§ 90-35. Application for certificate for large-scale comprehensive plans amendments; procedure for issuance; public hearing requirements.

(a)

After November 4, 1986, all units of local government who desire to adopt or amend a comprehensive plan or element or amendment thereof, in accordance with this article, shall submit an application on forms as the commission may prescribe, and shall submit such information as the commission may require for the proper evaluation of the application.

(b)

An applicant jurisdiction shall, at a minimum, submit the following information and documents with any application filed under this section with the commission:

(1)

Information required by rule or order of the commission, which shall include, at a minimum, a detailed inquiry into:

a.

The extent to which any plan, element, or plan amendment submitted proposes to create adjacent, incompatible land uses and the manner in which the adverse impact of these incompatible uses may be eliminated or mitigated; and

b.

The extent to which any plan, element, or plan amendment proposes policies and/or physical improvements which may adversely impact the objective of promoting the coordination of infrastructure affecting more than one unit of local government.

(2)

An application shall, at a minimum, contain the following information in addition to that required in subsection (b)(1) of this section:

a.

The application shall contain a list of all adjacent jurisdictions and units of local government.

b.

For each entity listed in subsection (b)(2)a. of this section, the application shall indicate the following:

1.

Existing coordination mechanisms used in preparation of the plan, element, or plan amendment being submitted.

2.

Any recommendations contained in the proposed plan, element, or plan amendment which affect the plans for land use or infrastructure contained in the plans of a unit of local government.

3.

The facts supporting the recommendations contained in subsection (b)(2)b.2 of this section and the identification of recommended measures which may be used to mitigate or eliminate any adverse impacts resulting from these recommendations.

4.

Identification of specific problems and needs within the comprehensive plans of said adjacent jurisdictions which would benefit from improved or additional intergovernmental coordination, and recommended solutions for resolving these potential problems and needs.

(c)

The applicant jurisdiction shall submit one original and five copies of each application. The original application and two copies of each application and all supporting documents filed with the commission's administrative staff must be a hard copy in writing; the remaining copies may be in either hard copy or electronic format. The commission shall process all applications and shall cause public notice of receipt of all applications to be given as provided in this article. When the commission receives an application for approval of a comprehensive plan or amendment thereto, its administrative staff shall date-stamp the application. Within two days on which the commission office is open for business, the administrative staff shall conduct a completeness review of the application to ensure: the application is completely filled out; required signatures are present and notarized; required number of copies are included; notification to required jurisdictions and agencies as indicated on application has been accomplished; summary of amendments(s) is provided; verification of the acreage and location for map amendments; verification that staff reports, and current and proposed land use maps, where applicable, are included. If any of the foregoing information is incomplete, the administrative staff shall contact the applicant jurisdiction to obtain the necessary information. An application shall be deemed complete once all information is provided, either at the initial submission of the application or after receipt of all the minimum requirements described in this subsection (c), based upon the determination of the administrative staff and such application shall have placed upon the written application an additional date designating such application as a complete application (the "complete application"). The administrative staff shall thereafter send a dated cover letter and a notice of the complete application to the applicant jurisdiction and direct that electronic version of the complete application be sent by the applicant jurisdiction to all units of local government. The administrative staff shall also send a copy of the complete application to the commission's professional staff. Notice of the complete application, shall be provided by commission administrative staff by U.S. Mail to each unit of local government and posted on the commission's website. Such notice shall be in substantially the form provided below:

VOLUSIA COUNTY
VOLUSIA GROWTH MANAGEMENT
COMMISSION
Notice of Application

(1)

The type of application (e.g., adoption of or amendment to a comprehensive plan);

(2)

A description and location of the subject matter or activity covered by the action, and the commission's case number, and the name and address of any person at the applicant jurisdiction to whom comments should be directed;

(3)

A copy of the complete application and accompanying material are available for public inspection at the commission's offices at (commission's address);

(4)

The notice shall contain paragraphs which read substantially as follows:

a.

Any unit of local government shall have a right pursuant to the Volusia Growth Management Commission Comprehensive Plan Consistency Certification Rules to petition for a public hearing on the application. The petition must contain the information set forth below and must be received by the commission at the address set forth above within 28 days of the receipt of the complete application with such date being [insert date]. A copy of the petition must also be mailed at the time of filing with the commission to (the named contact person at the address indicated to whom comments should be directed at the applicant jurisdiction).

b.

Failure to file a petition within 28 days of the receipt of the complete application, that date being [insert date], constitutes a waiver of any right any unit of local government may have to a public hearing pursuant to the Volusia Growth Management Commission Comprehensive Plan Consistency Certification Rules.

c.

The petition shall contain the following information:

1.

The name, address and telephone number of the petitioning unit of local government; the commission's case number and the location of the proposed activity;

2.

A statement of how and when each petitioning unit of local government received notice of the application;

3.

A statement of how the petitioning unit of local government's substantial interests are affected by the proposed application;

4.

A statement of the material facts disputed by the petitioning unit of local government, if any;

5.

A detailed statement outlining the reasons why the proposed amendment violates the criteria for evaluating compatibility in section 90-37; and

6.

A statement of relief sought by the petitioning unit of local government, stating precisely the action the petitioning unit of local government wants the commission to take with respect to the pending application.

d.

Any person who believes the unit of local government in which they reside could be substantially affected or aggrieved by the application is directed to address that concern with the elected governing body of the unit of local government in which they reside. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to prohibit or prevent members of the public from being heard at the public hearing required by section 90-35 pursuant to F.S. § 286.011.

(d)

Applications received by the commission under this section shall be processed and all determinations of consistency shall be made as provided in this subsection unless a public hearing is held on an application. If the commission holds a public hearing on an application as allowed pursuant to this subsection, the commission shall determine consistency pursuant to the criteria provided in section 90-37.

(1)

Review by commission.

a.

Within 30 days after the date of the complete application, the commission's professional staff shall examine the complete application; determine whether any adjacent jurisdiction or any other unit of local government, has commented or requested a public hearing; notify the applicant jurisdiction of any apparent errors or omissions; request any additional information pertinent to the application; and determine whether the applicant jurisdiction has addressed the conditions of approval of past commission resolutions and whether the application meets the consistency test as set forth in this article.

b.

If the commission's professional staff needs additional information to review the application, a request for additional information (RAI) shall be forwarded in writing to the applicant jurisdiction. Such RAI shall be forwarded within 14 days after the date of the complete application. The written request for additional information shall toll the running of the time provided by this article for the commission to act on the application until either: (i) the RAI response is deemed complete by the commission's professional staff; or (ii) the applicant jurisdiction provides written notice that no further information in response to the RAI will be provided.

c.

The commission's professional staff shall prepare a written report regarding the application, which may include information regarding whether the applicant jurisdiction has: (i) provided a complete application; (ii) complied with one or more RAIs, if applicable; and (iii) addressed the commission's professional staff's conditions of approval, if any. Further, the written report shall set forth the commission's professional staff's determination regarding whether an application may be inconsistent under the test set forth in section 90-37. Such written report shall be sent electronically to all units of local government.

(2)

Units of local government.

a.

Within 28 days after the date of the complete application any unit of local government may:

1.

Submit written comments regarding the merits or the sufficiency to the commission regarding the complete application; or

2.

Request a public hearing in accordance with subsection (c) of this section.

b.

If the unit of local government requesting the hearing is an adjacent jurisdiction then the unit of local government shall participate as a party and is deemed to be substantially affected and aggrieved upon requesting a public hearing.

(3)

When a public hearing is requested by the applicant jurisdiction pursuant to subsection (d)(1)a. of this section or by a unit of local government, the commission shall hold a public hearing on the complete application within 60 days after the public hearing is requested but in no event more than 90 days from the date of the complete application (less any tolled time), unless the commission shall not have a regular meeting scheduled or a quorum of the members of the commission shall not be obtained for the regular meeting, which shall by necessity extend the date of the public hearing beyond 90 days. At any public hearing held by the commission to determine whether the adoption of a comprehensive plan or amendment thereto is or can be made to be consistent through conditions, the commission shall comply with the criteria of section 90-37.

(4)

Unless a public hearing is otherwise required pursuant to this article, no public hearing shall be held on any complete application received by the commission unless timely requested by a unit of local government. If no public hearing is requested, it shall be presumed that all units of local government approved the adoption of or amendment to the comprehensive plan of the applicant jurisdiction.

(5)

Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit the submission of relevant evidence to the commission at any time up to and including a public hearing called by the commission pursuant to this article.

(e)

Nothing contained in this article shall preclude the concurrent processing of applications for certification and the state's related review pursuant to the Community Planning Act (F.S. § 163.3161 et seq.), as amended from time to time. For large scale comprehensive plan amendments the application for certification by the commission shall be submitted to the commission simultaneously with, or prior to, transmittal of a proposed plan amendment to the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity ("DEO"). The commission shall have 30 days from receipt of any large scale comprehensive plan application to make comments to the DEO. The commission shall have 30 days from the date of the complete application to make comments to the applicant jurisdiction. For all comprehensive plan amendments other than those listed in section 90-34.1, the commission certification shall be a prerequisite to any final public hearing on a comprehensive plan amendment by the applicant jurisdiction. The applicant jurisdiction's response shall be to both the commission and DEO and shall occur simultaneous with or prior to the applicant local government's response to the objections, recommendations and comments report by the DEO for the comprehensive plan amendment, if applicable.

(f)

Every application under this section shall be approved, conditionally approved, or denied within 90 days after the date of the complete application by the commission unless either: (i) the 90-day time period on a complete application has been tolled pursuant to subsection (d)(1) of this section in which case the 90-day time period does not include that period from the date of commencement of the tolling until the tolling is stopped; or (ii) if anytime on or after 60 days from the date of the complete application there occurs a force majeure event/emergency/natural disaster which disrupts normal governmental functions within any part of the county then there shall be an automatic extension of the 90-day time period for an additional 30 days. The chairman of the commission shall provide written notice to the applicant of implementation of an automatic extension under subsection (ii) above. Within 15 days after the conclusion of a public hearing held on the complete application, the applicant jurisdiction shall be notified if the complete application is approved, conditionally approved or denied. Failure of the commission to approve, conditionally approve or deny an application within the time period set forth in this subsection shall be deemed an approval of the application. For every conditional approval, the applicant jurisdiction shall comply with the requirements set forth in the conditional approval including, but not limited to, incorporating into the proposed comprehensive plan amendment referenced in the application those changes recommended by the commission. Failure to incorporate the commission's recommended changes shall result in automatic revocation of the certificate thereby rendering both the complete application and the proposed comprehensive plan amendment of the applicant jurisdiction invalid and ineffective. For those conditional approvals granted prior to the effective date of the ordinance codified in this section, revocation where provided shall occur in accordance with the terms of the resolution of certification. Continuances of hearings may be granted upon a request for a waiver by the applicant jurisdiction of the 90-day period referred to in this subsection, for up to an additional 90-day period as determined by the chairman of the commission. Any requests for continuances totaling longer than 90 days may only be granted by the commission at a noticed hearing.

(g)

Within 30 days after final adoption pursuant to state law of any plan, element, or plan amendment previously certified by the commission, the local government adopting said plan, element, or plan amendment shall transmit a true and correct copy of said plan, element, or plan amendment to the commission.

(h)

For any unit of local government, other than an adjacent jurisdiction, asserting that it is a substantially affected or aggrieved party pursuant to subsection (c) of this section as the first item of business at the public hearing pertaining to the certificate of consistency of a comprehensive plan or element or amendment thereof, the commission shall render a determination of such unit of local government's status as a party to the public hearing based upon the contents of the required petition under subsection (c) of this section as applicable and testimony and evidence presented at the hearing. In the event party status is denied by the commission, the unit of local government denied party status shall be entitled to be heard at the public hearing as a member of the public. In the event there are: (1) no units of local government with party status; and (2) the commission does not have the ability to hold the public hearing as set forth in section 90-38, the hearing will not proceed. As used in this section, the term "substantially affected or aggrieved party" means any unit of local government that will suffer an adverse effect to an interest protected or furthered by its comprehensive plan when compared to the applicant jurisdiction's local government comprehensive plan, element or amendment thereof based on the review criteria set forth in subsection 90-37(c).

(Ord. No. 87-24, § 4, 7-23-87; Ord. No. 89-39, § 1, 9-7-89; Ord. No. 91-39, § 1, 11-21-91; Ord. No. 92-87, § 2, 10-8-92; Ord. No. 93-13, § 2, 5-20-93; Ord. No. 98-17, § I, 9-3-98; Ord. No. 99-16, §§ 1—3, 5-13-99; Ord. No. 2007-05, § II, 2-22-07; Ord. No. 2012-16, § I, 10-4-12; Ord. No. 2013-20, § XXI, 12-12-13; Ord. No. 2016-10, § I, 5-5-16)