{"id":725,"date":"2026-06-30T16:08:49","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T16:08:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725"},"modified":"2026-06-30T16:08:49","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T16:08:49","slug":"florida-law-banning-local-net-zero-emissions-policies-will-take-effect-july-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725","title":{"rendered":"Florida Law Banning Local Net-Zero Emissions Policies Will Take Effect July 1"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n<\/p>\n
\n
\n

Truthout is an indispensable resource for activists, movement leaders and workers everywhere. Please make this work possible with a <\/span><\/i>quick donation<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Read more SCOTUS Rules Trump Can\u2019t Change Birthright Citizenship Through Executive Order<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

A new state law limits Florida communities\u2019 aims to offset greenhouse gas emissions that are warming the global climate and intensifying disasters such as hurricanes.<\/p>\n

Specifically, HB 1217 prohibits local governments from pursuing net-zero emissions goals. At least 10 cities and counties have implemented such policies, including Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Orlando and Leon County, where Tallahassee, the state capital, is located. But the new law will not necessarily upend these policies, said Bradley Marshall, senior attorney at Earthjustice, an advocacy group.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s certainly meant to scare municipalities and local governments from trying to do things to further net-zero policies,\u201d he said. \u201cNow, its exact impact and what it exactly prohibits is probably up for some debate. Things that are adjacent to it \u2014 emissions reductions and even climate change reduction policies \u2014 on their face will not run afoul at all of a ban on adopting a net zero policy.\u201d <\/p>\n

The measure requires local governments to submit an affidavit annually to the state Department of Revenue verifying compliance. Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, signed the measure on April 22, Earth Day, and the law will take effect July 1. It states that \u201cnet zero policies, carbon taxes and assessments, and emission trading programs are detrimental to this state\u2019s energy security and economic interests and inconsistent with the energy policy and the environmental policy of this state.\u201d <\/p>\n

\u201cI proudly sponsored HB 1217 to fight for jobs and affordability in Florida,\u201d according to a statement provided by the office of Rep. Berny Jacques (R-Clearwater). \u201cThis bill protects our residents and businesses from additional costs by ridding our state of Green New Deal policies. Carbon taxes and fees are not welcome in the Free State of Florida.\u201d<\/p>\n

DeSantis implemented a law in 2024 erasing several instances of the words \u201cclimate change\u201d from the state code and restructuring the state\u2019s fossil fuel-based energy policy around reducing reliance on foreign sources and strengthening the energy infrastructure against \u201cnatural and manmade threats.\u201d The measure also nullified goals aimed at enhancing renewable energy use. The goals were initiated in 2022 after 200 Floridians, all under the age of 25, filed a petition for rulemaking calling on the state to move toward 100 percent clean energy by 2050, a benchmark scientists say is necessary to avoid the worst consequences of climate change.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis bill is definitely part of a larger coordinated push by the political enablers of the fossil fuel industry to obstruct any tools \u2014 legal or legislative tools \u2014 to hold the industry accountable for its contributions to climate change,\u201d said Laura Peterson, senior analyst at the Union for Concerned Scientists, an advocacy group. \u201cFlorida is really on the front lines. So I imagine the governor is taking this step because he sees what\u2019s coming down the pike. It\u2019s not getting better. So I can only assume that this is an effort to satisfy some of the pressures that he\u2019s getting from donors and from his party to protect the industry. And he\u2019s doing it at the expense of his constituents.\u201d<\/p>\n

There is overwhelming scientific consensus that fossil fuel emissions have accelerated the planet\u2019s warming since the industrial age, leading to more extreme disasters such as hurricanes. One study concluded it now is scientifically feasible to link individual emitters with specific harms, for the sake of litigation.<\/p>\n

Read more Hind Rajab Foundation Asks US to Arrest Ben-Gvir During NY Visit<\/a><\/p>\n

HB 1217 also prevents local governments from purchasing items such as vehicles or appliances based on the fuels they use or production of the items. Local governments may not participate in carbon-trading programs or use public funds to support other organizations with net-zero policies. Cities and counties also may not charge a tax or fee tied with carbon emissions.<\/p>\n

When the Orlando Utilities Commission (OUC) announced in 2020 its commitment to net zero emissions by 2050, the municipal utility and city were recognized as leaders in a state where most local governments at the time were more focused on climate impacts such as sea level rise and flooding. The commitment set in motion one of the biggest evolutions at the utility in its nearly century-long history, utility leaders said at the time. OUC is the second-largest municipal utility in the state, serving more than 288,000 customers in Orange and Osceola counties.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are aware of the legislation regarding net-zero emissions policies,\u201d a statement OUC provided to Inside Climate News says. \u201cOur focus remains on delivering reliable, affordable energy while continuing to reduce our carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in a responsible and balanced way. Since 2020, we have made meaningful progress in lowering CO2 emissions and remain committed to further reductions including a 50 percent reduction by 2030 and 75 percent by 2040.\u201d<\/p>\n

Boca Raton and Fort Lauderdale, and Broward and Miami-Dade counties also have been pursuing goals of net-zero emissions by 2050. Miami, Miramar, Pinellas County and Sarasota have similar goals.<\/p>\n

But in Leon County, leaders have taken several steps back in response to HB 1217. They rescinded a 2023 resolution declaring a climate emergency. They also rolled back plans to phase out fossil fuel-powered vehicles and amended a policy to remove a mandate for recycled paper. The Paul Russell Road facility, which the county bills as the nation\u2019s first government retrofit building to achieve net-zero certification, will lose that certification, although the building\u2019s solar and energy efficiency systems will continue operating unchanged.<\/p>\n

Susan Glickman, vice president for policy and partnerships at The CLEO Institute, an advocacy group, worried the law could have a chilling effect on other local policies aimed at moving Florida to cleaner energy.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt means that everyone is going to pay more money on their power bills, and there are plenty of people who can absorb a higher energy bill,\u201d she said. \u201cBut there are a lot of people who cannot, and this is coming at a time when housing prices are up, groceries are up and insurance prices are high. And so there are people who are suffering out there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Supreme Court Rejects Trump\u2019s Request to Overturn E. Jean Carroll Verdict<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Some worry the law could have a chilling effect on other local policies aimed at moving the state toward cleaner energy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":724,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-725","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nFlorida Law Banning Local Net-Zero Emissions Policies Will Take Effect July 1 - Smart Moving Home<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Florida Law Banning Local Net-Zero Emissions Policies Will Take Effect July 1 - Smart Moving Home\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Some worry the law could have a chilling effect on other local policies aimed at moving the state toward cleaner energy.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Smart Moving Home\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-30T16:08:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/?p=725#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/?p=725\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ec0d70042821fd684a174c8d0e8becfa\"},\"headline\":\"Florida Law Banning Local Net-Zero Emissions Policies Will Take Effect July 1\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-30T16:08:49+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/?p=725\"},\"wordCount\":1041,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/?p=725#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/c38061b7905a6fc5544df45dc7c0f187.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Interesting\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/?p=725#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/?p=725\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/?p=725\",\"name\":\"Florida Law Banning Local Net-Zero Emissions Policies Will Take Effect July 1 - Smart Moving Home\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/?p=725#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/?p=725#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/c38061b7905a6fc5544df45dc7c0f187.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-30T16:08:49+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ec0d70042821fd684a174c8d0e8becfa\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/?p=725#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/?p=725\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/?p=725#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/c38061b7905a6fc5544df45dc7c0f187.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/c38061b7905a6fc5544df45dc7c0f187.jpg\",\"width\":2560,\"height\":1707},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/?p=725#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Florida Law Banning Local Net-Zero Emissions Policies Will Take Effect July 1\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Smart Moving Home\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/ec0d70042821fd684a174c8d0e8becfa\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/smartmovinghome.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Florida Law Banning Local Net-Zero Emissions Policies Will Take Effect July 1 - Smart Moving Home","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Florida Law Banning Local Net-Zero Emissions Policies Will Take Effect July 1 - Smart Moving Home","og_description":"Some worry the law could have a chilling effect on other local policies aimed at moving the state toward cleaner energy.","og_url":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725","og_site_name":"Smart Moving Home","article_published_time":"2026-06-30T16:08:49+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ec0d70042821fd684a174c8d0e8becfa"},"headline":"Florida Law Banning Local Net-Zero Emissions Policies Will Take Effect July 1","datePublished":"2026-06-30T16:08:49+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725"},"wordCount":1041,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/c38061b7905a6fc5544df45dc7c0f187.jpg","articleSection":["Interesting"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725","url":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725","name":"Florida Law Banning Local Net-Zero Emissions Policies Will Take Effect July 1 - Smart Moving Home","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/c38061b7905a6fc5544df45dc7c0f187.jpg","datePublished":"2026-06-30T16:08:49+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ec0d70042821fd684a174c8d0e8becfa"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/c38061b7905a6fc5544df45dc7c0f187.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/c38061b7905a6fc5544df45dc7c0f187.jpg","width":2560,"height":1707},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?p=725#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Florida Law Banning Local Net-Zero Emissions Policies Will Take Effect July 1"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/","name":"Smart Moving Home","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ec0d70042821fd684a174c8d0e8becfa","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/smartmovinghome.com"],"url":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/725","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=725"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/725\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/724"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=725"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=725"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/smartmovinghome.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=725"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}