City of Miami Beach v. Nichols
Miami Beach's short-term rental ordinance imposed escalating mandatory administrative fines of $20,000 to $100,000, far above the caps in Chapter 162, Florida Statutes. The Third DCA held that a municipality that adopts an 'alternate code enforcement system' under section 162.03(2) remains bound by the fine caps in section 162.09(2), but reversed the trial court's wholesale invalidation of the short-term rental prohibition, holding the excessive fine provisions are severable.
Key facts
- City of Miami Beach adopted a short-term rental ordinance with escalating administrative fines ranging from $20,000 to $100,000 as part of an alternate code enforcement system under Florida Statutes Chapter 162.
- The trial court invalidated the entire short-term rental prohibition as unconstitutional due to the excessive fine provisions.
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Why it matters
This decision squarely limits the fining power of Florida municipalities operating 'alternate code enforcement systems' under Chapter 162 — a widely used but rarely litigated mechanism — and gives property owners a… — full analysis with a trial
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