BILL SUMMARY DETAILS

HB 661 (Caruso) and SB 332 (Burgess) require counties to establish maximum rates that may be charged for the storage of electric vehicles. Wrecker operators are also permitted to charge fair and reasonable costs, plus 10% for cleanup and disposal of hazardous materials or debris. If the vehicle is stored at a wrecker facility for more than 30 days, the entity that requested the storage is financially liable to the wrecker facility. Whenever a local government entity authorizes the removal of a vehicle, the local government entity is required to notify the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. (Wagoner)

HB 179 (Bell), SB 774 (Perry), SB 202 (Rodriguez) and HB 213 (Smith) make changes related to towing-storage operator practices, including allowable fees, payment, lien requirements, sale of unclaimed vehicles and record retention. Specifically, the bills share the following provisions:

•Reduce the timeframe in which a towing-storage operator must send the notice of lien from seven to four business days, and reduce storage charges that may be charged if a lienor fails to provide this notice.

•Provide that a towing-storage operator may only charge certain fees.

•Require towing-storage operators to accept specified forms of payment.

•Increase the timeframe an unclaimed vehicle or vessel three years of age or newer may be sold by a lienor from 50 days to 65 days from the storage date, and require the notice of lien must not be sent less than 60 days before the sale.

•Increase the timeframe for the public notice requirement related to sale on an unclaimed vehicle by a towing-storage operator from ten days to twenty days before the sale.

•Require a towing-storage operator to make a towed vehicle available for inspection during normal business hours within 30 minutes after arrival at a storage facility.

•Require a towing-storage operator to accept electronic titles as well as paper titles as evidence of a person’s interest in a vehicle or vessel. 

•Require a towing-storage operator to retain records of all vehicles and vessels recovered, towed or stored; all notice publications and certified mailings; and fees for at least three years.

•Provide that foreclosing a storage lien on a vehicle or vessel must be through the process as opposed to the warehouse lien and landlord and tenant statutes. 

•Create notice and bond requirements for foreclosure of storage liens on vehicles or vessels held by self-storage facilities.

Only HB 179 and SB 774 prohibit the Florida Highway Patrol from excluding a wrecker operator from its wrecker operator system based solely on a prior felony conviction, unless such conviction is for a specified felony offense. 

Only SB 202 and HB 213 preempt counties and cities from imposing any regulations upon a towing-storage operator more stringent than those within this legislation. (Wagoner)

HB 7013 (Local Administration, Federal Affairs & Special Districts Subcommittee) is a comprehensive bill dealing with special districts. Of interest to cities, the bill does the following:

•Establishes a term limit of 12 years for members of an elected body governing an independent special district, unless the district’s charter provides for more restrictive terms of office. Any term of office that commenced before November 5, 2024, does not count toward the limitation created by the bill. This provision does not apply to the governing body of a community development district or any independent special district created by a special act.

•Requires a continuation referendum for most independent special districts exercising ad valorem tax authority on a date certain and every 10 years thereafter.

•Provides dissolution process for special districts that voters elect to dissolve.

•Adds additional criteria for declaring a special district inactive. 

•Revises notice and procedures for proposed declaration of inactive status. 

•Authorizes districts that have been declared inactive to expend funds as necessary to service outstanding debt.

•Requires all special districts to adopt goals and objectives, as well as performance measures and standards to determine if those goals and objectives are being achieved. 

•Repeals a provision that allows a special district to convert itself into a municipality without legislative approval.

•Requires each petition to create a community development district to contain a sworn affidavit concerning planned development. 

•Requires independent special fire control districts to report certain information to the Division of State Fire Marshal. 

•Requires mosquito control districts to meet certain conditions required to participate in state programs. 

•Prohibits the creation of new neighborhood improvement districts (NIDs) and requires the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability to conduct a performance review of existing NIDs. (Branch)

SJR 582 (Ingoglia) proposes a constitutional amendment to the State Constitution to prohibit the state, a county, a municipality or any other political subdivision from paying reparations to an individual who is a descendant of an enslaved individual who lived in the United States before December 6, 1865. (Cruz)

HB 421 (Gossett-Seidman) and SB 572 (Rodriguez) require local governments and other entities to make best efforts to provide advance notice to the entity or person who installed a traffic-related roadside memorial commemorating a deceased person before altering, dismantling, destroying or removing it. (Wagoner)

SB 166 (Polsky) creates the Medical Marijuana Public Employee Protection Act. The bill would prohibit a public employer from taking adverse personnel actions against an employee or job applicant who is a qualified patient for their use of medical marijuana unless that use is impairing the employee's ability to perform their job duties or responsibilities. (Chapman)

HB 395 (Black) prohibits a local government from removing historical monuments and memorials. A local government may only relocate a historical monument in certain circumstances. The bill provides that any person or entity that damages, defaces, destroys or removes an existing monument or memorial will be civilly liable for the costs to return, repair or replace the monument or memorial unless the person was authorized or the entity was the owner. (Wagoner)

HB 271 (Lopez, V.) and SB 388 (Garcia) narrow the current preemption on the regulation of private parking lot operations to include a preemption only on the rates charged for parking and for violating the parking lot rules. The bills would restrict parking lot owners from charging a late fee until after 30 days from the date the invoice was postmarked. The bill also prohibits parking lot owners from charging for parking if the vehicle is on the property for less than 10 minutes. (Branch)

SB 496 (Perry) and HB 535 (Snyder) expand the criteria for the installation of low-voltage electric fences in areas not considered to be zoned exclusively for single-family or multifamily residential use if the area is within more than one zoning category. Of concern to local government, the bills prohibit the regulation of low-voltage alarms in any manner that is more restrictive than state law. (Branch)

SB 648 (DiCeglie) and HB 377 (Borrero) allow a person who holds a valid vehicle-for-hire license or permit from any city or county the ability to operate a vehicle for hire in another city or county without being subject to additional licensing or permitting requirements. This preemption would not apply to transportation services to and from an airport. (Branch)

HB 459 (Rudman) and SB 402 (Yarborough) revise the criteria of the State Health Officer extending a statewide public health emergency to require approval by a two-thirds majority vote of the Legislature. HB 459 prohibits the State Health Officer from issuing a blanket closure on government buildings and services, churches and altering election procedures and protocols. However, any action that will affect an entire group must be authorized on a case-by-case basis, with each case being afforded all rights of due process. (Branch)

SB 506 (Wright) adds code enforcement officers to the list of covered professionals under Section 784.07, Florida Statutes, which provides penalties for assault, battery, aggravated assault, and aggravated battery when the offense is knowingly committed against a law enforcement officer or other specified professionals who are engaged in the lawful performance of his or her duties. (Wagoner)

HB 119 (Melo) and SB 188 (Brodeur) – Trespass on Commercial Agricultural Property

HB 397 (Cross) and SB 404 (Rouson) expand the urban agricultural pilot project to allow for commercial agricultural use of residential property in certain circumstances. (Cruz)

HB 479 (Robinson, W.) and SB 688 (Martin) revise and provide additional guidance concerning the use of mobility plans and the collection of mobility fees. The bills provide definitions for “mobility fee” and “mobility plan” to be used within the Community Planning Act. The bills prohibit local governments from charging for transportation impacts if they are not the local government that is issuing a building permit, require that local governments collect for extra jurisdictional impacts if they are issuing building permits and prohibit local governments from assessing multiple charges for the same transportation impact. Concerning impact fees, the bills provide that local governments adopting and collecting impact fees by ordinance or resolution must use localized data available within the previous 12 months of adoption for the local government’s calculation of impact fees. (Cruz)

HB 31 (Edmonds) and SB 64 (Osgood) – Landlords and Tenants

HB 557 (Stevenson) – Moveable Tiny Homes

SB 386 (Osgood) requires local governments to reduce parking requirements necessary for development approval for “Live Local” developments where at least 75% of the residential units are affordable for at least 30 years and the development is located within one-half mile of a major transportation hub. (Branch)

HB 759 (Andrade) prohibits panhandling within 50 feet of the following: an entrance to or exit from a commercially zoned property; a bus stop or facility; an automatic teller machine or bank entrance; a parking lot, parking garage, parking meter or parking pay station; or a public restroom. It prohibits panhandling within 100 feet of a child care facility or Pre-K through 12 school; on a right-of-way or road defined in section 334.03; at a public transit stop or in a public transit vehicle; while the person being solicited is waiting to be admitted to a commercial establishment; by touching the person being solicited; with the use of profane or abusive language; while under the influence of alcohol or illegal controlled substance; and between the hours of 4 p.m. and 9 a.m. The bill prohibits a person from approaching an operator or other occupant of a motor vehicle for the purpose of panhandling. The bill specifies penalties for violations. Finally, the bill requires individuals engaged in solicitation on specified roads, rights-of-way or facilities to clearly identify the name of the charitable organization or named individual on whose behalf contributions are being solicited and to clearly identify the charitable purpose for which contributions are being solicited. (O’Hara)

HB 791 (Overdorf) revises timeframes in sections 125.022 and 166.033, Florida Statutes, for counties and municipalities to process applications for approvals of development permits or development orders and requires these governmental entities to issue certain refunds for failure to meet the timeframes.  The bill requires counties and municipalities to specify in writing the information that must be submitted in an application for zoning approval, rezoning approval, subdivision approval, certification, special exception, or variance.  It requires counties and municipalities to confirm receipt of an application for development permit or order within five days.  The bill specifies the statutory timeframes shall restart if an application makes a substantive change to an application, which is defined as a change of 15 percent or more in the proposed density, intensity, or square footage of a parcel.  The bill requires counties and municipalities to issue refunds ranging from 10 to 100 percent of the application fee for failure to meet the statutory timeframes for determining whether an application is complete or requires additional information and for taking final action on an application.

HB 339 (Roth) and SB 696 (Rodriguez) amend the statutory preemption on local government regulation of agritourism activities by prohibiting a local government from requiring a “certificate of use” for any agricultural land, facility or agritourism venue unless authorized by general law. In addition, the bills prohibit a local government from limiting any state-regulated activity associated with agritourism, including a farm stand, farmers market, brewery, winery, distillery, food processing and preparation activity, food truck or mobile food service operation associated with agritourism agricultural products. (O’Hara)