OSCEOLA COUNTY, Florida, and Department of Environmental Protection, Appellants,
v.
BEST DIVERSIFIED, INC., a Florida Corporation, and Peter L. Huff, Appellees.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fifth District.
Jo O. Thacker, Osceola County Attorney, Kissimmee, Scott J. Johnson of Holland & Knight, LLP, Orlando, and Steven L. Brannock and David C. Borucke of Holland & Knight, LLP, Tampa, for Appellant Osceola County, Florida.
L. Kathryn Funchess, Assistant General Counsel, Tallahassee, for Appellant Department of Environmental Protection.
Gordon H. Harris, Tracy A. Marshall and Mickey R.E. Ware of Gray, Harris & Robinson, P.A., Orlando, for Appellees.
SAWAYA, J.
Osceola County ("County") and the Department of Environmental Protection ("DEP") attempted to appeal the non-final order finding County and DEP liable to Peter L. Huff and Best Diversified, Inc. (hereinafter referred to collectively as "Best"). We find that this court lacks jurisdiction and accordingly dismiss the appeal.
This action originally arose out of County's denial of Best's zoning application to use its property as a landfill and DEP's refusal to issue a general permit to allow Best to put its property to such a use. *140 Best alleged, and the trial court ultimately found, that County and DEP's denials "inordinately burdened" Best's property under the Bert J. Harris, Jr., Private Property Rights Protection Act, section 70.001, Florida Statutes, (the "Harris Act") and constituted an inverse condemnation of said property. County and DEP appealed, claiming that the trial court erred in finding that Best's property was inversely condemned and that Best suffered an inordinate burden under the Harris Act.
This court sua sponte ordered County and DEP to show cause why the appeal should not be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. In response, County and DEP asserted that this court has jurisdiction over the inverse condemnation claim under rule 9.130(a)(3)(C)(ii), which allows for an interlocutory appeal of an order that determines the right to immediate possession of property. Additionally, County and DEP argued that the Harris Act specifically confers jurisdiction on this court to hear an interlocutory appeal from an order which finds that the state, or an agency thereof, has inordinately burdened private property.
The following discussion will first examine this court's jurisdiction, vel non, with regard to the inverse liability issue and then will analyze the same as it pertains to the claim of an inordinate burden under the Harris Act.
Previous appellate court decisions reviewing non-final orders finding liability in inverse condemnation suits have based their jurisdiction on rule 9.130(a)(3)(C)(iv). For example, Palm Beach County v. Cove Club Investors Ltd.,
With regard to the Harris Act, it is true that section 70.001(6)(a), Florida Statutes, provides, "A governmental entity may take an interlocutory appeal of the court's determination that the action of the governmental entity has resulted in an inordinate burden." § 70.001(6)(a), Fla. Stat (2001). However, the Florida Constitution does not authorize the Legislature to provide for interlocutory appeals. See Art. V, § 4(b), Fla. Const. Any statute purporting to grant the right to take an interlocutory appeal is merely a declaration of legislative policy and is ineffective *141 to accomplish its purpose; only if the Florida Supreme Court incorporates the statutory language into the appellate rules can appellate jurisdiction be broadened. State v. Gaines,
Accordingly, since good cause has not been shown, this appeal is dismissed.
DISMISSED.
THOMPSON, C.J., and HARRIS, J., concur.
NOTES
Notes
[1] County and DEP cite Crigger v. Florida Power Corp.,
