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Brooksville council approves emergency wastewater moratorium on first reading
Summary
On June 3 the Brooksville City Council approved on first reading Emergency Ordinance 980 to impose a limited moratorium on new wastewater connections while staff develops a permanent allocation plan intended to keep the city within Florida Department of Environmental Protection discharge limits.
Brooksville City Council voted on first reading June 3 to adopt Emergency Ordinance 980, temporarily limiting new wastewater connections to prevent the city from exceeding its permitted discharge limits under Florida Department of Environmental Protection rules.
David Hanley, Community Development Director, told the council the measure is an immediate step: “before you you have an emergency moratorium statute,” and that it will be followed by a permanent ordinance containing a phased allocation chart. Hanley and staff said the permanent measure will detail how allocations are phased over multiple years; staff noted a proposed 20%‑per‑year allocation for large projects as an illustrative cap.
Kevin Johnson, the assistant property appraiser, was not involved in the moratorium discussion but had presented earlier on taxable values. During the moratorium presentation staff flagged the need for federal and county funding to support an interconnect that could ease the city’s wastewater capacity constraints; Hanley said he has spoken with a congressional office about that budget request.
The council approved the emergency ordinance on first reading by roll call: Councilor Theria — Aye; Councilor Bronson — Aye; Vice Mayor Tanner — Aye; Mayor Bell — Aye. City staff said the ordinance is designed as a short‑term measure; a permanent, more detailed ordinance will return to council with allocation tables and implementation provisions. The public hearing on the ordinance produced no public comments at the June 3 meeting.
Next steps: staff will prepare the permanent ordinance and the allocation chart for council consideration and continue outreach about potential funding partners and technical fixes to avoid a longer moratorium.
