Week 6

February 16, 2024

The following is a brief synopsis of the key legislative actions and bill summaries for this week. Thanks for all you do!

House Bill Restricting Enterprise Fund Transfers Ready for the Floor

SB 1510 (Brodeur) and CS/CS/HB 1277 (Busatta Cabrera) would restrict a municipality from transferring utility revenues generated from serving extraterritorial customers to the municipality’s general fund. The bills would also eliminate statutorily authorized surcharges on extraterritorial water and sewer customers starting in July 2025. On Thursday, CS/CS/HB 1277 passed in its final committee of reference on a vote of 15-2. It is important to note that SB 1510 has not been heard in any referenced committees. (O’Hara)

Senate Cybersecurity Liability Bill Headed to the Senate Floor

On Wednesday, CS/SB 658 (DiCeglie) passed its final committee of reference on a vote of 11-5. The bill would exempt local governments from liability in connection with a cybersecurity event if the local entity is in substantial compliance with the currently required training and standards. CS/HB 473 (Giallombardo) is still waiting to be heard in the House Judiciary Committee. (Wagoner)

Bill Dealing with Local Business Tax Ready for the House Floor

On Wednesday, CS/CS/HB 609 (Botana) was amended and passed its final committee of reference on a vote of 12-7. The bill would freeze the revenue and rates for Local Business Taxes (LBT) at the FY23-24 level if you have an ordinance adopted to levy LBT before October 1, 2024. Moving forward, if revenues exceed the FY23-24 level, cities will have to issue a refund to the local business paying the tax. If rates are to be adjusted, the total revenue generated cannot exceed the amount in the FY23-24 year. The bill now includes an exemption and does not apply to fiscally constrained counties or cities within those counties. The Senate companion, SB 1144 (DiCeglie), would fully repeal local governments' ability to levy a local business tax. (Chapman)

House Sovereign Immunity Bill Not Considered

On Wednesday, CS/CS/HB 569 (McFarland) was not considered by the House Judiciary Committee. The bill aims to revise liability limits for tort claims against the state and its entities. The proposed changes include increasing limits to $400,000 per person and a $600,000 per-incident cap. The Senate companion, CS/SB 472 (Brodeur), is still waiting to be heard in its second committee of reference. (Cruz)

Bill Dealing with Residential Building Permits Passes Final Committee

On Thursday, CS/CS/CS/HB 267 (Esposito) was amended and passed its final committee of reference on a vote of 16-2. The bill is a comprehensive building permit bill. The bill drastically changes the process that local governments have to go through before a building permit is approved, including significantly reducing the timeframes for approval of permits. For more information on the bill as amended, click here to view the bill summary. CS/SB 684 (DiCeglie) is waiting to be heard in its second committee of reference. (Branch)

PCB Relating to Tangible Personal Property Tax Exemption Passes First Hearing

HJR 7075 (McClain) is a proposed constitutional amendment to increase the exemption on tangible personal property taxes from the current $25,000 rate to $50,000. The bill was heard in the Ways and Means Committee as a Proposed Committee Bill. The bill has a projected fiscal impact of -$100 million. Important to note the bill has not been formally reviewed by the State’s Revenue Estimating Conference. If this bill has a negative impact on your city, and you have a contract lobbyist, contact them to engage on this proposed constitutional amendment.



HB 7077 (McClain) is the implementing bill for HJR 7075 and is self-executing upon approval by voters. The implementing bill does include a fiscal offset for Financially Constrained Counties. (Chapman)

Bill Dealing with Advanced Community Permitting Moves Forward

CS/CS/HB 665 (McClain) and CS/CS/CS/SB 812 (Ingoglia) are comprehensive bills dealing with the expedited approval of residential building permits. On Wednesday, CS/CS/CS/SB 812 passed its final committee of reference unanimously. Additionally, CS/CS/CS/SB 812 was amended to remove the exemption for municipalities with a population of 30,000 or more. The bills now apply to municipalities with 25 acres or more of contiguous land for residential or agricultural purposes. The bills do include a few protections for cities, including an indemnification clause and a requirement for applicants to have a performance bond of up to 130%. For more information on what these bills do, click here to view the bill summary. (Chapman)

Education Bill Ready for the Senate Floor

CS/CS/CS/SB 996 (Burgess) makes several changes to Florida’s K-12 public schools and postsecondary institutions.

On Thursday, the bill passed its final committee of reference on a vote of 11-5. The bill enables private schools to establish new campuses in existing facilities such as churches or theaters, bypassing local zoning regulations and traffic management requirements. The bill would prevent cities and counties from holding public meetings to discuss rezoning these facilities for educational use and from requiring private schools to mitigate traffic impacts.

As a consequence, residents near these new schools would lack the opportunity to voice concerns or influence the location of new private schools. CS/CS/CS SB 996 will be heard on the Senate floor on Wednesday, February 21. It is important to note that the House companion, CS/HB 1285 (Canady), does not contain these provisions. (Branch)

Bill Dealing with First Responder Treatment by a Medical Specialist Passes Committee

CS/HB 637 (Yeager) and CS/SB 808 (DiCeglie) authorize first responders to receive medical treatment for a compensable presumptive condition by his or her selected medical specialist. Local governments employing first responders would be responsible for paying the first responders selected medical specialists at a cost of 200% of the Medicare rate. CS/SB 808 passed its second committee of reference unanimously. (Cruz)

Changes to the Live Local Act Up Next Week

CS/CS/SB 328 (Calatayud) and CS/HB 1239 (Lopez, V.) are comprehensive bills that make several revisions to the Live Local Act from the 2023 Session. The bills amend sections of the Live Local Act that deal with zoning, height and density. The bills also appropriate $100 million to the Florida Hometown Heroes Housing Program. CS/HB 1239 will be heard in the House Appropriations Committee on Tuesday, February 20. (Branch)

View All Legislative Bill Summaries