Columbia County, FL Homelessness & Encampment Rules: Encampment Sanitation (2026)

Columbia County's Board of County Commissioners adopted the county-property conduct ordinance, Ord. No. 2022-10, codified at Chapter 74, Article II, Division 2 of the Code of Ordinances. Section 74-43 states the Board's finding that it seeks to maintain a safe and orderly environment on county property and to discourage conduct that interferes with the designated use of that property. Section 74-45 lists ten categories of prohibited conduct on county property, including disorderly conduct, loitering, unauthorized signage, and, at subsection (7), sleeping or camping except as permitted by county rule or policy.

Section 74-44 authorizes county employees with oversight of the property, contracted security personnel, or, when neither is present, any law enforcement officer, to petition for a trespass warning. Under Section 74-47, the warning must be in writing, must state the facts justifying it, must cite the specific rule violated, must identify the property covered, and must advise the respondent of a right to appeal to the county attorney's office within ten days. A trespass warning lasts up to one year under Section 74-47(d), and violating it is itself chargeable as criminal trespass under Chapter 810, Florida Statutes.

Appeals go to the county's hearing officer, typically the special magistrate, who must schedule a hearing within seven days of filing and hold it within 30 days, with the county bearing the burden of proof by a preponderance of the evidence under Section 74-48. Section 74-49 sets the penalty for any Division 2 violation, including camping in violation of subsection (7), at prosecution as a misdemeanor with a fine up to $500.00, imprisonment up to 60 days, or both, with each day of a continuing violation counted as a separate offense. The Columbia County Sheriff's Office enforces the division.