HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem O01 BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
COUNTY of MONROE Mayor Michelle Lincoln,District 2
The Florida. Keys Mayor Pro Tem David Rice,District 4
p Craig Cates,District 1
James K. Scholl,District 3
- Holly Merrill Raschein,District 5
Regular Meeting
July 15, 2026
Agenda Item Number: 01
26-32404
BULK ITEM: Yes DEPARTMENT: District 2
TIME APPROXIMATE: STAFF CONTACT: Kacey Hunt 305-292-4512
AGENDA ITEM WORDING:
MAYOR LINCOLN: A resolution by the Monroe County Board of County Commissioners requesting
that the United States Fish and Wildlife Service direct funding to the National Key Deer Refuge to
reinitiate regular population data collection for biological monitoring of the Florida Key Deer
(Odocoileus Virginianus Clavium).
ITEM BACKGROUND:
• A Habitat Conservation Plan(HCP) for Florida Key Deer (Odocoileus cirginianus clavium)
and other Protected Species on Big Pine and No Name Keys was issued in April 2003 and
revised in 2006.
• The HCP expired in April 2023.
• An Incidental Take Permit (ITP) was issued for the take of species covered under the HCP
incidental to development done in accordance with the HCP. The ITP was revised to extend
the expiration date to June 30, 2026,
• On June 20, 2012, the Monroe County Board of County Commissioners adopted Ordinance
015-2012, creating Section 122-12 to enact requirements of the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) in accordance
with the FWS Biological Opinion for the Department of Homeland Security's Federal
Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) administration of the National Flood Insurance
Program (NFIP) (BiOp).
• On May 27, 2026, the FWS provided correspondence (attached) to FEMA advising FEMA
that as of July 1, 2026, impacts to endangered species previously reviewed under the HCP
would be reviewed under the BiOp instead.
PREVIOUS RELEVANT BOCC ACTION:
On June loth, 2026, the BOCC approved a Resolution accepting the May 27, 2026, letter issued by
the US Fish and Wildlife Service regarding transition from the Habitat Conservation Plan(HCP) and
Incidental Take Permit(ITP) for Big Pine and No Name Keys and utilizing the letter for permit
review beginning July 1, 2026.
INSURANCE REQUIRED:
No
CONTRACT/AGREEMENT CHANGES:
N/A
STAFF RECOMMENDATION:
Approval of resolution requesting USFWS to direct funding to the National Key Deer Refuge to
reinitiate regular population data collection for biological monitoring of the Florida Key Deer
(Odocoileus Virginianus Clavium).
DOCUMENTATION:
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
N/A
Effective Date:
Expiration Date:
Total Dollar Value of Contract:
Total Cost to County:
Current Year Portion:
Budgeted: No
Source of Funds:
CPI:
Indirect Costs:
Estimated Ongoing Costs Not Included in above dollar amounts:
Revenue Producing: No If yes, amount:
Grant: No
County Match: No
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
COUNTY of MONROE Mayor Michelle Lincoln,District 2
The Florida. Keys Mayor Pro Tem David Rice,District 4
p Craig Cates,District I
James K. Scholl,District 3
- Holly Merrill Raschein,District 5
Regular Meeting
June 10, 2026
Agenda Item Number: M13
26-32247
BULK ITEM: No DEPARTMENT: Planning and Environmental
Resources
TIME APPROXIMATE: STAFF CONTACT: Emily Schemper
AGENDA ITEM WORDING:
Approval of a Resolution Accepting the May 27, 2026, Letter Issued by the US Fish and Wildlife
Service Regarding Transition From the Habitat Conservation Plan(HCP) and Incidental Take Permit
(ITP) for Big Pine and No Name Keys, and Utilizing Letter for Permit Review Beginning July 1,
2026. Staff Will Provide an Update on the Expiration of the HCP and ITP for Big Pine and No Name
Keys, which occurs June 30, 2026, and the Resulting Transition of Endangered Species Review for
Three Species on Big Pine and No Name Keys, to the County's Permit Referral Process Under the
2010 Biological Opinion (BO) associated with FEMA's administration of the National Flood
Insurance Program, Beginning July 1, 2026. TIME APPROXIMATE 2:00 P.M.
ITEM BACKGROUND:
On May 27, 2026,the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) issued a letter confirming the
transition of endangered species review for three species on Big Pine and No Name Keys from the
Habitat Conservation Plan and Incidental Take Permit(HCP/ITP), which will expire on June 30,
2026, to the county's Permit Referral Process under the 2010 Biological Opinion (BO) associated with
FEMA's administration of the National Flood Insurance Program. The letter also confirms that the
species protections established by the HCP/ITP specific to Big Pine and No Name Keys for the three
species covered will remain in effect with the transition to the Permit Referral Process.
The Incidental Take Permit(ITP) for Big Pine and No Name Keys (BPK/NNK), which allows limited
impacts to the Key Deer, Lower Keys Marsh Rabbit and Eastern Indigo Snake endangered
species/habitat with associated mitigation, will expire on June 30, 2026. The associated Habitat
Conservation Plan (HCP) already expired in 2023.
Staff has been working with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and FEMA to determine
how the process of permit review on BPK/NNK will change on July 1, and how review of impacts to
these three species will be managed and mitigated in a way that maintains compliance with the
Endangered Species Act and continues to protect the species.
For the three species covered by the HCP/ITP, development permits outside of Big Pine and No Name
Keys are reviewed through what is commonly referred to as the "Permit Referral Process." This
process was developed to implement the requirements of the 2010 Biological Opinion(BO) associated
with FEMA's administration of the National Flood Insurance Program. The BO also covers six
additional endangered species both within BPK/NNK and throughout the rest of the county.
Per existing requirements in the BO, the expiration of the HCP/ITP means permits on Big Pine and No
Name Keys will automatically be reviewed through the same Permit Referral Process for the three
species in question beginning July 1, 2026. As stated in the Reasonable and Prudent Alternatives of
the 2010 Amended BO, "In the event that current HCPs designated in the Florida Keys under
section 10 of the Act expire, all properties addressed by these HCPs that fall within the Species
Focus Area Maps will be referred to the Service for review per the guidelines in this RPA."
USFWS has updated the Species Assessment Guides for the three species covered by the HCP/ITP for
Big Pine and No Name Keys; and has also confirmed that key protections developed for the HCP/ITP
will remain in effect and will continue to be tracked and reported to FEMA and USFWS in the BO
annual reports. Most notably:
• The cumulative cap on species impacts that was established in the HCP/ITP will continue to
apply under the BO (total of"1.1 H-impact").
• The 3:1 H mitigation-to-impact ratio requirement will also remain the same under the BO.
• There is currently a surplus mitigation credit that will remain available to permittees under the
BO.
• To accommodate additional ROGO units from the State of Florida, Monroe County will
increase the maximum number of new residential units from 200 to 236,provided the total
impact shall not exceed"H"= 1.1.
• Both the H-impact and the cap of 236 new residential permits will be tracked independently
from the "take" associated with projects outside of BPK and NNK and reported as part of the
Permit Referral Process annual report.
• Other than the increase in allowed units, the protection measures of the ITP (ITP "Condition
G") and the associated County Ordinances that were established to implement the HCP/ITP
will remain in place to ensure that "take" of covered species is minimized and mitigated.
The County hosted a community meeting on Big Pine Key on Thursday, May 28, 2026, to explain the
upcoming changes to the review process. Many community members attended the meeting and had
the opportunity to review information on the existing and future processes, speak informally with staff
about questions and concerns, and provide comments and questions to the group. Based on requests
by the public for additional discussion on the topic of species protections on Big Pine and No Name
Keys, Mayor Lincoln plans to hold future quarterly meetings with the Big Pine and No Name Key
community on Big Pine Key regarding how the county can continue to improve protections of
endangered species and quality of life for Lower Keys residents.
PREVIOUS RELEVANT BOCC ACTION:
June 20, 2012—the BOCC adopted Ordinance No. 015-2012 amending the Monroe County
Floodplain Regulations (Chapter 122 of the LDC) to provide for inclusion of FEMA and USFWS
requirements from the 2010 Amended Biological Option to create the Permit Referral Process.
INSURANCE REQUIRED:
No
CONTRACT/AGREEMENT CHANGES:
STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Approval of resolution accepting USFWS letter and utilizing it for
permit review beginning July 1, 2026.
DOCUMENTATION:
FINANCIAL IMPACT:
Effective Date:
Expiration Date:
Total Dollar Value of Contract:
Total Cost to County:
Current Year Portion:
Budgeted:
Source of Funds:
CPI:
Indirect Costs:
Estimated Ongoing Costs Not Included in above dollar amounts:
Revenue Producing: If yes, amount:
Grant:
County Match:
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6
7 MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA
8 MONROE COUNTY BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
9
10 RESOLUTION NO. - 2026
11
12 A RESOLUTION BY THE MONROE COUNTY BOARD OF COUNTY
13 COMMISSIONERS REQUESTING THAT THE UNITED STATES FISH
14 AND WILDLIFE SERVICE DIRECT FUNDING TO THE NATIONAL KEY
15 DEER REFUGE TO REINITIATE REGULAR POPULATION DATA
16 COLLECTION FOR BIOLOGICAL MONITORING OF THE FLORIDA
17 KEY DEER (ODOCOILEUS VIRGINIANUS CLAVIUM).
18
19
20 WHEREAS, the Florida Key deer (Odocoileus virginianus clavium) is the smallest
21 subspecies of white-tailed deer; and
22
23 WHEREAS, Key deer are endemic to the Florida Keys; and
24
25 WHEREAS,the Key deer was first listed as an endangered species in 1967 and is protected
26 by the Federal Endangered Species Act; and
27
28 WHEREAS, the Habitat Conservation Plan for Florida Key Deer (Odocoileus
29 virginianus clavium) and other Protected Species on Big Pine Key and No Name Keys and an
30 associated Incidental Take Permit (HCP/ITP) was issued for the incidental take of Key deer on
31 Big Pine Key and No Name Key; and
32
33 WHEREAS, the HCP/ITP required Monroe County to report annually on the results of
34 biological monitoring of the Key deer based on population data collected both by the United States
35 Fish and Wildlife Service (the Service) and supplemented by an annual census by the County in
36 order to assess the relative occurrence of human related mortality. The main objective of the
37 biological monitoring is to determine if human related mortality is increasing beyond the levels
38 observed in recent years. Specifically, it seeks to test the null hypothesis that development
39 activities permitted under the HCP/ITP will not result in greater than a 1.53 ratio of human-related
40 deaths to mean number of deer seen; and
41
42 WHEREAS, the National Key Deer Refuge has historically provided the necessary deer
43 density/population and mortality data and analysis, through the year 2019, necessary to meet the
44 reporting requirements of the ITP, specifically Refuge staff provided the following data and
45 analysis:
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46 • A KEY DEER INDEX which provides the results of the average deer counts from
47 multiple road-count surveys
48 0 A KEY DEER MORTALITY SUMMARY that provides a summary of Key deer
49 mortality information, including the calculation of the number of human-related deaths,
50 and
51 0 A KEY DEER MORTALITY INDEX AND MORTALITY DATA DISCUSSION
52 that provides a discussion and interpretation of census and mortality data, including an
53 assessment of the ratio of the number of anthropogenic (human-caused) deaths to the
54 average number of deer seen to determine if the ratio of human related deaths to mean
55 number of deer seen is at or below 1.53; and
56
57 WHEREAS, Monroe County does not have sufficient staff or qualified staff to interpret
58 census and mortality data,nor to conduct an assessment of the ratio of the number of anthropogenic
59 deaths to the average number of deer seen to determine whether as development activities proceed
60 in the project area,there is or is not a significant increase in the relative incidence of human related
61 mortality as indicated by a ratio above 1.53; and
62
63 WHEREAS, due to staffing insufficiency at the Refuge, no population data has been
64 available since 2019; and
65
66 WHEREAS, beginning in 2019, the county has only received the key deer mortality data,
67 without key deer census data; and
68
69 WHEREAS, the county has therefore been unable to prepare a full report on monitoring
70 of the key deer as described in Condition"K" of the ITP since 2019; and
71
72 WHEREAS, Monroe County wishes to continue the protection and monitoring of the
73 Florida Key deer and to continue implementation of the monitoring plan developed in the Habitat
74 Conservation Plan for Florida Key Deer (Odocoileus virginianus clavium) and other Protected
75 Species on Big Pine Key and No Name Key, and include this information in its annual reports to
76 FEMA and USFWS and the public under the United States Department of the Interior, Fish and
77 Wildlife Service (Service) Florida Ecological Services Field Office letter, dated May 27, 2026
78 (attached) whereby the Service directed Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP) and corresponding
79 Incidental Take Permit (ITP) conditions be incorporated into the amended April 30, 2010
80 Biological Opinion to use during permit review under the permit referral process with
81 corresponding species assessment guides to assure the efforts by the Refuge and Monroe County
82 under the Biological Opinion are protecting the Key Deer, in accordance with the Federal
83 Endangered Species Act;
84
85 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY
86 COMMISSIONERS OF MONROE COUNTY, FLORIDA:
87
88 The Monroe County Board of County Commissioners hereby respectfully requests that the United
89 States Department of the Interior authorize additional funding to the U.S.Fish and Wildlife Service
90 (Service) and the National Key Deer Refuge(Refuge) sufficient to reinstate data collection for the
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91 Key deer indices and to maintain key deer population and mortality data appropriate for
92 implementation of the monitoring plan developed in the Habitat Conservation Plan.
93
94 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Monroe County commits to preparing an annual monitoring
95 report meeting reporting requirements and showing compliance with the biological opinion,
96 including the requirements carried over from the former ITP per the May 27, 2026, letter from the
97 Service. The County will also report on deer density/population and mortality data if provided by
98 the Service/Refuge in a given year;
99
100 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board encourages the United States Fish and Wildlife
101 Service to provide training to citizen volunteers, and local conservation organizations as necessary
102 to enable the Service/Refuge to conduct Key deer population census surveys;
103
104 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the County hereby encourages non-profit organizations and
105 other citizen interest groups to pursue alternative funding sources and other mechanisms to support
106 Key deer monitoring activities.
107
108 PASSED AND ADOPTED by the Board of County Commissioners of Monroe County,
109 Florida, at a regular public meeting held this 15th day of July, 2026.
110
III Mayor Michelle Lincoln, District 2
112 Mayor Pro Tem David Rice, District 4
113 Commissioner Craig Cates, District 1
114 Commissioner Jim Scholl, District 3
115 Commissioner Holly Merrill Raschein, District 5
116
117
118
119 By:
120 Mayor Michelle Lincoln
121
122 (SEAL)
123
124
125 ATTEST: KEVIN MADOK, CLERK
126
127
128
129 AS DEPUTY CLERK
130
131
132
133 Attachment
134 USFWS Letter to FEMA dated May 27, 2026
135
136
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