As many beach residents and businesses know, anyone can call town hall and file a code complaint, or, for example, a noise complaint against a business, without giving their name. Thanks to a new law signed by Governor DeSantis, starting July 1st, anonymous complaints will no longer be allowed.
The new law (SB60) prohibits code inspectors from initiating any investigations of potential violations of codes and ordinances by way of anonymous complaints. It requires the person who reports potential violations of codes and ordinances to provide specified information to the governing body before an investigation occurs.
The person filing the complaint must now provide their name and address to the respective local government before an investigation may begin. That requirement will make the details of who filed the complaint public record.
The new law states that code inspectors are prohibited from initiating investigations on code violation complaints that are submitted anonymously, unless a code inspector has reason to believe that the violation presents an imminent threat to public health, safety, or welfare or imminent destruction of habitat or sensitive resources.
Comments are closed.