Beach access bill targeting a North Florida county moves forward in House

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A bill advanced in the House today targeting beach access in one county on the panhandle. 

It comes as some lawmakers say Walton County was unfairly affected by a 2018 law.  

House Bill 6043, sponsored by Republican Representative Alex Andrade, would repeal a 2018 law that ended customary use on beaches.

Customary use means the public can access parts of the privately owned beaches. 

Republican Representative Shane Abbott presented the bill. 

Abbott said the law grandfathered in ordinances made before 2016, which singled out Walton County.

“Walton County was not doing anything malicious or different than any other county in the state that had, and has, and still has customary use that would warrant targeting Walton County with a legislative fix. The bill did not fix a problem, but rather created one inside the county,” Abbott said.

Customary use was also a hot topic in Pinellas County. 

Last year, a federal judge sided with Redington Beach in a lawsuit with waterfront property owners over customary use. 

James Calkins is a resident of Walton County and spoke against the 2018 law during public comment. 

“What it did was it created a massive number of ‘no trespassing’ signs that locals that have lived there their whole life now walk to a public beach – they’re getting run off by owners of beach chair companies, security guards,” Calkins said.

The bill advanced unanimously in the House House Civil Justice & Claims Subcommittee.

A similar bill in the Senate also advanced through a subcommittee this week.