Week 5 of the 2026 Session 

Welcome to week 5 of the 2026 legislative session! With 28 days to go until Sine Die, stay on top of county priorities with this weekly legislative bulletin and our comprehensive Bill Tracker. 

On Thursday, the House released its proposed General Appropriations Act (BUC1) and supporting implementing and conforming bills to officially kick off the formal budget process. This was followed by the Senate releasing their budget (SPB 2500) materials on Friday. Over the next week, the two chambers will present their budgets as they move to the floor and position for budget conference. FAC will produce a House & Senate Budget Comparison next week after amendments are made and the chambers pass their respective budgets. 

To track the House Budget documents, click here. 

To track the Senate Budget documents, click here. 

On Thursday, 2/12, the Senate Appropriations Committee passed SB 1366 Claims Against the Government favorably by Senator Brodeur. This bill updates Florida’s sovereign immunity law (s. 768.28, F.S.), which is the state’s limited waiver allowing certain tort lawsuits against the state and its agencies or subdivisions. While the state can be sued for wrongful acts of its employees, payments on claims and collection of judgments remain capped unless the Legislature approves additional compensation through a claim bill. 

The bill makes several key changes: 

• Raises liability caps from $200,000 per person / $300,000 per incident to $300,000 per person / $450,000 per incident. 
• Adds automatic inflation adjustments, requiring the Department of Financial Services to update the caps every five years starting July 1, 2031, based on the Consumer Price Index. 
• Clarifies legislative control over attorney fees, stating the Legislature alone decides what attorney fees and costs may be paid from claim bill proceeds. 
• Revises statutes of limitation and preset requirements for certain claims against government entities, including negligence, medical malpractice, wrongful death, contribution, and sexual battery claims involving victims under 16. 
• Applies prospectively to causes of action accruing on or after October 1, 2026. 

The bill becomes effective October 1, 2026. FAC along with other impacted local entities provided information to the committee that the current version of the legislation was more favorable than the House companion; however, legislators should weigh both the costs and the conversations regarding potential reductions in local government revenues. 

The House companion, HB 145, by Rep. McFarland passed its third committee hearing on 1/15.  

To watch the committee hearing, click here.  

On Thursday, 2/12, the Senate Appropriations Committee on Transportation, Tourism, and Economic Development passed SB 354 Blue Ribbon Projects favorably by Senator McClain. This bill requires administrative approval of 10,000+ acre “blue-ribbon” projects for properties that are owned by the same person or entities. The bill requires 60% of the land to be set aside for reserve areas while allowing the other 40% of the land for development.  

• The automatic approval under this bill strips Floridians and their local officials of any meaningful voice by mandating an automatic approval process that overrides comprehensive plans, eliminates public hearings, and shifts land-use authority from elected officials to large landowners.  
• Without any enforcement mechanisms for the bills’ requirements, communities cannot ensure compliance or protect long-term planning goals.  
• Florida law already allows large-scale planning through existing sector plans under s. 163.3245 F.S., for properties with 5,000 acres.  
• This bill creates an unnecessary new framework that adds confusion and inconsistency to the state’s growth-management system.  

The House companion, HB 299, by Rep. Melo passed its first committee on 12/11.  

To watch the committee hearing, click here. 

On Tuesday, 2/10, the House State Affairs Committee passed HB 1139 Impact Fees unanimously by Representative Gentry. The bill implements new requirements for local governments seeking to increase impact fee rate beyond the base phase-in limitations due to extraordinary circumstances based on a demonstrated-need study. The demonstrated-need study must utilize a plan-based methodology.  

In order to demonstrate “extraordinary circumstances” under the bill, the demonstrated need study must specify the capacity standards used to support the existence of such extraordinary circumstances and be accompanied by a declaration of the method and timeframe by which the impact fee increase will increase capacity.  

HB 1139 further prohibits local governments, including school districts and special districts, from utilizing data that is older than 4 years, including in the impact fee increase any deduction authorized by a previous or existing impact fee. Lastly, a local government cannot increase an impact fee rate utilizing the extraordinary circumstances provisions by more than 100 percent in a 4-year period.  

The bill provides for refunds and reasonable attorney fees and costs to a petitioner in an action challenging an impact fee imposed in violation of the statute. The bill also provides that an interlocal agreement between a county and municipality regarding the coordination of development and redevelopment fees for transportation capacity impacts that were entered into before October 1, 2024, may not extend beyond October 1, 2031.  

The Senate companion, SB 548 by Senator McClain, passed its first committee stop on 1/20. 

To watch the committee hearing, click here. 

On Tuesday, 2/10, the House Judiciary Committee passed HB 655 Public Meetings/Attorney Meetings to Discuss Private Property Rights Claims unanimously by Representative Duggan. This bill creates a public meeting exemption allowing a state or local agency, or its chief administrative or executive officer, to meet privately with the agency’s attorney during the 90-day notice period under the Bert J. Harris, Jr., Private Property Rights Protection Act to discuss claims submitted under that law. The closed session must be limited to settlement negotiations or strategy discussions, publicly noticed, announced at an open meeting, and fully recorded by a certified court reporter, with no portion off the record. The transcript must be made part of the public record once the claim is settled or the statute of limitations expires if no litigation is filed. 

The bill also creates a public records exemption for transcripts, recordings, minutes, and other records generated during the exempt portion of such meetings. The exemptions are subject to the Open Government Sunset Review Act and will be repealed on October 2, 2031, unless reenacted by the Legislature. 

The Senate companion, SB 332, by Rep Bradley passed its second committee stop on 2/11. 

To watch the committee hearing, click here.  

On Tuesday, 2/10, the House State Affairs Committee unanimously approved HB 509 (Code Inspector Body Cameras) and HB 511 (Public Records/Code Inspector Body Cameras), both sponsored by Representative Partington. Together, the bills establish a statutory framework governing the use of body-worn cameras by local government code inspectors. 

HB 509 authorizes — but does not require — counties and other local governments to permit code inspectors to wear body cameras. Any local government choosing to do so must adopt comprehensive policies addressing camera use, training, data storage, retention, and periodic compliance reviews. The bill also clarifies that Florida’s wiretapping laws do not apply to recordings made by code inspectors using body cameras. 

HB 511 addresses the public records implications of these recordings by creating a new exemption for footage captured inside private residences, health care facilities, social service facilities, or other locations where a reasonable expectation of privacy exists. The bill requires counties to retain recordings for a minimum of 90 days and establishes detailed procedures for responding to public records requests, including mandatory disclosure to individuals who are recorded and access pursuant to court order. The exemption applies retroactively and is scheduled to sunset in 2031 unless reenacted. 

The Senate companions, SB 504 and SB 506 by Senator Burgess, passed in the Senate and are now in House Messages. 

FAC supported both measures in committee. To view the committee hearing, click here. 

On Tuesday, 2/10, the Senate Rules committee passed SB 290 Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services unanimously by Senator Truenow. The DACS package prohibits counties from adopting or enforcing any ordinance, resolution, rule, or policy that restricts or prohibits the use of gasoline-powered farm or landscape equipment.. Second, Section 3 of SB 290 revises how state and local governments may surplus lands with agricultural potential. The Acquisition and Restoration Council (ARC) must review any locally surplused lands and determine whether the property is suitable for bona fide agricultural purposes. If ARC finds that a parcel is suitable for commercial agriculture, the local government may not transfer future development rights for that land. Additionally, the bill expands the existing preemption related to agritourism by preventing local governments from requiring an agricultural property owner to obtain a rural event venue permit or license. 

Finally, the bill amends s. 403.0855, F.S., to require that permittees of a biosolids land application site permitted after July 1, 2020 shall ensure that only Class AA biosolids are applied to the soil, effective July 1, 2028. An amendment adopted in committee clarified that that local governments that do not transport biosolids for land application outside of their respective boundaries must comply with the Class AA biosolids land application requirement by July 1, 3031, and clarifies that this does not prohibit local governments from transporting Class B biosolids outside their boundaries to a Class AA biosolids treatment facility or waste-to-energy facility 

The House companion, HB 433 by Rep. Alvarez, passed its second committee stop on 2/4.  

To watch the committee hearing, click here.  

On Tuesday, 2/10, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed SB 692 Cybersecurity Standards and Liability unanimously by Senator Leek. As originally filed, the bill would have limited counties and other local governments to adopting only the cybersecurity standards and processes established by the Florida Digital Service (FLDS) within the Department of Management Services and expressly prohibited the state from delegating authority to set cybersecurity standards to local governments. 

As amended, the bill removes those mandates and retains the bills original liability protections for counties and other local governments arising from cybersecurity incidents, shielding them from lawsuits if they substantially comply with recognized cybersecurity standards or frameworks, maintain disaster recovery plans, and implement multi-factor authentication. However, the bill still limits county contracting authority by prohibiting local governments, for contracts entered into or amended on or after July 1, 2026, from imposing cybersecurity standards or processes on vendors that exceed those established by the Florida Digital Service, unless required by other state or federal laws or industry-specific regulations. FAC supported the bill as amended. 



The House companion, HB 635 by Rep. Giallombardo, passed its second committee stop on 2/3. 

To watch the committee hearing, click here.  

On Tuesday, 2/10, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed SB 1134 Official Actions of Local Governments favorably by Senator Yarborough. This bill would prohibit counties and municipalities from using any funds to support, promote, or take official actions related to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), including adopting ordinances, policies, programs, or regulations. Local governments would also be barred from establishing or staffing DEI offices or officers. 

The bill makes violations by local governing body members, acting in an official capacity, grounds for misfeasance or malfeasance in office, and allows any resident of a county to bring legal action against governments that violate the restrictions. The bill includes exceptions for actions required to comply with federal or general law. 

Additionally, the bill requires contractors or grant recipients to certify they will not use local government funds to require employees or others to participate in DEI-related instruction or materials. The bill would take effect January 1, 2027. 



The House companion, HB 1001 by Rep. Black passed its second committee hearing. 

To watch the committee hearing, click here. 

On Tuesday, 2/10, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed SB 1138 Qualified Contractors unanimously by Senator Massullo Jr. The bill requires local governments to create and maintain a framework of pre-approved qualified contractors available to perform building plans reviews, permits, and plat approval. Under the framework, a person applying to a local government for a permit, plans review, or plat approval may have a qualified contractor undertake a pre-application review, which results in the contractor certifying to the local government that items within the application meet the requirements for approval. The local government may then approve the application without duplicative reviews. 



The bill prohibits local governments from imposing any extra requirements on applicants seeking final plat approval beyond those already established. It also revises the expedited building permit process introduced in 2024 by expanding it to include planned unit developments, outlining steps to follow if a local government does not implement or adhere to the required procedures, and clarifying state preemption over the process, including limits on stricter local regulations. 

The House companion HB 927 by Representative Sapp passed its first committee stop on 2/5.

To watch the committee hearing, click here. 

On Tuesday, 2/10, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed SB 1434 Infill Redevelopment unanimously by Senator Calatayud. This bill creates the “Infill Redevelopment Act,” which limits local government authority over land development rules for certain qualifying parcels. These parcels must be at least 5 acres in Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami–Dade, and must be environmentally impacted, such as being designated as a brownfield or included in a dry cleaner site cleanup program. 



The bill requires local governments to approve qualifying developments through an administrative process, allowing the parcel to be developed under the standards of an adjacent residential zoning district. If no such district is adjacent, the local government must allow single-family homes or townhomes at specified minimum densities with non-restrictive standards. 

This bill also includes provisions for parcels containing recreational facilities, such as golf courses, or land reserved for recreation surrounded by single-family homes, establishing rules for continued recreational use and potential sale of the property. The bill applies retroactively to any local law, ordinance, or regulation contrary, and provides express preemption against local law applying a more restrictive or burdensome requirement or procedure to the development of a qualifying parcel. 

The House companion, HB 979 by Borrero, passed its first committee hearing on 2/5.  

To watch the committee hearing, click here. 

On Tuesday, 2/10, the Senate Regulated Industries Committee passed SB 1234 Building Permits and Inspections unanimously by Senator DiCeglie. This bill revises provisions relating to the Florida Building Code, local building permit requirements, and the use of private providers for building code inspection and plan review services. The bill provides that building permits for single-family dwellings expire one year after the later of permit issuance or the effective date of the next edition of the Florida Building Code, but authorizes local governments to grant extensions. It exempts certain temporary residential hurricane and flood protection walls or barriers from permitting requirements and relieves local governments of liability for work performed under that exemption. 

The bill exempts permitting for work valued at $7,500 or less on a single-family residential lot, except that permits may still be required for electrical, plumbing, structural, mechanical, or gas work, and requires non-owner contractors performing exempt work to file a notice with the local enforcement agency. It also prohibits requiring permits for certain retaining walls serving single-family, two-family, or townhouse dwellings. Inspection fees may not exceed the local enforcement agency’s actual costs, and permit fees may not be based on the total project cost. The Florida Building Commission must develop a uniform building permit application with project-specific checklists that can integrate with local software systems and account for local code amendments. 

Regarding private providers, the bill repeals the requirement that local governments maintain a mandatory registration system, though voluntary systems are permitted, and prohibits administrative fees for private provider registration or updates. The Department of Business and Professional Regulation must maintain a statewide registry of qualified private providers, which local enforcement agencies must use to verify licensure and insurance. The bill limits local government authority over private provider oversight, audits, and fee calculations, and revises notice and corrective action requirements. 

The bill also establishes expedited permitting timelines, including a five-day deadline for local governments to respond to permit applications for work valued under $15,000, and a two-day issuance requirement for permits related to single-family dwellings in areas subject to a state of emergency within the previous 24 months. Additionally, homeowners’ associations are prohibited from requiring a building permit as a prerequisite for reviewing proposed construction on a parcel. 



The House companion, CS/HB 803, by Rep. Trabulsy passed its second committee stop on 2/5.  

To watch the committee hearing, click here.  

On Tuesday, 2/10, the Senate Regulated Industries Committee unanimously passed SB 1260, by Senator DiCeglie. The bill focuses on how building inspections and permits are handled during a declared emergency, such as after a hurricane. 

The bill strengthens emergency training requirements for certain county and city officials. It directs the Division of Emergency Management to set minimum training hours every two years. Approved nonprofit organizations would also be allowed to provide this training. In addition, counties and cities must include training plans in their post-storm permitting plans to make sure extra staff understand and follow local floodplain rules. During an emergency, the bill allows the Governor — even if other laws would normally prevent it — to let qualified inspectors and plans examiners from other states (with mutual aid agreements) temporarily work in Florida. These individuals must complete the required training before serving. 

The bill also requires the Division of Emergency Management and the Department of Business and Professional Regulation to create a training program on the Florida Building Code. Local governments that have their own building code changes must create training on those changes as well. 

The House companion, HB 1109 by Representative Cross, passed its first committee stop on 2/12. 

To watch the committee hearing, click here. 

On Tuesday, 2/10, the Senate Transportation Committee passed SB 1274 Transportation unanimously by Senator DiCeglie. This bill makes broad changes across Florida’s transportation system, addressing traffic enforcement, seaport and spaceport coordination, local traffic control, airport funding, contracting practices, and traffic signal modernization. 

The bill increases the required perception-reaction time for steady yellow signals at intersections equipped with red-light cameras by 0.4 seconds. It revises the definition of “micromobility device” and clarifies that a license plate is not considered obscured if a frame does not cover the plate number or validation sticker. Counties and municipalities are authorized to set residential speed limits below 25 mph. 

Regarding technology and data use, the bill authorizes private entities to operate automated license plate recognition systems on private property and permits access to motor vehicle registration data for specified purposes, while establishing penalties for unlawful access or misuse. 

For seaports and space-related infrastructure, seaports located near spaceports and supporting space-related activities must annually report those activities to the chair of the Space Florida Board of Directors. The bill also establishes conditions that must be satisfied before space-related seaport infrastructure may be converted to other uses. 

The measure authorizes FDOT to fund up to 100 percent of eligible airport projects in rural communities. It requires FDOT to adopt rules governing when direct payments may be made to first-tier subcontractors and mandates that takeover agreements between FDOT and sureties require replacement contractors to meet specified qualifications. 

Finally, the bill creates the Next-Generation Traffic Signal Modernization Grant Program and provides an annual appropriation of $20 million. The bill may have fiscal impacts on both governmental and private sectors and takes effect July 1, 2026. 



To watch the committee hearing, click here.  

On Tuesday, 2/10, the Senate Community Affairs Committee passed SB 260 Removal, Storage, and Cleanup of Electric Vehicles unanimously by Senator Burgess. This bill requires counties, and authorizes municipalities, to establish a daily administration fee for the proper storage of electric vehicles that have been involved in a crash resulting in visible battery damage or whose batteries have been submerged in salt water. The fee applies until the appropriate local agency inspects the vehicle and verifies that the battery is safe and not at risk of causing a fire. 

The daily administration fee may be set at up to three times the maximum standard storage rates established by local governments and may be imposed when the vehicle owner or operator is incapacitated, unavailable, leaves the selection of wrecker service to law enforcement, or otherwise does not consent to removal. The fee may only be charged if the vehicle is properly stored, as defined in the bill, which also defines “daily administration fee.” 

The bill clarifies that these storage requirements do not obligate motor vehicle insurers to pay costs beyond those covered under their contracts with insureds. The measure may have an indeterminate negative fiscal impact on electric vehicle owners and an indeterminate positive fiscal impact on towing and storage operators. 

The House companion, HB 37, by Rep. Nix Jr. Passed its second committee stop on 12/3.  

To watch the committee hearing, click here.  

On Tuesday, 2/10, the Senate Community Affairs Committee passed SB 1566 Local Government Spending favorably by Senator DiCeglie. This bill enhances financial transparency and utility accountability requirements for counties and municipalities. The bill requires local governments to post tentative and final budgets, as well as budget amendments, on their official websites in a format that allows the public to search, sort, filter, download, compare data, and view graphical representations. The bill also revises the timelines for posting budget information and providing notice of public budget hearings. 



Additionally, the bill requires counties and municipalities to reinvest utility service revenues back into their utility systems to maintain operational integrity and specifies allowable uses for those funds.  

On Thursday 2/12, The House companion, HB 1329, by Rep. Benarroch passed its second committee. The Representative committed on working with cities and counties to lessen administrative burdens required by the bill. 

To watch the committee hearing, click here. 

On Wednesday, 2/11, the House Housing, Agriculture and Tourism Subcommittee unanimously passed HB 1389 - Affordable Housing, sponsored by Representative Redondo. 

The bill revises the Live Local Act to expand affordable housing development opportunities and limit certain local government restrictions. It allows multifamily and mixed-use residential developments on property owned by a county, municipality, or school district, provided the property is within that entity’s boundaries, and the local government is part of the development application. 

The bill also prohibits local governments from indirectly limiting building height through setbacks or step-backs that are more restrictive than underlying zoning requirements. It clarifies that farms and farm operations are not considered commercial or industrial uses under the Act and permits certain developments near airports if approved by the airport’s governing body. 

Additionally, the bill waives sovereign immunity for state and local governments in cases involving prohibited discrimination in land use and permitting decisions, including discrimination based on the source of financing for an affordable housing development. 

The Senate companion, SB 1548 by Senator Calatayud, passed its first committee stop on 2/3. 

To watch the committee hearing, click here. 

On Thursday, 2/12, the Senate Appropriations Committee on Transportation, Tourism, and Economic Development passed SB 1220 Transportation unanimously by Senator Massullo. The bill updates Florida’s transportation policies to address trails, freight movement, new technologies, and infrastructure security. 

The bill requires the Florida Greenways and Trails Council to update its list of priority regional trails after the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) releases its SUN Trail program report. It also gives FDOT more flexibility when selecting SUN Trail projects by allowing additional trail surface materials and letting the department consider sponsorship agreements when ranking projects. 

To strengthen freight movement and infrastructure resilience, SB 1220 requires seaports and commercial airports to include plans for protecting critical resources. It also directs FDOT to identify and prioritize key parts of Florida’s maritime supply chain to support the state’s maritime industry. 

The bill addresses new and emerging transportation technologies by allowing limited use of personal delivery devices in bike lanes and on roadway shoulders. It prevents local governments from blocking drone delivery services through land-use or parking requirements and defines “advanced air mobility corridor connection points.” In addition, the bill expands FDOT’s authority to support advanced air mobility, including the ability to acquire or build airports and purchase promotional items tied to transportation-related economic development. 

SB 1220 also repeals the state’s authority for digital driver licenses, designates FDOT as the lead agency for procuring LiDAR mapping systems, and increases the portion of certain turnpike toll revenues reinvested in Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade counties. 

The bill strengthens protections for autonomous vehicles by creating felony penalties for shooting into or damaging them. It also requires FDOT to study how alternative fuel vehicles impact transportation revenues, supported by a $300,000 appropriation. 

To watch the committee hearing, click here.  

On Thursday, 2/12, the Senate Finance and Tax Committee passed SB 1520 Affordable Housing Tax Exemption unanimously by Senator Calatayud. The bill amends the “Missing Middle” property tax exemption’s opt-out provision to: 

• Require a taxing authority make a finding that Shimberg’s annual reports for each of the 3 previous years identify that the number of affordable and available units in the metropolitan statistical area or region (MSA) is greater than the number of renter households in the MSA for the category entitled “0-120 percent AMI.” 
• Provide that an exemption may be granted to a project that received final site plan approval within 1 year before a taxing authority opted out and may continue receiving the exemption for each subsequent consecutive year that the same owner or successive owners apply for and are granted the exemption. 

The Revenue Estimating Conference projects that 27 counties will remain eligible for the “opt-out” provisions. To view this analysis, click here (page 298). The bill takes effect July 1, 2026, and the amendments first apply to the 2027 property tax roll. 

To watch the committee hearing, click here.