Lawmaker refiles bill letting businesses sue local governments over ‘arbitrary or unreasonable’ ordinances
Supporters cheered it on as the preemption to end all government preemptions. Detractors decried it as a litigious tarpit.
Either way, one of the most contentious bills filed in Tallahassee last year is back on the docket.
This week, Panama City Republican Sen. Jay Trumbull refiled SB 170, a controversial measure that would hand businesses new tools to fight what they deem to be harmful overreach by local governments.
The bill would enable businesses to sue county and city governments that pass “arbitrary or unreasonable” ordinances for up to $50,000. While a court decides the legitimacy of that claim on a fast-tracked basis — a provision known as “rocket docket” — the local government would...
