S0302 is a coastal resiliency bill that revises Florida’s aquatic preserve laws and creates a new statewide framework for nature-based shoreline protection. It tightens restrictions on dredging and filling in the Terra Ceia Aquatic Preserve, while also allowing specified dredging, filling, and shoreline stabilization activities in the Biscayne Bay Aquatic Preserve, including restoration work, riprap, living shorelines, and seawalls when approved under the bill’s standards. The bill also expands the types of structures and projects that may be allowed in aquatic preserves when they serve shoreline protection, navigation, or environmental restoration purposes.
The bill creates a new section of law directing the Department of Environmental Protection to develop design guidelines and standards for nature-based coastal resiliency methods by January 1, 2027, and to adopt rules for a statewide permitting process subject to legislative ratification. Those rules must address permitting criteria, monitoring, emergencies, permit transfers, public interest determinations, post-storm replacement of damaged infrastructure, and incentives for innovative technologies and local government participation. The bill also requires the department and local governments to promote public education about nature-based solutions such as mangrove restoration, seagrass planting, reef restoration, dune and wetland restoration, and green or hybrid green-gray infrastructure.
The bill amends sections 258.393, 258.397, and 258.42, Florida Statutes, affecting the management and allowable uses of Florida aquatic preserves, especially Terra Ceia and Biscayne Bay. It narrows or clarifies when dredging, filling, and structures may be approved in those preserves, adds public notice requirements for certain Terra Ceia activities, and expressly authorizes nature-based shoreline protection measures in aquatic preserves. It also creates section 380.0938, Florida Statutes, establishing a new statewide regulatory and permitting framework for nature-based coastal resiliency projects and directing DEP to develop standards, rules, and educational outreach.
The bill appears to have broad bipartisan support and a generally favorable reception. It passed every recorded committee and floor vote unanimously, including 6-0, 11-0, 19-0, 38-0, and 106-0 votes in the Senate and House. The vote history suggests the measure was viewed as a practical coastal protection and environmental management bill rather than a controversial policy change.
No major opposition is reflected in the available vote record or transcripts, but the bill does contain several policy tradeoffs that could draw attention in implementation. Environmental advocates may focus on whether expanded authorization for seawalls, riprap, marinas, and other structures could affect habitat protection, while property owners, local governments, and coastal managers may be interested in the flexibility the bill provides for shoreline stabilization and post-storm rebuilding. The main tension is between preserving aquatic preserve protections and allowing more active coastal resiliency interventions, especially in sensitive areas like Biscayne Bay and Terra Ceia.