Florida Passes House Bill 1389 Updating Live Local Act and More Housing Affordability Measures

House Bill 1389 (“HB 1389”) was approved by the Florida Legislature on March 13, 2026, and became law on July 1, 2026. HB 1389 (the 2026 Live Local Act update) protects developers by preventing local governments from arbitrarily blocking or downsizing affordable housing projects. It forces cities to approve qualifying projects and creates direct legal pathways if a developer is discriminated against.

Zoning Overrides: Local governments must allow multifamily and mixed-use residential developments on commercial, industrial, and mixed-use land.

Expanded Land Access: The law now forces cities to allow affordable housing on religious lands (> 3 acres) and surplus public land owned by counties, cities, or school districts (as co-applicants), regardless of local zoning. Height & Design

Mandates: Cities cannot restrict the height of developments using subjective dimensional requirements like stepbacks or setbacks. Anti-Discrimination Rules: It is explicitly unlawful for municipalities to deny or delay an affordable housing project based on its financing or affordability status. Sovereign Immunity

Waiver: If a local government unlawfully discriminates against a development, the bill waives sovereign immunity, allowing developers to sue cities directly for civil rights violations and damages.

The latest tweak also expands the definition of a “person” under the fair housing section of the law. A person also includes agencies, government entities and other legal or commercial entities. If the court finds that a person, which now includes local governments, has engaged in a discriminatory housing practice, the court has to issue an order banning that practice and providing relief to the plaintiff. This is meant to discourage cities and other local governments from challenging applications by developers.

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