Transcript Highlights:

• Water treatment plant and possibly destroy it, or the most expensive is end-of-pipe treatment, which
• For instance, it would be about $163 million for community drinking water systems.
• We have treatment facilities for petroleum and oil-contaminated water.
• Supercritical water oxidation, for example. Please identify yourself again for the record.
• You continue to use the well and the water.

Bills: HF3220

Keywords: school safety, school security, emergency access, law enforcement access, master key box, secure key box, entry device, school grants, education finance, Department of Education, charter schools, school districts, cooperative units, appropriation cancellation, one-time appropriation, school safety plan, emergency preparedness, public safety, school building security

Transcript Highlights:

• water lines and other infrastructure.
• have the right to install water lines.
• Red Rock Rural Water System is not alone in this; there are five rural water systems currently in the
• Rural Water System, Rock County Rural Water System, Lincoln Pipestone Rural Water.
• Our intent at a rural water system is to get good quality water to folks who have terrible water, and

Transcript Highlights:

• ,</c> infrastructure including roads, water, infrastructure including roads, water, and<00:03:34.800>
• Um specific to water does that.
• water and that it's safe water for drinking?
• </c> the water study requirement. the water study requirement. Senator<00:10:07.440><c> Watters.
• </c> water quality. water quality.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Additionally, the subsequent water runoff would pose a general public health risk.
• And so I think you know there is already a remedy in law in the water code that TCEQ provides, and if
• So I think TCEQ already has some teeth allowed for in the water code, and I just don't think that making
• Uh, AWBD, the association is a statewide organization that has more than 750 water district members,
• So the sewer and water, etc. Uh, so it's both, uh, taxes and water and sewer rates, right?

Transcript Highlights:

• &gt;&gt; Senator<01:46:35.760><c> Waters,</c> &gt;&gt; Senator Waters, &gt;&gt; Senator Waters, &gt;&
• Senator<01:48:15.679><c> Waters.</c> Senator Waters. Senator Waters.
• </c> reaches water reaches water are<04:43:49.040><c> like</c><04:43:49.920><c> letting</c><04:43:50.400
• </c> making water flow through wood. making water flow through wood.
• Senator Waters.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• This bill adds two different criteria for energy and water consumption.
• This bill adds two different criteria for energy and water consumption.
• This bill adds two different criteria for energy and water consumption.
• Just two additional features in the bill that are really important is the water and electricity.
• and benefit payments, distribution for the Department of Water Resources for the Soil and Water Conservation

Keywords: 989, all

Summary: The House convened with a quorum, approved the journal, and received messages from the Governor and Senate on numerous enrolled and amended bills. The chamber concurred with Senate amendments to House Bill 542 after a brief explanation of the technical changes, and several committee reports were read, including printing, enrollment, and referrals for bills and resolutions. The House also introduced new measures, including House Bill 938 on public assistance definitions for candy and soda, and referred several Senate bills to standing committees. On third reading, the House passed House Bill 897, which narrows and adds conditions to a data center sales tax exemption, including water and electricity-related requirements and a 20-year cap, and House Bill 926, which expands community infrastructure districts to counties outside city limits. House Bill 935, consolidating the Board of Denturity with the Board of Dentistry, also passed after debate over board finances and professional independence. House Concurrent Resolution 36, supporting the Idaho Air National Guard’s transition from A-10s to F-16s, passed by voice vote despite concerns about airport noise and neighborhood impacts. Senate Bill 1326, a property rights/open fields bill limiting warrantless agency entry on private land while preserving lawful investigations and service of process, passed 65-3 with two abstentions. Several other bills were considered with mixed outcomes. House Bill 842, which would have changed city budget growth caps, foregone use, and related property tax rules, failed 28-41 after objections that it would raise taxes or create fiscal uncertainty. Senate Bill 1258 passed to allow rural distilleries to serve their own products under certain conditions, Senate Bill 1382, the Fish and Game enhancement budget, failed 32-36, and Senate Bill 1387, the State Historical Society budget, passed. The House also passed Senate Bill 1388 on Department of Correction enhancements, Senate Bill 1262 clarifying insurer investment rules, Senate Bill 1285 recognizing nonpublic high school diplomas for licensing purposes, Senate Bill 1250 expanding confidentiality for certain death-scene photographs, Senate Bill 1260 revising immigration-related enforcement language, Senate Bill 1311 on ignition interlock vendor notices and reporting, Senate Bill 1369 changing venue rules for lawsuits, Senate Bill 1303 expanding uses of energy royalty funds, and Senate Joint Memorial 11 urging protection of federal public lands from mass disposal.

Transcript Highlights:

• Fernandez, W3C Water and Sewer Cooperative. Edward G.
• We know that's a water body that's been impacted.
• We've been pretty aggressive trying to clean up the water.
• It's the water.
• It's the water.

Summary: The committee met with a quorum and took up a long agenda of bills, many of them amended. Early action included PCS for CS for HB 639, which would expand an existing Fraternal Order of Police specialty license plate to all Floridians, tighten specialty plate rules for future applicants, require financial projections and reporting, and create several new specialty plates. After questions about Florida nexus requirements and a successful amendment adding a Florida Film Legacy plate, the bill was reported favorably 26-0. PCS for CS for HB 1169, limiting local governments’ use of excess building-code enforcement funds for construction of the code-enforcement building, also passed unanimously after testimony from the Florida Home Builders Association. The committee then approved HB 139, expanding whistleblower protections for state, local, and contract employees who file ethics complaints, with support from the Florida Commission on Ethics. PCS for HB 273, which would make special districts eligible for certain state and federal grants and direct pay options, passed 24-1 after testimony from both supporters and opponents. Members also approved CS for HB 1087, a public-records exemption for certain stablecoin issuer information, and CS for HB 1085, updating the local government cybersecurity grant program by moving it to Cyber Florida at USF, adding a sunset, and limiting consecutive awards. Several environmental and local-government transparency measures drew extended debate. CS for CS for HB 1417, a broad environmental bill, was amended to remove several provisions, retain others on the Environmental Regulation Commission, springs, solar facilities, Indian River Lagoon septic deadlines, and coastal resiliency partnerships, and then passed 24-0 amid mixed testimony from DEP, water management districts, and environmental advocates. CS for HB 1457, creating a framework for regional stormwater management systems and water quality enhancement areas, passed 24-0 after discussion of port impacts. CS for HB 1329, requiring local budgets to be posted earlier, retained longer, and made searchable, and adding a 10% budget-cutting exercise, passed 17-6 after strong opposition from local-government groups who argued it would be costly and duplicative. The committee also approved CS for HB 4091 creating a special district for stormwater and flood control in Sarasota and Manatee counties, and then took up CS for HB 995, a major overhaul of Public Employees Relations Commission and union-related procedures, including registration, dues disclosure, election rules, leave-time limits, and expedited bargaining over legislatively appropriated salary increases; that bill was still under questioning when the transcript ended.

Transcript Highlights:

• They will need water operators to operate this daily.
• in that water technology.
• I have a community of Bosque Farms that is a water treatment, $13 million.
• projects, for instance, because the Water Trust Board vets their projects for those water projects that
• We can get you some water if you need it. Thank you. Thank you.

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:10:05.120><c> Council</c> recommended by the Clean Water Council recommended by the Clean Water
• The Clean Water Council recommendations.
• Next is the Board of Water and Soil Resources, which receives the majority of the clean water funds.
• Next is the Board of Water and Soil Resources, which receives the majority of the clean water funds.
• The Board of Water and Soil Resources receives the majority of the clean water funds.

Keywords: 1187, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Senator<00:11:12.040><c> Waters,</c><00:11:13.040><c> did</c><00:11:13.200><c> you</c> Senator Waters
• I think uh yes uh we Senator Waters.
• </c><01:30:45.760><c> and</c> because steel is going on the water and because steel is going on the water
• </c> the uh assistant director of the water the uh assistant director of the water division<01:44:50.560
• The idea is that through state waters.

Keywords: 1191, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• We will do solid waste and water.
• When I don't have water-specific revenue, I go to my general fund.
• Another thing to think of is how clean your water must be.
• There's the state of Another thing to think of is how clean your water must be.
• There is nothing wrong with that water whatsoever.

Summary: The Committee on Community Affairs convened with a quorum and took up SB 308, a bill related to the Florida Museum of Black History. The bill would establish a Florida Museum of Black History Board of Directors and direct it to work with a supporting nonprofit foundation, while also requiring the St. Johns County Board of County Commissioners to provide administrative assistance and staffing until planning, design, and engineering are complete. With no appearance forms or debate, the committee voted the bill favorably. The remainder of the meeting was an informational briefing from the Florida Association of Counties and the Florida League of Cities on local government budgeting practices. Presenters explained how counties and cities develop budgets, the legal framework governing property taxes and other revenues, the distinction between restricted and unrestricted funds, and the role of constitutional officers, public safety, debt, pensions, and capital planning. They emphasized that most local revenues are restricted by law, that general funds are the main discretionary source, and that local governments must balance annual budgets while meeting mandated service levels. The presenters also discussed how property taxes, fees, local option taxes, and state-shared revenues support local services, and they highlighted the fiscal pressures created by public safety, emergency management, infrastructure, and retirement costs. Members asked questions about the share of local revenue that is unrestricted and the implications for any proposal to eliminate property taxes. The presenters responded that only a portion of county and municipal revenue is flexible, with much of it dedicated to specific purposes by law.

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm the Soil Conservation Manager with Olmstead County Soil and Water Conservation District.
• These colors show vulnerability over the drinking water standard.
• Three I'd like to highlight specifically are erosion control, both wind and water, water infiltration
• Next would be water infiltration.
• A lot of the benefits of cover crops come from their ability to increase water infiltration.

Transcript Highlights:

• And, you know, many people who finally got water enough where it creates a wake.
• So it was only natural that Lucy would grow up loving the water.
• I mean, I can tell you, I've certainly been out on the water.
• We need to make sure our boaters are responsible out on the water.
• So thank you for this great bill. ...but any tragedy out on the water.

Summary: The Transportation Committee met and considered a series of bills, beginning with SB 266, which would exempt sales and use tax on electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft sold from manufacturers to operators. Senator Harold said the measure is intended to help Florida attract an advanced air mobility industry and create jobs. The committee adopted an amendment clarifying the definition of EVTOL aircraft and excluding drones, then reported the bill favorably. SB 350, by Senator DeSigley, was also reported favorably after a minor amendment; it allows local governments to permit vehicles to travel slowly on flooded streets without being treated as unlawfully impeding traffic. Supporters from the Florida PBA and Florida League of Cities waived in support. The committee next approved SB 706, designating part of U.S. 92/Gandy Boulevard as the Senator James A. Sebesta Memorial Highway. SB 628, Lucy’s Law, was heard with extensive emotional testimony from Lucy Fernandez’s parents and others. The bill strengthens boating safety by increasing penalties for reckless boating, requiring boating safety education after certain violations, and aligning some boating penalties more closely with motor vehicle laws. A substitute amendment was adopted, and the bill was reported favorably. SB 872, dealing with county and municipal price controls for the removal and storage of electric vehicles, was also amended and reported favorably after testimony from towing industry representatives about the added costs and storage constraints posed by damaged EVs; the Florida Insurance Council spoke in opposition. The committee then approved SB 650, which expands hazardous walking condition criteria for elementary school students to include walkways along freeways, ramps, and interchanges, regardless of speed limit. SB 1318, the hands-free driving bill, generated substantial testimony from safety advocates and families affected by distracted driving; it would rename Florida’s texting law as a hands-free driving law and prohibit handheld use of wireless devices while driving. The committee also passed SB 994, increasing driver education requirements for standard and learner’s licenses, and SB 662, designating a portion of West Beaver Street in Duval County as Harry Frisch Street. Several senators recorded affirmative votes on bills after the roll calls, and the meeting adjourned after all listed measures were reported favorably.

Transcript Highlights:

• SB 1417, the Mutual Water Company Rate and Disclosure Notice Act, requires mutual water companies to
• known as mutual water companies.
• Now, I've learned a lot about mutual water companies over the last year and a half because mutual water
• Now, this is a water bill.
• The State Water Project delivers water to two-thirds of California.

Keywords: 987, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• State revolving loan funds of both for clean water.
• Just for everybody on the same page, when we say clean water in EPA speak, that means water that's not
• So, what that's wastewater or stormwater and drinking water, which speaks for itself.
• You're appropriating that for water projects. And then now Congress has been doing...
• The water system. What this funding would do is it would replace the water system.

Keywords: 928, house, all

Summary: The hearing reconvened with testimony from several agencies on their capital budget requests. The Department of Environmental Services requested a little over $38 million, with major emphasis on dam repairs and design work for aging state-owned dams, including a $5.25 million match for possible FEMA BRIC funding at Pawtuckaway/Tuckaway and other projects such as Milton Three Ponds, Murphy Dam, and Lakeport Gates. DES also requested funding for state revolving loan fund matches, a Superfund match for the Savage Well site, IT and air-monitoring upgrades, and a new $750,000 cybersecurity request for water and wastewater systems. Committee members asked about FEMA eligibility, the distinction between design and construction money, and the timing and risk of banking funds if federal grants do not materialize. The University System of New Hampshire requested $20 million in state support, primarily $15 million for a major Diamond Library renovation at UNH to create a student support hub and reduce/repurpose collection space, plus $2.5 million each for deferred maintenance at Plymouth State and Keene State. The Community College System requested about $16.6 million across seven projects, led by critical maintenance, campus safety/security upgrades, IT infrastructure, parking and site improvements, HVAC replacement at White Mountains Community College in Littleton, a building management/energy system, and modernization of NHTI’s dental clinic and radiology spaces. The Department of Education requested $29.5 million, including a $4.9 million internal management platform to replace paper-based and siloed systems, plus career and technical education capital projects; Milford’s CTE project was described as being revised after repeated failed bond votes, while ConVal said its revised project would focus on modernizing existing CTE space and adding a security vestibule. Fish and Game requested $1.075 million for three facilities: Sewall Falls in Concord, the Lancaster Armory, and the Bunker Lane Barn in Durham, focusing on structural repairs, security, reconfiguration, and in one case replacement of a failing barn with a new 40-by-60 building. The department also said hatchery work is ongoing but that it is taking a cautious approach because of the planned New Hampton Hatchery and future capital needs. The Department of Natural and Cultural Resources requested $9.26 million for eight projects, including campground electrical upgrades at Ellacoya and Lake Francis, White Lake water system replacement, Mount Washington fuel tank and safety work, Odiorne Point visitor center work funded through parks revenue, roofing and parking lot repairs, Fox Forest office safety upgrades, and historic site repairs at White Island and Fort Constitution. Members asked about revenue-based capital, the stability of the parks fund, and flexibility in choosing projects as bids come in. The Department of Transportation began its presentation at the end of the transcript, but its detailed requests were not yet discussed.

Transcript Highlights:

• We're dissolving carbon dioxide in water.
• So there hasn't been a lot of discussion about water rights, but it's likely in this technology water
• So there hasn't been a lot of discussion about water rights, but it's likely in this technology, water
• So it's a non-potable water, not a USDW, an underground source of drinking water.
• These are much deeper and not used as drinking water or agricultural water. Okay, thank you.

Summary: The committee held an interim work session focused first on carbon capture, utilization, and sequestration (CCUS), then on hazardous waste and extended producer responsibility (EPR). On the CCUS topic, industry and nonprofit presenters described point-source capture, direct air capture, mineralization, and geologic sequestration, emphasizing Washington’s basalt formations and state trust lands as strong candidates for storage. They argued that CCUS can help hard-to-abate industrial sectors, support jobs and investment, and provide a pathway for compliance, while also noting the need for clearer permitting, subsurface rights, pipeline authority, and storage infrastructure. Ecology and Commerce staff explained current state policy touchpoints, including Cap-and-Invest offsets and exemptions for permanently stored CO2, the public comment process underway to define “thousand-year” permanence, and how CCUS might fit within the Clean Energy Transformation Act without counting emitting generation as non-emitting. Some presenters supported more state action and primacy over federal permitting, while others warned about costs, energy use, uncertain capture performance, and the need to ensure real net greenhouse gas reductions and long-term liability protections. Members asked about public meetings, whether mineralized carbon would qualify as exempt under the Climate Commitment Act, the timeline for Ecology guidance, aquifer and water-quality concerns, energy intensity of capture systems, and liability if storage later proves problematic. Responses said Ecology’s guidance process is already underway, public meetings will be virtual, mineralized carbon would likely qualify if it meets the permanence standard, and EPA rules require storage in deep saline formations below drinking water aquifers. Industry speakers said capture energy use varies by source and concentration, and one presenter noted that some states use trust funds funded by injectors to address long-term liability. The second half of the session shifted to hazardous waste and EPR. Ecology staff reviewed existing product stewardship programs for electronics, paint, batteries, and mercury lights, and described moderate risk waste and household hazardous waste management in Washington. They highlighted that E-Cycle and PaintCare are producer-funded, that the battery stewardship program will begin in 2027, and that the mercury lamp program is in transition after its prior stewardship organization exited, prompting enforcement notices and a pending replacement plan. Ecology recommended best practices for future EPR programs, including clear producer and product definitions, full producer funding, convenience standards, annual reporting, and strong agency enforcement and plan approval authority. Local government speakers from King County and Douglas County described rising collection costs, equity and access barriers, rural travel distances, and the need for stable funding and flexible local implementation. King County said it collected over 3 million pounds of hazardous products in 2025 and supports EPR as a way to shift costs from ratepayers to producers, while Douglas County emphasized that rural residents will participate when services are accessible and that future systems should account for geography and local infrastructure.

Transcript Highlights:

• water associations in a sec, yes, because the scope has gotten larger.
• I mean, we got soil and water.
• Conservation, but we have a good soil and water conservation district in our area.
• Rural New Mexicans bring water to our farms, our families, and our communities.
• Luckily, they have managed the water so we can have motorboats back on the water at El Valo.

Transcript Highlights:

• Bryce mentioned, we do have large amounts of water.
• And again, I just want to close with part of the standing water issue, you know, through the Water Trust
• That water backs up in those ponds.
• Request that the BLM and the Soil and Water.
• We don't have water there.

Transcript Highlights:

• Yes, this is what's happening, you know, water line broke or whatever it is.
• We are sitting on a sea of brackish water, which is a game changer. It's generational.
• A couple of new parking lots at the border authority—you saw the water tank yesterday.
• We've outgrown our previous space, so we're going to be discussing water waste.
• Water tomorrow, so anybody is welcome to join us tomorrow.

Transcript Highlights:

• Accidents on the water don't just happen.
• They may have never even been on the water.
• You cannot drink excessively on the water.
• You cannot drink excessively on the water.
• You cannot drink excessively on the water.

Summary: The committee first heard CS/HB 69, which would preempt local land-use decisions for presidential libraries to the state. The sponsor said the bill was intended to make it easier to site a presidential library in Florida. Members asked about whether the bill could affect nontraditional uses such as hotels or casinos, and the sponsor said it only addressed land-use and development-order decisions. There was no public testimony, and the bill was reported favorably 16-7. The committee then took up CS/HB 289, “Lucy's Law,” on boating safety. The bill expands boating education requirements, aligns boating penalties more closely with driving offenses, prohibits false information in vessel accident reports, and requires certain nonresidents to obtain boating safety cards. An amendment requiring boating safety courses for those convicted of civil boating infractions was adopted. The committee heard emotional testimony from Lucy Fernandez’s mother, who described the fatal 2022 boating crash that inspired the bill, along with support from industry and local-government witnesses. Members from both parties spoke in favor, emphasizing accountability, education, and enforcement. The bill passed unanimously, 25-0. HB 7003, an open-government/sunshine bill, preserved a public-records exemption for sensitive business information submitted with applications to the Office of Financial Regulation’s financial technology sandbox. It drew no public testimony or debate and was reported favorably. HB 4007, a local bill for Martin County, capped reimbursement for inmate emergency health care at 110% of Medicare, mirroring the Department of Corrections standard; it also passed favorably after supportive public testimony. The longest discussion was on HB 991, which would prohibit creation of new community redevelopment agencies after July 1, 2025, bar current CRAs from starting new projects or issuing new debt after October 1, 2025, and sunset existing CRAs by 2045 or their charter date, whichever is earlier. The sponsor argued CRAs have become long-lived funding vehicles used beyond their original anti-blight purpose and said local governments have other tools. Many members from both parties objected that CRAs remain important for affordable housing, small business support, infrastructure, and redevelopment in blighted areas, and several said the bill would harm ongoing or multi-phase projects. Three amendments were offered: one defining “new project,” one striking the new-CRA prohibition, and one striking the new-debt/new-project language; all were defeated except the first, which was adopted. Public testimony was split, with redevelopment groups, cities, and the Florida League of Cities opposing the bill and Americans for Prosperity supporting it. The committee did not reach final disposition in the portion provided, but the debate showed substantial opposition and concern about the bill’s impact on local redevelopment efforts.