Florida Ethics Legislative Report: Week Nine

For Period Ending May 5, 2023

Legislative Tracking

The following is a list of bills the Florida Ethics Institute is tracking during the 2023 legislative session. The selected bills have ethics law implications in Florida. The bills identified are divided into those proposed in the Florida House of Representatives and the Florida Senate.

Florida House of Representatives

CS/CS/HB 37 – Financial Disclosure for Elected Local Officers

The bill has been co-sponsored by Representatives Roach, Chaney, and Giallombardo.

On March 15, 2023, House Bill (HB) HB 37 was reported favorably by the House Local Administration, Federal Affairs & Special Districts Subcommittee.
On April 11, 2023, HB 37 (with Proposed Committee Substitute) was voted favorably out of the House State Affairs Committee.
On April 12, 2023, the Senate passed the companion bill amended CS/SB 774 with a vote of 35 to 5. See CS/SB 774 below.
The House tabled HB 37 and substituted it for the Senate companion bill CS/SB 774. On April 26, 2023, the House passed CS/SB 774 with a vote of 113 to 2.

Thus, CS/SB 774 will be sent to the Governor for signature.

◇ HB 37/SB 774 contain five of the Commission on Ethics’ Legislative Recommendations which the agency has sought for years.

The amended bill seeks to modify portions of the Elections Code, s. 99.061, F.S., (governing the method of qualifying for nomination or election to federal, state, county, or district office) to permit candidates required to file full and public disclosure of financial interests at the time of qualifying to file a verification or receipt of electronic filing.

The bill amends portions of the Code of Ethics, s. 112.3142(2)(e), F.S., to clarify that commissioners of Community Redevelopment Agencies (CRA) assuming a new office or new term of office after March 31 are not required to complete ethics training for the calendar year in which their term of office began.

The bill also reenacts and amends Code of Ethics, s. 112.3144, F.S., to require specified local officers (mayors and members of the governing body of a municipality) to file a Full and Public Disclosure of Financial Interests; requiring the commission on ethics (via the electronic financial disclosure filing system) to accept federal income tax returns, financial statements, and other forms or attachments showing sources of income for a specified purpose; deleting the prohibition on including a federal income tax return or a copy thereof for certain filings; requiring the commission to allow a filer to include attachments and other supporting documentation with his or her disclosure; revising the notice the commission sends to specified persons; requiring that disclosure statements be filed using the commission’s electronic filing system; deleting provisions relating to financial statements filed by mail; revising a provision requiring the commission to adopt a specified rule; requiring an individual appointed to replace an elected local officer who leaves office before the end of his or her term to file a full and public disclosure of financial interests within 30 days after his or her appointment and annually for the remainder of his or her term in office. The bill amends the financial disclosure requirements of s. 112.3144, F.S., to require employees of the Commission on Ethics to file a “Full and Public Disclosure of Financial Interests” as opposed to the less stringent “Statement of Financial Interests” they currently file.

The bill also amends portions of Code of Ethics, s. 112.31445, F.S.; requiring the commission to publish a specified notice on the electronic filing system for the disclosure of financial interests—instructing filers to redact a social security number; a bank, mortgage, or brokerage account number, a debit, charge, or credit card number, a personal identification number, or a taxpayer identification number in their filings. The bill also amends s. 112.31445, F.S., requiring that the electronic filing system allow a filer to include attachments and other supporting documentation when submitting a disclosure through the system.

The bill amends portions of Code of Ethics, s. 112.31446, F.S., requiring that the electronic filing system allow a filer to submit attachments and other supporting documentation when a disclosure is filed.

The bill also reenacts and amends portions of Code of Ethics, s. 112.3145, F.S., deleting a prohibition on including a federal income tax return or copy thereof in a financial disclosure; deleting a provision requiring specified local officers to file reports with the supervisor of elections of the officer’s county of principal employment or residence; requiring local officers to file their quarterly reports of the names of clients they represent for a fee or commission with the commission; deleting a provision requiring the commission to provide a specified list to the supervisors of elections; requiring the commission to allow a filer to include attachments or other documentation when filing a disclosure; deleting a provision requiring supervisors of elections to receive and provide notice of delinquencies of the disclosure of financial interests; requiring the commission to provide a certain notice by e-mail, beginning on a specified date (January 1, 2024); providing that, beginning on a specified date, paper forms will no longer be provided; requiring the commission to determine which persons have not submitted a required disclosure within a specified timeframe; requiring the commission to send periodic specified notices to such persons; requiring that disclosure statements be filed using the electronic filing system, beginning on a specified date (January 1, 2024); revising the criteria for a rule that the commission must adopt regarding the electronic filing of disclosure statements; and requiring the commission to determine the amount of fines for all delinquent filers, beginning on a specified date; conforming provisions to changes made by the act.

The bill amends portions of Code of Ethics, s. 112.317, F.S. (governing penalties), increasing the maximum civil penalty allowed for certain ethics violations from $10,000 to $20,000.

The bill amends portions of Code of Ethics, s. 112.3215, F.S., (governing lobbying before the executive branch) revising lobbying investigation requirements applicable to random audits of lobbying reports; authorizing the commission to dismiss certain complaints and investigations which resulted from a random audit of lobbying reports if it determines that the public interest is not served by proceeding further; and requiring the commission to issue a specified public report if it dismisses such a complaint or investigation resulting from a random audit of lobbying reports.

The bill amends portions of Code of Ethics, s. amending s. 112.324, F.S., (governing procedure on ethics complaints and referrals) authorizing the commission to dismiss financial disclosure complaints or referrals alleging de minimis violations; authorizing the commission to dismiss proceedings brought under s. 112.3215 at any stage of disposition if it determines that the public interest would not be served by proceeding further.

Companion to Senate Bill (SB) 774.

CS/HB-199 Conflicting Employment or Contractual Relationships for Public Officers or Employees

The bill has been co-sponsored by Representatives Hunschofsky and Daley.

On March 14, 2023, amended HB 199 (with Committee Substitute) was reported favorably by the Ethics, Elections & Open Government Subcommittee.
On March 29, 2023, CS/HB 199 was reportedly favorably by the Local Administration, Federal Affairs & Special Districts Subcommittee by unanimous vote.
On April 11, 2023, CS/HB 199 was voted favorably out of the House State Affairs Committee.
On April 26, 2023, the House passed CS/HB 199 by a unanimous vote of 116 to 0.
The Senate substituted CS/SB 620 for the House bill and on May 2, 2023, the Senate passed CS/HB 199 by a unanimous vote of 40 to 0.

Thus, CS/HB 199 will be sent to the Governor for signature.

The amended bill provides that rather than deleting the exemption contained in Code of Ethics, s. 112.313(7)(a)1, F.S., (as proposed in the original bill) the bill seeks to amend the exemption contained in s. 112.313(7)(a)1, F.S., permitting officers and employees of certain Special Taxing Districts and Water Control Districts to engage in otherwise conflicting employment or contractual relationships with agencies or business entities that are subject to the regulation of, or doing business with, their agency, to clarify that conduct that violates s. 112.313(6), regarding misuse of public position, and conduct that violates s. 112.313(8), regarding disclosure or use of certain information, would be deemed a conflict of interest.

The bill further seeks to amend Code of Ethics, s. 112.3142, F.S., (requiring annual ethics training for certain public officials) to require elected local officers of independent special districts to receive four hours of ethics education annually and specifies the requirements of such training.

Companion to SB 620

CS/HB 487 – Department of Financial Services

The bill is co-sponsored by Representatives Salzman and Benjamin.

On March 21, 2023, amended HB 487 was reported favorably (with Committee Substitute) out of the House Insurance & Banking Subcommittee by unanimous vote.
On April 12, 2023, amended CS/HB 487 was reported favorably by the House Appropriations Committee by unanimous vote.
On April 17, 2023, CS/HB 487 was voted favorably (with Committee Substitute) by the House Commerce Committee.
On April 26, 2023, the House passed CS/HB 487 with a vote of 75 to 40. Thereafter, the bill was sent to the Senate.
The Senate tabled the companion bill, SB 1158, and substituted the House bill. The Senate then amended and passed CS/HB 487 with a unanimous vote of 37 to 0. Because of the amendments to CS/HB 487, the Senate then sent the amended bill back to the House for approval.
On May 3, 2023, the House approved CS/HB 487, as amended by the Senate, with a unanimous vote of 112 to 0.

Thus, the engrossed CS/SB 487 will be sent to the Governor for signature.

The bill pertains largely to the Department of Financial Services (DFS) and removes provisions prohibiting individuals holding specified insurance licenses from holding certain other insurance licenses; provides disposition of funds received by title insurance agencies & funds required to be maintained in escrow trust accounts; exempts appointed public adjusters from certain insurance activities’ prohibitions; requires navigators’ registrations to expire under certain circumstances; prohibits insurers & insurance agents from engaging in specified practices relating to collateral protection property insurance; removes certain financial requirements for warranty associations & parent corporations; prohibits department from issuing temporary bail bond agent’s licenses; specifies procedures for remission of forfeitures of deceased defendants; specifies procedures for remission of forfeitures of defendants for whom state is unwilling to seek extradition.

Portions of the bill define the agency of certain boards and commissions associated with the DFS and makes their members subject to the Code of Ethics, including the financial disclosure requirements contained within s. 112.3145, F.S. The bill provides for the existence of additional voting and gifts restrictions applicable to members of certain boards and commissions, which apply in addition to the requirements of s. 112.3143(2) and 112.3148, F.S., respectively.

Companion to SB 1158.

HB 7067- Elections

The bill sponsor is Representative McClure.

On April 19, 2023, the bill was voted favorably by the House State Affairs Committee.
On April 26, 2023, the Senate passed the companion bill amended CS/SB 7050 by a vote of 28 to 12.
On April 28, 2023, the House substituted HB 7067 for the Senate bill and passed amended CS/SB 7050 by a vote of 76 to 34.

Thus, SB 7050 will be sent to the Governor for signature.

The bill provides and revises provisions relating to signature matching training, third-party voter registration organizations, public records exemption, voter information cards, voter registration records maintenance activities, duty of officials to furnish certain information, candidate oath, ballots, signature verification, vote-by-mail ballots, vote-by-mail ballot requests, canvass of vote-by-mail ballots, Elections Canvassing Commission, presidential electors, write-in candidates, political party office candidate qualifying, Office of Election Crimes, prosecution of election crimes, certain notices, reporting schedules, & voter guides; provides criminal penalties & fines.

Portions of the bill seek to clarify Florida’s “resign to run” law, s. 99.012, F.S., to provide that “Any person seeking the office of President or Vice President of the United States is not subject to the requirements of chapter 99, Florida Statutes, which govern candidate qualifying, specifically those which require the submission of certain documents, full and public disclosures of financial interests, petition signatures, or the payment of filing fees.”

Portions of the bill germane to ethics amends s. 99.021, F.S., to require that candidates for public office, at the time of qualifying, to disclose any outstanding fines in excess of $250 for ethics violations of Art. II, s. 8, Fla. Const., Code of Ethics, any local ordinance governing standards of conduct, or Ch. 106, F.S.

The bill is similar to SB 7050.

HB 1477 – Insurance

The bill has been co-sponsored by Representatives Driskell; Arrington; Bracy; Davis; Cassel; Cross; Daley; Eskamani; Gantt; Gottlieb; Harris; Hinson; Hunschofsky; Joseph; Nixon; Rayner-Goolsby; Robinson, F.; Skidmore; Valdés; Waldron; and Woodson.

The bill never made it out of the House Insurance and Banking Subcommittee and, thus, died.

The bill pertains largely to the creation of the Property Insurance Commission; provides for election of Commissioner of Insurance Regulation; revises homeowners’ eligibility criteria for mitigation grants; requires interests earned on insurance proceeds received by mortgagees & assignees to be paid to insureds; prohibits property insurers from claiming insolvency under certain circumstances; authorizes persons that engage in property insurance activities in other states to engage in insurance activities in this state only under certain circumstances; requires property insurers to cap premiums or to create sliding fee scales for premium rates; prohibits property insurers from using certain defenses as claims denials; revises requirements for risk assignment agreements; requires OPPAGA to conduct study of effectiveness of property insurance mediation program.

Portions of the bill germane to the Code of Ethics would create s. 112.3134, F.S., which would impose a seven-year post-officeholding restriction prohibiting former commissioners of the Property Insurance Commission from personally representing another person or entity before the Office of Insurance Regulation or from serving as an employee or contractor of an entity regulated by the Office of Insurance Regulation.

Companion to SB 1688

Florida Senate

CS/CS/SB 620 – Ethics Requirements for Officers and Employees of Special Tax Districts

The bill has been co-sponsored by Senators DiCeglie and Yarborough.

On March 14, 2023, the amended CS/SB 620 (with Committee Substitute) was reported favorably by the Senate Ethics & Elections Committee by unanimous vote.
On April 5, 2023, amended bill (with Committee Substitute) was approved favorably by the Senate Governmental Oversight and Accountability Committee by unanimous vote.
On April 19, 2023, CS/CS/SB 620 was reported favorably by the Senate Rules Committee by unanimous vote.
On April 26, 2023, the House passed the companion bill CS/HB 199 by a unanimous vote of 116 to 0.
The Senate substituted CS/SB 620 for the House bill and on May 2, 2023, the Senate passed CS/HB 199 by a unanimous vote of 40 to 0.

Thus, CS/HB 199 will be sent to the Governor for signature.

The amended bill seeks to modify portions of the Code of Ethics, s. 112.313(7)(a)1, F.S., containing an exemption to the conflicting employment and contractual relationships prohibition thereby permitting officers and employees of certain Special Taxing Districts and Water Control Districts to engage in otherwise conflicting employment or contractual relationships with agencies or business entities that are subject to the regulation of, or doing business with, their agency, to clarify that conduct that violates s.112.313(6), regarding misuse of public position, and conduct that violates s. 112.313(8), regarding disclosure or use of certain information, would be deemed a conflict of interest.

Companion to HB 199.

CS/CS/SB 774 – Ethics Requirements for Public Officials

The bill sponsor is Senator Brodeur.

On March 14, 2023, the amended CS/SB 774 (with Proposed Committee Substitute No. 606398) was reported favorably by the Senate Ethics & Elections Committee.
On March 30, 2023, the amended CS/SB 774 (with Committee Substitute) was reported favorably by the Senate Rules committee.
On April 5, 2023, Committee Substitute No. 372388 was filed and was adopted on April 11, 2023.
On April 12, 2023, the Senate passed amended CS/CS/SB 774 with a vote of 35 to 5.
The House tabled its companion bill, HB 37, and substituted it for CS/SB 774. On April 26, 2023, the House passed CS/SB 774 with a vote of 113 to 2.

Thus, CS/SB 774 will be sent to the Governor for signature.

◇ The amended bill CS/SB 774 contains five of the Commission on Ethics’ Legislative Recommendations which the agency has sought for years.

The bill amends portions of the Code of Ethics, s. 112.3142(2)(e), F.S., to clarify that commissioners of CRAs assuming a new office or new term of office after March 31 are not required to complete ethics training for the calendar year in which their term of office began.

The bill amends portions of Code of Ethics, s. 112.317, F.S. (governing penalties), increasing the maximum civil penalty allowed for certain ethics violations from $10,000 to $20,000.

Companion to HB 37.

SB 7050 – Elections

The SBP is a General Bill by Ethics and Elections.

On April 4, 2023, the bill was reported favorably by the Senate Ethics and Elections Committee.
On April 20, 2023, the bill (with Committee Substitute) was reported favorably by the Senate Fiscal Policy Committee.
On April 26, 2023, the Senate passed amended CS/SB 7050 by a vote of 28 to 12.
On April 28, 2023, the House substituted HB 7067 for the Senate bill and passed amended CS/SB 7050 by a vote of 76 to 34.

Thus, SB 7050 will be sent to the Governor for signature.

The bill requires the Secretary of State to provide mandatory formal signature matching training to specified persons; authorizing the Office of Election Crimes and Security to review complaints and conduct preliminary investigations relating to any alleged election irregularity involving the Florida Election Code; requiring first-time applicants registering to vote in this state to comply with specified identification requirements; requiring third-party voter registration organizations to inform the Division of Elections as to the general election cycle for which they are registering persons to vote; deleting the scheduled repeal of a public records exemption for certain voter registration information from another state or the District of Columbia, etc.

The amended bill seeks to clarify Florida’s “resign to run” law, s. 99.012, F.S., to provide that any person seeking the office of President or Vice President of the United States is not subject to the requirements of chapter 99, Florida Statutes, which govern candidate qualifying, specifically those which require the submission of certain documents, full and public disclosures of financial interests, petition signatures, or the payment of filing fees.

The bill is similar to HB 7067.

CS/CS/SB 1158 – Department of Financial Services

The bill sponsor is Senator DiCeglie.

On March 22, 2023, the amended SB 1158 (with Committee Substitute) was reported favorably by the Senate Banking and Insurance Committee by unanimous vote.
On April 12, 2023, SB 1158 was reported favorably (with Committee Substitute) by the Senate Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Environment, and General Government by unanimous vote.
On April 20, 2023, the bill was reported favorably (with Committee Substitute) by the Senate Fiscal Policy Committee by unanimous vote.
On April 26, 2023, the House passed CS/HB 487 with a vote of 75 to 40. Thereafter, the bill was sent to the Senate.
The Senate tabled the companion bill, SB 1158, and substituted it for the House bill. The Senate then amended and passed CS/HB 487 with a unanimous vote of 37 to 0. Because of the amendments to CS/HB 487, the Senate then sent the amended bill back to the House for approval.
On May 3, 2023, the House approved CS/HB 487, as amended by the Senate, with a unanimous vote of 112 to 0.

Thus, the engrossed CS/SB 487 will be sent to the Governor for signature.

The bill pertains largely to the Department of Financial Services (DFS) and revises the powers and duties of the department’s Division of Investigative and Forensic Services; deleting a requirement for the Department of Children and Families and the community-based care lead agency to provide certain financial literacy curriculum information to certain youth; revising conditions for a nonprofit religious organization to be exempt from requirements of the Florida Insurance Code; adding violations for which the department may pay rewards under the Anti-Fraud Reward Program; authorizing the Division of State Fire Marshal to establish a direct-support organization; specifying requirements and procedures for the licensure of nonresident sales representatives for home warranty associations, etc.

Companion to HB 487.

SB 1316 – Information Dissemination

The bill sponsor is Senator Brodeur.

The bill was referred to Senate Judiciary, Appropriations Committee on Criminal and Civil Justice, as well as Fiscal Policy committees. However, the bill never made it out of committees and died.

The bill deletes a provision requiring judicial notice of sale to be published for a specified timeframe on a publicly accessible website and specifies that a governmental agency may use the public website of a county to publish legally required advertisements and public notices if the cost for such publication is not paid by or recovered from a person.

Portions of the bill seek to enact s. 286.31, F.S., which would require paid bloggers who post about “elected state officers” (which is defined to include the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, as well as any member of the Cabinet or Legislature) to register with the Office of Legislative Services (if the blog post is about a member of the Legislature) or the Florida Commission on Ethics (if the blog post is about a member of the Executive Branch)—within five (5) days of the first post blogging about the elected state officer. After registering, the bill requires that bloggers file monthly reports disclosing compensation received for blogging. The bill also provides for automatic fines of $25 per day up to $2,500 for failure to timely file compensation reports.

SB 1688 – Insurance

The bill is sponsored by Senator Jones.

The bill was referred to the Senate Banking and Insurance; Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Environment, and General Government; Fiscal Policy Committees. However, the bill never made it out of committees and died.

The bill pertains largely to the creation of the Property Insurance Commission; revising homeowners’ eligibility criteria for mitigation grants under the My Safe Florida Home Program; prohibiting property insurers from claiming insolvency under specified circumstances; prohibiting property insurers from using certain defenses for claims denials, etc.

The bill is the companion to HB 147.

SB 2502 – Implementing the 2023-2024 General Appropriations Act

The bill is a General Bill by Appropriations.

On March 28, 2023, SB 2502 was reported favorably out of the Senate Appropriations Committee by unanimous vote.
On April 3, 2023, the Senate approved SB 2502 by a vote of 39-0. The Senate requested that the House pass the bill as passed by the Senate.
On April 4, 2023, the House passed the bill by a vote of 112-0.

Thus, SB 2502 will be sent to the Governor for signature.

The bill seeks to implement the 2023-2024 General Appropriations Act by incorporating by reference certain calculations of the Florida Education Finance Program; revising the limitation on enrollment of full-time equivalent virtual students residing outside of school districts; authorizing school districts to adopt specified salary incentives and other strategies under certain circumstances; extending for 1 fiscal year the exemption of certain rules pertaining to the medical use of marijuana from certain rulemaking requirements; requiring certain sheriffs’ offices to transfer child protective investigation services to the Department of Children and Families, etc.

Portions of the bill impact the Code of Ethics by reenacting and amending provisions within the financial disclosure statute requiring the full and public disclosure of financial interests, s. 112.3144, F.S., requiring the Commission on Ethics to accept federal income tax returns, financial statements, and other forms or attachments showing sources of income for a specified purpose in financial disclosure filed electronically via the electronic filing system overseen by the Commission. The bill requires that if a filer elects to include a federal income tax return with their financial disclosure filing, they must include income tax return attachments and schedules with a filing. The bill deletes the prohibition on including a federal income tax returns or a copy thereof for financial disclosures filed electronically and requires the Commission to allow a filer to include attachments and other supporting documentation with his or her disclosure. The bill revises the notice the Commission sends to specified persons. The bill requires that financial disclosure statements be filed using the Commission’s electronic filing system after January 1, 2023 and deletes provisions relating to financial statements filed by mail. The bill revises a provision requiring the commission to adopt a specified rule and provides for the future expiration and reversion of specified statutory text.

Portions of the bill seek to reenact and amend Code of Ethics s. 112.3145, F.S., governing the disclosure of financial interests applicable to certain public officers and employees, by deleting the prohibition on including a federal income tax return or a copy thereof for financial disclosures filed after January 1, 2024. The bill requires the Commission on Ethics to allow a filer to include attachments and other supporting documentation with his or her financial disclosure. The bill revises the notice the Commission sends to specified persons and provides for the future expiration and reversion of specified statutory text.

Florida Commission on Ethics’ Legislative Proposals for 2023

Each year the Florida Commission on Ethics adopts legislative proposals for the Code of Ethics for Public Officers and Employees (Code of Ethics). For 2023, the Commission on Ethics made the following recommendations regarding legislative changes to the Code of Ethics.

Florida Ethics Legislative Report: Week Nine