Styrofoam food containers in bins. Photo: wk1003mike/Shutterstock.com

The city of Coral Gables is working to bring an August order by Florida's Third District Court of Appeal before the state Supreme Court.

The Third DCA issued an opinion on Aug. 14 ruling Coral Gables' local ordinance banning the sale and use of polystyrene — a plastic foam generally used to store food and widely known as its branded iteration Styrofoam — could not be enforced under existing state law. Now, the city is drafting a motion to invoke the jurisdiction of the Florida Supreme Court.

The move follows an August vote by the Coral Gables City Commission to appeal the Third DCA's order. According to Coral Gables City Attorney Miriam Ramos, the decision to petition the Florida Supreme Court was born out of necessity.

"We asked the Third DCA to certify the question to the Florida Supreme Court, and our motion was denied," Ramos told the Daily Business Review.

The Sept. 19 order by the appellate court prompted the city to begin working on its motion to invoke jurisdiction.

Ramos noted once the motion is filed, it will fall upon the Florida Supreme Court to decide whether Coral Gables' fight to enact eco-friendly regulations will proceed in court.

"The commission feels strongly, as does our office, that this issue is one of great public importance," Ramos said. "Given the significant environmental concerns associated with these products, there are dozens of municipalities throughout the state that stand prepared to adopt ordinances banning polystyrene and single-use plastic bags but are unable to do so, given these statutes."

The appeals court's opinion reversed and remanded a Miami-Dade Circuit Court judgment deeming the contested Florida Statutes mentioned by Ramos — sections 403.708(9), 403.7033, and 500.90 — unconstitutional.

The Florida Retail Federation served as the plaintiff in the June 2016 lawsuit against Coral Gables over its polystyrene-prohibiting law. Scott Shalley, the president and CEO of the Tallahassee-based business interest group, did not return requests for comment by deadline.

Bonnie Malloy, a staff attorney with environmental law group Earthjustice's Florida Branch, filed an amicus curiae brief on behalf of Coral Gables during the appellate proceedings. Malloy said in emailed remarks to the Daily Business Review that the city has her continued support .

"It's clear that Coral Gables is doing all it can to keep its community clean," she said. "It's a shame that powerful corporations — and their friends in the Florida Legislature — keep trying to step on the rights of Florida cities and counties like Coral Gables. If a community wants to pass a law to cut down on plastics or other litter, they should be able to do that without having to go to the Florida Supreme Court."

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