Scott executive order: Florida is not privatizing its beaches

TALLAHASSEE — Florida Gov. Rick Scott signed an executive order Thursday responding to confusion over a new Florida law, and he’s making it clear that it doesn’t make public beaches private.

A law that went into effect July 1 makes clear the process local governments have to follow in order to allow public access to otherwise-privately owned beaches. It doesn’t change beach ownership, though it did void a beach access ordinance passed in Walton County in the western Panhandle.

In Florida, many homeowners own the sand down to the average high-water line, although some counties have passed local ordinances that let the public use otherwise private beaches for sunbathing, fishing and walking if people have historically had access for those purposes.

The new law spells out the process for local governments to allow public access to those beaches, including providing notice to property owners and having the ordinances approved by a court. Walton County'’s ordinance didn’t fit the state’s process, but it is the only place in Florida where beach use changed when the law went into effect. But there’s been widespread confusion on what the law does, leaving some people afraid that they’d no longer have access to beaches around the state.

Scott, who owns a $14 million beachfront home in Naples, is directing the state Department of Environmental Protection to establish a website where the public can report any problems with gaining access to public beaches. The agency must review the complaints and issue a report to the Legislature on its findings. The DEP also will serve as a liaison between the public and local governments about how the new law should be implemented.

Scott also ordered all agencies under his direction not to implement any rules restricting access to public beaches unless it’s to protect safety.