Florida HB 1297: Early Childhood Education

Bill Text

CS/HB 1297 2026

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hb1297-01-c1
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S

A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to beach management; amending s. 2
161.101, F.S.; requiring the Department of 3
Environmental Protection to review certain data when 4
designating certain beaches as critically eroded and 5
in need of restoration and nourishment; requiring that 6
certain beaches, whose local government preserved 7
funds for a certain purpose and which possess 8
specified features, be designated as critically 9
eroded; authorizing the secretary of the department to 10
require coastal local governments to develop a local 11
strategic beach management plan; requiring that such 12
plans include an analysis of certain information; 13
making a technical change; amending s. 161.161, F.S.; 14
conforming a provision to changes made by the act; 15
amending s. 380.05, F.S.; revising the list of areas 16
that may receive designation as an area of critical 17
state concern; reenacting s. 380.045(1), (3), and (5), 18
F.S., relating to resource planning and management 19
committees and objectives and procedures, to 20
incorporate the amendment made to s. 380.05, F.S., in 21
references thereto; providing an effective date. 22
23
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 24
25

CS/HB 1297 2026

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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S

Section 1. Subsections (1) and (2) of section 161.101, 26
Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 27
161.101 State and local participation in authorized 28
projects and studies relating to beach management and erosion 29
control.— 30
(1)(a) The Legislature recognizes that beach erosion is a 31
statewide problem that does not confine its effects to local 32
governmental jurisdictions and that beach erosion can be 33
adequately addressed most efficiently by a state-initiated 34
program of beach restoration and beach nourishment. However, 35
since local beach communities derive the primary benefits from 36
the presence of adequate beaches, a program of beach restoration 37
and beach nourishment should not be accomplished without a 38
commitment of local funds to combat the problem of beach 39
erosion. 40
(b) Accordingly, the Legislature declares that the state, 41
through the department, shall determine those beaches which are 42
critically eroded and in need of restoration and nourishment and 43
may authorize appropriations to pay up to 75 percent of the 44
actual costs for restoring and nourishing a critically eroded 45
beach. The local government in which such a beach is located is 46
responsible for the balance of such costs. In designating 47
beaches as critically eroded, the department shall review data 48
related to beaches that have been preemptively and repeatedly 49
repaired to avoid complete erosion and for which private 50

CS/HB 1297 2026

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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S

funding, local government funding, and state and federal grants 51
have been expended to stop or mitigate such erosion. 52
(c) If a local government with jurisdiction over a beach 53
that possesses all of the following features has a financial 54
plan that ensures the preservation of funding for inclusion in 55
the state strategic beach management plan, such beach must be 56
designated as critically eroded: 57
1. The local government possesses a perpetual easement 58
that contains language stating the local government must assume 59
maintenance responsibilities for shoreline parcels and must 60
develop and implement a design whereby shoreline retreat is 61
sufficiently managed to protect inland developments; and 62
2. Geological features of the dune, beach, and seabed 63
combined with insufficient spacing between the erosion control 64
line to upland assets, which results in repeated inland flooding 65
or structural damage The local government in which the beach is 66
located shall be responsible for the balance of such costs. 67
(2)(a) To carry out the beach and shore preservation 68
programs, the department is hereby constituted as the beach and 69
shore preservation authority for the state. In this capacity, 70
the secretary of the department may at his or her own initiative 71
take all necessary steps as soon as practicable and desirable to 72
implement the provisions of this chapter. 73
(b) The secretary of the department may, as he or she 74
deems necessary, require coastal local governments to develop 75

CS/HB 1297 2026

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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S

local strategic beach management plans. Local strategic beach 76
management plans must include, but are