Florida Forest Service Wildfire Jurisdiction

Section 590.02, Florida Statutes, gives the Florida Forest Service (within the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services) the duty to prevent, detect, and suppress wildfires on all forest lands of the state. The FFS issues outdoor burning authorizations, declares burn bans during high fire-danger periods, and may enter any land to suppress fire. The Florida Fire Prevention Code (NFPA 1, adopted by reference in Chapter 633) governs wildland-urban interface defensible space requirements uniformly statewide.

Negligent or willful setting of wildfire is a felony under Section 590.28, with liability for full suppression costs and damage to public and private property.