Palm Beach County State Legislative Update

Week of March 31

2025 Legislative Session: The Halfway Point

At the halfway point of Florida’s 2025 legislative session, 44 bills have cleared one chamber, but none have passed both—a slower pace compared to previous years.

Key measures include Senate-backed bills from President Ben Albritton, such as a $200 million “rural renaissance” package (SB 110) aimed at infrastructure and economic development in rural areas, along with bills addressing autism services (SB 112) and state rulemaking reforms (SB 108).

In the House, lawmakers have passed a bill (HB 759) to lower the legal rifle purchase age from 21 to 18, reversing a post-Parkland restriction, and another (HB 6017) allowing families to claim non-economic damages in medical negligence cases.

Other bills that have passed one chamber include Senate measures removing regulations on presidential libraries (SB 118), expanding compensation for the wrongfully incarcerated (SB 130), eliminating out-of-pocket costs for breast cancer exams (SB 158), and reversing an earlier mandate on later school start times (SB 296). The House has advanced “Lucy’s Law” (HB 289), increasing penalties for reckless boating, and a bill requiring cursive writing instruction in schools (HB 921).

State Budget Update

The Senate Committee on Appropriations passed their chamber’s suggested budget this week after adopting 171 amendments. Palm Beach County’s appropriation request for Fire Rescue water vessels was fully funded at $200,000 and the South Florida Fairgrounds Agriplex and Emergency Shelter received an allocation of $350,000 through amendments adopted on Wednesday. All amendments were required to be balanced, causing the total spending in the proposal to remain steady at $117.36 billion.

The House Budget Committee also passed their chamber’s budget proposal, totaling $112.95 billion, this week. No amendments were filed or considered. The House Budget Committee also approved a motion to have the committee issue letters requesting documents and various monetary records from several agencies including the Department of Management Services, the Agency on Health Care Administration, the Division of Emergency Management, the Department of Corrections, the Department of Education, and the Florida State Guard. Members on both sides of the aisle expressed frustration with agency heads and staff who they felt had dodged important questions on alleged financial mismanagement and failed to produce records to substantiate the fiscal health of the agency.

Both the House and Senate are expected to consider and pass their chamber’s budget proposal on the floor next week. Included below is a table demonstrating Palm Beach County’s submitted appropriations requests and the amounts they are funded at this time. All Palm Beach County projects are eligible for funding in the final budget.

Additionally, here is information about Palm Beach County priority projects for other various entities and their current funding status:

South Florida AgriCenter and Emergency Shelter at the South Florida Fairgrounds: $350,000 (Senate), $0 (House)

Let's Move 365! Health Initiative for Low Income Families & Elderly: $500,000 (Senate), $0 (House)

Busch Wildlife Sanctuary's Environmental Education Program: $500,000 (Senate), $250,000 (House)

Boca Helping Hands (BHH) Job Training Program: $427,700 (Senate), $0 (House)

Finally, the table shown here depicts the funding status of a variety of large line items of interest in each budget:

Property Tax & Sales Tax Proposals

In Tallahassee, state leaders are discussing several options regarding cutting taxes. At this time, the Governor, Senate President, and Speaker of the House all have different visions for what they would like to see happen.

Governor Ron DeSantis has proposed a $1,000 property tax rebate for each homesteaded property, aiming to provide immediate relief to homeowners. This initiative would serve as a precursor to his long-term goal of eliminating property taxes through a constitutional amendment on the November 2026 ballot. DeSantis has emphasized that property tax relief directly benefits Florida residents, contrasting it with sales tax cuts that could advantage tourists and other non-residents.

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House Speaker Danny Perez advocates for a permanent reduction of the state sales tax from 6% to 5.25%, projecting nearly $5 billion in annual tax savings. He suggests that this reduction could be offset by decreasing state agency spending. Perez has been open to discussions on property tax reforms but has highlighted the need to understand potential impacts on essential services funded by these taxes, such as law enforcement and fire rescue activities.

Senate President Ben Albritton has acknowledged the merits of both proposals but urged caution in a memo released this week. He emphasized the importance of ensuring that any tax cuts do not lead to future budget shortfalls, referencing the need for responsible fiscal planning to avoid scenarios reminiscent of the Great Recession. Albritton advocates for a comprehensive evaluation of both proposals to maintain the state's balanced budget and fiscal health.

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These differing approaches underscore the ongoing debate among Florida's leadership on the most effective method to provide tax relief while safeguarding the state's financial stability. The Legislature has just four weeks left to agree on an approach, with the 2025 Legislative Session slated to end on May 2.

HB 4011, Palm Beach County

Palm Beach County’s local bill, HB 4011 has unanimously passed its last committee this week and is ready to be considered by the full House. This bill revises the Building Code Advisory Board of Palm Beach County’s Special Act to amend the definition of “building official” as it pertains to the BCAB.

SB 954/HB 1163, Recovery Residences



These bills preempt local zoning laws to permit recovery residences in all multifamily zones upon administrative approval, with certain exceptions. The bill also adjusts personnel-to-resident ratio limits and relaxes 24/7 supervision requirements for certain recovery residences. Both bills passed their first committee of reference this week.

SB 1730, Affordable Housing 

The bill amends several provisions of the Live Local Act, originally passed during the 2023 Regular Session, which preempts certain local zoning and land use regulations to support the development of affordable housing. It clarifies the scope of zoning preemption by defining terms such as “commercial,” “industrial,” and “mixed-use zoning,” and confirms that the preemption applies to areas like planned unit developments, even when different zoning mechanisms are used.

This legislation prohibits local governments from requiring amendments to developments of regional impact before allowing development to proceed, and from mandating a specific percentage of residential use in mixed-use projects. It also clarifies the administrative approval process for affordable housing developments. Additionally, the bill requires local governments to reduce parking requirements for such developments, rather than merely consider doing so. It introduces provisions for priority docketing and awards attorneys' fees to the prevailing party in lawsuits filed under the Live Local Act.

SB 1730 clarifies that the Fair Housing Act prohibits local governments from discriminating in land use decisions based on the nature of a development as affordable housing. Lastly, it prevents local governments from imposing building moratoria that would delay permitting or construction of affordable housing, except under certain conditions.

The bill passed its first of two committees this week and is on the agenda to be heard in the second committee next week. The House bill, HB 943, is much different than the Senate version and must still pass through two committee references.

SB 482, Impact Fees

SB 482 provides a definition of “extraordinary circumstance” for the purposes of raising impact fees beyond the statutorily prescribed percentage. The bill’s definition requires certain criteria to be met before a local government can raise impact fees beyond the statutory ramp up of 50 percent over 4 years. These criteria include factors such as population growth, total development increases, increase in vehicle miles, and increase in maintenance costs. The bill also prohibits a local government from increasing impact fees under “extraordinary circumstances” if the local government has not increased impact fees over the preceding 5 years. It has two more committee hearings before consideration on the Senate floor. The House bill, HB 665, also has two more committees.

HB 381, Platting

This bill requires counties and municipalities to review and approve preliminary plat or replat submissions administratively, conduct a review for compliance with recording requirements with 15 days of receipt, and make a final determination within 30 business days. The bill requires the local governing body responsible for reviewing and approving a plat to issue street and mailing addresses, along with individual parcel identification numbers, within 20 business days after a final plat has been recorded. If the local governing body fails to issue addresses or parcel identification numbers within the required timeframe, the local governing body must reduce the addressing fee by 10 percent for each business day it has failed to issue the information. HB 381 has one more committee of reference.

HR 661, One Water Approaches to Water Resource Management

The House Natural Resources & Disasters Subcommittee passed a resolution encouraging the adoption of "One Water" approaches to water management. This integrated strategy emphasizes the coordination of water supply, quality, protection, and conservation to address growing water demands, prevent future shortages, and protect the state's vital water resources. It recognizes Florida’s economic growth and environmental diversity, the pressures on its water systems, and the inefficiencies of managing water supply, stormwater, and wastewater separately. The resolution supports collaborative, holistic planning and investment in resilient, sustainable water infrastructure that values all types of water—fresh, brackish, stormwater, wastewater, and recycled water—to balance human needs with environmental protection. It has one more committee of reference before the House floor.

SB 572, Dangerous Dogs



This legislation, also known as the “Pam Rock Act,” strengthens the regulation of dangerous dogs in the state. It mandates the apprehension and quarantine of dogs suspected of injuring or threatening humans, a step that was previously optional. Owners of dogs classified as dangerous must now carry $100,000 in liability insurance and have the dog microchipped. Removal of the chip would be a third-degree felony. The bill also changes the criteria for misdemeanor charges involving unclassified dogs that attack humans, removing the need to prove reckless disregard by the owner. The bill expands the definition of a "proper enclosure" to include locked fenced yards that prevent access by children and escape by the dog. Additionally, animal shelters must post clear signage about the legal responsibilities of adopting a dangerous dog. The bill has one more committee hearing before the Senate floor. Palm Beach County is working with the sponsor of the legislation on an amendment that would prohibit owners of dangerous dogs from knowingly hiding a dangerous dog or lying about the whereabouts of the dog to animal control officers. 

SB 818, Utility Relocation

Passing its second of three committees this week, the bill amends the process under which utilities located within the right-of-way of a public road or publicly-owned rail corridor must be relocated when the utility is found by an authority (Florida Department of Transportation and local government entities) to be unreasonably interfering in any way with the convenient, safe, or continuous use, or the maintenance, improvement, extension, or expansion, of such public road or publicly-owned rail corridor.

The bill requires the utility to provide the authority with a reasonable relocation schedule within 30 days after written notice to the utility and requires the owner to initiate the necessary work within 60 days after the written notice. It also requires the authority to pay the entire expense for the relocation to the providers of broadband Internet service, cable service, or video service providers. The House companion bill, HB 703, is on the agenda of its last committee of reference next week. 

SB 1822, Waste Management

SB 1822 was amended and passed in committee this week to prohibit the Department of Environmental Protection and local governments from issuing a construction permit for certain types of waste disposal facilities with proposed locations that are within a half-mile radius of residential properties or schools. While this provision was added to the bill in response to an issue in another county, concerns about impacts to the Palm Beach County Solid Waste Authority have been raised.

This legislation also provides that the regulation of auxiliary containers is expressly preempted to the state. The bill defines “auxiliary containers” as a reusable or single-use bag, cup, bottle, can, or other packaging that meets certain requirements. The bill has one more committee hearing before it can be heard on the Senate floor.