Home Builders Applaud EPA Announcement to Improve Florida Wetlands Permitting Process
TALLAHASSEE, FL – Chuck Fowke, chairman of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and a custom home builder from Tampa, Fla., and Rusty Payton, chief executive officer of the Florida Home Builders Association (FHBA) issued the following statements regarding today’s EPA announcement to provide the state of Florida with oversight of the CWA 404 federal wetlands permitting program, becoming the third state to assume administration of the program:
“NAHB praises EPA’s authorization of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) to administer the CWA’s Section 404 program as Congress envisioned. Allowing FDEP to issue dredge and fill permits for impacts to both federal and state waters streamlines the process and improves resource protection. It also brings more certainty to the cumbersome and lengthy permitting process, which is expected to reduce project delays and costs for prospective homebuyers.”
Chuck Fowke, Chairman, National Association of Home Builders
Rusty Payton, CEO, Florida Home Builders Association
“This is a positive step forward for builders in Florida. The federal process can be burdensome and lead to frequent and significant delays adding time and money to the building process. By turning this process over to the state, we expect a much more consistent and improved way to get 404 permits approved in a timely manner.”
ABOUT NAHB: The National Association of Home Builders is a Washington-based trade association representing more than 140,000 members involved in home building, remodeling, multifamily construction, property management, subcontracting, design, housing finance, building product manufacturing and other aspects of residential and light commercial construction. NAHB is affiliated with 700 state and local home builders associations around the country. NAHB’s builder members will construct about 80 percent of the new housing units projected for this year.
ABOUT FHBA: Established in 1947, the Florida Home Builders Association is affiliated with the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and Florida’s local/regional homebuilder associations. FHBA, along with its affiliates, work to create the best possible economic and regulatory environment for members to succeed.
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