Local Government Salaries and Benefits ; Revises requirements for board of county commissioners salary formula to apply to noncharter counties; provides for determination of salaries of members of boards of county commissioners of certain counties; requires referendum for board of county commissioners to increase salary, retirement benefits, or other compensation paid to its members; requires referendum election costs to be paid by county; requires referendum for governing body of municipality to increase salary, retirement benefits, or other compensation paid to its members; requires referendum election costs to be paid by municipality; requires referendum for governing body of special district to increase salary, retirement benefits, or other compensation paid to its members; requires referendum election costs to be paid by special district.
Florida Health Choices Program; Renaming the “Florida Health Choices Program” as the “Florida Employee Health Choices Program”; revising eligibility and participation requirements for vendors under the program; revising the types of health insurance products that are available for purchase through the program; revising the structure of the insurance marketplace process under the program, etc.
Food and Plastic Waste Reduction; Requiring the Department of Education to develop a specified pilot program in cooperation with the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services; requiring that the pilot program be offered in a certain percentage of schools, beginning in a specified school year; requiring each participating school district to submit a report to the Department of Education by a specified date, etc.
Hands-free Driving; Prohibits person who violates careless driving provisions from operating vehicle while using wireless communications device in handheld manner; provides additional penalties for person who violates such provisions & operates vehicle while using such device in handheld manner; authorizes first-time offenders to participate in wireless communications device driving safety program in lieu of imposition of additional penalties; provides exceptions to such prohibition; requires law enforcement officer who stops vehicle for violation of such provisions & finds that operator of vehicle is also using such device in handheld manner to inform vehicle operator of his or her right to decline search of his or her wireless communications device; prohibits such officer from taking certain actions without warrant or consent from vehicle operator; provides that user's billing records for such device or testimony of or written statements from certain authorities are admissible as evidence in crashes resulting in death or serious bodily injury for certain purposes; provides additional fine for person who commits careless driving while using such device in handheld manner; requires deposit of such fine into EMS Trust Fund of DOH.
Local Utility Revenues; Prohibiting counties and municipalities, respectively, from transferring for specified purposes revenues collected from providing utility services; requiring revenue surpluses to be returned to the ratepayers; requiring county and municipal utilities, respectively, to develop budget forecasts and strategies that meet certain requirements; prohibiting counties and municipalities, respectively, from charging a higher rate or adding a surcharge to certain customers, etc.
Preemption to the State; Prohibits counties, municipalities, & special districts, respectively, from substantially burdening free exercise of religion by adopting or enforcing certain ordinances, regulations, resolutions, rules, or other policies; prohibits local enforcement agency from denying issuance of certificate of occupancy to owner of residential or commercial property based on noncompliance with Florida-friendly landscaping ordinances; prohibits local enforcement agency from denying issuance of building permit for alteration, modification, or repair of single-family residential structure; prohibits local enforcement agency from requiring building permit for construction of playground equipment or fence on certain property; prohibits local governments from adopting or enforcing certain ordinances, regulations, resolutions, rules, charter provisions, or other policies or from taking any action to license or otherwise regulate mutual benefit corporations; revises criteria for business to be considered home-based business as it relates to local government regulation of parking.
Education; Requiring each Florida College System institution and state university to waive tuition and fees for members of the Florida State Guard if certain conditions are met; prohibiting a Florida College System institution or state university from admitting a student who is not a citizen of the United States or lawfully present therein; revising eligibility requirements for the Graduation Alternative to Traditional Education (GATE) Program; prohibiting a Florida College System institution or state university from imposing certain graduation requirements; revising conditions for a student to meet the definition of homeless children and youths for purposes of tuition and fee exemptions, etc.
Recording of Instruments Conveying Real Property; Requiring that electronic signatures for certain notarial acts include specified information as a watermark to prevent copying; prohibiting the recording of certain instruments without specified identification; defining the term “valid and unredacted identification document”; authorizing a clerk of the circuit court to return instruments for correction in specified circumstances, etc.
Restrictions on Local Government Regulations After a Hurricane; Revises circumstances under which certain land use regulations may be enforced; revising persons authorized to bring certain civil actions; requires certain pending applications to be processed in a specified manner.
Reimagining Education and Career Help Act; Revising the definition of the term “credential” to include leadership and soft skills certificates offered by certain accredited education organizations and entities, etc.
Community-based Care Lead Agency Liability Insurance; Requiring the Office of Insurance Regulation, in collaboration with the Department of Children and Families and other entities, to review and analyze certain data; requiring the office to provide a certain report to the Governor and Legislature; authorizing the office to levy fines or otherwise penalize insurance companies, and the department to levy fines or otherwise penalize community-based care lead agencies, for failure to timely reply to certain requests for information, etc.
Local Government Land Development Regulations and Orders; Requires certain counties & municipalities, respectively, to follow certain application procedures for applications for certain development permits & development orders; creates "Florida Starter Homes Act"; prohibits local governments from imposing certain regulations if residential lot is connected to public water system & sewerage system; prohibits local government from imposing regulations that require more than certain minimum number of parking spaces for specified residential lots; prohibits local government from imposing certain regulations on residential lots that contain historic property; prohibits local government from treating off-site constructed residential dwellings differently than factory-built buildings; authorizes local government to adopt compatibility standards that are limited to certain architectural features; requires approval of lot split; limits criteria that may be required by local governments for applications for & approvals of lot splits; authorizes placement of residential manufactured building on any lot in recreational vehicle park.
