Legislative Reporter We see a Florida where our communities, economies, and environments all thrive.
Friday, Feb. 20, 2026 The legislature completed a pivotal week six of the nine-week legislative session. Many substantive committees wrapped up their work, as the funnel that is the legislative process continues to narrow, and budget discussions move into the forefront. The House advanced off the floor its $113.6 billion budget proposal, and the Senate followed suit with its own $115 billion proposal, setting the stage for negotiations between the chambers. In his opening floor remarks on Thursday, Speaker Danny Perez emphasized that the legislature had reached “the turning point of our Session,” cautioning members that disagreements over spending priorities could prolong the session beyond its scheduled end. He warned against adhering to an “artificial deadline,” signaling that the House would not rush negotiations simply to adjourn on time. At the same time, Speaker Perez underscored that the House was prepared to “talk to anyone, anytime, about anything.” Meanwhile, Senate President Ben Albritton avoided specific discussions of an extended or special session and continued to posture the Senate as a chamber of consensus, albeit with its own priorities. Around Tallahassee, legislative veterans are quietly double-checking their Spring Break trip cancellation insurance policies. Senate Passes SB 840 On Thursday, the Senate unanimously passed SB 840, the SB 180 glitch bill, off the Senate floor. Sponsored by Sen. Nick DiCeglie (R-St. Petersburg), the bill scales back the unintended consequences of last year’s hurricane recovery bill. Notably the bill reduces the geographic scope from 100 miles to within 50 miles of a storm’s track, clarifies that local governments can impose development moratoriums, when necessary, narrows the impact of the restrictions to property actually damaged, and moves up an expiration date on the restrictions from the summer of 2028 to July 1, 2026. The bill received bipartisan praise on the floor and repeated calls for the House to take up the measure before the end of session. The bill now goes to the House, but its future there is uncertain. A comparable bill, HB 1465, by Representative Alex Andrade (RPensacola) has not been heard in the House and there is no indication the House plans to hear the measure. House Passes Property Tax Measure On Thursday, the Florida House passed HJR 203 - Elimination of Non-school Property for Homesteads, sponsored by Rep. Monique Miller (R-Palm Bay), by an 80-30 vote. The proposed constitutional amendment would exempt homestead property from all ad valorem taxes other than school district levies beginning January 2027 and would prohibit local governments from reducing total funding for law enforcement, firefighters, and other first responders below their 2025-26 or 2026-27 funding level, whichever is higher. Speaker Perez described the measure as “the most aggressive legislation ever passed by a legislative chamber on property taxes in the history of the United States.” Of the proposals advanced by the House Select Committee on Property Taxes, this was the measure ultimately brought to the floor for a full vote. The original proposal proposed a 10-year phase out, however an amendment adopted on the floor eliminated the phase-out and changed the effective date to 2027. State economists project the proposal will cost cities, counties, water management districts, and other special taxing districts $14.8 billion a year. The Senate has not yet released its own property tax proposal, nor has the governor. Governor DeSantis noted this week that his office is working with the Senate on a proposal. Senate President Albritton stated during his Thursday press availability that the Senate is focused on developing a proposal capable of building consensus, emphasizing that it is more important to get the policy right than to do it quickly. For the proposed constitutional amendment to appear on the 2026 ballot, the House and Senate must pass the same joint resolution. If placed on the ballot, the amendment requires at least 60 percent voter approval to take effect.