Eighth Week of the 2024 Legislative Session   

Welcome to week 8 of the 2024 legislative session! The Countdown Clock reads 7 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.    

On Monday, the Senate Rules Committee passed CS/CS/SB 438 by Sen. Ingoglia (18-2). Multiple amendments were adopted during the Rules Committee that make the following changes: 



• Each non-charter county, each charter county without term limits, and each charter county with term limits longer than 8 consecutive years shall hold a referendum election that coincides with the 2024 general election to determine if term limits shall be imposed on their county commissioners.  
• For non-charter counties and charters without term limits, the referendum question will state: Should County commissioners be prohibited from serving longer than 8 consecutive years? Followed by yes and no options for response. 
• For charter counties with 12-year term limits, the referendum question will state: Currently, the (county name) County charter prohibits commissioners from serving longer than 12 consecutive years. Should the county reduce the term limits for county commissioners to 8 consecutive years? Followed by yes and no options for response.  
• If voters reject the referendum required by this law for the 2024 election. The referendum may be adopted on future ballots.  
• Clarifies that service before the 2026 general election in a county without existing term limits that adopts an 8-year term limit during the 2024 general election does not count towards the 8-year term limit until 2026. 
• Beginning November 3, 2026, a county commissioner who completes 8 years of consecutive service must sit out for 2 years before running for another county commission seat, including a different district or at-large seat.  
• If a county commissioner voted into office before November 5, 2024, is serving in office under a 12-year term limit charter and the county adopts an 8-year term limit because of the referendum outlined in the section, will be allowed to serve out all 12 years. 
• If a county commissioner is voted into office on or after November 5, 2024, in a charter county that moves from 12-year to 8-year term limits during the November 5, 2024 election, the newly elected commissioner is subject to the 8-year term limit. 

The House version CS/CS/HB 57 by Rep. Salzman is waiting to be heard on special order on the floor.  

On Monday, the Senate Rules Committee unanimously passed CS/CS/CS/SB 472 by Sen. Brodeur. During committee, an amendment was adopted that changed the maximum claim amounts to $300,000-$500,000. Prior to the amendment, the claim amounts were $400,000-$600,000. This amendment also provided language pertaining to liability limits for the claim and its effective date when the claim incident occurred apply to the claim instead of previously filed language establishing the claim limit to apply to the settled claim date.  

On Friday, the bill was temporarily postponed on the Senate floor on special order. An amendment was filed to be heard during special order on the Senate floor. This amendment removed language allowing a subdivision of the state to agree and settle a claim made or judgment rendered against it in excess of the waiver provided without further action by the Legislature. This amendment also removed language prohibiting a party from lobbying against any agreed-upon settlement brought to the legislature in the claims bill process and prohibits an insurance company from placing any conditions on the payments of benefits on the enactment of a claim bill.  

The House version CS/CS/HB 569 by Rep. McFarland was not considered in its last stop House Judiciary Committee.  

On Tuesday, the House heard CS/CS/SB 328 on special order. Before hearing the House version CS/CS/HB 1239 on special order the House substituted their version for the Senate. Both chambers have decided to refer to CS/CS/SB 328 for final passage to the Governor’s office.  

On Wednesday, CS/HB 479 by Rep. Robinson, passed the House floor unanimously. Following adoption of a floor amendment, the bill revises the collection of mobility and impact fees, authorizing only the permitting local government to collect for transportation impacts. However, the permitting government is directed to enter an interlocal agreement with other impacted local governments, to coordinate mitigation of all transportation impacts.  

If the impacted governments do not enter an interlocal agreement within the specified timeline, revenues are to be apportioned based on the developer’s traffic study OR the local government’s mobility plan, with a 10% reduction in fee refunded to the developer.  

After the Senate received the bill in messages, it was referred to the Senate Rules Committee. The Senate companion by Sen. Martin, CS/SB 688, was placed on special order calendar for Monday.  

On Friday, the House passed CS/CS/CS/HB 433 off the House floor and the bill is now in Senate messages. 

The bill prohibits local governments, through their purchasing or contracting procedures, from seeking to control or affect the wages or employment benefits provided by its vendors, contractors, or service providers. The bill also preempts the regulation of workplace heat exposure requirements to the state. This includes employee monitoring and protection, water consumption, cooling measures, acclimatization and recovery periods or practices, and posting or distributing notices or materials relating to heat exposure, which inform employees how to protect themselves from such exposures. During its last committee, an amendment was adopted allowing a county, municipality, political subdivision, or special district to adopt an ordinance, order, or rule regarding employee benefits that exceed state and federal law. 

The Senate version CS/SB 1492 by Sen. Trumbull was placed on the special order calendar but has not yet been scheduled on the Senate floor.  

On Tuesday, CS/SB 106 by Sen. Jones was temporarily postponed in the Senate Fiscal Policy Committee. 

To recap, this bill requires any business that operates at permanent or temporary physical premises, or from a vehicle or other mobile space, to accept an offer of payment in cash by a customer physically present. Cash is defined as the coin and currency of the United States. The bill also prohibits a business from charging a fee or placing a condition on its acceptance of cash and gives rulemaking and enforcement authority to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Violations of the cash acceptance provisions will be subject to civil fines. 

The Companion to this bill HB 35 by Rep. Rudman was never heard in any of its committee. 

On Thursday, CS/CS/HB 1195 by Rep. Garrison passed off the House floor. The bill raises the voting threshold for increasing the millage rate to a two-thirds majority from the county governing body.   

The Senate companion, CS/SB 1322 Sen. Ingoglia has not been heard in its final committee of reference, Senate Appropriations.  

On Friday, the House substituted the Senate version of the PACE package, SB 770, for the House version, HB 927 by Rep. Trabulsy, and heard it on Special Order. The bill has been placed on the House third reading agenda for Monday. The bill will be considered for final passage if there are no further amendments. 

The PACE 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 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 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 Friday, the House heard CS/CS/HB 1365 off the House floor and is now in Senate messages. While on special order an amendment was adopted that pushes the cause of action provision in the bill back until January 1, 2025, while the rest of the bill will go into effect October 1, 2024 

The Senate version CS/CS/SB 1530 is on special order calendar for next week.  

On Monday, the Senate Rules Committee unanimously passed CS/CS/CS/SB 684 by Sen. DiCeglie. Two amendments were adopted, which remove language regarding “windborne debris region” and the expedited approval of building permits before a final plat is recorded. The bill is now waiting to be placed on the Senate calendar.   

On Friday, the House version CS/CS/CS/HB 267 by Rep. Esposito was heard on special order.  

On Thursday, the Senate passed SB 1456 sponsored by Sen. Rodriguez, off the senate floor (39-0). The legislation allows Monroe County to utilize surplus funds from tourist development and tourist impact taxes for affordable housing purposes. Use of these funds is capped at $35 million, subject to approval by the county commissioners. This housing must be accessible to employees of private sector tourism-related businesses and remain affordable for a minimum of 99 years.    

This bill has now gone to House Messages and awaits further action.

On Thursday, CS/HB 705 by Rep. Shoaf passed off the House floor. On Thursday and Friday, the Senate companion CS/SB 742 by Sen. Grall was temporarily postponed on special order.  

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.  

On Wednesday, the Senate unanimously passed CS/SB 1142 by Sen. Hooper off the Senate floor. An amendment was adopted that pushes the grandfathering date for voluntary licensure to July 1, 2025.  

The House version CS/HB 1579 by Rep. Mooney was not heard on the House floor.  

On Wednesday, CS/CS/CS/SB 812 by Sen. Ingoglia passed off the Senate floor. While on the floor, an amendment was adopted that requires municipalities of 10,000 residents or more and 25 acres or more of contiguous land to create an expedited process for issuing building permits.  

Thursday, Rep. McClain's House companion CS/CS/HB 665 was temporarily postponed on the House floor. 

On Tuesday, CS/CS/SB 1262 by Sen. Collins passed in the Senate Rules Committee (20-0). This bill seeks to create minimum experience and training standards for all county emergency management directors in Florida. The Committee adopted an amendment removing a bachelors degree from the required criteria. On the Senate floor, the bill was temporarily postponed but was retained on the special order calendar going forward.  

This bill's House companion, CS/CSHB 1567 by Rep. Grant was heard on second reading and moved to third reading scheduled for next Monday. 

On Wednesday, CS/SB 644, Rural Emergency Hospitals by Sen. Simon passed the Senate floor (37-0). This legislation represents a response to the closure of several rural hospitals across the state, due to lower service volume and reimbursement rates.  

The bill designates “rural emergency hospitals” (REH) as a new classification of hospital license, potentially eligible for federal reimbursement and Medicare facility payments. A rural emergency hospital is expected to meet the following criteria: 

• Certified as an REH by the Department of Health and Human Services  
• Does not provide inpatient services, with the exception of a distinctly licensed skilled nursing unit to furnish post-hospital extended care services  
• Has a transfer agreement in place with a Level I or II trauma center 
• An emergency department staffed 24/7 
• 50 or fewer beds OR has been licensed as a “critical access hospital” 

The bill also prospectively requires health plans to cover rural emergency hospital services to the same extent that they would cover general hospital services.  

The House companion, CS/HB 309 by Rep. Shoaf, was postponed on the House floor on Thursday.  

On Wednesday, CS/CS/CS/HB 1301 by Rep. Abbott was passed off the House floor and was sent to Senate messages. This bill revises the Department of Transportation's areas of responsibility, updating the organizational structure and removing the requirement for a secretary-appointed inspector general. 

On Wednesday, the Senate Fiscal Policy Committee unanimously passed CS/CS/CS/SB 1226 by Sen. DiCeglie. The bill is waiting to be put on the special order Calendar and heard on the floor. 

On Thursday, CS/HB 7049 by Rep. McFarland was passed off the House floor. This bill amends various Florida Statutes related to transportation, enhancing safety measures, and updating regulatory frameworks across multiple areas, including roadway behaviors, vehicle operations, and the development of transportation systems.  

The Senate companion CS/CS/SB 1032 by Sen. Gruters is stuck in Senate Appropriations Committee.

On Thursday, CS/CS/CS/HB 287 passed the House floor. This bill limits revenues from state fuel taxes and motor vehicle fees committed to public transit projects to 20%, with exceptions for federal matching, approved rapid transit, and enhancing state highway service levels. 

The Senate companion CS/CS/CS/SB 266 by Sen. Hooper is placed on special order calendar to be heard next week.  

On Thursday, SB 1082 by Sen. Collins passed off the Senate floor. The House version, HB 1051 by Rep. Tuck, was temporarily postponed as the chamber is expected to consider the Senate version.  

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 before July 1, 2024, are not required to meet these requirements unless the structure is changed 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.