BILL SUMMARY DETAILS

SB 268 (Perry) expressly preempts the licensing of occupations to the state. The bill defines occupation to include a paid job, work, trade, employment or profession and defines licensing to include any training, education, test, certification, registration, procedure or license that are required for a person to perform an occupation. The bill provides limited exceptions for specified local licenses and any local government licensing of occupations that was expressly authorized by general law. The bill will prohibit a local government from requiring a person to obtain a license for a job scope that does not substantially correspond to the job scope of certain contractor categories set forth in Chapter 489, Florida Statutes. In addition, the bill will authorize local governments to issue journeyman licenses in specified trades. (Cruz)

SB 646 (Taddeo) would require counties and municipalities to rename their respective portions of Dixie Highway, Old Dixie Highway, North Dixie Highway or South Dixie Highway as “Harriet Tubman Highway.” (Branch)

HB 115 (Fabricio) provides that an individual with a valid active local license may work in any local government jurisdiction without having to obtain additional local licensing, take additional examinations or pay additional local licensing fees. The bill explicitly states that this multi-jurisdictional approval does not impede a local government's ability to collect business taxes from businesses operating within the local government's boundaries. Local governments' disciplinary jurisdiction for licenses within their jurisdictions is also retained. The bill details the process for a local government to execute its disciplinary jurisdiction. (Cruz)

HB 35 (Fine) allows a governmental agency the option to publish legally required advertisements and notices on a publicly accessible website if the online publication results in a cost savings to the local government. The bill also requires a governmental agency to publish a notice at least once a year in a newspaper of general circulation that the resident or property owner may receive legally required notices or advertisements via first class mail or email by registration of his or her name, address and email address with the local governmental agency. (Taggart)

HB 261 (Rayner) and SB 670 (Jones) create a new lawsuit against an officer, employee or agent of a political subdivision of the state for when they are acting under color of law and deprive someone's rights under the U.S. and state constitutions. The bills provide claims may not be used as defense against liability and specifies circumstances under which an officer, employee or agent is immune. (Cruz)

SB 60 (Bradley) would prohibit code enforcement officers from investigating and enforcing a potential code violation if the complaint is received anonymously. The bill requires any person who reports a violation of a code or ordinance to provide their name and address to the local government before any enforcement proceedings occur. (Taggart)

HB 337 (DiCeglie) is a comprehensive impact fee bill. Of concern to cities, the legislation would cap impact fee increases to no more than 3% annually. The bill would allow a local government to collect an impact fee only if it has a planned or funded capital improvements within the applicable impact fee assessment district at the time the fee is collected. The bill defines infrastructure and public facilities. Lastly, the bill requires submittal of an affidavit by local governments that collect impact fees attesting that all impact fees were collected and expended by the local government in compliance with the bill. (Cruz)

SB 266 (Perry) preempts local governments from licensing and regulating home-based businesses. Local governments would be prohibited from enacting or enforcing any ordinance, regulation or policy regarding home-based businesses as defined in the bill. The legislation requires that a home-based business could not substantially increase traffic, noise, waste or recycling. The bill allows a party to challenge any local government action that violates the preemption. If challenged, the prevailing party is entitled to recover attorneys fees and costs. (Cruz)

SB 496 (Perry) and HB 59 (McClain) are comprehensive growth management bills. The legislation requires local governments to create and include a private property rights element in their comprehensive plans by July 1, 2023. The bill requires the consent of certain property owners is not required for development agreement changes under certain circumstances. Under certain circumstances the legislation authorizes developers to exchange approved land uses, subject to demonstrating that the exchange will not increase impacts to public facilities. The bills require the Department of Transportation to afford a right of first refusal to previous property owners under specified circumstances. (Cruz)

HB 255 (Geller) – Legislation by Initiative

HB 6021 (Eskamani) – Rent Control Measures

HB 13 (Killebrew) and SB 510 (Hooper) specifies that funds deposited in the State Housing Trust Fund and the Local Government Housing Trust Fund may not be transferred or used for any other purpose. (Branch)

HB 81 (Casello) and SB 224 (Berman) – Sales and Use Tax Exemption

SB 302 (Taddeo) – Small Business Saturday Sales Tax Holiday

SB 598 (Perry) – Back-to-school Sales Tax Holiday

HJR 85 (Rizzo) and SJR 156 (Diaz) – Joint Resolution: Homestead Assessment Limitation for School Levies

HB 87 (Rizzo) and SJR 158 (Diaz) – Homestead Assessment Limitation for School Levies

SB 506 (Garcia) and HB 195 (Persons-Mulicka) require that the website maintained by the Department of Management Services include specified information, such as name and total compensation, of all executives, managerial personnel and board members of any organization or other public or private entity that receives funding from the state of $50,000 or more in the aggregate. This information must be provided to DMS by December 31 of each calendar year beginning in 2021. Any organization or entity that fails to comply with this requirement may not receive any additional funding from the state until they are compliant. (Hughes)

SB 516 (Rodriguez) specifics the methodology for the assessment of the structures and equipment used in aquaculture. The bill allows the property owner to request removal of its agriculture classification if the tax assessed based on such methodology exceeds the tax assessed based on the value of the structures and equipment. (Hughes)

SB 50 (Gruters) and HB 15 (Clemons) require retailers with no physical presence in Florida to collect Florida’s sales tax on sales of taxable items delivered to purchasers in Florida if the retailer makes a substantial number of sales into Florida or provides for the taxation of sales facilitated through a marketplace provider. The bill also deletes a provision that exempts an out-of-state dealer that makes retail sales into Florida from collecting and remitting any local option surtax. (Hughes)

SB 132 (Hutson) allows the rental of a portion of a dwelling claimed to be a homestead for tax purposes while the dwelling is physically occupied by the owner does not constitute the abandonment of the dwelling as a homestead. (Hughes)

SB 154 (Diaz) amends multiple provisions related to local government financial transparency. The bill expands public notice and public hearing requirements for local option tax increases, other than property taxes and taxes adopted by referendum, and new long-term tax-supported debt issuances. Each local government is required to prominently post on its website the voting records on any action taken by its governing board related to tax increases and new tax-supported debt issuances. The bill imposes requirements on county property appraisers and local governments relating to Truth in Millage (TRIM) notices, millage rate history and the amount of tax levied by each taxing authority on each parcel.

Additionally, local governments will be required to conduct a debt affordability analysis prior to approving the issuance of new long-term tax-supported debt. The bill requires the local government annual audit reports to include information regarding compliance with the requirements of this newly created section of law. Failure to comply would result in the withholding of state-shared revenues. The bill revises the local government reporting requirements for economic development incentives. It requires each municipality to report to the Office of Economic and Demographic Research whether the incentive is provided directly to an individual business or by another entity on behalf of the local government and the source of dollars obligated for the incentive (including local, state and federal). (Hughes)

HB 61 (Roth) – Percentage of Elector Votes Required to Approve Constitutional Amendment or Revision

HB 215 (Sabatini) prohibits a local government from using public funds to retain a lobbyist to represent the local government before the legislative or executive branch. It would permit a full-time employee of local government to register as a lobbyist and represent the local government before the legislative or executive branch. The bill would also prohibit any person, except a full-time employee, from accepting public funds for lobbying. It provides for the filing of complaints with the Florida Commission on Ethics and the filing of civil actions for injunctive relief, as well as sanctions and recovery of attorney fees by prevailing parties. (O’Hara)