BILL SUMMARY DETAILS

HB 165 (Hunschofsky) and SB 164 (Polsky) revise the current list of drug paraphernalia to exclude narcotic-drug-testing products that are used to determine whether a controlled substance contains fentanyl. (Taggart)

HB 157 (Holcomb) provides a public records exemption for the personal information of individuals who foster or adopt an animal from an animal shelter or animal control agency operated by a local government. (Taggart)

HB 95 (Duggan) will amend the “law enforcement officer bill of rights” to prohibit a law enforcement officer or correctional officer from being discharged, suspended, demoted or otherwise disciplined solely as a result of that officer being included on the Brady Giglio list. The Brady Giglio list is a database that contains information about police misconduct, public complaints, use-of-force reports, etc. (Cruz)

HB 27 (Benjamin) – Judgement Liens

SB 46 (Wright) – Health Insurance Cost Sharing

HB 49 (Driskell) – Abandoned and Historical Cemeteries

HB 119 (Benjamin) – Visiting County and Municipal Detention Facilities

HB 107 (Edmonds) would create the summer youth learning program within the Department of Economic Opportunity. This program would match students from low-moderate income families who have outstanding academic records or trade skills with appropriate summer employment opportunities with state agencies, school districts, local governments and participating private businesses in order to prepare such students to enter the workforce as adults. Participation in the program would be optional for local governments and funded by the Department of Economic Opportunity. (Taggart)

HB 29 (Eskamani) and SB 114 (Book) – Tax Exemption for Diapers and Incontinence Products

HB 103 (F. Robinson) – Taxpayer Delinquencies

SB 116 (Rodriguez) – Taxation of Investigative Services

SB 124 (Avila) and HB 161 (Borrero) would increase the just value limit of real estate eligible for the homestead tax exemption that may be adopted by counties or municipalities for certain persons age 65 and older if SJR 126, HJR 159 or a similar constitutional amendment is approved by the voters at the next general election. (Cruz)

HB 101 (Woodson) expands the current homestead exemption for the surviving spouse of a first responder who dies in the line of duty to include first responders who die in the line of duty while employed by the United States Government. (Cruz)

SB 120 (Avila) would reduce the limitation on annual increases of homestead property tax assessments from 3% to 2% if SJR 122 or a similar constitutional amendment is approved by the voters at the next general election. (Chapman)

SJR 122 (Avila) would reduce the limitation on annual increases of homestead property tax assessments from 3% to 2%. In 1994, the State of Florida established a 3% Save Our Homes (SOH) Cap assessment limit on all residential properties that receive a homestead exemption. The 3% SOH Cap limits any increase to the assessed value of a homestead exempt property for tax purposes to a maximum of 3% each year. SB 120 would reduce the assessment limit to a maximum of 2% each year. SJR 122 is a constitutional amendment and would require the approval of the Florida Legislature and the voters of Florida. (Chapman)

SJR 126 (Avila) and HJR 159 (Borrero) propose an amendment to the Florida Constitution to increase the just value of a home that may be eligible to receive an additional homestead exemption for homes owned by seniors 65 years or older from $250,000 to $300,000. Under current law, a county or city may authorize an additional homestead exemption for seniors over the age of 65 if the value of the home is $250,000 or less, has been a permanent residence for at least 25 years, and certain income limitations are met. The legislation would simply increase the just value limit of real estate eligible for the homestead tax exemption from $250,000 to $300,000. (Cruz)

HB 127 (Smith) expands the current ad valorem tax exemption for not-for-profit homes for the aged to also allow a home for the aged owned by a separate entity that is owned by a not-for-profit corporation to also receive the exemption. (Cruz)

HB 89 (Maggard) would prohibit a local government from making substantive changes to building plans after a permit has been issued. If substantive changes are made after a permit is issued, the local government must identify the specific plan features that do not comply with the Florida Fire Prevention Code or Life Safety or local amendments, identify the specific code

chapters and sections upon which the finding is based and provide this information to the permitholder. A local fire inspector who fails to comply is subject to disciplinary action. (Branch)

HB 35 (Roach)  and SB 244 (Gruters) – Partisan Elections for Members of District School Boards

SB 442 (Rodriguez) and HB 571 (Mooney) – Powers of Land Authorities

HB 309 (Fetterhoff) and SB 856 (Brodeur) – Private Provider Inspections of Onsite Sewage Treatment  and Disposal Systems

SB 536 (Diaz) and HB 337 (McClain) – Administrative Procedures

SB 690 (Rodriguez, A.) and HB 691 (Slosberg) – Resilience-related Advisory Committees

HB 421 (Truenow) and SB 834 (Brodeur) – Long-term Cleanup of Water Bodies

SB 602 (Rodriguez, A.) and HB 449 (Mooney) – Land Acquisition Trust Fund (Florida Keys)

HB 603 (Bell) and SB 1400 (Burgess) – Land Acquisition Trust Fund (Heartland Headwaters)

HB 441 (Fabricio) and SB 984 (Diaz) – Construction Materials Mining Activities

HB 6071 (Fabricio) – Construction Materials Mining Activities Admin Recovery Act

HB 6073 (Fabricio) – Construction Materials Mining Activities Admin Recovery Act

HB 579 (Melo) and SB 1128 (Harrell) – Aquatic Plant Management

SB 840 (Albritton) and HB 841 (DiCeglie) – Residential Property Riparian Rights

HB 513 (Bartleman) and SB 1326 (Rodriguez) – Comprehensive Review Study of the Central and Southern Florida Project

SB 1000 (Albritton) and HB 1291 (McClure) – Nutrient Application Rates

HB 6085 (Eskamani) and SB 1102 (Farmer) – Farming Operations

HB 711 (Diamond) and SB 238 (Jones) – Endangered and Threatened Species

SB 1110 (Rouson) and HB 1177 (Chaney) – Grease Waste Removal and Disposal

HB 901 (Chambliss) and SB 1212 (Polsky) – Roadside Farm Stand Signage

HB 7003 (Public Integrity  and Elections Committee) – Implementation of Constitutional Prohibition Against Lobbying by a Former Justice of Judge

SB 1432 (Rodriguez) and HB 1065 (Mooney) – Vessel Anchoring

SB 416 (Garcia) and HB 1129 (Avila) – Mangrove Planting  and Restoration

SB 1914 (Taddeo) and HB 1353 (Thompson) – Elections

SB 1722 (Jones) and HB 6105 (Hinson) – Elections

SB 1586 (Polsky) and HB 1217 (Diamond) – Elections 

HB 1381 (Silvers) – Retail Petroleum Fuel Measuring Devices

SB 1612 (Ausley) and HB 1289 (Alexander) – Department of Agriculture  and Consumer Services

SB 1678 (Gibson) and HB 1285 (Hinson) – Energy Equity Task Force

SB 1584 (Gruters) – Outstanding Florida Springs

SB 208 (Farmer) creates the Stop Fracking Act. The bill prohibits extreme well stimulation, which is defined to include the various forms of fracking used to increase the production at an oil or gas well. (O'Hara)

HB 349 (Sirois) authorizes the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund (Board) to grant easements for mitigation banks under certain conditions. The bill also exempts certain docks on recorded easements from state permit requirements and authorizes such docks to use submerged lands upon the Board's approval. (O'Hara)

CS/CS/HB 965 (Truenow) provides for the construction, operation, maintenance and long-term management of off-site, regional, compensatory water treatment areas called “water quality enhancement areas.” These areas will be used to offset impacts to water quality caused by increases in nutrient loading from development projects. Under the bill, water quality enhancement credits could be purchased from a water quality enhancement area to offset such development impacts. An “enhancement credit” is defined in the bill as a standard unit of measure that represents a quantity of pollutant removed. The bill specifies that water quality enhancement areas must be regulated through permits issued by the Department of Environmental Regulation. While the bill allows governmental entities to use water quality enhancement areas to address their water quality needs, the bill specifies that governmental entities may not act as sponsors to construct, operate, manage, maintain or market enhancement credits to third parties. In addition, the bill provides that local governments may not require a permit or impose regulations governing the operation of an enhancement area. A water quality enhancement area permit applicant must provide reasonable assurances that an enhancement area will achieve defined performance criteria, benefit water quality and assure long-term pollutant reduction. The bill specifies requirements for an enhancement area and requires that such areas correspond to the appropriate basin management action plan boundary. The bill specifies requirements for the generation of enhancement credits and provides that a local government may not deny the use of credits due to the location of the enhancement area being outside the jurisdiction of the local government. Lastly, the bill specifies that whether a dwelling is owner-occupied is not an eligibility criterion for a developer or homebuilder to receive density or intensity bonuses for implementing graywater technologies. CS/CS/HB 965 passed the House (107-0) and the Senate (39-0) and is awaiting action by the Governor. (O’Hara)

CS/CS/SB 494 (Hutson) revises laws administered by the Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) and other law enforcement bodies. Among other things, the bill modifies current law provisions relating to derelict, at-risk and abandoned vessels. It specifies that a vessel is at risk of becoming derelict if it is tied to an unlawful or unpermitted mooring or other structure. It outlines the circumstances in which law enforcement may destroy or dispose of a vessel, and it adds vessels declared a public nuisance to the definition of “abandoned property.” It clarifies that the additional time given for an owner to remove a derelict vessel or to repair the vessel in the event of an accident or event does not apply if the vessel was already derelict at the time of the accident or event. The bill reorganizes current law provisions authorizing FWC to establish a program to provide grants to local governments for removal, storage, destruction, and disposal of derelict vessels and vessels declared a public nuisance. It directs FWC to adopt rules for local governments to submit grant applications and criteria for allocating available funds. The grant award criteria must consider, among other things, the number of derelict vessels within the applicant’s jurisdiction, the threat posed by such vessels to health and safety, the environment, navigation, or aesthetics, and the degree of commitment of the local government to maintain waters free of derelict vessels and to seek legal action against those who abandon vessels. The bill specifies that a certificate of title may not be issued for a public nuisance vessel, and it adds public nuisance vessels to the definition of abandoned property. In addition, the bill provides that a local government cannot create a public bathing beach or swim area in the marked channel of the Florida Intracoastal Waterway or within 100 feet of the marked channel. CS/CS/SB 494 passed the Senate (39-0) and the House (116-0) and is awaiting action by the Governor. (Branch)

CS/HB 481 (Duggan) prohibits counties and municipalities from enacting regulations that prevent electric utilities from installing temporary underground power panels that meet the requirements of the National Electrical Code, and prevent counties and municipalities from requiring permanent inspections if the local government has already performed a temporary inspection. CS/HB 481 passed the House (115-0) and the Senate (36-0) and is awaiting action by the Governor. (O'Hara)

CS/SB 1156 (Stewart) and HB 935 (Morales) require the Department of Environmental Protection to conduct a study on the establishment of a new long-term, statewide recycling goal. The bills specify the requirements for the study and require DEP to submit a report and any policy recommendations to the Governor and Legislature upon completion of the study. (O'Hara)