BIlls Being Considered in the 2022 Florida Legislative Session
Session Ends March 11
Overview: How to view the bills
Call to Action: What to do with this information
General Bills
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These are non-environmental bills. Topics include Abortion, Equality, Healthcare, Education, Guns, Criminal Justice, etc.
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Remember: Click on Sponsor for contact info. Click on Bill TItle for official bill info, including its status and committee it is on. Click here for writing LTE.
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Local legislator info can be found here.
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If both HB and SB are essentially the same, this page only gives link to SB. Within the SB info, you will see link to HB if you want to view it.
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***One of the anti-abortion bills for this session***
HB 5 (Grall and Persons-Mulicka) and SB 146 (Stargel) – Fetal and Infant Mortality Reduction
Among other things, these bills prohibit a physician from performing an abortion if gestational age of fetus is more than 15 weeks. See also HB 167.
OPPOSED by Equality Florida
HB 7 (Avila) and SB 148 ( Diaz and Rodrigues) – Individual Freedom
Sometimes referred to as the “Stop WOKE Actl” …. Similar to SB 148, HB 57, SB 242, which in part prohibit schools from discussing systemic racism or sexism, unconscious bias, and race or sex stereotyping.
OPPOSED by Equality Florida
HB 35 (Roach) and SB 244 (Gruters) – Partisan Elections for Members of District School Boards
Proposes amendments to the State Constitution to require members of district school board to be elected in partisan election.
HB 75 (Sabatini) – Limiting COVID-19 Restrictions
Prevents state and local governments from issuing mask mandates, vaccine passports, requiring proof of vaccination status before entering business. Voids any mandates currently in place.
HB 103 (Sabatini) – Carrying of Firearms without Licenses
Removes requirement that a license to carry concealed firearm is required in order to carry such firearm; limits areas in which concealed carrying of firearm is prohibited; revises criminal penalties, etc.
SUPPORTED by Florida Equality
HB 111 (Geller)) and SB 308 (Berman) – Offenses Evidencing Prejudice (aka Hate Crimes Law Expansion)
Amends existing hate crimes law so that crimes of prejudice based on gender or gender identity are also considered hate crimes.
HB 117 (Fetterhoff and Omphroy) and SB 774 (Gruters) – Communicable and Infectious Diseases
Adds COVID-19 and infectious diseases to the list of conditions that, if suffered by an emergency rescue or public safety worker, are presumed to have been contracted while at work for purposes of workers' compensation. Unlike similar presumptions in current law for hepatitis, meningococcal meningitis and tuberculosis, the bills do not require the public safety worker or emergency rescue worker to receive immunization against COVID-19 in order to receive the presumptive eligibility provisions afforded by workers' compensation coverage.
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This is a “Texas-style Six-Week Abortion Ban.” Requires physician to conduct test for, and inform woman seeking abortion of presence of detectable fetal heartbeat; prohibits physician from performing or inducing abortion if fetal heartbeat is detected or if physician fails to conduct test to detect fetal heartbeat; provides exceptions; authorizes private civil cause of action for certain violations; provides for civil remedies & damages. See also HB 5 and SB 146.
SUPPORTED by Florida Equality
HB 6015 (Rayner) and SB 168 (Polsky) – Marriage Between Persons of the Same Sex
This bill would delete outdated, patently unconstitutional provisions that ban recognizing same-sex marriage and still defines marriage as only between a man and a woman.
HB 171 (Hart and Valdes) – Criminal Rehabilitation
Specifies that to rehabilitate offender to transition back to community successfully is one of the primary purposes of sentencing; reduces minimum sentence that must be served by defendant from 85 percent of sentence to 65 percent; revises provisions concerning gain time to provide for outstanding deed gain-time, good behavior time, & rehabilitation credits; revises limits on awards.
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SUPPORTED by Equality Florida
HB 199 (Smith) and SB 214 (Farmer) – Assault Weapons and Large-capacity Magazines
Prohibits sale, transfer, or possession of assault weapon or large-capacity magazine; requires certificates of possession for assault weapons or large-capacity magazines lawfully possessed before specified date; limits sales or transfers of assault weapons or large-capacity magazines documented by such certificates; provides enhanced penalties for offenses committed with assault weapon or large-capacity magazine.
HB 205 (Smith) and SB 374 (Book) – Gay and Transgender Panic Legal Defenses Prohibition Act
Prohibits using “panic defense” when committing crimes against an LGBTQ person.
OPPOSED by Equality Florida
HB 211 (Sabatini) – Youth Gender and Sexual Identity
Sometimes referred to as the "Transgender Youth Medical Care Ban." It would criminalize doctors for providing care to transgender youth.
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SB 524 (Hutson) - Elections
This is a bill with wide-ranging changes to Florida's voting laws. Among the changes: Remove limitations on fines that 3rd party voter registration organization can encounter for violations. Require voter driver license or Social Security # on ballots. Bans rank-choiced voting in local elections. Require elections officials in each county to update voter rolls every year, instead of current every odd year. Gives power to the Governor to appoint a special FDLE agent in each of the agency's seven regions to investigate alleged violations of election laws. Creates the Office of Elections Crimes and Security with the Florida Dept of State.
HB 549 (Omphroy) – Legalization of Recreational Marijuana
Would authorize recreational use of marijuana under certain conditions. See bill for details.
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SB 580 (Torres) - Rent Control Measures
This is meant to give some rental control authority to local government. Specifically, it deletes previous statue requirements for the termination, expiration, extension, and renewal of local governmental rent control measures. Other Rent Control bills that have been filed: HB 6017, HB 6113, SB 1900
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OPPOSED by Equality Florida
HB 747 (Snyder and Altman) and SB 1820 (Baxley) – Protections of Medical Conscience
Some have called it the “Healthcare Discrimination BIll" or “No Medical Service to Gays” bill. It allows healthcare providers and insurers to deny a patient any sort of care on the basis of religious, moral, or ethical beliefs. Also allows for employment discrimination in healthcare for the same reasons. Many feel this bill would codify discrimination against LGBTQ, non-Christians, etc.
SUPPORTED by Equality Florida
HB 883 (Slosbert-King) – Reclassification of Crimes Evidencing Prejudice
Provides for reclassification of felony & misdemeanor offenses for defacing, damaging, or destroying victim's property based upon perpetrator's prejudice; includes certain entities in the definition of "victim." It basically updates current Florida hate crime laws to allow government, public and private organizations to be classified as victims of misdeeds motivated by race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, age, or disability.
HB 1055 (Rommel) – Video Cameras in Public School Classrooms
Authorizes school districts to adopt policy to place video cameras in public school classrooms; provides requirements for such policy; provides for viewing video recordings; provides DOE, school district, school, & certain employee responsibilities.
SUPPORTED by Equality Florida
HB 6065 (Arrington) and SB 212 (Farmer) – Fairness in Women’s Sports Act
Repeals the transgender youth sports ban that was voted in by the legislature in 2021. This bill is called the “Let Kids Play Act” and it repeals provisions related to the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act from 2021.
HB 943 (Harding) and SB 1124 (Gruters) -- Preemption of Local Government Wage Mandates
Creates the “Minimum Wage Act.” Prohibits local governments from mandating a wage higher than the state minimum -- another attack on home rule.
SUPPORTED by Equality Florida
HB 1409 (Eskamani) – Education in Public Schools Concerning Human Sexuality
Calls for the “Florida Healthy Adolescent Act” which includes having public schools provide information regarding human sexuality. This bill requires certain public schools that provide information or offer programs to students relating to human sexuality to provide information or offer programs that meet specified criteria; requires public schools to make certain curriculum available to parents & guardians upon request; authorizes students to be excused from certain portions of program without penalty; provides compliance review process.
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HB 1547 (Overdorf) and SB 1848 (Gruters) -- Personal Information Protection Act
Prohibits a public agency from requiring, publicly disclosing, or requesting specified personal information; provides construction and applicability; provides for the right of civil action and award of damages; provides penalties, etc.
Currently the HB and SB have differences in scope. Overdorf's House bill would protect corporations, associations, and nonprofit organizations from disclosing information while the Senate bill focuses solely on 501(c)(3) charitable organizations. In practical terms, the House bill, acting as a public records exemption bill, would allow donors to political campaigns to stay anonymous, and many opponents to this bill fear it will lead to hampering legitmate investigations into fraud and corruption.
OPPOSED by Equality Florida
HB 1557 (Harding) and SB 1834 (Baxley) – Parental Rights in Education
This bill has been called the “Don’t Say Gay” bill. Requires district school boards to adopt procedures that comport with provisions of law for notifying student's parent of specified information; requires procedures to reinforce fundamental right of parents to make decisions regarding upbringing & control of their children; provides requirements for such procedures, school districts, & personnel; requires DOE to review & update specified materials.
OPPOSED by Equality Florida
SB 1842 (Baxley) – Reproductive Health and Disease Education
Requires school districts or schools within a district to notify and request the written consent of parents and guardians before the teaching of reproductive health or any sexually transmitted disease; prohibits schools from allowing students to be exposed to such teaching without the written consent of their parents or guardians; prohibits a student whose parent or guardian does not give such written consent from being penalized, etc.
SUPPORTED by Equality Florida
SB 1870 (Jones) – Conversion Therapy
Prohibits state-funded conversion therapy and calls for educating the public on the dangers of conversion therapy.
HB 6007 (Sabatini) – Licenses to Carry Concealed Weapons or Firearms
Would remove provision prohibiting concealed carry licensees from openly carrying handgun or carrying concealed weapon or firearm into college or university facility
HB 6009 (Sabatini) – Vaccinations During Public Health Emergencies
Would remove provision that State Health Officer could order vaccination of individuals during public health emergency
HB 6023 (Eskamani) – Abortion Clinic Regulations
Addresses issues with last year’s SB 390 on abortion clinics. Removes requirement delaying abortion procedure; removes prohibition on expending funds for benefit of, paying funds to, or initiating or renewing contracts with certain organizations that perform abortions under certain circumstances; removes requirement that AHCA review abortion clinic patient records as component of licensure inspections.
HB 6037 (Snyder) and SB 360 (Harrell) – Traveling Across County Lines to Commit a Burglary
Removes requirement that travel across county lines be for specified purpose in order to reclassify burglary offense to the next higher degree.
Environmental Bills
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Remember: Click on Sponsor for contact info. Click on Bill TItle for official bill info, including its status and committee it is on. Click here for writing LTE.
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Local legislator info can be found here.
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If both HB and SB are essentially the same, this page only gives link to SB. Within the SB info, you will see link to HB if you want to view it.
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Several of these bills deal with Local Control, an area many Republicans in office want to see weakened. They want the state to dictate policy rather than local government. It's a recurring theme in many bills this year.
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Bills are listed in the same categories used by 1000 Friends of Florida, an organization many in the MCDEC follow. These categories are Community Planning, Resilience, Conservation, Water, and Transportation
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COMMUNITY PLANNING (Local Rule type bills)
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SUPPORTED by 1000 Friends of Florida and Friends of the Everglades
SJR 152 (Farmer) - Supermajority Vote for Legislative Preemption
Requires a 2/3 vote of each house to preempt to the state matters of local control.
OPPOSED by 1000 Friends of Florida, Friends of the Everglades, Florida League of Women Voters, and Equality Florida
SB 280 (Hutson) – Local Ordinances
Changes the legal standards and processes used by courts to assess the validity of municipal ordinances. Requires local governments to prepare a business impact statement before adopting a local ordinance that includes direct and indirect economic effects. Authorizes the courts to assess and award attorney fees, costs, and damages in certain civil actions filed against local governments. This bill is a direct attack on home rule. See also SB 403 (Giallombardo).
OPPOSED by 1000 Friends of Florida
HB 325 (Fischer) and SB 512 (Burgess) – Vacation Rentals
Preempts to the state most regulation of vacation rentals.
OPPOSED by 1000 Friends of Florida, Friends of the Everglades, and Florida League of Women Voters
HB 569 (McClure) and SB 620 (Hutson) – Local Business Protection Act
Allows businesses engaged in a lawful business for at least three years to claim damages if a local ordinance reduces their venue or profits by at least 15%. Like SB 280 and SB 403, this bill undermines home rule by making local governments afraid to govern for fear of lawsuits.
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SUPPORTED by 1000 Friends of Florida
HB 729 (Aloupis) and SB 932 (Rodriguez) – Everglades Protection Area
Requires any comprehensive plan or plan amendment changes that apply to land within the Everglades Protection Area to follow the state coordinated review process and would require the change to be reviewed by the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) for adverse impacts. DEP would work with the state land planning agency and involved local governments to identify planning strategies to eliminate or mitigate adverse impacts and require the local government to modify proposed plans or plan amendments. The bill would also prohibit the adoption of small scale development amendments for properties located within or near the Everglades Protection Area.
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HB 1145 (Mooney) – Regulation of Single-use Plastic Products
Authorizes certain coastal communities to establish pilot programs to regulate single-use plastic products; provides requirements for establishing such pilot programs; requires DEP to submit updated retail bag reports with conclusions & recommendations to Legislature by specified dates.
SUPPORTED by 1000 Friends of Florida and Florida League of Women Voters
HB 6033 (Greico) – Preemption of the Regulation of Vacation Rentals
Repeals previous bill that preempted to the state the regulation of vacation rentals.
HB 6113 (Eskamani) and SB 1900 (Torres) – Preemption to the State (Regaining Local Rule)
Removes & repeals provisions preempting certain authority to state. Specifically, this measure would repeal 35 state laws that remove local policy making passed by Republican legislators. The 35 statutes repealed in the Local Freedom Act pertain to earned sick time measures, tenant protections and developer subsidies, plastic bag and styrofoam regulations, municipal broadband and 5G, gun violence and public safety, public health, clean energy, rights of nature, fertilizer regulation, and tree-trimming policy, local budgeting authority, seaport regulations, and campaign finance reform.
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RESILIENCE
SUPPORTED by 1000 Friends of Florida
HB 571 (Mooney) and SB 442 (Rodriguez) – Powers of Land Authorities
Authorizes local land authorities to assist in administering grants for residential flood and sea-level rise mitigation projects, including grants for the elevation of structures above minimum flood elevations; the demolition and reconstruction of structures above minimum flood elevations; and the acquisition of land with structures at risk of flooding.
SUPPORTED BY 1000 Friends of Florida
SB 1940 (Brodeur) - Statewide Flooding and Sea Level Rise Resilience
Establishes the Statewide Office of Resiliency within the Executive Office of the Governor; provides for the appointment of a Chief Resilience Officer, etc.
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CONSERVATION
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SUPPORTED by 1000 Friends of Florida, Friends of the Everglades, and Florida League of Women Voters
HB 81 (Eskamani) and SB 366 (Berman) – State Renewable Energy Goals
Prohibits oil exploration, drilling or production on Florida land or in Florida waters; requires that all electricity in the state be derived from renewable sources by 2040 and carbon emissions be reduced to net zero by 2050; creates an advisory committee to reach these goals.
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SUPPORTED by 1000 Friends of Florida
HB 105 (Fine) and SB 224 (Gruters) – Regulation of Smoking in Public Places
Authorizes counties and municipalities to further restrict smoking within the boundaries of public beaches and public parks under certain circumstances; prohibits smoking within the boundaries of a state park, etc.
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SUPPORTED by 1000 Friends of Florida and Friends of the Everglades
SB 208 (Farmer) – Well Stimulation (Fracking)
"Stop Fracking Act" - Prohibits FDEP from issuing permits for extreme well stimulation, also known as fracking.
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OPPOSED by 1000 Friends of Florida and Friends of the Everglades
HB 349 (Sirois and Overdorf) and SB 198 (Rodriguez) – Seagrass Mitigation Banks
Authorizes the state Board of Trustees to create “seagrass mitigation banks” on state-owned submerged lands which would be used to offset the unavoidable loss of seagrass from coastal development projects. In essence, if developers seek permits for coastal or marine development projects that would destroy seagrasses, this bill would give them the option of buying credits in a mitigation bank to cover costs of seagrass restoration projects elsewhere. Those opposed to the bill say mitigation banks like this often fail and they believe having such a system would enhance development elsewhere.
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NO OPINION by 1000 Friends of Florida.
SUPPORTED by Florida League of Women Voters
HB 449 (Mooney) and SB 602 (Rodriguez) – Land Acquisition Trust Fund
Dedicates $20 million from the Land Acquisition Trust Fund to environmental projects in the Florida Keys.
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NO OPINION by 1000 Friends of Florida
HB 463 (Melo) and SB 380 (Rodriguez) – Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Prohibits state agencies from adopting or enforcing greenhouse gas emissions limits without legislative authorization.
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HB 711 (Diamond) and SB 238 (Jones) – Endangered and Threatened Species
Directs the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to protect certain endangered or threatened species, regardless of the status of their federal classification; prohibis the commission from considering certain costs when designating a species as endangered or threatened; directs the department, in consultation with the Endangered Plant Advisory Council, to protect certain endangered or threatened species, regardless of the status of their federal classification; prohibits the department from considering certain costs when designating a species as endangered or threatened, etc.
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HB 741 (McClure) and SB 1024 (Bradley) -- Renewable Energy Generation (Net Metering)
This bill would lower the utility savings for Floridians using rooftop solar panels by limiting net metering incentives. Many view this bill would hurt lower income Floridians by making it more difficult to transition to solar.
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SUPPORTED by 1000 Friends of Florida
HB 761 (Truenow) and SB 882 (Brodeur) – Inventories of Critical Wetlands
Requires each water management district governing board, in cooperation with local governments, to develop a list of critical wetlands for acquisition using funds from the Land Acquisition Trust Fund.
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HB 1129 (Avila) and SB 1416 (Garcia) – Mangrove Replanting and Restoration
Requires the DEP to adopt rules for mangrove replanting and restoration.
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SUPPORTED by 1000 Friends of Florida and Florida League of Women Voters
HB 6025 (Eskamani) SB 316 (Stewart) – Preemption of Tree Trimming, Pruning, and Removal
Repeals provision in last year’s bill that preempted local government from regulating tree pruning, trimming, and removal on residential property.
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SUPPORTED by 1000 Friends of Florida
HB 6063 (Greico) and SB 320 (Stewart) – Preemption of Recyclable and Polystrene Materials
Removes the state preemption of local home rule on disposable plastic bags, auxiliary containers, and wrappings.
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NO OPINION by 1000 Friends of Florida
HB 1555 (McClain) SB 518 (Brodeur) – Private Property Rights to Prune, Trim, and Remove Trees
Revises state regulation of local government requirements for tree trimming, pruning, and removal by requiring an assessment by a certified arborist.
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HB 1377 (Roth) and SB 1816 (Stewart) – Land Acquisition Trust Fund
Specifies that lawmakers would guarantee $100 million a year for the Florida Forever Trust Fund and extend the retirement date of bonds issued by the Land Acquisition Trust Fund (LATF) to fund the Florida Forever Act. The measure would extend the bond life to 2054, adding roughly 14 years to the current retirement date of 2040.
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SUPPORTED by Friends of the Everglades
HB 6085 (Eskamani) and SB 1102 (Farmer) – Farming Operations
Last year’s SB 88 “Right to Farm Bill” protected Big Sugar from lawsuits related to sugar cane burning. These bills revise the definition of “farm operation” and “nuisance” and remove “particle emissions” from the list of protected activities.
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WATER
SUPPORTED by 1000 Friends of Florida
HB 201 (Daley) and SB 356 (Jones) – Sales Tax Holiday for Energy Star and WaterSense Products
Provides a sales tax exemption for energy efficient products designated with the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Energy Star label, and irrigation and household appliance water conserving products designated with the EPA’s WaterSense label.
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HB 309 (Fetterhoff and Giallombardo) and SB 856 (Brodeur) – Private Provider Inspections of Onsite Sewage Treatment and Disposal Systems
Authorizes private provider inspections of onsite sewage treatment and disposal systems under certain conditions; prohibits the Florida DEP from charging certain inspection and permit fees; specifies requirements for private providers and onsite sewage treatment and disposal system owners and authorized contractors; revises the list of providers authorized to perform onsite sewage treatment and disposal system evaluations, etc.
SUPPORTED by 1000 Friends of Florida and Friends of the Everglades
HB 393 (Hinson) and SB (604) Berman – Safe Waterways Act
Requires the Florida Department of Health to monitor public bathing locations, notify local governments of bacterial contamination and require local governments to post warning signs. Current law does not require government to inform residents.
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HB 421 (Truenow) and SB 834 (Brodeur) – Long-term Cleanup of Harmful Algal Blooms
Authorizes the Florida DEP to procure “innovative” technology to physically remove and reduce blue-green algae blooms from impacted waterways. Friends of the Everglades believes that though this was originally recommended by the state’s Blue-Green Algae Task Force, this measure should be augmented to require that all new technologies be evaluated by a panel of experts to ensure no long-term harm is done to the water being cleaned.
HB 473 (Casselo) and SB 798 (Taddeo) – Bottled Water Excise Tax
Imposes a 12.5 cent per gallon excise tax on bottled water operators and deposits the proceeds into the wastewater and stormwater revolving loan trust fund.
HB 579 (Melo) and SB 1128 (Harrell) – Aquatic Plant Management
Directs the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, in consultation with UF/IFAS & FGCU/Water School, to implement and study nutrient removal technologies and mechanical aquatic plant management techniques within Lake Okeechobee watershed.
SUPPORTED by Friends of the Everglades and by 1000 Friends of Florida
HB 561 (Goff-Marcil) and SB 832 (Stewart) – Implementation of the Recommendations of the Blue-Green Algae Task Force
Enacts additional measures originally recommended by the Governor’s Blue-Green Algae Task Force. Requires owners of certain onsite sewage treatment and disposal systems to have the systems periodically inspected, beginning on a specified date; requires the Florida DEP to administer the inspection program; requires new or revised basin management action plans to include a list that identifies and prioritizes certain spatially focused projects, etc.
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SUPPORTED by Friends of the Everglades
HB 807 (Rayner) and SB 904 (Farmer) – Agricultural Practices
Revises the definition of “best management practice” and requires, rather than merely authorize, the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) to devise and adopt rules to reduce pollution statewide and penalize those who don’t follow them.
OPPOSED by 1000 Friends of Florida and by Friends of the Everglades
SB 1000 (Albritton) – Nutrient Application Rates
Adjusts nutrient regulation based on needs of individual farms…..Environmentalists believe this bill waters down state standards. Specifically, it defines the terms "certified professional" and "rate tailoring"; authorizes the use of rate tailoring in specified circumstances; authorizes producers to use written recommendations from certified professionals to tailor their recommended nutrient application rates under certain circumstances; requires revisions to recommended application rates by certain state universities and Florida College System institutions to authorize rate tailoring, etc. 1000 Friends says this bill would allow producers to pick and choose different nutrient application rates and would weaken site-specific fertilizer application rates.
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HB 1339 (Diamond) and SB 1744 (Brandes) – Phosphogypsum Stacks
Requires DEP to submit annual report to Governor, Legislature, & certain entities; notify Governor, Legislature, and certain entities of imminent hazards within specified timeframe; and create, maintain, & update database on its website.
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HB 1475 (McClure) and SB 1418 (Albritton) – Soil and Groundwater Contamination
Requires the Florida DEP to adopt rules for statewide cleanup target levels for perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances in soil and groundwater; prohibits such rules from taking effect until ratified by the Legislature; requires the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability to conduct a specified analysis of certain assessment and cleanup programs and submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature by a specified date, etc.
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TRANSPORTATION
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OPPOSED by 1000 Friends of Florida
HB 157 (Andrade) and SB 398 (Hooper) – Transportation Projects
Caps funding for public transportation projects in the state transportation trust fund at 25 percent. This share would exclude state matches for federal transportation funds.