Beach Preservation Group Joins Supreme Court Case

On Aug. 18 the executive committee of the American Shore & Beach Preservation Association (ASBPA) voted unanimously for ASBPA to join the joint amicus brief being filed by the Florida Shore & Beach Preservation Association the Florida Association of Counties and the Florida League of Cities in the U.S. Supreme Court case entitled |!|Stop the Beach Renourishment v. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection et al.|!| to be heard by the high court later this year.

The court will decide whether state legislation to re-nourish eroded beaches constitutes regulatory taking or violates the Fifth Amendment. In concert with local government and association members in Florida the ASBPA’s financial support will also be used to share costs with the lawsuit’s respondents for the professional services of Thomas Merrill a respected property-rights scholar. The amicus brief is being prepared by Lewis Stroud & Deutsch.

ASBPA president Harry Simmons stated |!|While the case before the court is technically a Florida matter the results of the case could have implications for coastal communities nationwide.”