Governor Ron DeSantis signed legislation Tuesday morning returning authority to local governments to recognize customary use of beaches in Walton County, following a six-year dispute that has divided the community and affected local tourism.
- DeSantis signed Senate Bill 1622 at Shunk Gulley Oyster Bar in Santa Rosa Beach, surrounded by state legislators and local officials who championed the measure.
“Senate Bill 1622 will repeal the burdensome state mandates and return decision making power to local governments when it comes to recognizing recreational customary use of beaches,” DeSantis said during the signing ceremony.
The legislation repeals a 2018 law that prohibited local governments from affirming public recreational use of dry sand areas on private beaches without first going through a complex and costly judicial process. That law particularly affected Walton County, which had adopted a customary use ordinance in October 2016, just months after the state’s cutoff date.
“Back in 2018, when the state passed a law that blocked local governments from recognizing customary use of beaches, no one felt that impact more severely than Walton County,” said Senator Jay Trumbull, who sponsored the legislation. “Overnight, people who had walked the same stretch of beach for generations were being told that they were trespassing.”
The economic impact has been significant for the county. Representative Shane Abbott said the legislation addresses broader community needs.
- “We didn’t run this bill just so Senator Trumbull and I’s families can enjoy the beach. We ran this bill for the thousands of locals and residents here that have spent time on those beaches and should enjoy those beaches and have enjoyed them for generations,” Abbott said.
Abbott also emphasized the restoration benefits: “This legislation opens the door to renourishment and renourishment will increase the public beach space that the tourists can and the locals get to enjoy.”
The legislation goes beyond simply repealing the 2018 law. It also makes it easier to restore eroded beaches in certain Gulf Coast counties by simplifying how the state sets erosion control lines and allowing the Department of Environmental Protection to move forward with beach restoration projects without securing public easements from private beachfront landowners.
“This will ensure the restoration projects can begin very quickly, and that every dollar we invest in rebuilding the beach goes towards actual sand and vegetation, not needless litigation,” DeSantis said.
Environmental Protection Secretary Alexis Lambert noted that of Walton County’s 26 miles of beach, nearly 19 miles are now considered critically eroded and in need of nourishment.
The bill includes provisions that protect private property rights while advancing public interest projects. DeSantis emphasized that “the state is not expanding its ownership claims beyond what is already constitutionally and legally recognized.”
Walton County has 26 miles of coastline, but only nine of those miles are public, leaving 17 miles in limbo. With 80% of the county’s economy relying on tourism related to the beaches, the access restrictions have created broader community impacts beyond just recreation.
- The legislation passed the Florida Senate 35-2 and unanimously in the House. It takes effect immediately upon signing.
The county now has $60 million allocated with $60 million in matching federal funds to begin beach renourishment projects, according to remarks at the ceremony.
