Can a Florida city or town change the age of 'minor' or the curfew hours after adopting the state juvenile curfew statute by reference?

Plain-English summary

The Town of Baldwin had adopted Florida's state juvenile curfew statute (sections 877.20-877.24, Florida Statutes) by reference. Other nearby local governments had crafted their own curfew ordinances with different age definitions and hours. The town's attorney asked whether section 877.25's language permitting "more stringent or less stringent" local rules let Baldwin tweak the imported statutory text by ordinance, in particular, to change who counts as a "minor."

The AG answered no, and then yes-but. When a town imports the statutes by reference, it imports the package: the age definition, the hours, the penalties, the procedures. It cannot pick and choose. To deviate, the town must draft an independent local curfew that exists alongside the statutory scheme, not on top of it. And that locally drafted ordinance must satisfy state and federal constitutional limits on regulating minors, which the Florida Supreme Court canvassed in State v. J.P., 907 So. 2d 1101 (Fla. 2005). The court there required a compelling governmental interest and narrowly tailored means before a curfew can burden minors' fundamental rights to privacy and freedom of movement.

The opinion also flagged an Article I, section 18 wrinkle: penalties may only be imposed "as provided by law," which the AG read as legislative law, not municipal ordinance. That puts an outer limit on how far a locally drafted curfew can go on the enforcement side.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2016. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Q: What exactly does it mean to "adopt a statute by reference"?
A: A local code section says something like "the provisions of Florida Statutes sections 877.20 through 877.24 are hereby adopted as part of the Town Code." The local ordinance does not reproduce the statutory text. Whatever the statute says is what the local code says. That's clean if the statute never changes, less clean when the town wants something a little different.

Q: Why couldn't Baldwin just change the age of "minor"?
A: Because section 877.25 contemplates either (a) adoption by reference of the statutory scheme, full stop, or (b) an independently crafted local ordinance with different terms. It does not contemplate adoption-with-edits. The AG read the statute to mean the town must pick a lane.

Q: What were the state curfew's basic terms?
A: "Minor" was anyone under 16 (section 877.21(3)). Curfew ran 11:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. Sunday through Thursday (except legal holidays) and 12:01 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays. First violation was a written warning. Second or later violations carried a $50 fine and a civil infraction citation. Minors taken into custody had to be transported to a station and a parent contacted.

Q: What constitutional limits apply to a locally drafted juvenile curfew?
A: Under State v. J.P., 907 So. 2d 1101 (Fla. 2005), juveniles have fundamental rights to privacy and freedom of movement. A curfew that burdens those rights survives only if the local government has a compelling interest and the ordinance is narrowly tailored to achieve it through the least intrusive means available. Exceptions for travel to work, to a religious or educational event, with a parent, or in response to an emergency are common ways to satisfy narrow tailoring.

Q: Are there other Florida-specific limits?
A: Article I, section 18 of the Florida Constitution provides that penalties may only be imposed "as provided by law." The AG read "by law" to mean acts of the Legislature, not municipal ordinances. Penalty design for a local curfew has to thread that needle. Broward County v. Plantation Imports, Inc., 419 So. 2d 1145 (Fla. 4th DCA 1982), develops that principle.

Q: Why might a town want to lower or raise the age?
A: Different towns face different juvenile-crime patterns. A "minor under 16" definition leaves out 16- and 17-year-olds, which some towns view as a gap. Other towns argue 14- and 15-year-olds rarely cause problems and want a narrower definition. The statute leaves both options open as long as the local government drafts its own ordinance.

Background and statutory framework

Florida's juvenile-curfew statute, enacted as part of the 1994 omnibus juvenile crime act (Chapter 94-209, Laws of Florida), is opt-in by design. Section 877.25 says the statutory scheme "do[es] not apply in a county or municipality unless the governing body of the county or municipality adopts an ordinance that incorporates by reference the provisions of ss. 877.20-877.24." That same section preserves home rule space: local governments may regulate the presence of minors with rules "more stringent or less stringent" than the statute.

The structural question is what "more stringent or less stringent" means. The AG read it not as license to amend the imported statutory terms, but as an alternative path: instead of importing, a town may design from scratch. The Legislature, on this reading, wanted clarity. Either you have section 877.22's exact age and hours, or you have your own ordinance. You do not have a mix-and-match.

The opinion underscored that home rule does not solve this. While Florida municipalities have Home Rule Powers Act authority under section 166.021, that authority does not let them rewrite a state statute they adopted by reference. They can supplant the state statute with their own ordinance. They cannot edit it.

Constitutional layering applies to either path. State v. J.P. requires strict-scrutiny analysis of juvenile curfews. Article I, section 18 limits penalty creation to the Legislature. Broward County v. Plantation Imports and the 1945 Florida Supreme Court Advisory Opinion to Governor read "by law" narrowly.

Citations and references

Statutes and constitution:
- §§ 877.20 - 877.25, Fla. Stat. (Juvenile curfew)
- Art. I, § 18, Fla. Const.

Cases:
- State v. J.P., 907 So. 2d 1101 (Fla. 2005), strict scrutiny applies to juvenile curfew burdening privacy and movement rights
- Advisory Opinion to Governor, 22 So. 2d 398 (Fla. 1945), "by law" means legislative act
- Broward County v. Plantation Imports, Inc., 419 So. 2d 1145 (Fla. 4th DCA 1982), same

Prior AG opinions cited:
- Op. Att'y Gen. Fla. 2009-53, "by law" means legislative act
- Op. Att'y Gen. Fla. 84-39 (1984), same

Source

• Landing page: https://www.myfloridalegal.com/ag-opinions/juvenile-curfews-municipalities-ordinances
• Original PDF: https://www.myfloridalegal.com/print/pdf/node/1508

Original opinion text

Mr. Jeb T. Branham

Attorney at Law

3500 3rd Street South

Jacksonville Beach, Florida 32250

RE: JUVENILE CURFEWS – MUNICIPALITIES – ORDINANCES – whether municipality is authorized to alter terms of statutory juvenile curfew as adopted in an ordinance. ss. 877.20 - 877.24, Fla. Stat.

Dear Mr. Branham:

As Town Attorney for the Town of Baldwin, Florida, you have asked for my opinion on substantially the following question:

Is a municipality authorized to adopt by ordinance the terms of the state juvenile curfew law described in sections 877.20 - 877.25, Florida Statutes, and to subsequently make changes, by ordinance, in the terms of the statutes for local application?

In sum:

If a municipality adopts an ordinance that incorporates by reference the provisions of sections 877.20 - 877.24, Florida Statutes, it may not alter by ordinance the statutory terms expressed in the statutes. However, section 877.25, Florida Statutes, does not preclude a municipality from adopting an independently crafted juvenile curfew ordinance. Any such locally crafted language must comport with federal and state constitutional law relating to juvenile curfews.

According to information supplied to this office, the Town of Baldwin has adopted the state curfew imposed by section 877.20, Florida Statutes, et seq., without any changes to the statutory language.[1] A number of local governments nearby have adopted curfew ordinances which include individually-crafted provisions relating to the age of minors subject to the curfew. You ask whether the language of section 877.25, Florida Statutes, which states that local governments may "provide restrictions more stringent or less stringent than the curfew imposed under section 877.22" would allow the Town of Baldwin to modify by ordinance the statutory language contained in section 877.22, Florida Statutes, to redefine the term "minor" which the Town has adopted in its curfew ordinance. As discussed below, it is my opinion that the Town may adopt the provisions of section 877.20 - 877.25, Florida Statutes, but has no authority to alter the language of the statute by ordinance to redefine the term "minor." If the Town of Baldwin decides to draft its own juvenile curfew ordinance it may develop the terms of its ordinance but should be cognizant of federal and state constitutional law relating to juvenile curfews.

Sections 877.20 - 877.25, Florida Statutes, describe a template for local juvenile curfew ordinances. It was the intent of the Legislature, in adopting these provisions:

"to protect minors in this state from harm and victimization, to promote the safety and well-being of minors in this state, to reduce the crime and violence committed by minors in this state, and to provide counties and municipalities with the option of adopting a local juvenile curfew ordinance by incorporating by reference the provisions of ss. 877.20-877.25."[2]

As used in the act, the term "[m]inor" is defined as "any person under 16 years of age."[3]

The act prohibits minors from being in public places and establishments during certain hours[4] and prescribes penalties[5] and procedures[6] for violations of the curfew provisions. The act does not apply in a county or a municipality unless the governing body of the local government adopts a local ordinance:

"Sections 877.20-877.24 do not apply in a county or municipality unless the governing body of the county or municipality adopts an ordinance that incorporates by reference the provisions of ss. 877.20-877.24. Sections 877.20-877.24 do not preclude county or municipal ordinances regulating the presence of minors in public places and establishments which provide restrictions more stringent or less stringent than the curfew imposed under s. 877.22."[7]

Thus, it appears that the juvenile curfew ordinance provided in sections 877.20 - 877.24, Florida Statutes, is not preemptive; rather, the act recognizes that a county or municipality may regulate the presence of minors more strictly, or less strictly, than those provisions of sections 877.20 - 877.24, Florida Statutes. However, if, as the Town of Baldwin has done, a county or municipality adopts the statutory scheme as set out in the statutes, it is my opinion that the Town is bound by the language of those statutory provisions. The statute provides no flexibility to alter the framework set forth in sections 877.20 - 877.24, Florida Statutes, if the Town has adopted that framework.[8] Rather, the statute appears to authorize local governments to craft juvenile curfew ordinances with terms either more or less stringent which may be adopted independently of sections 877.20 - 877.24, Florida Statutes.

In sum, it is my opinion that if a municipality adopts an ordinance that incorporates by reference the provisions of sections 877.20 - 877.24, Florida Statutes, it may not alter by ordinance the statutory terms expressed in the statutes. Section 877.25, Florida Statutes, does not, however, preclude a municipality from adopting an independently crafted juvenile curfew ordinance, but any such locally-crafted language must comport with federal and state constitutional law relating to juvenile curfews.[9]

Sincerely,

Pam Bondi

Attorney General

PB/tgh

[1] The Baldwin, Florida, Code of Ordinances has adopted the state statutes establishing a curfew for minors in the following terms: "Pursuant to Florida Statutes s. 877.25, the provisions of Florida Statutes ss. 877.20 - 877.24 are hereby adopted by reference as part of the Code of the Town of Baldwin." The provisions of the state statutes are not set out at length in the code.

[2] Section 877.20, Fla. Stat.

[3] Section 877.21(3), Fla. Stat.

[4] Section 877.22(1)(a), Fla. Stat., prohibits minors from being or remaining in a public place or establishment between 11:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. of the following day, Sunday through Thursday, except for legal holidays; (b) prohibits minors from being or remaining in a public place or establishment between 12:01 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. on Saturdays, Sundays, or legal holidays.

[5] Penalties include written warnings for a first violation and a fine of $50.00 and being charged with a civil infraction for those already having received a prior written warning. Section 877.22(3), Fla. Stat. I note that this act came into the statutes in Ch. 94-209, Laws of Fla., which was a major juvenile crime bill.

[6] Section 877.22(4), Fla. Stat., states that a minor violating a curfew and taken into custody must be transported to a police station or other facility conducting a curfew program and requires that the parents of the minor be contacted to take custody of the minor.

[7] Section 877.25, Fla. Stat.

[8] While municipalities in Florida do have home rule powers, Article I, section 18 of the Florida Constitution specifically provides that the imposition of penalties may only be accomplished "as provided by law." This office has concluded that the term "by law" means an act of the Legislature and does not include municipal ordinances. See Ops. Att'y Gen. Fla. 2009-53 and 84-39 (1984); Advisory Opinion to Governor, 22 So. 2d 398 (Fla. 1945); Broward County v. Plantation Imports, Inc., 419 So. 2d 1145 (Fla. 4th DCA 1982).

[9] See, for example, State v. J.P. v. T.M., 907 So. 2d 1101 (Fla. 2005) ("Because the juveniles' fundamental rights to privacy and freedom of movement are burdened by the curfew ordinances, the cities must have a compelling governmental interest in regulating the activities of minors during the hours of the curfew and the ordinances must be narrowly tailored to accomplish their goals by the least intrusive means available.").