Enclaves, Infill, and Compatibility: A Comprehensive Overview Analyzing Legislation Impacting Statewide Land Use and Permitting Regulations Stemming from the 2026 Legislative Session

The Florida Legislature’s 2026 Regular Session proved to be one of the most active sessions dealing with land use regulation in recent years. Legislation spanned the gamut creating positive impacts for the development and home building industries. Proposals that passed include revisions to the Live Local Act, detailed here, a new program requiring certain local governments to create a registry of qualified contractors that can augment staff reviews of development applications, detailed here, and other legislation that will likely impact land use regulations and local land use approvals across the state. There were also efforts to roll back certain provisions of SB 180 (2025), previously detailed here, though no changes were made. An update on pending litigation challenging the law can be found here.

Three bills detailed in this update include:

• Agricultural Enclaves: SB 686 (Sen. McClain) – Signed by the Governor on April 20, 2026
• Infill Redevelopment: SB 1434 (Sen. Calatayud) – Has not been presented to the Governor
• Land Use and Development Regulations: HB 399 (Rep. Borrero) – Signed by the Governor on March 27, 2026

Landowners and developers should review the effects these new laws will have on ongoing and future projects.

SB 686 – Streamlining the Process for Certifying Agricultural Enclaves

The agricultural enclave provision in the Community Planning Act was enacted in 2006 in response to local governments blocking the development of bona fide agricultural operations that were surrounded by commercial, residential, and industrial development. Prior to the changes in SB 686 filed by Sen. McClain, the agricultural enclave provision allowed for a modified comprehensive plan amendment approval process when a qualifying agricultural enclave parcel met certain conditions, though was seldom used. SB 686, which was signed into law by Governor Ron DeSantis on April 20, 2026, revises the criteria that is used to determine whether properties qualify as an agricultural enclave and amends the process for certifying such agricultural enclaves.

The Community Planning Act provides local governments with the power to plan for future development by adopting comprehensive plans and requires maintaining a comprehensive plan to guide future development. All development, both public and private, and all development orders approved by local governments must be consistent with the local government’s comprehensive plan. Land development regulations are ordinances enacted by governing bodies for the regulation of any aspect of development and include any local government zoning regulations, subdivision, building construction, or sign regulations or any other regulations controlling the development of land. The Florida Legislature has created certain exemptions from the rigorous approval process required by counties and municipalities when seeking a comprehensive plan amendment, rezoning, or variance, and instead allows certain uses by right via a streamlined administrative approval when meeting certain conditions, such as property used for affordable housing or certified as an agricultural enclave.

A parcel can be deemed an agricultural enclave when industrial, commercial or residential lands surround the property at a certain percentage threshold, and the parcel meets other criteria including, but not limited to:

• The parcel or parcels are located in an unincorporated area of a county, excluding Miami-Dade and Broward.
• The parcel or parcels have been classified as bona fide agricultural by the property appraiser continuously for the past 5 years as of January 1, 2025.
• The parcel or parcels are within or are abutting an urban service boundary.
• The parcel or parcels do not exceed 4,480 acres, however, a parcel or parcels exceeding 1,280 acres cannot be located in Martin or St. Lucie Counties.

In addition to these baseline criteria, there are additional requirements for when a parcel or parcels can meet the definition of an agricultural enclave, such as the proximity to an interstate, the percentage of development surrounding the parcel, or classifications on a county’s future land use map.

The Legislation creates a modified approval process allowing for limited local input and a negotiation process between the local government and the landowner. To have a parcel or parcels certified as an agricultural enclave, a property owner must first submit an application to the local government, which then has 30 days to provide a report determining whether the property meets the definition of an agricultural enclave. Within 30 days after issuance of the report, the local government must hold a public hearing approving or denying the application. If the local government fails to act within 90 days of receiving the application, the property is automatically certified as an agricultural enclave. After approving the application, the property owner may submit development plans to the government, which then must be approved within a 180-day timeframe. Applicants whose applications are denied may seek review via a writ of certiorari within 30 days of the denial.

Agricultural enclaves approved under the new procedures must conform to the existing densities and intensities of surrounding development that have already been approved through the public hearing process, and can only be approved for single-family residential development, unless abutting an interstate, which can be approved for industrial and commercial.

Finally, the new agricultural enclave must be within or abutting an existing urban service district boundary, which is the area where a local government commits to providing urban-level services. The agricultural enclave must have existing public services, including water, wastewater, transportation, schools, and recreation facilities available, or such public services can be provided in a manner that meets concurrency rules.

SB 686 takes effect on July 1, 2026, but reverts to the pre-2026 revisions on January 1, 2028, effectively creating an 18-month window to take advantage of the changes.

SB 1434 – Infill Redevelopment of Environmentally Impacted Lands

SB 1434, filed by Sen. Calatayud, creates the “Infill Redevelopment Act,” which preempts certain local land development regulations and oversight for “qualifying parcels.” The purpose of the Act is to promote infill redevelopment of qualifying parcels in urban areas. Qualifying parcels must be at least 5 acres in size, located adjacent to other parcels zoned for residential uses and located within an urban growth boundary. To qualify under the Act, parcels must be environmentally impacted, which for purposes of the Act means contaminants or pollutants have been detected on the land above certain thresholds or the land has been designated a brownfield area under state law. The Act is geographically limited to qualifying parcels in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties.

Upon application by a property owner for development, local governments must allow a qualifying parcel to be developed with residential uses up to either the average density of all applicable zoning districts within the same jurisdiction, or 25 dwelling units per acre, whichever is lower. The Act specifies that such approval must be administrative in nature. A local government may not adopt or enforce local regulations that restrict, prohibit, or otherwise limit the development of a qualifying parcel in accordance with the Act. Additionally, the Act creates requirements for qualifying parcels with recreational facilities located on such parcel, such as golf courses or recreational areas adjacent to single family homes on all sides, and provides a framework for the sale of such properties to adjacent property owners if they wish to preserve their recreational use. The Act applies to development applications submitted on or after the effective date of the legislation.

SB 1434 has not been presented to the Governor as of April 22, 2026 and takes effect upon becoming a law.

HB 399 – Changes to Local Compatibility Requirements and other Planning Revisions

HB 399, filed by Rep. Borrero, seeks to address the housing affordability crisis by chipping away at certain local government regulations that have the effect of slowing development. As described in further detail below, the legislation covers a number of issues. Two substantive impacts of HB 399 include revisions to compatibility requirements for local government comprehensive plans and creating equal treatment for manufactured homes and off-site constructed dwellings.

Compatibility:

The Community Planning Act provides local governments with the power to plan for future development by adopting comprehensive plans. Comprehensive plans must include various elements. One such element deals with future land uses, which designates the proposed future uses of land for uses and categories of public and private uses of land. The future land use element must consider what uses are compatible with one another to guide applications for rezoning, development, and amendments. Under the Community Planning Act, compatibility means “a condition in which land uses or conditions can coexist in relative proximity to each other in a stable fashion over time such that no use or condition is unduly negatively impacted directly or indirectly by another use or condition.” Local governments use compatibility to determine whether a proposed use of land makes sense with the existing uses, but there have been instances where arbitrary compatibility determinations have been used to prevent development.

Local governments, through their adopted comprehensive plans, are responsible for ensuring compatibility of uses on adjacent lands. To act on this requirement, land use regulations must contain specific and detailed provisions necessary to ensure the compatibility of adjacent land uses. In practice, these regulations take the form of zoning codes with compatibility standards for height, density, setbacks, parking, and other general regulations on what types of developments can coexist.

HB 399 requires each local government’s comprehensive plan and land development regulations to include factors for assessing the compatibility of allowable residential uses within residential zoning districts and within the residential future land use category and further provides that land development regulations must incorporate measures for mitigating or minimizing potential incompatibility. It also requires local government staff reviewing an application for rezoning, subdivision, or site plan approval to identify with specificity each area of incompatibility before recommending denial of an application. Finally, HB 399 requires that a denial of an application on compatibility grounds must specify the area or areas of incompatibility with particularly, including the applicable evaluation standards used, an explanation of any mitigation measures the applicant has considered and declined, or the basis for determining that no feasible mitigation measures exist. References to “community character” or “neighborhood feel” are not sufficient in and of themselves to support a denial of an application on compatibility grounds.

Equal Treatment for Manufactured Homes and Off-Site Constructed Dwellings:

As manufactured homes and off-site constructed dwellings rise in popularity as one of many solutions to the affordability crisis, outdated local government regulations have not kept pace to address an increase in demand. HB 399 attempts to address the unequal treatment of these alternative housing solutions by creating a uniform approach to approving new developments of manufactured homes and off-site constructed dwellings.

HB 399 provides that a residential manufactured building certified by the Department of Business and Professional Regulation may be placed on any lot in a recreational vehicle park, instead of only those lots specifically designated for mobile homes.

It also requires local governments to allow off-site constructed residential dwellings to be permitted by right in any zoning district where single-family detached dwellings are allowed. Local governments will now be prohibited from imposing any regulation that treats an off-site constructed residential dwelling differently or more restrictively than a single-family site-built dwelling allowed in the same zoning district.

However, HB 399 provides that local governments may continue to apply generally applicable architectural, aesthetic, design, setback, height, or bulk standards to off-site constructed residential dwellings, provided such standards do not have the effect of excluding such dwellings and apply uniformly to all single-family dwellings in the same zoning district. Local governments may also adopt compatibility standards for architectural features, but such standards are limited to:

• Roof pitch.
• Square footage of livable space.
• Type and quality of exterior finishing materials.
• Foundation enclosure.
• Existence and type of attached structures.
• Building setbacks, lot dimensions, and the orientation of the home on the lot.

HB 399 prohibits local governments from adopting or enforcing any ordinance, regulation, or policy conflicts with these provisions or has the effect of excluding off-site constructed residential dwellings, and declares void existing ordinances, regulations, or policies as applied to off-site constructed residential dwellings.

In addition to the changes detailed above, HB 399 also addresses the following:

• Costs of Development Permits – Requires that development permit or order application fees reasonably relate to direct and indirect review costs, be published on local fee schedules, and prohibits fees based on project valuation.
• Administrative Approval for Renovating Large Resorts – Creates a process for large destination resorts to receive expedited administrative approval of minor exceptions or variances.
• Composting Facilities – Prohibits local governments from conditioning composting facility approvals on buying additional land and prevents revoking permits if facilities comply with statewide or regional best practice

HB 399 was signed by the Governor on March 27, 2026, with various provisions taking effect on different dates.

Our team is continuing to monitor the impacts that these three important pieces of legislation will have across Florida.