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2024 LEGISLATIVE SESSION UPDATES
Over 100 ABC members met in Tallahassee for the Annual ABC of Florida Legislative Conference in January. The capitol was full of activity and committee meetings and lunch with guest speaker Representative John Snyder and Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson; the group had the privilege to visit the Senate chamber and hear from Senate President Kathlee Passidomo and Senator Ben Albritton.
Members collaborated with legislators from all counties such as Senator Jason Brodeur, Senator Travis Hutson, Representative Keith Truenow, Representative David Smith, Representative Webster Barnaby, Representative Susan Placensia, and Representative Joanna Lopez to name a few.
Florida CFO Jimmy Patronis and Attorney General Ashley Moody took time out of their busy schedules to speak to members.
ABC’s session-long presence at the Capitol and direct conversations between members and legislators made the difference showing the real-life impact that these bills have on the construction industry. It is ABC and our members that are advocating for the rights of merit shop and free enterprise, as well as continuing to gain the workforce needed to support the industry.
The bills have worked their way through the House and Senate with strong support and following are the big ABC wins of the 2024 session.
Meet Your Lobbyists
YOUR DUES DOLLARS AT WORK
“Priorities come from all of us, as members. A lot of legislators don’t know what construction is, what these priorities mean for the industry, and we need to tell them. Get involved – see how the sausage is made, come to the planning conference, go to floridavoting.org to take the survey, and contribute however you can.”
— Steven Lockhart ABCCentral Florida and ABC Florida Board Member, Finfrock Construction, LLC
PASSED - Continuing Contracts
– HB149 Alvarez / SB 656 DiCeglie
This legislation increased the cap on continuing contracts public works opportunities from $4 million to $7.5 million and attaches future caps to the Consumer Price Index. Continuing contracts saves local governments and the private sector time and money by streamlining the procurement process while remaining competitive.
PASSED - Private Provider Reforms
– HB267 Esposito / SB684 DiCeglie
This started as its own bill, but the legislation ended up being added in a Residential Permitting Bill – this comprehensive piece of legislation is a combination of the original ABC Private Provider Legislation, additional language from the Private Provider Association, and Representative Esposito’s priority goal of setting real timelines and deadlines for Building Departments to meet for plan reviews and issuing of permits.
The Bill - requires local governments to approve, approve with conditions, or deny a complete and sufficient permit application within the following time frames:
• 30 business days for the following permits for structures that are less than 7,500 SF: single-family residential unit or dwelling, accessory structure, alarm, electrical, irrigation, landscaping, mechanism, plumbing, or roofing.
• 60 business days for the above-mentioned permits for structures more than 7,500 SF.
• 60 business days for signs and nonresidential buildings less than 25,000 SF.
• 120 business days for multifamily residential not exceeding 50 units, certain site-plan approvals and subdivision plans, lot grading, and site alteration.
• 15 business days for master building permits for sitespecific building permit.
• 10 business days for single-family dwellings utilizing the Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery Program.
• The bill modifies provisions requiring local governments to refund permit fees for failure to comply with the applicable timeframes and applies specific timeframes for the processing of permit applications submitted with an affidavit from a private provider who is a licensed engineer or architect.
• Provides an exception to the fee reduction provision when a delay is caused by the applicant or by a force majeure or other extraordinary circumstance.
• Provides that completing an internship program for residential building inspectors is a pathway for licensure as a residential building inspector.
• Reduces the time frame that a local government must issue a building permit to a private provider who is a licensed engineer or architect who seals the affidavit, to 10 days after application, from 20 days.
• Provides that the Florida Building Commission must review certain standards for unvented attics before December 31, 2024, and that certain standards will be effective related to such attics on July 1, 2025.
Finally, the bill requires the Florida Building Commission to provide an exception in the Florida Building Code relating to sealed drawings by a design professional for replacement windows, doors, and garages.
PASSED - Career and Technical Education
– HB917 Snyder / SB460 Simon
The primary purpose of this bill is to order the REACH office for Governor DeSantis to work with the Department of Education and the Department of Commerce to review and assess Florida’s current Career and Technical Education opportunities, how many CTE offerings currently exist, identify any areas lacking options and opportunities, review funding levels, and make recommendations back to the legislature based on in-demand industry needs. It will also look at how CTE is funded and identify if there are ways to streamline the process.
This bill cleans up existing and conflicting journeymen definitions, making them more uniform, mandating reciprocity among local jurisdictions, and eliminates the opportunity to charge a fee to confirm the journeyman standing.
It also establishes that a year of the related technical instruction of an apprenticeship program can result in a college credit. The bill eliminates the previously formed Talent Development Council as it has completed its legislatively established purpose and instead, shifts similar efforts to the REACH office.
Lastly, the bill establishes that 16-and 17-year-olds may get on-the-job experience on residential construction projects. They must comply with existing OSHA and Fair Labor Standards Act regulations and under no circumstances may they work on a roof.
PASSED - Workplace Heat Exposure and Employment Requirements
– HB433 Esposito / SB1492 Trumbull
This bill was a true collaborative effort among many different industry groups working to ensure that Florida has ONE heat safety standard rather than 67 different county ones and hundreds of municipal ones. The group that got this done is: Associated Builders and Contractors of Florida, Associated General Contractors, Associated Industries of Florida, Agriculture groups, the Chamber and the Florida Homebuilders Association.
The legislation ensures that regulating safety regulations for heat exposure is preempted to OSHA. While opponents incorrectly argued that there are no current standards, OSHA does have the Duty of Care requirements for employers - requiring them to ensure a safe work environment for their employees. Additionally, OSHA is working on a more comprehensive and specific regulation on heat safety standards for the workplace. Currently available on OSHA's website is best practice information this topic. OSHA website - osha.gov
In addition to the complete preemption of local governments establishing and enforcing heat exposure ordinances, the bill also prevents political subdivisions from using evaluation factors, qualification of bidders, or otherwise award preferences on the basis of wages or employment benefits provided by vendors, contractors, service providers, or other parties doing business with the political subdivision.
ABC's Tool Time Tax Holiday Gets Renewed
Between September 1 and September 7 Floridians will have the sales taxes eliminated on critical industry tools for contractors and individuals getting their start in the industry. Thank you to Rep. Stan McClain and House bill 7073 on Taxation.
Noteworthy Bills
Iron and Steel Only Made in USA Allowed in Public Works Projects – SB674
This bill requires a governmental entity that contracts for a public works project or for the purchase of materials for a public works project to require that any iron or steel product that will be permanently incorporated into the project be produced in the United States. The bill waives this contract requirement if the governmental entity determines that any of the following apply:
• The iron or steel products required are not produced in the United States in sufficient quantities, are not reasonably available, or are of an unsatisfactory quality;
• The use will increase the total cost of the project by more than 20%;
Compliance is inconsistent with the public interest. A governmental entity may allow a minimal use of foreign iron or steel materials in the project, if they are ancillary to the primary product and the cost of the materials does not exceed 10% of the total contract cost, or $2,500, whichever is greater. These provisions do not apply to contracts procured by the Florida Department of Transportation that are subject to the federal Buy America requirements. The bill requires the Department of Management Services to develop guidelines and procedures by rule to implement the bill.
New Technology Council – SB1680
Creates the Government Technology Modernization Council within the Department of Management Services for a specified purpose.
Council’s purpose is to generally study and monitor the development and deployment of AI systems and provide reports on such systems to the Governor and the Legislature. The council will submit two annual reports: one addressing how to modernize government technology, and the other addressing ransomware incidents.
Generative AI systems can quicken access to ideas and knowledge by helping people more efficiently gather new information, help automate a wide variety of administrative and repetitive tasks and enhance the productivity of many industries. Generative AI systems can also be used in more nefarious ways including increasing the speed and scale of many real-world harms, facilitating the development and proliferation of false information, facilitate the use of copyrighted, proprietary, or sensitive data, without the owner’s or subject’s knowledge, reduce the privacy for users, including minors, through the retention of personally identifiable information without consent, etc.
This bill seeks to address concerns about the potential misuse or unintended consequences of AI and prompt efforts to examine and develop standards at the federal and state levels.
Noteworthy Bills
Building Construction Regulations and System Warranties – HB481 / SB612
• Expands the scope of work for specified HVAC system contractors to include specified line-side repairs or replacements and the repair or replacement of specified components for dedicated HVAC circuits under specified conditions. Changes current Florida Law that only a licensed electrical contractor may perform “line side” work on the dedicated HVAC electrical disconnect switch. Thus, HVAC system contractors, whether they are class A, class B, or mechanical, are currently prohibited from replacing, disconnecting, or reconnecting power wiring on the line side of the dedicated HVAC disconnect switch or from repairing or replacing power wiring, disconnects, breakers, or fuses for dedicated HVAC circuits.
• Prohibits the conditioning of an HVAC system warranty on product registration and specifies that the full length of such a warranty’s coverage term begins on the date a licensed contractors installs the system.
Public Works Projects – HB705
Revises the definition of the term “public works project” to be something that is paid for with any local or state funding. When a project meets that definition, local governments are preempted from mandating certain wage rates, hiring practices, apprenticeship education via specific apprenticeship providers, etc. It also removed permissions for local governments to impose geographic local preferences. The second part of that bill allows local governments to utilize a local preference when the funding for the project comes 100% from the local government.
Celebrating Jimmy Buffet – SR 642
This resolution celebrates the late Jimmy Buffet. Transportation Facility Designations/Jimmy Buffett Highway - SB84 Rep. Lauren Book – designates State Road A1A as “Jimmy Buffet Memorial Highway.”
Specialty License Plates/ Margaritaville - SB 434 Rep.
Gayl Harrell directs the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to create a “Margaritaville” license plate honoring the musician, citing his most famous song. The plate signation would cost $7,680 and a committee bill analysis notes that proceeds of the sale will be distributed to the Signing for Change Charitable Foundation to provide grants to nonprofit organizations in communities impacted by natural or manmade disasters. These grants provide for recovery, rebuilding, and future sustainability in those communities, and to promote and inspire local grassroots leadership that will work to improve the quality of life in those communities and the state. www.singingforchange.org
BLOCKED - Construction Contracting
– HB1563/ SB1778
ABC helped KILL Construction Contracting which would have impacted our multi-family and condo builders. The bill would have required a “designated contractor or qualified business” that received a payment of $10,000 or more before commencement pursuant to a contract for residential real property improvements to, within 3 business days of receipt, place such payment in an escrow account with specified depository institutions, attorneys, or real estate brokers. Among other things it also would have provided that any specified contractor or business organization that willfully violates the escrow requirement commits a third-degree felony.
Federal Updates:
President Biden issued an Executive Order, Scaling and Expanding the Use of Registered Apprenticeships in Industries and the Federal Government and Promoting Labor-Management Forums. ABC issued a statement regarding the EO and how it will disrupt the construction industry.
“While ABC supports efforts to expand government-registered apprenticeship programs—or GRAPs—as part of an all-of-the above approach to upskilling the construction industry, this latest executive overreach by the Biden administration is likely to be very disruptive and will undermine taxpayer investments in the construction of infrastructure, clean energy and domestic manufacturing projects, the executive order creates an artificial demand for contractors and apprentices participating in GRAPs by directing federal agencies to require or incentivize GRAP participation on federal and federally assisted projects.”
— Ben BrubeckABC vice president of regulatory, labor and state affairs
To read the full press release scan QR code: www.abc.org/News-Media/News-Releases/abc-new-biden-executive-order-pushing-apprenticeships-will-disrupt-construction-industry
ABC Annual Bourbon Bash PAC Fundraiser
February 22, 2024
The annual PAC Fundraiser in February raised a record amount of money for our local chapter PAC. This money will be especially important in this general election year to endorse candidates that support and defend open competition and merit shop construction. Thank you to everyone who attended!
Here’s What You Can Do to Help
Make Your Voice Heard!
Download the ABC Action App
Attend ABC Legislative events or join the Government Affairs Committee.
DONATE to the ABC National PAC and to the Central Florida Chapter’s PAC by scanning QR codes OR visiting
https://pac.abc.org/challenge.aspx (Password: ABCPAC) and https://abccentralflorida.com/product/abc-voluntary-contributions/
If you’d like to get more involved in Government Affairs at ABC Central Florida, contact Taylor Dupree at tdupree@abccf.org
FUTURE DATES TO KNOW
June 25-26, 2024:
ABC National Legislative Week in
Washington D.C.
July 15-18, 2024:
The Republican National Convention
August 19-22, 2024:
The Democratic National Convention
August 20, 2024:
Florida Primary Election
November 5, 2024:
General Election
