SB 636 Florida Senate · 2026 Regular Session

Beach Management

Summary

Beach Management; Requiring the Department of Environmental Protection to review certain data when designating certain beaches as critically eroded and in need of restoration and nourishment; requiring that certain beaches, whose local government preserved funds for a certain purpose and which possess specified features, be designated as critically eroded; revising the list of areas that may receive designation as an area of critical state concern, etc.

Issues: ✓ Environment

Bill status died 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Jan 2026

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Jan 13, 2026 Last action Mar 13, 2026

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

S 636 Filed → S 636 c1 · 6 edits

MODERATE

This bill updates Florida's beach management laws to improve how critically eroded beaches are identified and managed. It clarifies when beaches must be designated as critically eroded, adds specific criteria for local government funding commitments, and expands the required analysis in strategic beach management plans. The bill also revises the list of areas eligible for critical state concern designation and updates related procedural requirements.

Scope change

The bill expands the scope of beach management by adding specific criteria for mandatory beach designation and requiring more comprehensive analysis in local management plans, while also updating the list of areas eligible for critical state concern designation.

ELIGIBILITY

Added specific criteria requiring local governments to have a financial plan preserving funding for the state strategic beach management plan as a condition for mandatory beach designation as critically eroded.

Updated the list of areas eligible for critical state concern designation to include low elevation sections inland of the beach-dune system that have been repeatedly breached or overtopped by seawater.

REQUIREMENT

Revised the required analysis in local strategic beach management plans to include compound flooding, assessed property values, environmentally sensitive lands, and recommendations from certified coastal engineers and the Army Corps of Engineers.

Added a requirement for the department to hold a public meeting or webinar before finalizing the strategic beach management plan for each region.

TECHNICAL

Corrected a grammatical error in the statute regarding the spelling of 'Engineers' and fixed punctuation issues in the list of eligible areas.

TIMELINE

Established July 1, 2026 as the effective date for the act.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Feb 12, 2026

Upper · Passed

Favorable by- Fiscal Policy; YEAS 18 NAYS 0

upper

Feb 9, 2026

Upper · Passed

On Committee agenda-- Fiscal Policy, 02/12/26, 9:00 am, 110 Senate Building

upper

Feb 6, 2026

Upper · Passed

Pending reference review under Rule 4.7(2) - (Committee Substitute)

upper

Feb 4, 2026

Upper · Passed

CS by Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Environment, and General Government; YEAS 11 NAYS 0

upper

Jan 30, 2026

Upper · Passed

On Committee agenda-- Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Environment, and General Government, 02/04/26, 3:45 pm, 412 Knott Building

upper

Jan 13, 2026

Introduced

upper

Jan 13, 2026

Upper · Passed

Now in Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Environment, and General Government

upper

Jan 13, 2026

Upper · Passed

Favorable by Environment and Natural Resources; YEAS 8 NAYS 0

upper

Jan 8, 2026

Upper · Passed

On Committee agenda-- Environment and Natural Resources, 01/13/26, 1:30 pm, 110 Senate Building

upper

Dec 9, 2025

Committee

Referred to Environment and Natural Resources; Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Environment, and General Government; Fiscal Policy

upper

1 primary · 0 co-sponsors