Department of Environmental Protection; Revises, creates, & repeals various provisions under jurisdiction of DEP relating to aquatic preserves; preservation & regeneration of seagrass; Southeast Florida Coral Reef Ecosystem Conservation Area; use of reclaimed water; Resilient Florida Grant Program; comprehensive statewide flood vulnerability & sea level rise data set & assessment; Statewide Flooding & Sea Level Rise Resilience Plan; regional planning councils & estuary partnerships; transfer of regulation of Onsite Sewage Program from DOH to DEP; domestic wastewater treatment facilities; & basin management action plans.
Transparency in Health and Human Services; Establishes 3-year statute of limitations for action to collect medical debt for services; provides personal property exemptions from legal process for medical debts; requires licensed facility to post on its website consumer-friendly list of standard charges; requires licensed facility to provide estimate to patient & patient's insurer; requires licensed facility to establish internal grievance process for patients to dispute charges; prohibits collection activities by licensed facility; requires health insurer to provide insured with advanced explanation of benefits for scheduled services; provides shared savings incentive offered by health insurer or HMO constitutes medical expense for rate development & rate filing purposes.
Citizens Property Insurance Corporation; Revises circumstances under which certain insurers' association shall levy market equalization surcharges on policyholders; provides that certain accounts for Citizens Property Insurance Corporation revenues, assets, liability, losses, & expenses are now maintained as Citizens account; revises requirements for certain coverages by corporation; requires inclusion of quota share primary insurance in certain policies; specifies that certain provisions apply to personal lines residential risks that are primary residences and to personal lines residential risks that are not primary residences; provides that comparisons of comparable coverages under certain personal lines residential risks & commercial lines residential risks do not apply to policies that do not cover primary residences; provides that certain risks that could not be insured under standard policies are eligible for certain basic policies; revises corporation's plan of operation.
Transportation Services for Persons with Disabilities and the Transportation Disadvantaged; Revising duties of the Department of Transportation, within specified resources, with respect to required provisions of grants and agreements with entities providing paratransit services; defining the term “transportation service provider”; providing requirements for paratransit service contracts entered into on or after October 1, 2024; requiring the commission to establish model procedures for transportation service providers to receive and investigate reports related to adverse incidents, etc.
Education; Deleting a requirement that the State Board of Education establish the cost of certain tuition and fees; repealing a provision relating to single-gender programs; deleting a requirement that school districts provide certain virtual instruction options to students; deleting a requirement regarding assessment procedures for Department of Juvenile Justice education programs; providing requirements for students in the Voluntary Prekindergarten Education Program who exhibit a substantial deficiency in early literacy skills and early mathematics skills, etc.
Deregulation of Public Schools; Requiring a district school board to advertise its intent to adopt a tentative budget on a publicly available website if the district school board does not advertise such intent in a newspaper of general circulation; revising the general powers of district school superintendents to include establishing a process for the review and approval of certain policies and procedures through the delegated authority of district school boards; authorizing district school boards to adopt a policy relating to parental notification methods; revising the amount of funds school districts may expend from specified revenue and for certain purposes; authorizing district school boards to use advanced degrees in setting salary schedules for specified personnel, etc.
Permanency for Children; Revises & creates provisions relating to dependent children, including criminal history records checks, removing children from court-ordered placement, evidence required to amend case plans, Guardianship Assistance Program, notice requirements, review of DCF denial of application to adopt, home studies, adoption assistance services, adoption fees & court orders, required reports, advertising adoption services, & photo listing component of statewide adoption exchange.
School Choice; Revises contributions & provisions for Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program; revises provisions for Family Empowerment Scholarship Program, Hope Scholarship Program, virtual instruction program providers, private school requirements, & students in personalized education programs.
Transportation; limiting the amount of certain revenues in the State Transportation Trust Fund which the Department of Transportation may annually commit to public transit projects; revising provisions relating to a traffic and revenue study provided by a private entity; requiring the department to notify the Division of Bond Finance before entering into an interim or comprehensive agreement; etc.
Taxation; Providing that a taxpayer has a right to know certain information regarding property determined not to have been entitled to a homestead exemption; requiring that the owner be given a specified timeframe to pay certain taxes, penalties, and interest prior to a lien being filed; providing that such lien is subject to certain provisions; prohibiting the taxpayer from being assessed certain penalties or interest under certain circumstances; providing that back taxes apply only under certain circumstances, etc. APPROPRIATION: $608,604
Regulation of Commercial Motor Vehicles; Revises federal regulations to which owners & operators of certain commercial motor vehicles are subject; charges DHSMV with administration & enforcement of certain federal regulations; revises provisions relating to issuance of commercial motor vehicle license or temporary commercial instruction permit; requires certain final orders & rulings to be reviewable; requires downgrade of license or permit under certain circumstances; provides for hearing; provides for dismissal of action to downgrade license or permit; provides for reinstatement of license or permit; limits liability of DHSMV; authorizes issuance of Class E driver license to person prohibited from operating commercial motor vehicle.
Health Care Practitioners and Massage Therapy; Requires DOH to report specified data; authorizes DOH to suspend license of certain health care practitioners & massage establishments in certain circumstances; revises advertising requirements for massage therapists & massage establishments; prohibits establishments from sheltering or harboring, or being used as sleeping quarters for any person; requires DOH investigators to request government identification from all employees while in massage establishment; specifies additional documents person operating massage establishment must present, upon request, to DOH investigators & law enforcement officers; requires DOH to notify federal immigration office if specified persons fail to provide government identification; revises definition of “unlicensed massage establishment”. APPROPRIATION: $1,034,032
