TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida's legislative session begins in less than 24 hours, amid lingering tensions over last month's immigration standoff between the legislature and the governor. The dynamics shaping the 60-day lawmaking bonanza, powerful: frustrated voters seeking relief from a high cost of living, a lame-duck governor navigating a divided legislature, and a flurry of bills on the docket. Here's a preview of what's to come.
Members of the state House and Senate have filed a whopping 1,800+ bills to date, many of which focus on the ever-present "A-word"— affordability. Florida House Speaker Danny Perez (R-Miami) is zeroing in on housing specifically, seeking more making home buying more affordable. He told us a few months ago it was key to keeping Floridians in-state for future generations.
"What else can we do in the state that makes it more affordable to keep our talent here,” Perez asked. “I don't want my daughter to go to college in 15 years or so and then eventually have to leave because she can't afford it here."
To date, an omnibus housing bill hasn’t appeared. Instead several smaller policies have grabbed headlines. Among them, legislation aimed at:
- Allowing the construction of carriage homes, regardless of local ordinances.
- Preventing out-of-state corporations from buying up homes and turning them into rental properties.
Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL) has also floated the idea of property tax relief, suggesting changes in how property assessments are conducted:
"You buy your house for $300,000, seven years ago,” he said last week. “Now, all of a sudden, they're telling you it's worth $900,000. Then they tax you more for that. That is not good policy. We're obviously going to work on relief on that too, for people's property taxes, because I think it's ridiculous."
Substantial changes, like a rollback in property taxes, would require a constitutional amendment. For now, there’s only a bill to study the potential impact of such cuts— though critics warn local governments would need to rely on sales tax increases to backfill losses.
On the other side of the capitol building, Senate President Ben Albritton (R-Bartow) is focused on revitalizing less populated areas of Florida with a “rural renaissance.” He’s backing plans to improve infrastructure, healthcare access, and ease restrictions on agriculture.
“We’re going to support agriculture, because that is the backbone of those economies,” said Albritton recently. “We have to make sure that it's alive and well.”
There are some high-profile controversial bills that could get traction this year. They include:
- Allowing parents to sue over a fetus’s death.
- Mandating e-verify for all Florida businesses and holding them accountable for violent actions by undocumented workers.
- A proposal to revoke state-backed insurance for condos failing to comply with new building safety laws.
Rep. Juan Carlos Porras (R-Miami) is helping among the supporters of that condo safety bill. He defended the measure when we spoke last week.
“It's the government's job in this case to provide a little bit of tough love,” said the lawmaker. “But if it results in the safety and the integrity of the health of our residents, that's what matters. And I think that's what needs to be a priority for the State moving forward. And that's exactly what we're doing.”
Meanwhile, Democrats in the Florida House released their 2025 priorities on Monday. Rep. Fentrice Driskell (D-Tampa) emphasized a focus on supporting Florida's families and safeguarding the state's natural resources:
“We want to focus on Florida's families and future, and we need to support and protect our people, our land, our water, and our economy,” she said.
Key proposals include:
- Higher pay for teachers.
- Expanding Medicaid.
- Assistance for renters.
- Stricter gun control measures.
But even the most modest Democratic wins seem unlikely, given their superminority status in both chambers. Driskell acknowledged the uphill battle.
“It's unlikely that any of these bills would get a hearing, it's totally possible that some of these concepts might work their way into legislation that does move,” said the leader. “We just know that as a caucus, sometimes you can't have pride of authorship, but what really matters is making sure that we're delivering for the people of Florida.”
The session begins at different times for each chamber Tuesday, with the Governor's State of the State address scheduled for 11:00 AM.
