Summary: The Senate took up Committee Substitute for Senate Joint Resolution 2F, a proposed constitutional amendment to expand homestead property tax relief, lower the assessment cap on non-homestead property from 10% to 5%, and limit county and municipal ad valorem tax revenues to specified uses. Senator Avila presented the measure as a major property tax reform intended to provide relief to homeowners and restrain local government spending, while opponents argued it would shift costs to fees, services, and state appropriations and could harm local budgets, public safety, schools, and other services. Several senators also raised concerns about the ballot language and the lack of a completed fiscal analysis. The chamber considered and rejected multiple amendments. Senator Sharif’s income-based “circuit breaker” amendment failed, as did Senator Smith’s sunset clause amendment and Senator Berman’s amendment to rewrite the ballot statement for greater accuracy. During questioning, Avila said the revised language was meant to preserve flexibility for local governments and that future legislatures could set implementing procedures and, if necessary, prohibit certain local expenditures by general law. He also confirmed that the proposal would not affect refinancing or portability, and said the measure would not prevent local governments from continuing to fund many services such as libraries, parks, animal control, code enforcement, mosquito control, public housing, county health departments, and elections. Debate on final passage was extensive. Supporters described the proposal as overdue relief for homeowners and a way to force local governments to prioritize spending, while critics called it a risky tax shift that could reduce local revenue by billions and force cuts or higher fees. Some senators emphasized concerns about public safety funding, mental health and social services, and the accuracy of the ballot summary; others argued the measure would give voters a chance to decide on property tax reform. After debate, the resolution was rolled over for third reading and the Senate continued discussion, but the transcript provided does not include a final vote on the joint resolution.

Summary: The House took up the special order calendar for a proposed constitutional amendment on property taxes, CS/HJR 1F, which would create a new homestead exemption for non-school taxes, lower the annual assessment cap on non-homestead property, and restrict how counties and municipalities may use ad valorem tax revenue. The sponsor, Rep. Overdorf, said the measure would give homeowners tax relief and argued local governments could adjust spending or use other revenue sources. Opponents repeatedly questioned the ballot language, the lack of a fiscal estimate or backfill, and the potential impact on local services, public safety, and debt obligations. The House adopted the special order report and then debated the resolution and a series of amendments. Several amendments were offered to carve out or protect specific services from the tax changes. Rep. Bartleman’s amendment to protect Children’s Services Councils and Children’s Trusts was supported by members who said those entities fund early learning, mental health, aftercare, and other services for children and working families, but it failed 25-74. Rep. Cross offered an amendment to include water management districts in allowable ad valorem uses, warning of impacts on flood control, water quality, Everglades restoration, and water supply; that amendment also failed. Rep. Eskamani offered an amendment requiring the Legislature to backfill public safety funding if local revenues fall, arguing police and fire services, staffing, and response times would be at risk; it failed 25-71. The chamber then rejected Rep. Woodson’s amendment to require state backfill for senior services, with supporters citing Meals on Wheels, transportation, adult day care, and other local senior programs, and opponents saying the proposal was outside the bill’s scope. Finally, Rep. Gant offered an amendment to protect veteran services, saying local governments fund housing, mental health, transition, and family support programs for veterans; debate emphasized the importance of honoring veterans and avoiding cuts to those services. The transcript cuts off during debate on that amendment, before a final vote is shown.

Summary: The Senate convened in special session with a quorum present, opened with prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, and then read the Governor’s proclamation calling the session. The special session was called to consider property tax-related legislation, including a proposed constitutional amendment affecting assessment caps, homestead exemptions, and limits on county and municipal ad valorem taxes, along with related implementing measures such as ballot language, taxpayer notices, supermajority requirements for tax increases above the rolled-back rate, and a public website showing estimated savings for homestead properties. The bills filed within the call were read for the first time: Senate Joint Resolution 2F by Senator Avila and Senate Bill 4F by Senator Avila, both referred to Appropriations. The Rules Chair announced the Appropriations Committee would meet later that day, and the Senate adopted motions to waive rules and place both measures on the special order calendar for Tuesday, June 2, with an amendment deadline one hour before convening. The Senate also adopted a motion sending any bills filed outside the call to the Rules Committee for review. The chamber then heard farewell remarks from Senators Hooper and Polsky, who reflected on their service and thanked colleagues, staff, and constituents. Senator Hooper emphasized respect and kindness in public service, while Senator Polsky thanked local officials, staff, caucus members, and family, and noted the importance of bipartisan work. The Senate adjourned until 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday, June 2, or upon the President’s call.

Summary: The Committee on Appropriations took up SJR 2-F, a proposed constitutional amendment to reduce property taxes by lowering assessment caps on non-homestead property, expanding homestead exemptions over time, and allowing local governments to increase exemptions further. The sponsor argued the measure would provide broad property tax relief while requiring revenues to be directed to core services such as public safety, education, infrastructure, and natural resource projects, with a trust fund intended to help local governments transition. Senators raised concerns about the lack of a fiscal score, the effect on counties, cities, school districts, and special districts, and whether the proposal would shift costs to fees or other taxes. Several amendments were debated. Senator Polsky’s amendment to explicitly authorize user fees and non-ad valorem assessments to offset lost property tax revenue failed. Senator Avila’s amendment broadening permissible uses of ad valorem revenue to include county constitutional officers and other expenditures approved by local governing bodies was adopted after debate over whether the bill would otherwise underfund essential functions. Senator Smith’s sunset amendment, which would have made the constitutional changes expire after five years, failed. Senator Smith’s amendment to allow tourism development tax revenue to support public safety and education also failed. Senator Graal’s amendment removing the constitutional trust fund language was adopted, with supporters arguing the Constitution should not promise an unfunded account. Additional late-file amendments were considered. Senator Berman’s proposal to change the ballot title to more neutrally describe the measure as affecting property taxes and local community service reductions failed. Senator Trumbull’s amendment removing school board ad valorem taxes from the proposal was adopted, preserving school taxes. Senator Smith’s amendment narrowing the non-homestead assessment cap reduction to small businesses only failed. The committee then returned to the bill as amended and continued questioning the sponsor about eligibility, fiscal impacts, and whether the proposal could lead to local governments offsetting lost revenue through special assessments or other charges.

Summary: The House convened in special session after opening with prayer, the Pledge of Allegiance, and the reading of Governor DeSantis’s proclamation calling the Legislature into special session from June 1 to June 3, 2026. A quorum was established with 96 members voting. No bills, resolutions, messages, or committee reports were on the desk at the time of the floor session. The Speaker announced the schedule for the special session, saying the State Affairs Committee would meet later that afternoon to consider the property tax bill and related policy, followed by the Rules and Ethics Committee that evening. The House then adopted a motion to receive reports, adjourn for committee and other House business, and reconvene Tuesday, June 2, 2026, at 9 a.m. or upon call of the Chair.

Summary: The Senate took up the conference report on House Bill 501E, the General Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2026-27, with Chair Hooper and the appropriations chairs walking through the $114.5 billion budget. Major highlights included pay increases for state law enforcement, firefighters, park rangers, and correctional officers; funding for teacher salary increases and K-12 enrollment stabilization; workforce and university funding in higher education; major Medicaid, nursing home, waiver, and opioid-related investments in health and human services; corrections and prison-capacity funding; transportation, housing, and emergency management spending; and large environmental appropriations for Florida Forever, Everglades restoration, and water quality projects. Members then asked detailed questions about specific items. Senators pressed on the Hamilton Center at UF, the difference between assistant state attorney and public defender pay, declining student enrollment funding, private school scholarship vouchers, mental health funding in schools, the lack of preeminence funding, APD’s iBudget waiver wait list and provider rates, ADAP premium assistance and the return of Biktarvy to the formulary, prison staffing and air conditioning, Florida Forever land-buying versus easements, SNAP and Sun Bucks funding, Hope Florida, election audit funding, and the IDD managed care program. Chairs generally explained the negotiated compromises, noted where funding was flat or omitted, and in several cases said items would be revisited next year or depended on agency implementation. Several senators used debate to praise the budget while also criticizing major policy choices. Leader Berman argued the state should have expanded Medicaid, invested more in public schools instead of vouchers, and accepted federal summer EBT funds. Other senators highlighted local wins such as Biscayne Bay restoration, Tri-Rail, housing assistance, ADAP funding, and declining enrollment support. The transcript ends with debate remarks thanking Chair Hooper for his work on the budget; no final vote is shown in the excerpt.

Summary: The House convened with prayer, a moment of silence for former Senator Donnell C. Childers, the Pledge of Allegiance, and recognition of Officer Antonio Richardson as law enforcement officer of the day. A quorum was announced, the journal was approved, and the Speaker said the chamber would take up 11 budget conference reports, with debate and final votes on each report. The first report considered was HB 7031E, the tax package, followed by HB 501E, the state budget appropriations bill. On HB 7031E, Chair Duggan explained that the conference report included a range of tax reductions and tax-related changes, including sales tax holidays, property tax and homestead-related provisions, reductions in certain taxes and fees, and new exemptions or administrative clarifications. He said the package also added items such as sales tax relief for certain university construction projects, a tennis admissions exemption, and changes to agricultural property tax treatment, and that the amendment reduced state and local tax revenues by $272.2 million. Members questioned the bill about the child care tax credit reduction from three years to one, the homestead exemption provision for certain diplomats and foreign service personnel, the absence of gas tax relief and combined reporting, and the inclusion of firearm accessories and tennis tickets in sales tax holidays. After structured debate, the House adopted the conference report and passed HB 7031E by a vote of 88-11. The House then began the conference report on HB 501E, the $114.5 billion budget for fiscal year 2026-2027, which was described as below the prior year’s spending level and leaving more than $14 billion in reserves. Subcommittee chairs outlined major allocations across education, higher education, IT, health care, transportation and economic development, justice, state administration, and agriculture/natural resources. Highlights included increased FEFP funding and veteran teacher raises, full funding for Bright Futures, major IT modernization projects, Medicaid and behavioral health funding, transportation and local infrastructure spending, correctional and law enforcement investments, fire station and emergency response funding, and large environmental and water-quality appropriations. Members asked detailed questions about school voucher fraud oversight, scholarship funding, teacher raises, preeminence funding, ADAP changes, SNAP data tools and error rates, Medicaid rate changes, prison wastewater monitoring, and other budget items, but the transcript ends during the budget questions before final action on HB 501E is shown.

Summary: The Budget Conference Committee met to exchange final offers between the House and Senate on the state budget. The discussion covered multiple budget areas, including Agriculture and Natural Resources, Health Care, Justice, Pre-K through 12 Education, Higher Education, State Administration and General Government, Transportation and Economic Development, Administered Funds, and PICO, along with related implementing bills, proviso language, supplemental funding lists, and the tax package (HB 7031E). Each chamber indicated acceptance of many of the other side’s bump offers and related items, including several bills tied to petroleum, retirement, prisons, collective bargaining, and higher education. No public testimony was taken; the chairs noted the offers had already been noticed to the public and declined to call individuals to explain them. After the exchange of offers, Senator Hooper moved to allow staff to make technical and conforming adjustments to the budget, conforming language, and tax package, and the motion was adopted without objection. The committee then closed with brief remarks from the chairs and adjourned, concluding the 2026 budget conference.

Summary: The conference committee on appropriations was called to order and members were reminded to silence phones. The chair announced that the House had submitted additional public offers for several items, including justice, healthcare, agriculture and natural resources, budgets, budget-and-projects, provisos, implementing language, and water projects. The offers were presented for consideration without individual explanation. There was no public testimony. A brief comment noted the long hours spent on the budget process over the past two months. The chair announced that there would be no further meetings that night or on the following day, and that public meetings would resume Sunday afternoon on one-hour notice. With no further business, Senator Hooper moved to adjourn, and the committee adjourned without objection.

Summary: The conference committee on the House Justice Budget Subcommittee and the Senate Appropriations Committee on Criminal and Civil Justice met to exchange and accept offers on budget, proviso, implementing, back-of-the-bill, and project language for HB 5403E and SB 2512E. The House accepted several Senate project-line offers, while the Senate accepted multiple House proviso and bill-language lines. Both sides agreed that remaining unresolved items would be bumped to the full committee for further resolution. Members used the meeting to thank one another and staff for their work throughout the budget process, with several remarks recognizing the cooperation between the House and Senate teams and Senator Hooper’s service. The committee noted that this was likely the last conference committee meeting and that substantial progress had been made in narrowing differences between the chambers. Representative Costa moved to allow staff to make technical adjustments related to the bump process, and the motion was adopted without objection. There was no public comment, and Senator Hooper moved to adjourn; the motion carried and the meeting ended.

Summary: The House Pre-K through 12 Education Budget Conference met to consider Senate Offer Number One on the education budget, provisos, and back-of-bill items. Senator Burgess thanked the House for its prior offers and said the Senate was making its first offers, noting continued progress on many issues and specifically mentioning the FEPP scholarship and declining enrollment supplement as an unresolved area where both chambers agreed action is needed. The House responded by accepting a number of Senate offers. On the budget offer, the House accepted several listed rows, with the accepted rows and shaded rows closed and all other rows left to bump. The House also accepted specified rows in the proviso offer and back-of-bill offer, again closing those items and bumping the rest. The House stated that the Pre-K through 12 implementing bill sections, conforming bills, and Senate Bill 2514E would all bump in their entirety. In closing remarks, both sides praised the collaborative process and said they had worked through many issues, though some items remained outstanding. Representative Valdés moved to rise, and the conference adjourned without objection.

Summary: The health care budget conference met to exchange and accept offers on the budget, projects, proviso, back of bill, conforming, and implementing bills. Senator Trumbull presented the Senate’s budget and project offer, and the House accepted the Senate position on several specified budget rows while noting that all other unshaded rows would bump. The committee also agreed to keep all projects open as the conference process continued. On the policy bills, the Senate accepted a large number of House proviso offer rows and also accepted several House back-of-bill rows. The committee stated that all unshaded rows on the proviso and back of bill would bump, and that the conforming and implementing bills would bump in their entirety. Because of the complexity of the row references, the chair and Senator Trumbull noted some difficulty reading the list, but the agreements were recorded. The committee then approved a motion allowing staff to make technical adjustments as needed, with no objection. Members thanked each other and their staff for the work on the conference, and the chair announced that this concluded the year’s health care budget conference. Senator Trumbull moved to adjourn, and the meeting adjourned without objection.

Summary: The Higher Education Budget Conference Committee met to review and compare House and Senate counteroffers on the higher education budget, implementing bill, conforming bill, and related provisos. Members noted that several items were now in agreement and marked closed, including specific lines in the implementing bill, multiple lines in the conforming bill, and a number of budget and proviso items that had moved closer between the chambers. Remaining unresolved items were set aside to be bumped to leadership for further negotiation. Senator Harold thanked the committee and staff, expressing confidence that the final budget would support a strong higher education system and that the outstanding issues would be resolved soon. The chair also thanked House and Senate staff for their work and announced that future meeting notices would be posted, with the committee operating on one-hour notice. No public testimony was taken, no questions were raised, and no formal vote on the budget items was recorded. The meeting concluded with a motion to rise.

Summary: The House Budget and Senate Appropriations Conference Committee on Transportation, Tourism, and Economic Development met to exchange final budget offers. The Senate presented another offer and said it had made a good-faith effort to move closer to House positions. The House responded with House Offer 2 on proviso, back of bill, and the implementing bill, stating that it agreed with all shaded budget lines and that any remaining differences would bump. The Senate then accepted the House’s offer on several specific lines, including 16B, 164, 323, 369, 445, 447, 441, and 493, with a brief clarification sought on one line number. The chair and Senator DeSigley noted that the remaining differences would bump, indicating unresolved items were left to fall out. No public testimony was taken, and the meeting ended with mutual thanks and adjournment.

Summary: The Conference Committee on State Administration, Budget, and Agriculture, Environment, and General Government Appropriations met to resolve outstanding differences between the House and Senate on the budget, proviso, back of the bill, projects, and implementing bill. Senator Brodeur presented the Senate’s remaining offers, and the House responded by agreeing to many items while specifying numerous lines to be “bumped” for further consideration. The committee also agreed to bump the conforming bills HB 5203E, HB 5207E, and SB 2508E in their entirety. The House and Senate then confirmed the lists of lines to be bumped on the budget, proviso, and implementing bill offers, indicating that the remaining disputed items would move to the next level. After the Senate concurred with the House’s proposed bumps, the chair noted that the committee’s work was complete. A motion was made and adopted to allow staff to make technical conforming adjustments related to the bump process. There was no public comment. Representative Hodgers moved to adjourn, and the committee adjourned.