TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Monday signed 16 bills into law that cover a variety of issues, including massage parlors, school safety and highway racing.
All 16 of these bills were among the 20 received by DeSantis last month.
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Three of the other four bills involved bolstering the “My Safe Florida” hurricane mitigation program, and they were signed by DeSantis just a day later in Pinellas County.
Meanwhile, the remaining bill was signed in Naples to fund red tide research. As such, all 20 of the bills have been signed into law.
The new laws signed on Monday include:
HB 197 - Massage Parlors
House Bill 197 aims to combat human trafficking in the state that channels through illicit massage parlors.
Under the law, the state Department of Health would be required to issue an emergency suspension of a massage therapist or establishment’s license if any employee at the business is arrested on charges related to kidnapping, human trafficking or prostitution.
In addition, the law will explicitly prohibit any kind of sexual activity within a massage business.
The law goes into effect on July 1.
HB 285 - Public Record Exemptions
House Bill 285 amends state statutes regarding recording notification services.
Under the bill, there is a public record exemption for emails, phone numbers, business names and parcel ID numbers that have been submitted for the registration of a recording notification service.
Instead, such information will be kept confidential from the public except under court order, which could potentially help tamp down on title fraud.
The law went into effect upon being signed.
HB 341 - SAFE Act
House Bill 341 — dubbed the “Safeguarding American Families Everywhere Act” (SAFE) — involves motor vehicle registration in the state.
In particular, the law will require that motor vehicle registration applications include a section to let applicants voluntarily indicate whether they have — or whether they’re the legal guardian of a child who has — one of the following disabilities:
- autism
- attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
- down syndrome
- Alzheimer’s disease
- traumatic brain injury
- PTSD
- diabetes
- autoimmune disorder
- deafness/blindness
Applicants who indicate a diagnosis for one of these disabilities can have the designation “SAFE” applied to their motor vehicle record, though that could be updated for removal at any time.
The law goes into effect on Oct. 1.
HB 405 - FMCSA Alignment
House Bill 405 aligns state laws with changes to federal regulations.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration established requirements in 2021 for state driver licensing agencies to have access to data on driver-specific drug and alcohol program violations.
These agencies have until Nov. 18 to comply with the requirements — hence HB 405.
In addition, the bill will adopt updated FMCSA regulations for commercial motor vehicles.
The law goes into effect on July 1.
HB 761 - Domestic Violence Protections
House Bill 761 amends the state statutes regarding domestic violence.
This bill will get rid of notary requirements for those seeking a petition for protection against domestic violence. Instead, these petitions would only need to be verified by the petitioner.
The law goes into effect on July 1.
HB 1077 - Clerks of Court
House Bill 1077 amends the state statutes regarding clerks of court in Florida.
Under this bill, some changes have been made to increase revenue for clerks by redistributing certain service charges. These include:
- Revising which trust funds that certain money is deposited into
- Funding court technology improvement
- Reducing the amount of fees distributed to the General Revenue Fund
- Eliminating state attorney and public defender reporting requirements in affirmative action programs
- Allowing clerks of court to invest specific funds into interest-bearing accounts
The law went into effect upon being signed.
HB 1393 - Court Interpreter Services
House Bill 1393 amends the state statutes regarding state-funded due process services.
Currently, “due process services” in Florida can only be provided with state funds for those who are determined to be “indigent.”
Under this bill, state funds can be used to provide court-appointed interpreting services to non-indigent people, as well, which could benefit those with limited or no English proficiency.
The law went into effect upon being signed.
HB 1473 - School Safety
House Bill 1473 seeks several changes aimed at bolstering school security in Florida.
The law requires that sheriff’s offices responsible for certifying school guardians report the information to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
In turn, FDLE will have to keep a list of each person appointed as a school guardian, including their names, dates of certification and appointed schools.
Meanwhile, private schools will have to take on the costs involved in background screening and training for school guardians, though certification could waive those fees.
Additionally, the bill makes the following changes for school safety:
- Exits/entrances must be secured when students are on campus.
- Exits/entrances must be actively staffed when opened or unlocked (with some exceptions).
- Each school district must develop a discipline policy for staff who violate school safety requirements.
- People are prohibited from operating drones over a public or private school serving students in grades PreK - 12.
- A grant program would be created through FDLE to give funds to law enforcement agencies to conduct security assessments for private schools.
The law goes into effect on July 1.
HB 1509 - School Safety (Public Records)
House Bill 1509 is linked to House Bill 1473, being based on HB 1473′s rules regarding FDLE school guardian records.
Under this law, a public-record exemption would be established for information held by FDLE, law enforcement agencies, school districts or charter schools that could identify whether a person has been certified to serve as a school guardian.
The law goes into effect at the same time as HB 1473.
HB 7067 - Pretrial Detention Hearings
House Bill 7067 amends the state statutes regarding pretrial detention and release.
Under this law, courts are allowed to base an order of pretrial detention solely on hearsay if the case involves a dangerous crime like a capital or first-degree felony.
The law took effect upon being signed.
SB 902 - Motor Vehicle Retail Financial Agreements
Senate Bill 902 amends state statutes regarding retail installment sales.
The bill will create the “Florida Vehicle Value Protection Agreements Act,” which establishes requirements for offering vehicle value protection agreements (VVPAs).
These include restrictions on the type of charges, certain conditional sales and sales with duplicative coverage.
The law goes into effect on Oct. 1.
SB 1136 - Water Well Contractor Licenses
Senate Bill 1136 amends state statutes regarding water resources in the state, revising the qualifications for people taking the water well contractor licensing exam.
Under the law, exam applicants will need to have at least two years of experience in constructing, repairing or abandoning water wells in Florida.
Furthermore, the bill will make it illegal to advertise water-well drilling or construction services if a business isn’t owned by a licensed water well contractor or doesn’t employ such a contractor.
The law goes into effect on July 1.
SB 1532 - Water Quality Enhancements
Senate Bill 1532 seeks to let private firms purchase credits through the water quality enhancement credit program.
The bill’s analysis reads as follows:
SB 1532 expands the water quality enhancement credit program to allow private entities to purchase credits. Currently, only governmental entities may purchase water quality enhancement credits under the program. Specifically, the bill provides that water quality enhancement credits may be sold to governmental entities seeking to meet an assigned basin management action plan allocation or reasonable assurance plan or to private or governmental applicants for the purpose of achieving net improvement or meeting environmental resource permit performance standards.
Florida Senate
The law goes into effect on July 1.
SB 1628 - Local Governments
Senate Bill 1628 requires that local governments complete a business impact statement before adopting any comprehensive plan amendment or land development regulation.
These statements will have to include the following information:
- Estimate of the direct economic impact
- Estimate of compliance costs for businesses
- Identification of new charges and fees
- Estimate of the county/city’s regulatory costs
- Estimate of the number of businesses that would be impacted
The law goes into effect on Oct. 1.
SB 1764 - Highway Racing
Senate Bill 1764 amends state statutes regarding racing on highways.
Under the law, violations of these rules would see harsher fines and enhanced penalties.
The law will also make it so that anyone who breaks these rules while engaging in a “coordinated street takeover” — a situation where at least 10 cars are organized to take over a street — could face a third-degree felony charge and steep fines.
In addition, fines will be increased for spectators at such events.
The law goes into effect on July 1.
SB 7020 - Delivery of Notices
Senate Bill 7020 amends state statutes regarding definitions in Florida law.
Specifically, the bill seeks to expand the definition of “registered mail” to include additional types of delivery services.
Under the bill, the term would also include any delivery service by USPS or a private delivery service “that is regularly engaged in the delivery of documents which provides proof of mailing or shipping and proof of delivery.”
The law went into effect upon being signed.
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