement nature-based coastal resiliency, speeds application review, and establishes new permitting rules. (SEG 237–256)

Alexis Lambert, secretary of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, told attendees that HB1417 will remove redundant steps in rulemaking by eliminating the Environmental Regulation Commission and will allow the DEP to update environmental standards more quickly. "With the signing of House Bill 1417, we're updating our laws to allow the department to carry out our mission more effectively and efficiently," Lambert said. She also cited an estimated $500,000 annual administrative saving related to changes in Title V air-permit payment schedules. (SEG 356–386)

DeSantis framed the two bills as complementary: SB302 focuses on immediate coastal protections for places such as Terracea Bay and expands nature-based tools (mangrove planning, oyster-reef restoration and wetland rehabilitation), while HB1417 removes procedural hurdles so state agencies can implement protections and water-supply rules more quickly. He said the legislation also ratifies water-supply rules for the lower Santa Fe and related priority springs and includes stricter stormwater-management requirements around solar fields to protect adjacent properties. (SEG 249–299, SEG 392–401)

Local lawmakers at the event credited the bill sponsors and the legislative process with producing a vehicle that preserved the aquatic preserve. The governor said Tampa Bay already hosts multiple deep-water ports and described the proposed new terminal as unnecessary for the state’s cruise economy. (SEG 200–214, SEG 433–531)

What happens next: DeSantis signed the bills at the event; the transcript records the signing announcement and agency statements but does not record a legislative roll-call vote at the ceremony. Implementation will follow through DEP rulemaking and permit review under the new law. (SEG 237–266, SEG 356–386)