Fifth Week of the 2024 Legislative Session 



Welcome to week 5 of the 2024 legislative session! The Countdown Clock reads 28 days until Sine Die. Bills will be heard and amended every day—stay on top of county priorities with this weekly legislative bulletin or with our comprehensive Bill Tracker. 

The House and Senate passed their proposed appropriations packages this week. For full details on the chambers’ spending proposals, please see our Budget Report here.

On Tuesday, the Senate Committee on Community Affairs passed CS/SB 438 by Sen. Ingoglia (5-3). This bill establishes term limits for county commissioners who will have served for 8 consecutive years in office. This section applies to both charter and non-charter counties but does not supersede more restrictive term limits set by a county charter. Service of a commissioner before November 8, 2022, will not be counted towards these limitations.  

During committee, two amendments were adopted: 



• The first requires charter counties with 12-year term limits (Polk, Lee & Broward) to put a measure on the ballot to allow voters to decide if their County Commissioner should be subject to an 8-year term limit.  
• The second only applies to charter counties with no term limits; prior service before 11/5/2024 does not count towards the 8-year limit.  This does not supersede more restrictive term limits and does not authorize County Commissioners to serve another 8-year consecutive term. 

FAC staff Bob McKee, along with County Commissioners Ralph Thomas (Wakulla County) and Fred Nichols (Wakulla County), all testified against the bill.  

The House companion, CS/HB 57, by Rep. Salzman has one more committee stop. In its amended form, the bill will establish term limits for county commissioners for 12 consecutive years.  

SB 770 by Sen. Martin passed the Senate floor (38-2) on Wednesday. The bill addresses a number of concerns with the Property Assessed Clean Energy, or PACE, program. The program allows residential and commercial property owners to finance eligible improvements, including energy efficiency and wind resistance projects, through assessments on their annual tax bill. 

The Senate bill clarifies that a PACE program administrator may only offer residential financing within the jurisdiction of a county or municipality that has authorized the program by ordinance or resolution. Without this clarification, rogue program administrators may be emboldened to operate statewide with little oversight. The House version, CS/HB 927 by Rep. Trabulsy, does not currently contain this clarification, which FAC supports as part of its 2024 Legislative Action Plan.  

The bills also expand the eligible uses of the program to include advanced wastewater treatment and flood mitigation but remove solar energy as an eligible use. Lastly, the bill tightens the consumer protections surrounding the program, including additional disclosure requirements and greater financial scrutiny on a property owner’s ability to repay. 

On Tuesday, the Senate Community Affairs Committee passed CS/SB 1628 by Sen. Collins (5-3). Its next stop is the Senate Floor. On Wednesday, the House version CS/HB 1547 by Rep. McClure passed (11-5) in its first committee stop Local Administration, Federal Affairs & Special Districts Subcommittee.  

This bill revises the categories of local ordinances exempt from statutes related to the production of business impact estimates and subject to certain conditions on lawsuits brought by any party to challenge the legal validity of local ordinances as preempted by state law, arbitrary, or unreasonable.  

This week, both bills revising the requirements to increase millage rates passed in respective House and Senate Committees. On Wednesday, the House bill, CS/CS/HB 1195 by Rep. Garrison, passed (13-4) its final House committee, State Affairs, and is now headed to the floor. Meanwhile, on Thursday, the Senate version, SB 1322 by Sen. Ingoglia, passed its second reference, the Senate Finance and Tax Committee.  

The bill requires a two-thirds vote of the governing body of a county, municipality, or independent special district in order to pass any millage rate increase, except where a higher vote threshold is already required under current law.  

The Senate Community Affairs Committee passed CS/SB 1492 by Sen. Trumbull on Tuesday (5-3). The bill originally preempted local governments from seeking to control or affect the wages and benefits of potential vendors within the local procurement process; however, this was removed in the latest committee substitute language. FAC staff is continuing to monitor this bill. 

This remaining language preempts local governments from enforcing workplace heat exposure regulations. This includes employee monitoring and protection requirements, water consumption, cooling measures, acclimatization and recovery periods or practices, and posting materials relating to heat exposure, which inform employees how to protect themselves from such exposures. Employers must provide proper training programs for heat exposure and first–aid or emergency response due to heat exposure. 

The House companion, CS/HB 433, by Rep. Esposito, remains in its second committee stop. The House language still contains the preemption on prevailing wages and benefits, as well as an additional preemption of the “terms and conditions” of employment. 

On Monday, the Senate Committee on Ethics and Election unanimously passed CS/CS/SB 734 by Sen. Ingoglia. The bill establishes registration requirements for local lobbyists and prohibits certain state and local officials from soliciting or accepting gifts from a foreign country of concern. The latest amendment language provides that the lobbyist registration requirements supersede any overlapping provisions in a county charter. Additionally, the amendment provides that certain local government employee contracts shall not be renewed, extended, or renegotiated within 8 months of a general election for members of the applicable governing body.



Rep. Andrade's House version, HB 735, was temporarily postponed this week in the House. 

On Tuesday, the Senate Governmental Oversight and Accountability Committee passed CS/SB 742 by Sen. Grall (4-2). 

Under current law, a “public works project” includes construction projects funded in part or whole by state-appropriated funds. The bill revises the definition to also include projects paid for with local funding. 

Current law also preempts certain “local preferences” within the procurement phase of a public works project. This includes consideration of geographic location, wage rates, benefits, staffing levels, and recruiting or hiring from preferred sources. 

The bill would expand these preempted activities to projects involving local funds—however, a local government may still practice geographic preferences if it is the sole funding source of the project. Currently, goods, services, or work that is incidental to the public works project and other such incidental service items are excluded from this preemption. Note: The House language does not carve out geographic preferences within sole-source funded projects.  

The House version CS/HB 705 by Rep. Shoaf is placed on the calendar for 2nd Reading.  

On Tuesday, the Senate Rules Committee unanimously passed CS/SB 862 by Sen. Jones. The bill establishes public records exemptions for current County Administrators, Deputy Administrators, Assistant Administrators, City Managers, Deputy Managers, and Assistant City Managers. The committee adopted amendment language removing Deputy City Managers, Assistant City Managers, Deputy County Administrators, Assistant County Administrators, as well as their respective spouses and children from the exemption.  

The House companion, HB 811 by Rep. Gottlieb, has not yet been heard.  

On Wednesday, the Senate unanimously passed CS/CS/SB 328 by Sen. Calatayud off the Senate Floor. Two amendments were adopted on the floor, making the following changes:  

• A county may not restrict the floor area ratio of proposed development authorized under this subsection below 150 percent of the highest currently allowed floor area ratio on any unincorporated land in the county where development is allowed under the county’s land development regulations.  
• If a proposed development receives a bonus, in height, density, or floor area ratio, this additional bonus must be administratively approved, and no further action is required by the Board of County Commissioners.  
• Defines “adjacent to” as those properties sharing more than one point of a property line but does not include properties separated by a public road.  
• Reduces parking requirements by at least 20 percent.  
• An applicant for a proposed development authorized under affordable housing programs who submitted an application, written request, or notice of intent to utilize such provision to the county or municipality and which has been received by the county or municipality, as applicable, before the effective date of this act may notify the county or municipality by July 1, 2024, of its intent to proceed under the provisions of ss. 125.01055(7) or 166.04151(7), as they existed at the time of submittal. A county or municipality shall allow an applicant who submitted such application, written request, or notice of intent before the effective date of this act the opportunity to submit a revised application, written request, or notice of intent to account for the changes made by this act. c county or municipality shall allow an applicant who submitted such application, written request, or notice of intent before the effective date of this act the opportunity to submit a revised application, written request, or notice of intent to account for the changes made by this act. 

After being amended on the floor, the bill still pertains the following actions: 

As it pertains to the act’s preemption of certain local zoning and land use regulations to expedite the development of affordable housing, the bill: 

• Restores the directive for local governments to approve qualifying developments in industrial areas. 
• Preempts a county from regulating “floor area ratio” for qualifying developments. 
• Modifies the height preemption provisions to address situations where a qualifying development is adjacent to single family parcels. 
• Prohibits qualifying developments within one-quarter mile of a military installation from utilizing the act’s administrative approval process and exempts certain airport impacted areas from the act’s provisions. 
• Clarifies that a local government’s “currently allowed” density, height, and floor area ratio does not include any bonuses, variances, or other special exceptions provided in their regulations. 
• Requires developments authorized under the act to be treated as a conforming use even after expiration of the development’s affordability period and after the expiration of the applicable statutes. 

As it pertains to the act’s ad valorem tax exemptions for newly constructed multifamily developments, the bill makes the following changes: 

• Requires 10 units, rather than 70 units, to be set aside for income-limited persons and families in Florida Keys to qualify for the exemption. 
• Clarifies that the Florida Housing Finance Corporation’s (FHFC) duties are ministerial in certifying eligibility for exemption, while local property appraisers maintain authority to grant tax exemptions. 
• Outlines the method for property appraisers to determine the values of tax-exempt units. 

Finally, the bill appropriates $100 million in non-recurring funds from the General Revenue Fund to the FHFC to administer the Florida Hometown Hero Program and makes one programmatic change and expands the authority for the FHFC to preclude developers from participating in its programs for certain violations. 

The House version HB1239 by Rep. Lopez passes its first committee State Affairs (18-1). The bill was amended and now does the following: 

The bill amends various provisions of the Live Local Act (act). As it pertains to the act’s preemption of certain local zoning and land use regulations to expedite the development of affordable housing, the bill:  

• Clarifies qualifying affordable units must be rental units and the highest allowed density and height subject to the preemption does not include bonuses, variances, or other special exceptions.  
• Modifies the height preemption for developments adjacent to single-family residential uses.  
• Limits the ability of local governments to restrict the intensity, as measured in floor area ratio (FAR), of a proposed development beyond the highest amount currently authorized.  
• It prohibits qualifying developments located near a military installation and exempts certain airport-impacted areas.  
• Clarifies the act does not limit a local government’s ability to grant a bonus, variance, or other special exception for height, density, or FAR and provides that a proposed development is still eligible for height, density, or intensity bonuses provided by local ordinance if certain conditions are satisfied.  
• Requires developments authorized under the act be treated as a conforming use even after expiration of the development’s affordability period and after the expiration of the act.  
• Modifies parking reduction requirements for qualifying developments.  
• Grandfathers in applicants for proposed developments under current law, but allows those applicants to submit a revised application to account for changes made by the bill  

As it pertains to the act’s ad valorem tax exemptions for affordable housing development, the bill:  

• Requires fewer units for developments located in the Florida Keys to be set aside for income-limited persons and families.  
• Clarifies that the Florida Housing Finance Corporation’s (FHFC) duties are ministerial, while local property appraisers maintain authority to grant tax exemptions, and outlines the method for property appraisers to determine values of tax-exempt units. 

The bill also expands the authority of the FHFC to preclude certain developers from participating in its programs.  

On Wednesday, the House Judiciary Committee passed CS/HB 1365 by Rep Garrison (16-6). Its companion bill CS/SB 1530, by Sen. Martin, passed the Senate Judiciary (8-1). In both committees, a delete everything amendment was adopted and makes the following changes to the bill: 



• Creates a cause of action for a person or business to file suit against any county or municipality for violation of this provision. 
• Defines the term “public camping” means lodging or residing overnight in a temporary outdoor habitation used as a dwelling or living space and evidenced by the erection of a tent or other temporary shelter, the presence of bedding or pillows, or the storage of personal belongings. The term does not include lodging or residing overnight in a motor vehicle that is registered, insured, and located in a place where it may lawfully be.  
• Defines the term “public sleeping means lodging or residing overnight in an outdoor space without a tent or other temporary shelter. 
• Requiring the governmental entity to post on its website the minimum standards and procedures governing the public property. 
• Limited the designation of public property to be used for purposes of public camping or public sleeping to a continuous period of no longer than one year.  
• Required a county or municipality that designates public property to be used for public camping or public sleeping to notify DCF within 30 days of making such a designation and to post minimum standards and procedures on the county’s or municipality’s publicly accessible website.  
• Required DCF to conduct inspections of county or municipal property that has been designated to be used for public camping or public sleeping within specified time periods.  
• Exempted a fiscally constrained county or a municipality located in a fiscally constrained county from complying with specified minimum standards and procedures required under the bill.  
• Required a person who applies for an injunction to provide an affidavit attesting that he or she has provided notice of such a violation to the county or municipality and that the county or municipality failed to cure such violation within five business days. 
• Authorizing local officers to declare a state of emergency as an additional basis for when the provisions of the bill do not apply. 

This week, the House and Senate moved a pair of bills addressing occupational licensing. On Tuesday, the House State Administration & Technology Appropriations Subcommittee unanimously passed CS/HB 1579 By Rep. Mooney. Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the Senate version CS/SB 1142 by Sen. Hooper was passed unanimously in the Fiscal Policy.  

The bill directs the Construction Industry Licensing Board to provide a registration program for eligible contractors who were registered with a local jurisdiction during calendar years 2021, 2022, or 2023, when the local jurisdiction has since determined not to issue local licenses.  

To be eligible for registration under these circumstances, an applicant must provide:  



• Evidence of the prior local registration during 2021, 2022, or 2023. 
• Evidence that the local jurisdiction does not require a license for the category of work for which the applicant was issued a certification of registration or local license during 2021, 2022, or 2023, which may include a notification on the website of the local jurisdiction or an email or letter from the local building department. 
• The required application fee; and  
• Compliance with the insurance and financial responsibility requirements for contractors under current law.  

On Monday, the Senate Rules Committee unanimously passed CS/CS/SB 812 Sen. Ingoglia, while the House Commerce Committee passed CS/CS/HB 665 by Rep. McClain (12-5) on Thursday. 

The bill requires counties of 75,000 residents or more to create a program allowing for expedited batch permitting (up to 50% of the total building permits) for eligible planned communities, following approval of a preliminary plat. 

An eligible applicant may obtain these expedited permits under the following conditions: 

• Approval of a preliminary plat by the local government. 
• The applicant furnishes a copy of the approved plat and plans to the relevant utilities. 
• The applicant holds a valid performance bond up to 130% of the necessary utilities and improvements. 
• An applicant must indemnify and hold harmless the local government for any damages related to the issuance of the building permits. 

On Tuesday, CS/SB 684 by Sen. DiCeglie passed (5-3) its first committee stop, Senate Community Affairs.  

The bill tightens the “shot clocks” for a local building department to approve or deny a permit. Current law for single family residential dwellings allows for an initial 30-day review, and an additional 10-day review, once an applicant has cured any deficiencies. Meanwhile, a local building department has up to 120 days to review most other permit types. 

This bill provides for the following revised timelines:  

• 12 days when a statutorily licensed “private provider” is used for plan review 
• 15 days for a site-specific master building permit application 
• 30 days for residential structures under 7,500 square feet  
• 60 days for residential structures greater than 7,500 square feet OR nonresidential structures or signage under 25,000 square feet 
• 120 days for multifamily residential; site plan and subdivision plat approvals not requiring a judicial hearing; and lot grading and site alteration. 

A local government must refund 10 percent of the permit fee for every day it does not meet these deadlines, barring an extension agreed to in writing by the applicant. Note: The House companion, CS/CS/SB 267 by Rep. Esposito, provides that an application is “deemed approved” by default if certain deadlines are not met. This poses a significant public safety risk if buildings are not properly reviewed for code compliance. The Senate language does not contain this provision. 

To help streamline the local permitting process, the bill authorizes the use of year-over-year carryover funds from permit fees to upgrade permit enforcement technology within the building department. 

The bill also requires counties of 75,000 residents or more to create a program allowing for expedited batch permitting (up to 50% of the total building permits) for eligible planned communities, following approval of a preliminary plat. A similar program concept can also be found in the House counterpart, as well as HB 665 and SB 812.  

An eligible applicant may obtain these expedited permits under the following conditions: 



• Approval of a preliminary plat by the local government 
• The applicant furnishes a copy of the approved plat and plans to the relevant utilities. 
• The applicant holds a valid performance bond up to 120% of the necessary utilities and improvements. 
• An applicant must indemnify and hold harmless the local government for any damages related to the issuance of the building permits. 

On Thursday, the House Commerce Committee passed CS/HB 1221 by Rep. McClain (11-4). 

During committee, two amendments were adopted that make the following changes to the bill: 

• Data that is taken from a professionally accepted source for matters of comprehensive plans must be collected and analyzed. Furthermore, Local Governments shall not mandate a particular professionally accepted methodology or reject professionally accepted methodology utilized in a comprehensive plan amendment. 
• Creates new language regarding the final orders or decisions of locally established historical prevention boards or commissioners.  

After being amended on the floor, the bill still pertains the following actions: 

Expands provisions of an existing self-storage facility by overriding minimum distance requirements imposed by local ordinances when the expansion abuts or is adjacent to an existing self-storage facility owned by the same person or entity. Defines “Infill residential development” as the expansion of existing residential development on a contiguous vacant parcel of no more than 20 acres in size within a residential future land use category and a residential zoning district that is contiguous on the majority of all sides by residential development. Makes Changes to the Community Planning Act and several definition changes, including density, intensity, urban service area, and urban sprawl. Adds new language to land development regulations, requiring that an application for an infill residential development be administratively approved instead of undergoing review for consistency with the comprehensive land use plan and LDRs. Establish new minimum lot sizes within single-family, two-family, and fee-simple, single-family townhouse zoning districts to accommodate the maximum density authorized in the comprehensive plan. 

The Senate version SB 1184 by Sen. Ingoglia bill is waiting for its first hearing in Community Affairs.  

On Tuesday, the Senate Community Affairs Committee unanimously passed CS/SB 1456 by Sen. Rodriguez. On Wednesday, the House unanimously passed the Senate companion CS/HB 1297  by Rep. Mooney. Both bills provide provisions aimed at addressing workforce housing needs in Monroe County. During both committees, amendments were adopted that made the following changes to the underlying bill: 

• Removes provisions of the bill which exempt the Florida Keys Area of Critical State Concerns from the provision which allows the governing body of a county or municipality to approve the development of affordable housing, where state or local law or regulation would otherwise preclude such development. 
• Removes provisions of the bill modifying provisions of the local option ad valorem property tax exemption for affordable housing developments.  
• Allows for a county that has been designated as an area of critical state concern that levies a tourist development tax and a tourist impact tax to transfer its cumulative surplus from those taxes incurred through September 30, 2024, for the purpose of providing affordable housing for employees whose housing opportunities are impacted by the operation of tourist-related businesses in the county. Any housing financed with funds from this surplus will maintain its status as affordable housing for a minimum of 99 years.  



The Senate Version had one additional change, adding to the tax exception provided in this section, up to 100 percent of the assessed value of a single-family residential unit or a residential duplex located within the Florida Keys Area or the Key West Area pursuant to chapter 28-36 Florida Administrative Code, effective august 23,1984 may be exempt if such property is used to provide affordable housing that meets current requirements and the unit is being offered for rent.  

On Monday, the House Infrastructure & Tourism Appropriation Subcommittee passed CS/CS/HB 1301 by Rep. Abbott and Rep. Berfield (10-4). An amendment was adopted during the committee that removes the provision that would create flexibility for DOT by allowing the use of a tiered system that correlates with the cost of the construction project to meet the required percentage threshold for funding the purchase of plant materials. Along with these changes, the bill also addresses the following matters related to transportation. Specifically, the bill:  

• Removes obsolete language that requires the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) Secretary to appoint FDOT’s inspector general.  
• Creates flexibility for FDOT by including the use of a tiered system that correlates with the cost of the construction project to meet the required percentage threshold for funding the purchase of plant materials.  
• Expressly authorizes FDOT to procure and establish contracts with one or more financial institutions, credit card companies, or other entities for the acceptance and processing of credit cards, charge cards, debit cards, electronic funds transfers, or any other means of electronic payment for the collection of amounts to which the turnpike enterprise is entitled.  
• Changes the time period a prepaid toll account can remain dormant from three years to ten.  
• Provides circumstances wherein FDOT may not expend any state funds to support a project or program of a public transit provider, authority, public-use airport, or a port.  
• Provides that the remainder of the revenues deposited into the State Transportation Trust Fund (STTF) derived from the registration of motor vehicles must first be available for appropriation for payments under a service contract entered into with the Florida Department of Transportation Financing Corporation to fund arterial highway projects.  
• Allows FDOT to enter into a service contract with the Florida Department of Transportation Financing Corporation to finance projects identified in the Moving Florida Forward Infrastructure Initiative in the work program.  
• Provides that when developing transportation plans, FDOT and Metropolitan Planning Organizations may not consider any nonpecuniary social, political, or ideological factor.  
• Creates a Supply Chain Innovation Grant Program within the Department of Commerce.  
• Provides that if no funds are allocated to projects that qualify for the New Starts Transit Program by June 30 of the current fiscal year, then such funds must revert and are appropriated to the STTF. 
• Provides that each public transit provider, during a publicly noticed meeting, must annually certify that its budgeted and actual administrative costs are not greater than 10 percent above the annual state average of administrative costs.  
• city, indirectly, or through a grant or agreement for specified marketing or advertising activities.  
• Provides that any new wrap, tinting, paint, medium, or advertisement on the passenger windows of a vehicle used by a public transit provider may not be darker than the legally allowed window tinting requirements.  

The Senate Version CS/SB1226 by Sen. DiCeglie unanimously passed its first stop in the transportation Committee. During committee, an amendment was adopted that makes the following changes: 

• Increases the administrative cap to no greater than 20 % above the annual state-wide average. 
• In the 2024-2025 fiscal year $15 million in recurring revenue be made available for the Intermodal Logistics Center Infrastructure Support Program.  
• Provides that specified revenues deposited into the State Transportation Trust Fund must first be available for appropriation for payments under a service contract entered into with the Florida Department of Transportation Financing Corporation to fund arterial highway projects.  
• Authorizes local governments in specified areas to, subject to specific appropriation, compete for additional funding using the criteria for the Small County Outreach Program to fund projects on roads primarily used for agricultural purposes.  
• Requires public transit providers to disclose employee compensation and benefits, ridership and performance metrics, and any gifts accepted in exchange for a contract. 
• Grants the Florida Rail Enterprise the power and duty to preserve future rail corridors and rights of way.   

The bill further addresses matters related to transportation: 

• Removes obsolete language that requires the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) Secretary to appoint FDOT’s inspector general.  
• Increases from three years to ten years the length of time before an inactive prepaid toll account becomes unclaimed property.  
• Creates flexibility for FDOT by including the use of a tiered system that correlates with the cost of the construction project to meet the required percentage threshold for funding the purchase of plant materials. 
• Requires each public transit provider to certify its actual administrative cost. These administrative costs include: 
• Employee salaries and benefits;  
• Small business outreach; 
• Insurance; and 
• Professional service contracts.  
• overhead cost not directly related to the operation and maintenance of the public transit system.  
• In the strategic interest of the state and the traveling public to extend to Tampa, the existing passenger rail service is currently terminated in Orlando. To facilitate this extension, the Department of Transportation shall preserve a 44-foot-wide rail corridor within the right-of-way of Interstate 4 between Orlando and Tampa and provide for a minimum vertical clearance for bridges and overpasses therein.  

On Tuesday, the Senate Transportation Committee unanimously passed CS/SB 1031 By Sen. Gruters. During committee another amendment was adopted. This amendment made the following changes deletes an obsolete effective date regarding the compensation of the Secretary of Transportation and his or her assistant secretaries. Removes changes to the schedule for FDOT to develop its tentative work program. Removes the repeal of the Florida Transportation Commission along with various provisions in the bill conforming to its repeal. Revises the membership of the Center for Urban Transportation Research’s advisory board. Makes a technical change to the Implementing Solutions from Transportation Research and Evaluating Emerging Technologies (I-STREET) Living Lab’s advisory board. Removes a provision requiring FDOT to assumption of control of MPOs under certain conditions. Removes a provision awarding $5 million from the State Transportation Trust Fund to certain MPOs.  

The bill still makes provisions relating to transportation from its original version these provisions include: 

• Creates a moratorium on new metropolitan planning organizations (MPOs) adjacent to existing MPOs.  
• Requires the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) to annually convene MPOs of similar size to exchange best practices.  
• Requires FDOT to provide training for new MPO governing board members.  
• Creates the following provisions regarding MPO accountability and transparency: 
• Requires FDOT to review each MPO's long-range transportation plan. 
• Requires FDOT to create quality performance metrics to evaluate each MPO. 
• Requires each MPO to annually report its score for each quality performance metric and publish its score and supporting data on its website. 
• Requires FDOT to validate each MPOs score and make needed adjustments.  
• Requires the integration of new technologies into MPO long-range transportation plans. 
• Requires the MPOs in Lee and Collier Counties to submit a feasibility study regarding their merger.  
• Repeals the Metropolitan Planning Organization Advisory Council (MPOAC).  
• Requires FDOT to submit a comprehensive review of its district boundaries and whether any district boundaries should be redrawn as a result of population growth and increased urban density. 



House bill HB 7049 by Rep. McFarland for the Transportation & Modals Subcommittee, is waiting to be heard in its last committee stop Infrastructure Strategies Committee 

On Thursday, the Senate Appropriations Committee on Transportation, Tourism, and Economic Development unanimously passed CS/SB 266 by Sen. Hooper. This bill makes the following changes to the Florida Department of Transportation: 

• Prohibits the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT), with specified exceptions, from annually committing more than 20 percent of the revenues derived from state motor fuel taxes and motor vehicle license-related fees to public transit projects.  
• Amends provisions relating to FDOT’s authority regarding public-private partnerships to:  
• Replace the term “public-private partnership agreement” with the term “comprehensive agreement.”  
• Require an “independent” instead of an “investment grade” traffic and revenue study prepared by a traffic and revenue expert.  
• Revise the timeframe, based on the project’s complexity, during which FDOT will accept other proposals for the same project as it received an unsolicited P3 proposal.  
• Authorize FDOT to enter into an interim agreement with a private entity proposing the development or operation of a qualifying project.  
• Limit the FDOT secretary’s power, upon written findings that a comprehensive agreement requires a term in excess of 50 years, to authorize a term of up to 75 years to projects partially or completely funded from project user fees.  
• Conforms other statutory provisions referencing to public-private partnership agreements.  
• Defines terms and expands contractor limits of liability for personal injury, property damage, or death arising from specified performance of work on a transportation facility or from specified acts or omissions of a third party. 
• Revises the application of immunity when the proximate cause of the injury, damage, or death is a latent condition, defect, error, or omission created by the contractor and in the contract documents, or when the proximate cause was the contractor’s failure to perform, update, or comply with the maintenance of traffic control plans, instead of with the traffic safety plan.  
• Removes current law providing that in any civil action against FDOT or its agents, consultants, engineers, or contractors for work performed if FDOT and others specified are immune from liability or are not parties to the litigation, they may not be named on the verdict form or be found to be at fault or responsible for the personal injury, property damage, or death.  
• Codifies FDOT’s existing local agency program into Florida law and provides statutory requirements for the program.  

House bill CS/CS/HB 287 by Rep. Esposito is waiting to be heard in its last committee stop Infrastructure Strategies Committee.  

On Wednesday, the House State Affairs committee unanimously passed HB 1051 by Rep. Tuck. Meanwhile, the Senate version, SB 1082 by Sen. Collins was temporarily postponed in Senate Rules.  

The bill precludes a government entity from restricting the construction or installation of housing for agricultural workers on land classified as agricultural. Local governments are, however, authorized to require the following of a housing site: 

• Meets all federal, state, and local building standards, including Department of Health (DOH) migrant farmworker living standards. 
• Must be maintained in a neat, orderly, and safe manner. 
• May not exceed the lesser of 1.5 percent of the property’s area or 35,000 square feet. 
• 50-foot setbacks on all sides  
• May not be located less than 250 feet from a property zoned for residential use. 
• Provide screening consisting of tree, wall, berm or fence coverage at least six feet in height if the structure is within 500 feet of a residential-zoned parcel. 
• Cover access drives with dust-free material such as packed shells or gravel. 

Such housing structures constructed prior to July 1, 2024, are not required to meet these requirements unless the structure is altered or expanded. Housing structures are to be removed if agricultural operations cease for 365 days (following a 180-day notice period by the local government to resume operations) or if the DOH housing permit is revoked.  

Both bills are retreads from the prior session, though the current versions have stricter requirements of a housing site than the previous year’s language.

On Tuesday, the House Regulatory Reform & Economic Development Subcommittee unanimously passed HB 141– Regional Rural Development Grants Program by Rep. Abbott. FAC supports this bill as part of its 2024 Legislative Action Plan.  

The bill removes local match requirements within the Regional Rural Development Grant program. Current law requires a 25% non-state match by the recipient regional economic development organization. The bill also removes several eligibility requirements including: 

• Demonstration of need by the applicant 
• Proof by each respective unit of local government of financial or in-kind commitment to the regional organization 
• Demonstration of private-sector involvement within the regional organization 

The Senate companion, CS/SB 196 by Sen. Simon, recently passed its second of three committee stops; its final reference is Senate Fiscal Policy.