Each regional planning council is like a bridge between state and local governments representing an area in which mutual resources, characteristics, and issues exist. Your regional planning council includes members from the counties and municipalities located in your region's planning district and gubernatorial appointees who represent the state.

Florida's regional planning councils are multi-purpose organizations, which

Coordinate

Florida's regional planning councils bring together a variety of viewpoints from various jurisdictions, agencies, and private interests to focus on regionally shared issues such as transportation, planning, economic development, aging services, housing, infrastructure, and community development.

Plan

Florida's regional planning councils were commissioned under Chapter 160, Florida Statutes, to provide comprehensive planning and intergovernmental coordination for managed, responsible growth. In 1985, a series of laws known as "The Growth Management Act" directed regional planning councils to adopt regional policies as part of Florida's integrated growth management process. Your regional planning council reviews local plans in your region to make sure they complement one another and are consistent with the regional standards defined in the Comprehensive Regional Policy Plan.

Review

Florida's regional planning councils review large developments, called Developments of Regional Impact, to ensure that communities which receive additional people and activity as a result of these vast projects are able to provide new and expanded roads, water, and other services. The malls to which we shop, the universities we attend, and the subdivisions in which we live are examples of such developments.

Technical Assistance

Florida's regional planning councils are dedicated to providing technical assistance and support to local governments.

Inform

Florida's regional planning councils foster information exchange across jurisdictional lines. Regional planning councils provide a convenient information resource for public and private interests regionwide.

Network

Florida's regional planning councils work together as a statewide network pooling their efforts to protect and enhance the quality of life in Florida. The Florida Regional Councils Association (FRCA) meets monthly to exchange information about regional activities and works with the state and other public organizations to further regional coordination and planning.