Off-grid ruled Illegal in a Florida City?

Has anyone heard anything about the Florida judge ruling that living off of the grid is illegal? I ran across the article below today and am a little uncertain of how it will play out if taken to higher courts. It doesn't bode well though since it is taking its language strait from the International Property Management Code. I am sure I am not the only one who thinks that such codes are usually very linear and poorly thought out when it comes to innovating and improving. Still, I have seen very few cities that don't adopt that as part of their ordinances. I am curious if anyone here might know more about the specifics of this situation in particular or have thoughts about how this is going to affect those living in other cities with the same code.


The Article via Viral Survival

Looks like a pretty cut and dry case. The person was not truly off grid. They tied into the city sewer system. Since most cities base their sewer charges on water use, they are required to hook up to the water system for billing for the service they use. If they are using only rainwater, then the bill will just be the base bill.

I think where they got her was she was using the sewer without paying for water, which is how most cities sell it--water AND sewer service, pricing both based on the water you use. Sounds like she used a composting toilet but didn't collect all her greywater.

City services are not cheap, even when done efficiently. If people realize they don't have to pay for things they won't and then you have Detroit. Eventually, there wouldn't be money to pay judges, so guess how judges are biased?

When I was a kid, everyone was responsible for the sidewalk AND ROAD in front of their property. Not just rural farmers, but in town as well. Big snow came and you didn't just shovel your drive--you cleared the street, too. Need more gravel, go pick it up yourself. But some people got lazy, some people got mad, and lots of people wanted to tell others how to do their job. So we created government jobs to do the work for everyone. Most placed did, but not all:

Awesome video! I love the way he talks. Thanks for posting that

BUT I have been researching this, and a town that I currently rent in is unincorporated (Newcastle CA) lots of infrastructure and good roads, but land for sale still has zoning restrictions etc. And if you built without permits, I bet local authorities would be all over you. So where is the line drawn?