Florida House Bill H0989 Latest Draft

                                    
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An act relating to the Chief Financial Officer; 2 
creating s. 17.69, F.S.; creating the Federal Tax 3 
Liaison position within the Department of Financial 4 
Services; providing the duties and authority of the 5 
liaison; amending s. 20.121, F.S.; renaming a division 6 
in the department; removing provisions relating to 7 
duties of such division and to bureaus and offices in 8 
such division; removing a division; amending s. 9 
112.1816, F.S.; providing that, upon a diagnosis of 10 
cancer, firefighters are entitled to certain benefits 11 
under specified circumstances; amending s. 121.0515, 12 
F.S.; revising requirements for the Special Risk Class 13 
membership; amending s. 284.44, F.S.; removing 14 
provisions relating to certain quarterly reports 15 
prepared by the Division of Risk Management; amending 16 
s. 440.13, F.S.; providing the reimbursement schedule 17 
requirements for emergency services and care under 18 
workers' compensation under certain cir cumstances; 19 
providing rulemaking authority; amending s. 440.385, 20 
F.S.; providing requirements for certain contracts 21 
entered into and purchases made by the Florida Self -22 
Insurers Guaranty Association, Incorporated; providing 23 
duties of the department and the association relating 24 
to such contracts and purchases; providing exemptions; 25          
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amending s. 497.101, F.S.; revising the requirements 26 
for appointing and nominating members of the Board of 27 
Funeral, Cemetery, and Consumer Services; revising the 28 
members' terms; revising the authority to remove board 29 
members; providing for vacancy appointments; providing 30 
that board members are subject to the code of ethics; 31 
providing requirements for board members' conduct; 32 
prohibiting certain acts by the board; providing 33 
penalties; providing requirements for board meetings, 34 
books, and records; requiring notices of board 35 
meetings; providing requirements for such notices; 36 
amending s. 497.153, F.S.; authorizing services by 37 
electronic mail of administrative complaints against 38 
certain licensees under certain circumstances; 39 
amending s. 497.155, F.S.; authorizing services of 40 
citations by electronic mail under certain 41 
circumstances; amending s. 497.172, F.S.; revising 42 
circumstances under which the department may disclose 43 
certain information that is confidential and exempt 44 
from public records requirements; amending s. 497.386, 45 
F.S.; authorizing the department to enter and secure 46 
certain establishments, facilities, and morgues and 47 
remove certain remains under specified circumstances; 48 
requiring the department to make certain 49 
determinations; prohibiting certain licensees and 50          
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facilities from being held liable under certain 51 
circumstances; providing penalties; creating s. 52 
497.469, F.S.; authorizing preneed licensees to 53 
withdraw certain amounts of mon ey under certain 54 
circumstances; providing documents that show that a 55 
preneed contract has been fulfilled; providing 56 
recordkeeping requirements; amending s. 624.307, F.S.; 57 
requiring eligible surplus lines insurers to respond 58 
to the department or the Office of Insurance 59 
Regulation after receipt of requests for documents and 60 
information concerning consumer complaints; providing 61 
penalties for failure to comply; requiring authorized 62 
insurers and eligible surplus lines insurers to file 63 
e-mail addresses with the d epartment and to designate 64 
contact persons for specified purposes; authorizing 65 
changes of designated contact information; amending s. 66 
626.171, F.S.; requiring the department to make 67 
provisions for certain insurance license applicants to 68 
submit cellular telephone numbers for a specified 69 
purpose; amending s. 626.221, F.S.; providing a 70 
qualification for all -lines adjuster licenses; 71 
amending s. 626.601, F.S.; revising construction; 72 
amending s. 626.7351, F.S.; providing a qualification 73 
for customer representativ e's licenses; amending s. 74 
626.878, F.S.; providing duties and prohibited acts 75          
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for adjusters; amending s. 626.929, F.S.; specifying 76 
that licensed and appointed general lines agents, 77 
rather than general lines agents, may engage in 78 
certain activities while al so licensed and appointed 79 
as surplus lines agents; authorizing general lines 80 
agents that are also licensed as surplus lines agents 81 
to make certain appointments; authorizing such agents 82 
to originate specified businesses and accept specified 83 
businesses; prohibiting such agents from being 84 
appointed by or transacting certain insurance on 85 
behalf of specified insurers; amending s. 627.351, 86 
F.S.; providing requirements for certain contracts 87 
entered into and purchases made by the Florida Joint 88 
Underwriting Associat ion; providing duties of the 89 
department and the association associated with such 90 
contracts and purchases; amending s. 631.59, F.S.; 91 
providing requirements for certain contracts entered 92 
into and purchases made by the Florida Insurance 93 
Guaranty Association, Incorporated; providing duties 94 
of the department and the association associated with 95 
such contracts and purchases; providing 96 
nonapplicability; amending ss. 631.722, 631.821, and 97 
631.921, F.S.; providing requirements for certain 98 
contracts entered into and p urchases made by the 99 
Florida Life and Health Insurance Guaranty 100          
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Association, the board of directors of the Florida 101 
Health Maintenance Organization Consumer Assistance 102 
Plan, and the board of directors of the Florida 103 
Workers' Compensation Insurance Guaranty Association, 104 
respectively; providing duties of the department and 105 
of the association and boards associated with such 106 
contracts and purchases; amending s. 633.124, F.S.; 107 
updating the edition of a manual for the use of 108 
pyrotechnics; amending s. 633.202, F.S. ; revising the 109 
duties of the State Fire Marshal; amending s. 633.206, 110 
F.S.; revising the requirements for uniform firesafety 111 
standards established by the department; amending s. 112 
634.041, F.S.; specifying the conditions under which 113 
service agreement compani es do not have to establish 114 
and maintain unearned premium reserves; amending s. 115 
634.081, F.S.; specifying the conditions under which 116 
service agreement companies' licenses are not 117 
suspended or revoked under certain circumstances; 118 
amending s. 634.3077, F.S.; specifying requirements 119 
for certain contractual liability insurance obtained 120 
by home warranty associations; providing that such 121 
associations are not required to establish unearned 122 
premium reserves or maintain contractual liability 123 
insurance; authorizing s uch associations to allow 124 
their premiums to exceed certain limitations under 125          
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certain circumstances; amending s. 634.317, F.S.; 126 
providing that certain entities, employees, and agents 127 
are exempt from sales representative licenses and 128 
appointments under certa in circumstances; amending s. 129 
648.25, F.S.; providing definitions; amending s. 130 
648.26, F.S.; revising the types of investigatory 131 
records of the department which are confidential and 132 
exempt from public records requirements; revising the 133 
circumstances under which investigatory records are 134 
confidential and exempt from public records 135 
requirements; revising construction; amending s. 136 
648.30, F.S.; revising circumstances under which a 137 
person or entity may act in the capacity of a bail 138 
bond agent or bail bond agenc y and perform certain 139 
functions, duties, and powers; amending s. 648.355, 140 
F.S.; revising the requirements for limited surety 141 
agents and professional bail bond agent license 142 
applications; amending s. 655.0323, F.S.; providing 143 
that certain actions are includ ed as an unsafe and 144 
unsound practice for financial institutions; making a 145 
technical change; authorizing certain aggrieved 146 
customers or members to make a complaint to the Office 147 
of Financial Regulation on a specified form within a 148 
specified timeframe; provi ding that complaints are 149 
barred if not timely submitted; requiring the office 150          
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to take certain actions, make certain determinations, 151 
and begin an investigation within a specified 152 
timeframe after receiving a complaint; requiring a 153 
financial institution to pr ovide certain information 154 
to the office after being notified that a complaint 155 
has been filed; requiring that certain claims be 156 
handled in accordance with certain provisions; 157 
requiring the office to take certain actions after an 158 
investigation is completed o r ceases to be active; 159 
authorizing the Financial Services Commission to adopt 160 
rules to administer this section; amending s. 280.02, 161 
F.S.; conforming provisions to changes made by the 162 
act; amending s. 717.101, F.S.; providing and revising 163 
definitions; amending s. 717.102, F.S.; providing a 164 
rebuttal to a presumption of unclaimed property; 165 
providing requirements for such rebuttal; providing 166 
circumstances under which a property is presumed 167 
unclaimed; providing construction; amending s. 168 
717.106, F.S.; conforming a cross-reference; creating 169 
s. 717.1065, F.S.; providing circumstances under which 170 
virtual currency held or owing by banking 171 
organizations are not presumed unclaimed; prohibiting 172 
virtual currency holders from deducting certain 173 
charges from amounts of spec ified virtual currency 174 
under certain circumstances; providing an exception; 175          
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amending s. 717.1101, F.S.; revising the date on which 176 
stocks and other equity interests in business 177 
associations are presumed unclaimed; amending s. 178 
717.112, F.S.; providing that certain intangible 179 
property held by attorneys in fact and by agents in a 180 
fiduciary capacity are presumed unclaimed under 181 
certain circumstances; revising the requirements for 182 
claiming such property; providing construction; 183 
amending s. 717.1125, F.S.; provid ing construction; 184 
amending s. 717.117, F.S.; removing the paper option 185 
for reports by holders of unclaimed funds and 186 
property; revising the requirements for reporting the 187 
owners of unclaimed property and funds; authorizing 188 
the department to extend reportin g dates under certain 189 
circumstances; revising the circumstances under which 190 
the department may impose and collect penalties; 191 
requiring holders of inactive accounts to notify 192 
apparent owners; revising the manner of sending such 193 
notices; providing requiremen ts for such notices; 194 
amending s. 717.119, F.S.; requiring certain virtual 195 
currency to be remitted to the department; providing 196 
requirements for the liquidation of such virtual 197 
currency; providing that holders of such virtual 198 
currency are relieved of all li ability upon delivery 199 
of the virtual currency to the department; prohibiting 200          
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holders from assigning or transferring certain 201 
obligations or from complying with certain provisions; 202 
providing that certain entities are responsible for 203 
meeting holders' obligati ons and complying with 204 
certain provisions under certain circumstances; 205 
providing construction; amending s. 717.1201, F.S.; 206 
providing that the state assumes custody and 207 
responsibility for the safekeeping of unclaimed 208 
property upon good faith payments or del iveries of 209 
property to the department; providing that the 210 
department relieves holders of certain liability under 211 
specified circumstances; providing construction; 212 
requiring the department to defend holders against 213 
certain claims and indemnify holders agains t certain 214 
liability under specified circumstances; revising 215 
circumstances under which payments or deliveries of 216 
unclaimed property are considered to be made in good 217 
faith; authorizing the department to refund and 218 
redeliver certain money and property under certain 219 
circumstances; amending s. 727.1242, F.S.; revising 220 
legislative intent; amending s. 717.1243, F.S.; 221 
revising applicability of certain provisions relating 222 
to unclaimed small estate accounts; amending s. 223 
717.129, F.S.; revising the prohibition of dep artment 224 
enforcement relating to duties of holders of unclaimed 225          
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funds and property; revising the tolling for the 226 
periods of limitation relating to duties of holders of 227 
unclaimed funds and property; amending s. 717.1301, 228 
F.S.; revising the department's autho rities on the 229 
disposition of unclaimed funds and property for 230 
specified purposes; prohibiting certain materials from 231 
being disclosed or made public under certain 232 
circumstances; revising the basis for the department's 233 
cost assessment against holders of uncl aimed funds and 234 
property; amending s. 717.1311, F.S.; revising the 235 
recordkeeping requirements for funds and property 236 
holders; amending s. 717.1322, F.S.; revising acts 237 
that are violations of specified provisions and 238 
constitute grounds for administrative en forcement 239 
actions and civil enforcement by the department; 240 
providing that claimants' representatives, rather than 241 
registrants, are subject to civil enforcement and 242 
disciplinary actions for certain violations; amending 243 
s. 717.1333, F.S.; conforming provisio ns to changes 244 
made by the act; amending s. 717.134, F.S.; conforming 245 
a provision to changes made by the act; amending s. 246 
717.135, F.S.; revising the information that certain 247 
agreements relating to unclaimed property must 248 
disclose; removing a requirement fo r Unclaimed 249 
Property Purchase Agreement; providing 250          
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nonapplicability; amending s. 717.1400, F.S.; removing 251 
a circumstance under which certain persons must 252 
register with the department; amending s. 766.302, 253 
F.S.; revising a definition; amending s. 766.314, 254 
F.S.; revising circumstances under which the Florida 255 
Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation Plan 256 
may not accept new claims; amending ss. 197.582 and 257 
717.1382, F.S.; conforming a cross -reference; 258 
providing a directive to the Division of Law Revision; 259 
providing reporting requirements for the Florida 260 
Birth-Related Neurological Injury Compensation 261 
Association; amending s. 17.57, F.S.; providing 262 
certain requirements for credit unions designated as 263 
qualified public depositories relating to the National 264 
Credit Union Share Insurance Fund; amending s. 17.68, 265 
F.S.; conforming provisions to changes made by the 266 
act; amending s. 280.02, F.S.; revising definitions; 267 
adding credit unions to a list of financial 268 
institutions that are eligible to be qualified public 269 
depositories; amending s. 280.025, F.S.; providing 270 
applicability of qualified public depository 271 
provisions to credit unions; amending s. 280.03, F.S.; 272 
conforming a provision to changes made by the act; 273 
creating s. 280.042, F.S.; prohibiting the Chief 274 
Financial Officer from designating credit unions as 275          
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qualified public depositories unless certain 276 
conditions are met; requiring the Chief Financial 277 
Officer to withdraw from a collateral agreement with a 278 
credit union under certain circumstances; specifying a 279 
requirement for and a restriction on a credit union 280 
that is a party to a withdrawn collateral agreement; 281 
providing limits on public deposits held by credit 282 
unions; amending ss. 280.05, 280.052, 280.053, and 283 
280.055, F.S.; providing applicability of qualified 284 
public depository provisions to credit unions; 285 
amending s. 280.07, F.S.; specifying the losses 286 
against which certain solvent banks, savings banks, 287 
savings associations, and credit unions must guarantee 288 
public depositors; amending ss. 280.08 and 280.085, 289 
F.S.; conforming provisions to changes made by the 290 
act; amending s. 280.09, F.S.; requiring the Chief 291 
Financial Officer to segregate and separately account 292 
for proceeds, assessments, and administrative 293 
penalties attributable to a credit union from those 294 
attributable to other specified financial 295 
institutions; revising a condition for the payment of 296 
losses to public depositors; amending s. 280.10, F.S.; 297 
conforming provisions to changes made by the act; 298 
amending s. 280.13, F.S.; providing that a specified 299 
limit on securities eligible to be pledged as 300          
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collateral applies to qualified public depositories, 301 
rather than to banks and savings associations; 302 
amending s. 280.17, F.S.; conforming a provision to 303 
changes made by the act; reenacting ss. 280.17(1)(a), 304 
24.114(1), 125.901(3)(e), 136.01, 159.608(11), 305 
175.301, 175.401(8), 185.30, 185.50(8), 190.007(3), 306 
191.006(16), 215.34(2), 218.415(16)(c), (17)(c), and 307 
(23)(a), 255.502(4)(h), 280.051(15), 280.18(1), 308 
331.309(1) and (2), 373.553(2), 631.221, and 309 
723.06115(3)(c), F.S., re lating to requirements for 310 
public depositors; deposits and investments of state 311 
money; bank deposits and control of lottery 312 
transactions; children's services and independent 313 
special districts; county depositories; powers of 314 
housing finance authorities; dep ositories for pension 315 
funds; retiree health insurance subsidies; 316 
depositories for retirement funds; retiree health 317 
insurance subsidies; boards of supervisors; general 318 
powers; state funds and noncollectible items; local 319 
government investment policies; defin itions; grounds 320 
for suspension or disqualification of a qualified 321 
public depository; protection of public depositors and 322 
liability of the state; treasurer, depositories, and 323 
fiscal agent for Space Florida; treasurer of the 324 
board, payment of funds, and depo sitories; deposit of 325          
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moneys collected; and the Florida Mobile Home 326 
Relocation Trust Fund, respectively, to incorporate 327 
the amendments made by this act to s. 280.02, F.S., in 328 
references thereto; providing effective dates. 329 
 330 
Be It Enacted by the Legislatu re of the State of Florida: 331 
 332 
 Section 1.  Section 17.69, Florida Statutes, is created to 333 
read: 334 
 17.69  Federal Tax Liaison. — 335 
 (1)  The Federal Tax Liaison position is created within the 336 
department. The purpose of the position is to assist the 337 
taxpayers of the state. 338 
 (2)  The Chief Financial Officer shall appoint a Federal 339 
Tax Liaison. The Federal Tax Liaison reports directly to the 340 
Chief Financial Officer but is not otherwise under the authority 341 
of the department or of any employee of the department. 342 
 (3)  The Federal Tax Liaison may: 343 
 (a)  Assist taxpayers by answering taxpayer questions. 344 
 (b)  Direct taxpayers to the proper division or office 345 
within the Internal Revenue Service in order to facilitate 346 
timely resolution to taxpayer issues. 347 
 (c)  Prepare recommendations for the Internal Revenue 348 
Service of any actions that will help resolve problems 349 
encountered by taxpayers. 350          
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 (d)  Provide information about the policies, practices, and 351 
procedures that the Internal Revenue Service uses to ensure 352 
compliance with the tax laws. 353 
 (e)  With the consent of the taxpayer, request records from 354 
the Internal Revenue Service to assist the liaison in responding 355 
to taxpayer inquiries. 356 
 Section 2.  Paragraphs (g) through (n) of subsection (2) of 357 
section 20.121, Florida Stat utes, are redesignated as paragraphs 358 
(f) through (m), respectively, and paragraph (e) and present 359 
paragraph (f) of subsection (2) of that section are amended to 360 
read: 361 
 20.121  Department of Financial Services. —There is created 362 
a Department of Financial Ser vices. 363 
 (2)  DIVISIONS.—The Department of Financial Services shall 364 
consist of the following divisions and office: 365 
 (e)  The Division of Criminal Investigations Investigative 366 
and Forensic Services , which shall function as a criminal 367 
justice agency for purposes of ss. 943.045 -943.08. The division 368 
may initiate and conduct investigations into any matter under 369 
the jurisdiction of the Chief Financial Officer and Fire Marshal 370 
within or outside of this state as it deems necessary. If, 371 
during an investigation, the division has reason to believe that 372 
any criminal law of this state or the United States has or may 373 
have been violated, it shall refer any records tending to show 374 
such violation to state law enforcement and, if applicable, 375          
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federal prosecutorial agencies and shall provide investigative 376 
assistance to those agencies as appropriate. The division shall 377 
include the following bureaus and office: 378 
 1.  The Bureau of Forensic Services; 379 
 2.  The Bureau of Fire, Arson, and Explosives 380 
Investigations; 381 
 3.  The Office of Fiscal Integrity, which shall have a 382 
separate budget; 383 
 4.  The Bureau of Insurance Fraud; and 384 
 5.  The Bureau of Workers' Compensation Fraud. 385 
 (f)  The Division of Public Assistance Fraud, which shall 386 
function as a criminal justice ag ency for purposes of ss. 387 
943.045-943.08. The division shall conduct investigations 388 
pursuant to s. 414.411 within or outside of the state as it 389 
deems necessary. If, during an investigation, the division has 390 
reason to believe that any criminal law of the sta te has or may 391 
have been violated, it shall refer any records supporting such 392 
violation to state or federal law enforcement or prosecutorial 393 
agencies and shall provide investigative assistance to those 394 
agencies as required. 395 
 Section 3.  Subsection (2) of section 112.1816, Florida 396 
Statutes, is amended to read: 397 
 112.1816  Firefighters; cancer diagnosis. — 398 
 (2)  Upon a diagnosis of cancer, a firefighter is entitled 399 
to the following benefits, as an alternative to pursuing 400          
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workers' compensation benefits under ch apter 440, if the 401 
firefighter has been employed by his or her employer for at 402 
least 5 continuous years, has not used tobacco products for at 403 
least the preceding 5 years, and has not been employed in any 404 
other position in the preceding 5 years which is prov en to 405 
create a higher risk for any cancer: 406 
 (a)  Cancer treatment covered within an employer -sponsored 407 
health plan or through a group health insurance trust fund. The 408 
employer must timely reimburse the firefighter for any out -of-409 
pocket deductible, copaymen t, or coinsurance costs incurred due 410 
to the treatment of cancer. 411 
 (b)  A one-time cash payout of $25,000, upon the 412 
firefighter's initial diagnosis of cancer. 413 
 (c)  Leave time and employee retention benefits equivalent 414 
to those provided for other injuries o r illnesses incurred in 415 
the line of duty. 416 
 417 
If the firefighter elects to continue coverage in the employer -418 
sponsored health plan or group health insurance trust fund after 419 
he or she terminates employment, the benefits specified in 420 
paragraphs (a) and (b) mus t be made available by the former 421 
employer of a firefighter for 10 years following the date on 422 
which the firefighter terminates employment so long as the 423 
firefighter otherwise met the criteria specified in this 424 
subsection when he or she terminated employme nt and was not 425          
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subsequently employed as a firefighter following that date. For 426 
purposes of determining leave time and employee retention 427 
policies, the employer must consider a firefighter's cancer 428 
diagnosis as an injury or illness incurred in the line of d uty. 429 
 Section 4.  Paragraph (f) of subsection (2) and paragraph 430 
(h) of subsection (3) of section 121.0515, Florida Statutes, are 431 
amended to read: 432 
 121.0515  Special Risk Class. — 433 
 (2)  MEMBERSHIP.— 434 
 (f)  Effective July 1, 2008, the member must be employed by 435 
the Department of Law Enforcement in the crime laboratory or by 436 
the Department of Financial Services Division of State Fire 437 
Marshal in the forensic laboratory and meet the special criteria 438 
set forth in paragraph (3)(h). 439 
 (3)  CRITERIA.—A member, to be designated as a special risk 440 
member, must meet the following criteria: 441 
 (h)  Effective July 1, 2008, the member must be employed by 442 
the Department of Law Enforcement in the crime laboratory or by 443 
the Department of Financial Services Division of State Fire 444 
Marshal in the forensic laboratory in one of the following 445 
classes: 446 
 1.  Forensic technologist (class code 8459); 447 
 2.  Crime laboratory technician (class code 8461); 448 
 3.  Crime laboratory analyst (class code 8463); 449 
 4.  Senior crime laboratory analyst (class code 8464); 450          
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 5.  Crime laboratory analyst supervisor (class code 8466); 451 
 6.  Forensic chief (class code 9602); or 452 
 7.  Forensic services quality manager (class code 9603); 453 
 Section 5.  Subsection (6) of section 284.44, Florida 454 
Statutes, is amended to read: 455 
 284.44  Salary indemnification costs of state agencies. — 456 
 (6)  The Division of Risk Management shall prepare 457 
quarterly reports to the Executive Office of the Governor and 458 
the chairs of the legislative appropriations committees 459 
indicating for each state agency the total amount of salary 460 
indemnification benefits paid to claimants and the total amount 461 
of reimbursements from state agencies to the State Risk 462 
Management Trust Fund for initial costs for the previous 463 
quarter. These reports shall also inc lude information for each 464 
state agency indicating the number of cases and amounts of 465 
initial salary indemnification costs for which reimbursement 466 
requirements were waived by the Executive Office of the Governor 467 
pursuant to this section. 468 
 Section 6.  Subsection (12) of section 440.13, Florida 469 
Statutes, is amended to read: 470 
 440.13  Medical services and supplies; penalty for 471 
violations; limitations. — 472 
 (12)  CREATION OF THREE -MEMBER PANEL; GUIDES OF MAXIMUM 473 
REIMBURSEMENT ALLOWANCES. — 474 
 (a)  A three-member panel is created, consisting of the 475          
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Chief Financial Officer, or the Chief Financial Officer's 476 
designee, and two members to be appointed by the Governor, 477 
subject to confirmation by the Senate, one member who, on 478 
account of present or previous vocation, employme nt, or 479 
affiliation, shall be classified as a representative of 480 
employers, the other member who, on account of previous 481 
vocation, employment, or affiliation, shall be classified as a 482 
representative of employees. The panel shall determine statewide 483 
schedules of maximum reimbursement allowances for medically 484 
necessary treatment, care, and attendance provided by hospitals 485 
and ambulatory surgical centers. The maximum reimbursement 486 
allowances for inpatient hospital care shall be based on a 487 
schedule of per diem ra tes, to be approved by the three -member 488 
panel no later than March 1, 1994, to be used in conjunction 489 
with a precertification manual as determined by the department, 490 
including maximum hours in which an outpatient may remain in 491 
observation status, which shal l not exceed 23 hours. All 492 
compensable charges for hospital outpatient care shall be 493 
reimbursed at 75 percent of usual and customary charges, except 494 
as otherwise provided by this subsection. Annually, the three -495 
member panel shall adopt schedules of maximum reimbursement 496 
allowances for hospital inpatient care, hospital outpatient 497 
care, and ambulatory surgical centers. A hospital or an 498 
ambulatory surgical center shall be reimbursed either the 499 
agreed-upon contract price or the maximum reimbursement 500          
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allowance in the appropriate schedule. 501 
 (b)  Payments for outpatient physical, occupational, and 502 
speech therapy provided by hospitals shall be the schedule of 503 
maximum reimbursement allowances for these services which 504 
applies to nonhospital providers. 505 
 (c)  Payments for scheduled outpatient nonemergency 506 
radiological and clinical laboratory services that are not 507 
provided in conjunction with a surgical procedure shall be the 508 
schedule of maximum reimbursement allowances for these services 509 
which applies to nonhospital prov iders. 510 
 (d)1. Outpatient reimbursement for scheduled surgeries 511 
shall be 60 percent of charges. 512 
 2.  Reimbursement for emergency services and care as 513 
defined in s. 395.002 which does not include a maximum 514 
reimbursement allowance must be 250 percent of Medi care, unless 515 
there is a contract, in which case the contract governs 516 
reimbursement. Upon this subparagraph taking effect, the 517 
department shall engage with an actuarial services firm to begin 518 
development of maximum reimbursement allowances for services 519 
subject to the reimbursement provisions of this subparagraph. 520 
This subparagraph expires June 30, 2026. 521 
 (e)1.  By July 1 of each year, the department shall notify 522 
carriers and self-insurers of the physician and nonhospital 523 
services schedule of maximum reimburs ement allowances. The 524 
notice must include publication of this schedule of maximum 525          
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reimbursement allowances on the division's website. This 526 
schedule is not subject to approval by the three -member panel 527 
and does not include reimbursement for prescription med ication. 528 
 2.  Subparagraph 1. shall take effect January 1, following 529 
the July 1, 2024, notice of the physician and nonhospital 530 
services schedule of maximum reimbursement allowances that the 531 
department provides to carriers and self -insurers. 532 
 (f)  Maximum reimbursement for a physician licensed under 533 
chapter 458 or chapter 459 shall be 110 percent of the 534 
reimbursement allowed by Medicare, using appropriate codes and 535 
modifiers or the medical reimbursement level adopted by the 536 
three-member panel as of January 1 , 2003, whichever is greater. 537 
 (g)  Maximum reimbursement for surgical procedures shall be 538 
140 percent of the reimbursement allowed by Medicare or the 539 
medical reimbursement level adopted by the three -member panel as 540 
of January 1, 2003, whichever is greater . 541 
 (h)  As to reimbursement for a prescription medication, the 542 
reimbursement amount for a prescription shall be the average 543 
wholesale price plus $4.18 for the dispensing fee. For 544 
repackaged or relabeled prescription medications dispensed by a 545 
dispensing practitioner as provided in s. 465.0276, the fee 546 
schedule for reimbursement shall be 112.5 percent of the average 547 
wholesale price, plus $8.00 for the dispensing fee. For purposes 548 
of this subsection, the average wholesale price shall be 549 
calculated by multiply ing the number of units dispensed times 550          
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the per-unit average wholesale price set by the original 551 
manufacturer of the underlying drug dispensed by the 552 
practitioner, based upon the published manufacturer's average 553 
wholesale price published in the Medi -Span Master Drug Database 554 
as of the date of dispensing. All pharmaceutical claims 555 
submitted for repackaged or relabeled prescription medications 556 
must include the National Drug Code of the original 557 
manufacturer. Fees for pharmaceuticals and pharmaceutical 558 
services shall be reimbursable at the applicable fee schedule 559 
amount except where the employer or carrier, or a service 560 
company, third party administrator, or any entity acting on 561 
behalf of the employer or carrier directly contracts with the 562 
provider seeking reim bursement for a lower amount. 563 
 (i)  Reimbursement for all fees and other charges for such 564 
treatment, care, and attendance, including treatment, care, and 565 
attendance provided by any hospital or other health care 566 
provider, ambulatory surgical center, work -hardening program, or 567 
pain program, must not exceed the amounts provided by the 568 
uniform schedule of maximum reimbursement allowances as 569 
determined by the panel or as otherwise provided in this 570 
section. This subsection also applies to independent medical 571 
examinations performed by health care providers under this 572 
chapter. In determining the uniform schedule, the panel shall 573 
first approve the data which it finds representative of 574 
prevailing charges in the state for similar treatment, care, and 575          
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attendance of injured persons. Each health care provider, health 576 
care facility, ambulatory surgical center, work -hardening 577 
program, or pain program receiving workers' compensation 578 
payments shall maintain records verifying their usual charges. 579 
In establishing the uniform sch edule of maximum reimbursement 580 
allowances, the panel must consider: 581 
 1.  The levels of reimbursement for similar treatment, 582 
care, and attendance made by other health care programs or 583 
third-party providers; 584 
 2.  The impact upon cost to employers for providi ng a level 585 
of reimbursement for treatment, care, and attendance which will 586 
ensure the availability of treatment, care, and attendance 587 
required by injured workers; and 588 
 3.  The financial impact of the reimbursement allowances 589 
upon health care providers and health care facilities, including 590 
trauma centers as defined in s. 395.4001, and its effect upon 591 
their ability to make available to injured workers such 592 
medically necessary remedial treatment, care, and attendance. 593 
The uniform schedule of maximum reimbursem ent allowances must be 594 
reasonable, must promote health care cost containment and 595 
efficiency with respect to the workers' compensation health care 596 
delivery system, and must be sufficient to ensure availability 597 
of such medically necessary remedial treatment, care, and 598 
attendance to injured workers. 599 
 (j)  In addition to establishing the uniform schedule of 600          
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maximum reimbursement allowances, the panel shall: 601 
 1.  Take testimony, receive records, and collect data to 602 
evaluate the adequacy of the workers' compensat ion fee schedule, 603 
nationally recognized fee schedules and alternative methods of 604 
reimbursement to health care providers and health care 605 
facilities for inpatient and outpatient treatment and care. 606 
 2.  Survey health care providers and health care facilities 607 
to determine the availability and accessibility of workers' 608 
compensation health care delivery systems for injured workers. 609 
 3.  Survey carriers to determine the estimated impact on 610 
carrier costs and workers' compensation premium rates by 611 
implementing changes to the carrier reimbursement schedule or 612 
implementing alternative reimbursement methods. 613 
 4.  Submit recommendations on or before January 15, 2017, 614 
and biennially thereafter, to the President of the Senate and 615 
the Speaker of the House of Representative s on methods to 616 
improve the workers' compensation health care delivery system. 617 
 618 
The department, as requested, shall provide data to the panel, 619 
including, but not limited to, utilization trends in the 620 
workers' compensation health care delivery system. The 621 
department shall provide the panel with an annual report 622 
regarding the resolution of medical reimbursement disputes and 623 
any actions pursuant to subsection (8). The department shall 624 
provide administrative support and service to the panel to the 625          
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extent requested by the panel. The department may adopt rules 626 
pursuant to ss. 120.536(1) and 120.54 to implement this 627 
subsection. For prescription medication purchased under the 628 
requirements of this subsection, a dispensing practitioner shall 629 
not possess such medicatio n unless payment has been made by the 630 
practitioner, the practitioner's professional practice, or the 631 
practitioner's practice management company or employer to the 632 
supplying manufacturer, wholesaler, distributor, or drug 633 
repackager within 60 days of the dis pensing practitioner taking 634 
possession of that medication. 635 
 Section 7.  Subsections (9) through (13) of section 636 
440.385, Florida Statutes, are renumbered as subsections (10) 637 
through (14), respectively, and a new subsection (9) is added to 638 
that section to read: 639 
 440.385  Florida Self -Insurers Guaranty Association, 640 
Incorporated.— 641 
 (9)  CONTRACTS AND PURCHASES. — 642 
 (a)  After July 1, 2024, all contracts entered into, and 643 
all purchases made by, the association pursuant to this section 644 
which are valued at or more than $100,000 must first be approved 645 
by the department. The department has 10 days to approve or deny 646 
the contract or purchase upon electronic receipt of the approval 647 
request. The contract or purchase is automatically approved i f 648 
the department is nonresponsive. 649 
 (b)  All contracts and purchases valued at or more than 650          
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$100,000 require competition through a formal bid solicitation 651 
conducted by the association. The association must undergo a 652 
formal bid solicitation process. The for mal bid solicitation 653 
process must include all of the following: 654 
 1.  The time and date for the receipt of bids, the 655 
proposals, and whether the association contemplates renewal of 656 
the contract, including the price for each year for which the 657 
contract may be renewed. 658 
 2.  All the contractual terms and conditions applicable to 659 
the procurement. 660 
 (c)  Evaluation of bids by the association must include 661 
consideration of the total cost for each year of the contract, 662 
including renewal years, as submitted by the vend or. The 663 
association must award the contract to the most responsible and 664 
responsive vendor. Any formal bid solicitation conducted by the 665 
association must be made available, upon request, to the 666 
department via electronic delivery. 667 
 (d)  Contracts that are re quired by law are exempt from 668 
this section. 669 
 Section 8.  Subsection (7) of section 497.101, Florida 670 
Statutes, is renumbered as subsection (11), subsections (1) 671 
through (4) are amended, and a new subsection (7) and 672 
subsections (8), (9), and (10) are added to that section, to 673 
read: 674 
 497.101  Board of Funeral, Cemetery, and Consumer Services; 675          
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membership; appointment; terms. — 676 
 (1)  The Board of Funeral, Cemetery, and Consumer Services 677 
is created within the Department of Financial Services and shall 678 
consist of 10 members, 9 of whom shall be appointed by the 679 
Governor from nominations made by the Chief Financial Officer 680 
and confirmed by the Senate. The Chief Financial Officer shall 681 
nominate one to three persons for each of the nine vacancies on 682 
the board, and the Governor shall fill each vacancy on the board 683 
by appointing one of the persons nominated by the Chief 684 
Financial Officer to fill that vacancy. If the Governor objects 685 
to each of the nominations for a vacancy, she or he shall inform 686 
the Chief Financial Offi cer in writing. Upon notification of an 687 
objection by the Governor, the Chief Financial Officer shall 688 
submit one to three additional nominations for that vacancy 689 
until the vacancy is filled. One member must be the State Health 690 
Officer or her or his designee . 691 
 (2)  Two members of the board must be funeral directors 692 
licensed under part III of this chapter who are associated with 693 
a funeral establishment. One member of the board must be a 694 
funeral director licensed under part III of this chapter who is 695 
associated with a funeral establishment licensed under part III 696 
of this chapter which has a valid preneed license issued 697 
pursuant to this chapter and who owns or operates a cinerator 698 
facility approved under chapter 403 and licensed under part VI 699 
of this chapter. Two members of the board must be persons whose 700          
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primary occupation is associated with a cemetery company 701 
licensed pursuant to this chapter. Two members of the board must 702 
be consumers who are residents of this state, have never been 703 
licensed as funeral director s or embalmers, are not connected 704 
with a cemetery or cemetery company licensed pursuant to this 705 
chapter, and are not connected with the death care industry or 706 
the practice of embalming, funeral directing, or direct 707 
disposition. One of the two consumer memb ers must be at least 60 708 
years of age. One member of the board must be a consumer who is 709 
a resident of this state; is licensed as a certified public 710 
accountant under chapter 473; has never been licensed as a 711 
funeral director or an embalmer; is not a princip al or an 712 
employee of any licensee licensed under this chapter; and does 713 
not otherwise have control, as defined in s. 497.005, over any 714 
licensee licensed under this chapter. One member of the board 715 
must be a principal of a monument establishment licensed un der 716 
this chapter as a monument builder. One member must be the State 717 
Health Officer or her or his designee. There may not be two or 718 
more board members who are principals or employees of the same 719 
company or partnership or group of companies or partnerships 720 
under common control. 721 
 (3)  Board members shall be appointed for terms of 4 years 722 
and may be reappointed; however, a member may not serve for more 723 
than 8 consecutive years. , and The State Health Officer shall 724 
serve as long as that person holds that office. The designee of 725          
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the State Health Officer shall serve at the pleasure of the 726 
Chief Financial Officer Governor. 727 
 (4)  The Chief Financial Officer Governor may suspend and 728 
the Senate may remove any board member for malfeasance or 729 
misfeasance, neglect of duty , incompetence, substantial 730 
inability to perform official duties, commission of a crime, or 731 
other substantial cause as determined by the Chief Financial 732 
Officer Governor or Senate, as applicable, to evidence a lack of 733 
fitness to sit on the board. A board m ember shall be deemed to 734 
have resigned her or his board membership, and that position 735 
shall be deemed vacant, upon the failure of the member to attend 736 
three consecutive meetings of the board or at least half of the 737 
meetings of the board during any 12 -month period, unless the 738 
Chief Financial Officer determines that there was good and 739 
adequate justification for the absences and that such absences 740 
are not likely to continue. Any vacancy so created shall be 741 
filled as provided in subsection (1). 742 
 (7)  Members of the board are subject to the code of ethics 743 
under part III of chapter 112. For purposes of applying part III 744 
of chapter 112 to activities of the members of the board, those 745 
persons are considered public officers, and the department is 746 
considered their age ncy. A board member may not vote on any 747 
measure that would inure to his or her special private gain or 748 
loss and, in accordance with s. 112.3143(2), may not vote on any 749 
measure that he or she knows would inure to the special private 750          
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gain or loss of any prin cipal by which he or she is retained, 751 
other than an agency as defined in s. 112.312; or that he or she 752 
knows would inure to the special private gain or loss of his or 753 
her relative or business associate. Before the vote is taken, 754 
such member shall publicly state to the board the nature of his 755 
or her interest in the matter from which he or she is abstaining 756 
from voting and, within 15 days after the vote occurs, disclose 757 
the nature of his or her interest as a public record in a 758 
memorandum filed with the person responsible for recording the 759 
minutes of the meeting, who shall incorporate the memorandum in 760 
the minutes. 761 
 (8)  In accordance with ss. 112.3148 and 112.3149, a board 762 
member may not knowingly accept, directly or indirectly, any 763 
gift or expenditure from a person or entity, or an employee or 764 
representative of such person or entity, which has a contractual 765 
relationship with the department or the board, which is under 766 
consideration for a contract, or which is licensed by the 767 
department. 768 
 (9)  A board member wh o fails to comply with subsection (7) 769 
or subsection (8) is subject to the penalties provided under ss. 770 
112.317 and 112.3173. 771 
 (10)(a)  All meetings of the board are subject to the 772 
requirements of s. 286.011, and all books and records of the 773 
board are open to the public for reasonable inspection except as 774 
otherwise provided by s. 497.172 or other applicable law. 775          
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 (b)  Except for emergency meetings, the department shall 776 
give notice of any board meeting by publication on the 777 
department's website at least 7 day s before the meeting. The 778 
department shall publish a meeting agenda on its website at 779 
least 7 days before the meeting. The agenda must contain the 780 
items to be considered in order of presentation. After the 781 
agenda has been made available, a change may be ma de only for 782 
good cause, as determined by the person designated to preside, 783 
and must be stated in the record. Notification of such change 784 
must be at the earliest practicable time. 785 
 Section 9.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (4) of section 786 
497.153, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 787 
 497.153  Disciplinary procedures and penalties. — 788 
 (4)  ACTION AFTER PROBABLE CAUSE FOUND. — 789 
 (a)  Service of an administrative complaint may be in 790 
person by department staff or any person authorized to make 791 
service of process un der the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure. 792 
Service upon a licensee may in the alternative be made by 793 
certified mail, return receipt requested, to the last known 794 
address of record provided by the licensee to the department. If 795 
service by certified mail canno t be made at the last address 796 
provided by the licensee to the department, service may be made 797 
by e-mail, delivery receipt required, sent to the most recent e -798 
mail address provided by the licensee to the department in 799 
accordance with s. 497.146. 800          
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 Section 10.  Paragraph (e) of subsection (1) of section 801 
497.155, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 802 
 497.155  Disciplinary citations and minor violations. — 803 
 (1)  CITATIONS.— 804 
 (e)  Service of a citation may be made by personal service 805 
or certified mail, restrict ed delivery, to the subject at the 806 
subject's last known address in accordance with s. 497.146. If 807 
service by certified mail cannot be made at the last address 808 
provided by the subject to the department, service may be made 809 
by e-mail, delivery receipt requir ed, sent to the most recent e -810 
mail address provided by the subject to the department in 811 
accordance with s. 497.146 . 812 
 Section 11.  Paragraph (d) of subsection (3) of section 813 
497.172, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 814 
 497.172  Public records exemption s; public meetings 815 
exemptions.— 816 
 (3)  EXAMINATIONS, INSPECTIONS, AND INVESTIGATIONS. — 817 
 (d)  Information made confidential and exempt pursuant to 818 
this subsection may be disclosed by the department as follows: 819 
 1.  To the probable cause panel of the board, for the 820 
purpose of probable cause proceedings pursuant to s. 497.153. 821 
 2.  To any law enforcement agency or other government 822 
agency in the performance of its official duties and 823 
responsibilities. 824 
 3.  If the department uncovers information of immediate and 825          
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serious concern to the public health, safety, or welfare, it may 826 
disseminate such information as it deems necessary for the 827 
public health, safety, or welfare. 828 
 4.  If the department issues an emergency order p ursuant to 829 
s. 497.156. 830 
 Section 12.  Section 497.386, Florida Statutes, is amended 831 
to read: 832 
 497.386  Storage, preservation, and transportation of human 833 
remains.— 834 
 (1)  A person may not store or maintain human remains at 835 
any establishment or facility except an establishment or 836 
facility licensed under this chapter or a health care facility, 837 
medical examiner's facility, morgue, or cemetery holding 838 
facility. 839 
 (2)  A dead human body may not be held in any place or in 840 
transit over 24 hours after death or pending final disposition 841 
unless the body is maintained under refrigeration at a 842 
temperature of 40 degrees Fahrenheit or below or is embalmed or 843 
otherwise preserved in a manner approved by the licensing 844 
authority in accordance w ith the provisions of this chapter. 845 
 (3)  A dead human body transported by common carrier or any 846 
agency or individual authorized to carry dead human bodies must 847 
be placed in a carrying container adequate to prevent the 848 
seepage of fluids and escape of offen sive odors. A dead human 849 
body may be transported only when accompanied by a properly 850          
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completed burial-transit permit issued in accordance with the 851 
provisions of chapter 382. 852 
 (4)  The licensing authority shall establish by rule the 853 
minimal standards of acc eptable and prevailing practices for the 854 
handling and storing of dead human bodies, provided that all 855 
human remains transported or stored must be completely covered 856 
and at all times treated with dignity and respect. 857 
 (5)  In the event of an emergency situa tion, including the 858 
abandonment of any establishments or facilities licensed under 859 
this chapter or any medical examiner's facility, morgue, or 860 
cemetery holding facility, the department may enter and secure 861 
such establishment, facility, or morgue during or outside of 862 
normal business hours and remove human remains and cremated 863 
remains from the establishment, facility, or morgue. For 864 
purposes of this subsection, the department shall determine if a 865 
facility is abandoned and if there is an emergency situation. A 866 
licensee or licensed facility that accepts transfer of human 867 
remains and cremated remains from the department pursuant to 868 
this subsection may not be held liable for the condition of any 869 
human remains or cremated remains at the time of transfer. 870 
 (6)(5) A person who violates subsection (1) or subsection 871 
(3) any provision of this section commits a misdemeanor of the 872 
first degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 873 
775.083. 874 
 (7)  A person who violates subsection (2) or subsection (4) 875          
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commits a felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in 876 
s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084. 877 
 Section 13.  Section 497.469, Florida Statutes, is created 878 
to read: 879 
 497.469  Fulfillment of preneed contracts .— 880 
 (1)  Upon delivery of merchandise or performance of 881 
services in fulfillment of a preneed contract, either in part or 882 
in whole, a preneed licensee may withdraw the amount deposited 883 
in trust plus income earned on such amount for the merchandise 884 
delivered or services performed, when adequate documentation is 885 
submitted to the trustee. 886 
 (2)  The following documentation is satisfactory evidence 887 
that a preneed contract has been fulfilled: 888 
 (a)  A certified copy of death certificate; 889 
 (b)  An invoice for merchandise which reflects the name of 890 
the purchaser or benefi ciary and the contract number; 891 
 (c)  An acknowledgment signed by the purchaser or legally 892 
authorized person, acknowledging that merchandise was delivered 893 
or services performed; or 894 
 (d)  A burial permit or other documentation provided to 895 
another governmental agency. 896 
 (3)  For purposes of fulfillment of a preneed cemetery 897 
contract, the documentation set forth in subsection (2) or a 898 
certificate signed by an officer, manager, or designee that the 899 
merchandise was delivered or services were performed is 900          
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satisfactory evidence to show that a preneed cemetery contract 901 
has been fulfilled. 902 
 (4)  The preneed licensee shall maintain documentation that 903 
supports fulfillment of a particular contract until such records 904 
are examined by the department. 905 
 Section 14.  Paragrap hs (c) and (d) subsection (10) of 906 
section 624.307, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as 907 
paragraphs (d) and (e), respectively, paragraph (b) is amended, 908 
and a new paragraph (c) is added to subsection (10) of that 909 
section, to read: 910 
 624.307  General powers; duties.— 911 
 (10) 912 
 (b)  Any person licensed or issued a certificate of 913 
authority or made an eligible surplus lines insurer by the 914 
department or the office shall respond, in writing or 915 
electronically, to the division within 14 days after receipt of 916 
a written request for documents and information from the 917 
division concerning a consumer complaint. The response must 918 
address the issues and allegations raised in the complaint and 919 
include any requested documents concerning the consumer 920 
complaint not subject to attor ney-client or work-product 921 
privilege. The division may impose an administrative penalty for 922 
failure to comply with this paragraph of up to $5,000 per 923 
violation upon any entity licensed by the department or the 924 
office and up to $1,000 per violation by any i ndividual licensed 925          
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by the department or the office. 926 
 (c)  Each insurer issued a certificate of authority or made 927 
an eligible surplus lines insurer shall file with the department 928 
an e-mail address to which requests for response to consumer 929 
complaints shall be directed pursuant to paragraph (b). Such 930 
insurer shall also designate a contact person for escalated 931 
complaint issues and shall provide the name, e -mail address, and 932 
telephone number of such person. A licensee of the department, 933 
including an agency or a firm, may elect to designated an e -mail 934 
address to which requests for response to consumer complaints 935 
shall be directed pursuant to paragraph (b). If a licensee, 936 
including an agency or a firm, elects not to designate an e -mail 937 
address, the department shall direct requests for response to 938 
consumer complaints to the e -mail address of record for the 939 
licensee in the department's licensing system. An insurer or a 940 
licensee, including an agency or a firm, may change a designated 941 
contact information at any time by submitting the new 942 
information to the department using the method designated by 943 
rule by the department. 944 
 Section 15.  Subsection (2) of section 626.171, Florida 945 
Statutes, is amended to read: 946 
 626.171  Application for license as an agent , customer 947 
representative, adjuster, service representative, or reinsurance 948 
intermediary.— 949 
 (2)  In the application, the applicant shall set forth: 950          
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 (a)  His or her full name, age, social security number, 951 
residence address, business address, mailing addres s, contact 952 
telephone numbers, including a business telephone number, and e -953 
mail address. 954 
 (b)  A statement indicating the method the applicant used 955 
or is using to meet any required prelicensing education, 956 
knowledge, experience, or instructional requirement s for the 957 
type of license applied for. 958 
 (c)  Whether he or she has been refused or has voluntarily 959 
surrendered or has had suspended or revoked a license to solicit 960 
insurance by the department or by the supervising officials of 961 
any state. 962 
 (d)  Whether any insurer or any managing general agent 963 
claims the applicant is indebted under any agency contract or 964 
otherwise and, if so, the name of the claimant, the nature of 965 
the claim, and the applicant's defense thereto, if any. 966 
 (e)  Proof that the applicant meets t he requirements for 967 
the type of license for which he or she is applying. 968 
 (f)  The applicant's gender (male or female). 969 
 (g)  The applicant's native language. 970 
 (h)  The highest level of education achieved by the 971 
applicant. 972 
 (i)  The applicant's race or eth nicity (African American, 973 
white, American Indian, Asian, Hispanic, or other). 974 
 (j)  Such other or additional information as the department 975          
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may deem proper to enable it to determine the character, 976 
experience, ability, and other qualifications of the applica nt 977 
to hold himself or herself out to the public as an insurance 978 
representative. 979 
 980 
However, the application must contain a statement that an 981 
applicant is not required to disclose his or her race or 982 
ethnicity, gender, or native language, that he or she will n ot 983 
be penalized for not doing so, and that the department will use 984 
this information exclusively for research and statistical 985 
purposes and to improve the quality and fairness of the 986 
examinations. The department shall make provisions for 987 
applicants to submit cellular telephone numbers as part of the 988 
application process on a voluntary basis only for the purpose of 989 
two-factor authentication of secure login credentials only. 990 
 Section 16.  Paragraph (j) of subsection (2) of section 991 
626.221, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 992 
 626.221  Examination requirement; exemptions. — 993 
 (2)  However, an examination is not necessary for any of 994 
the following: 995 
 (j)  An applicant for license as an all -lines adjuster who 996 
has the designation of Accredited Claims Adjuster (ACA) f rom a 997 
regionally accredited postsecondary institution in this state; 998 
Certified All Lines Adjuster (CALA) from Kaplan Financial 999 
Education; Associate in Claims (AIC) from the Insurance 1000          
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Institute of America; Professional Claims Adjuster (PCA) from 1001 
the Professional Career Institute; Professional Property 1002 
Insurance Adjuster (PPIA) from the HurriClaim Training Academy; 1003 
Certified Adjuster (CA) from ALL LINES Training; Certified 1004 
Claims Adjuster (CCA) from AE21 Incorporated; Claims Adjuster 1005 
Certified Professional (C ACP) from WebCE, Inc.; Accredited 1006 
Insurance Claims Specialist (AICS) from Encore Claim Services; 1007 
Professional in Claims (PIC) from 2021 Training, LLC; Registered 1008 
Claims Adjuster (RCA) from American Insurance College; or 1009 
Universal Claims Certification (UCC) from Claims and Litigation 1010 
Management Alliance (CLM) whose curriculum has been approved by 1011 
the department and which includes comprehensive analysis of 1012 
basic property and casualty lines of insurance and testing at 1013 
least equal to that of standard department testing for the all-1014 
lines adjuster license. The department shall adopt rules 1015 
establishing standards for the approval of curriculum. 1016 
 Section 17.  Subsection (6) of section 626.601, Florida 1017 
Statutes, is amended to read: 1018 
 626.601  Improper conduct; inquir y; fingerprinting.— 1019 
 (6)  The complaint and any information obtained pursuant to 1020 
the investigation by the department or office are confidential 1021 
and are exempt from s. 119.07 unless the department or office 1022 
files a formal administrative complaint, emergency order, or 1023 
consent order against the individual or entity. This subsection 1024 
does not prevent the department or office from disclosing the 1025          
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complaint or such information as it deems necessary to conduct 1026 
the investigation, to update the complainant as to the s tatus 1027 
and outcome of the complaint, to review the details of the 1028 
investigation with the individual or entity being investigated 1029 
or their representative, or to share such information with any 1030 
law enforcement agency or other regulatory body. 1031 
 Section 18.  Subsection (3) of section 626.7351, Florida 1032 
Statutes, is amended to read: 1033 
 626.7351  Qualifications for customer representative's 1034 
license.—The department shall not grant or issue a license as 1035 
customer representative to any individual found by it to be 1036 
untrustworthy or incompetent, or who does not meet each of the 1037 
following qualifications: 1038 
 (3)  Within 4 years preceding the date that the application 1039 
for license was filed with the department, the applicant has 1040 
earned the designation of Accredited Advisor in I nsurance (AAI), 1041 
Associate in General Insurance (AINS), or Accredited Customer 1042 
Service Representative (ACSR) from the Insurance Institute of 1043 
America; the designation of Certified Insurance Counselor (CIC) 1044 
from the Society of Certified Insurance Service Coun selors; the 1045 
designation of Certified Professional Service Representative 1046 
(CPSR) from the National Foundation for CPSR; the designation of 1047 
Certified Insurance Service Representative (CISR) from the 1048 
Society of Certified Insurance Service Representatives; the 1049 
designation of Certified Insurance Representative (CIR) from 1050          
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All-Lines Training; the designation of Chartered Customer 1051 
Service Representative (CCSR) from American Insurance College; 1052 
the designation of Professional Customer Service Representative 1053 
(PCSR) from the Professional Career Institute; the designation 1054 
of Insurance Customer Service Representative (ICSR) from 1055 
Statewide Insurance Associates LLC; the designation of 1056 
Registered Customer Service Representative (RCSR) from a 1057 
regionally accredited postseconda ry institution in the state 1058 
whose curriculum is approved by the department and includes 1059 
comprehensive analysis of basic property and casualty lines of 1060 
insurance and testing which demonstrates mastery of the subject; 1061 
or a degree from an accredited instituti on of higher learning 1062 
approved by the department when the degree includes a minimum of 1063 
9 credit hours of insurance instruction, including specific 1064 
instruction in the areas of property, casualty, and inland 1065 
marine insurance. The department shall adopt rules establishing 1066 
standards for the approval of curriculum. 1067 
 Section 19.  Section 626.878, Florida Statutes, is amended 1068 
to read: 1069 
 626.878  Rules; code of ethics. — 1070 
 (1) An adjuster shall subscribe to the code of ethics 1071 
specified in the rules of the departmen t. The rules shall 1072 
implement the provisions of this part and specify the terms and 1073 
conditions of contracts, including a right to cancel, and 1074 
require practices necessary to ensure fair dealing, prohibit 1075          
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conflicts of interest, and ensure preservation of the rights of 1076 
the claimant to participate in the adjustment of claims. 1077 
 (2)  A person licensed as an adjuster must identify himself 1078 
or herself in any advertisement, solicitation, or written 1079 
document based on the adjuster appointment type held. 1080 
 (3)  An adjuster who has had his or her licensed revoked or 1081 
suspended may not participate in any part of an insurance claim 1082 
or in the insurance claims adjusting process, including 1083 
estimating, completing, filing, negotiating, appraising, 1084 
mediating, umpiring, or effecting settlement of a claim for loss 1085 
or damage covered under an insurance contract. A person who 1086 
provides these services while the person's license is revoked or 1087 
suspended acts as an unlicensed adjuster. 1088 
 Section 20.  Subsection (1) of section 6 26.929, Florida 1089 
Statutes, is amended, and subsection (4) is added to that 1090 
section, to read: 1091 
 626.929  Origination, acceptance, placement of surplus 1092 
lines business.— 1093 
 (1)  A licensed and appointed general lines agent while 1094 
also licensed and appointed as a surplus lines agent under this 1095 
part may originate surplus lines business and may accept surplus 1096 
lines business from any other originating Florida -licensed 1097 
general lines agent appointed and licensed as to the kinds of 1098 
insurance involved and may compensate such agent therefor. 1099 
 (4)  A general lines agent while licensed as a surplus 1100          
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lines agent under this part may appoint these licenses with a 1101 
single surplus license agent appointment pursuant to s. 624.501. 1102 
Such agent may only orig inate surplus lines business and accept 1103 
surplus lines business from other originating Florida -licensed 1104 
general lines agents appointed and licensed as to the kinds of 1105 
insurance involved and may compensate such agent therefor. Such 1106 
agent may not be appointed by or transact general lines 1107 
insurance on behalf of an admitted insurer. 1108 
 Section 21.  Paragraph (j) is added to subsection (4) of 1109 
section 627.351, Florida Statutes, to read: 1110 
 627.351  Insurance risk apportionment plans. — 1111 
 (4)  MEDICAL MALPRACTICE RISK APPORTIONMENT; ASSOCIATION 1112 
CONTRACTS AND PURCHASES .— 1113 
 (j)1.  After July 1, 2024, all contracts entered into, and 1114 
all purchases made by, the association pursuant to this 1115 
subsection which are valued at or more than $100,000 must first 1116 
be approved by the depa rtment. The department has 10 days to 1117 
approve or deny a contract or purchase upon electronic receipt 1118 
of the approval request. The contract or purchase is 1119 
automatically approved if the department is nonresponsive. 1120 
 2.  All contracts and purchases valued at or more than 1121 
$100,000 require competition through a formal bid solicitation 1122 
conducted by the association. The association must undergo a 1123 
formal bid solicitation process by a minimum of three vendors. 1124 
The formal bid solicitation process must include all of the 1125          
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following: 1126 
 a.  The time and date for the receipt of bids, the 1127 
proposals, and whether the association contemplates renewal of 1128 
the contract, including the price for each year for which the 1129 
contract may be renewed. 1130 
 b.  All the contractual terms and cond itions applicable to 1131 
the procurement. 1132 
 3.  Evaluation of bids by the association must include 1133 
consideration of the total cost for each year of the contract, 1134 
including renewal years, as submitted by the vendor. The 1135 
association must award the contract to the most responsible and 1136 
responsive vendor. Any formal bid solicitation conducted by the 1137 
association must be made available, upon request, to the 1138 
department by electronic delivery. 1139 
 Section 22.  Subsection (5) is added to section 631.59, 1140 
Florida Statutes, to read: 1141 
 631.59  Duties and powers of department and office ; 1142 
association contracts and purchases .— 1143 
 (5)(a)  After July 1, 2024, all contracts entered into, and 1144 
all purchases made by, the association pursuant to this section 1145 
which are valued at or more than $100,000 must first be approved 1146 
by the department. The department has 10 days to approve or deny 1147 
the contract or purchase upon electronic receipt of the approval 1148 
request. The contract or purchase is automatically approved if 1149 
the department is nonresponsiv e. 1150          
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 (b)  All contracts and purchases valued at or more than 1151 
$100,000 require competition through a formal bid solicitation 1152 
conducted by the association. The association must undergo a 1153 
formal bid solicitation process. The formal bid solicitation 1154 
process must include all of the following: 1155 
 1.  The time and date for the receipt of bids, the 1156 
proposals, and whether the association contemplates renewal of 1157 
the contract, including the price for each year for which the 1158 
contract may be renewed. 1159 
 2.  All the contractu al terms and conditions applicable to 1160 
the procurement. 1161 
 (c)  Evaluation of bids by the association must include 1162 
consideration of the total cost for each year of the contract, 1163 
including renewal years, as submitted by the vendor. The 1164 
association must award t he contract to the most responsible and 1165 
responsive vendor. Any formal bid solicitation conducted by the 1166 
association must be made available, upon request, to the 1167 
department via electronic delivery. 1168 
 (d)  Paragraphs (b) and (c) do not apply to claims defense 1169 
counsel or claims vendors if contracts with all vendors which 1170 
may exceed $100,000 are provided to the department for prior 1171 
approval in accordance with paragraph (a). 1172 
 Section 23.  Subsection (6) is added to section 631.722, 1173 
Florida Statutes, to read: 1174 
 631.722  Powers and duties of department and office ; 1175          
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association contracts and purchases .— 1176 
 (6)(a)  After July 1, 2024, all contracts entered into, and 1177 
all purchases made by, the association pursuant to this section 1178 
which are valued at or more than $100,000 must first be approved 1179 
by the department. The department has 10 days to approve or deny 1180 
the contract or purchase upon electronic receipt of the approval 1181 
request. The contract or purchase is automatically approved if 1182 
the department is nonresponsive. 1183 
 (b)  All contracts and purchases valued at or more than 1184 
$100,000 require competition through a formal bid solicitation 1185 
conducted by the association. The association must undergo a 1186 
formal bid solicitation process. The formal bid solicitation 1187 
process must include all of the following: 1188 
 1.  The time and date for the receipt of bids, the 1189 
proposals, and whether the association contemplates renewal of 1190 
the contract, including the price for each year for which the 1191 
contract may be renewed. 1192 
 2.  All the contractual terms and conditions applicable to 1193 
the procurement. 1194 
 (c)  Evaluation of bids by the association must include 1195 
consideration of the total cost for each year of the contract, 1196 
including renewal years, as submitted by the vendor. The 1197 
association must award the contra ct to the most responsible and 1198 
responsive vendor. Any formal bid solicitation conducted by the 1199 
association must be made available, upon request, to the 1200          
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department via electronic delivery. 1201 
 Section 24.  Subsection (5) is added to section 631.821, 1202 
Florida Statutes, to read: 1203 
 631.821  Powers and duties of the department ; board 1204 
contracts and purchases .— 1205 
 (5)(a)  After July 1, 2024, all contracts entered into, and 1206 
all purchases made by, the board pursuant to this section which 1207 
are valued at or more than $100,0 00 must first be approved by 1208 
the department. The department has 10 days to approve or deny 1209 
the contract or purchase upon electronic receipt of the approval 1210 
request. The contract or purchase is automatically approved if 1211 
the department is nonresponsive. 1212 
 (b) All contracts and purchases valued at or more than 1213 
$100,000 require competition through a formal bid solicitation 1214 
conducted by the board. The board must undergo a formal bid 1215 
solicitation process. The formal bid solicitation process must 1216 
include all of the following: 1217 
 1.  The time and date for the receipt of bids, the 1218 
proposals, and whether the board contemplates renewal of the 1219 
contract, including the price for each year for which the 1220 
contract may be renewed. 1221 
 2.  All the contractual terms and conditions a pplicable to 1222 
the procurement. 1223 
 (c)  Evaluation of bids by the board must include 1224 
consideration of the total cost for each year of the contract, 1225          
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including renewal years, as submitted by the vendor. The plan 1226 
must award the contract to the most responsible an d responsive 1227 
vendor. Any formal bid solicitation conducted by the board must 1228 
be made available, upon request, to the department via 1229 
electronic delivery. 1230 
 Section 25.  Section 631.921, Florida Statutes, is amended 1231 
to read: 1232 
 631.921  Department powers ; board contracts and purchases .— 1233 
 (1) The corporation shall be subject to examination by the 1234 
department. By March 1 of each year, the board of directors 1235 
shall cause a financial report to be filed with the department 1236 
for the immediately preceding calendar year in a form approved 1237 
by the department. 1238 
 (2)(a)  After July 1, 2024, all contracts entered into, and 1239 
all purchases made by, the board pursuant to this section which 1240 
are valued at or more than $100,000 must first be approved by 1241 
the department. The department has 10 days to approve or deny 1242 
the contract or purchase upon electronic receipt of the approval 1243 
request. The contract or purchase is automatically approved if 1244 
the department is nonresponsive. 1245 
 (b)  All contracts and purchases valued at or more than 1246 
$100,000 require competition through a formal bid solicitation 1247 
conducted by the board. The board must undergo a formal bid 1248 
solicitation process. The formal bid solicitation process must 1249 
include all of the following: 1250          
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 1.  The time and date for the receipt of bids , the 1251 
proposals, and whether the board contemplates renewal of the 1252 
contract, including the price for each year for which the 1253 
contract may be renewed. 1254 
 2.  All the contractual terms and conditions applicable to 1255 
the procurement. 1256 
 (c)  Evaluation of bids by t he board must include 1257 
consideration of the total cost for each year of the contract, 1258 
including renewal years, as submitted by the vendor. The 1259 
association must award the contract to the most responsible and 1260 
responsive vendor. Any formal bid solicitation con ducted by the 1261 
association must be made available, upon request, to the 1262 
department via electronic delivery. 1263 
 Section 26.  Paragraph (b) of subsection (3) of section 1264 
633.124, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 1265 
 633.124  Penalty for violation of law, rul e, or order to 1266 
cease and desist or for failure to comply with corrective 1267 
order.— 1268 
 (3) 1269 
 (b)  A person who initiates a pyrotechnic display within 1270 
any structure commits a felony of the third degree, punishable 1271 
as provided in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775. 084, unless: 1272 
 1.  The structure has a fire protection system installed in 1273 
compliance with s. 633.334. 1274 
 2.  The owner of the structure has authorized in writing 1275          
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the pyrotechnic display. 1276 
 3.  If the local jurisdiction requires a permit for the use 1277 
of a pyrotechnic display in an occupied structure, such permit 1278 
has been obtained and all conditions of the permit complied with 1279 
or, if the local jurisdiction does not require a permit for the 1280 
use of a pyrotechnic display in an occupied structure, the 1281 
person initiating the display has complied with National Fire 1282 
Protection Association, Inc., Standard 1126, 2021 2001 Edition, 1283 
Standard for the Use of Pyrotechnics before a Proximate 1284 
Audience. 1285 
 Section 27.  Subsection (2) of section 633.202, Florida 1286 
Statutes, is amended to read: 1287 
 633.202  Florida Fire Prevention Code. — 1288 
 (2)  The State Fire Marshal shall adopt the current edition 1289 
of the National Fire Protection Association's Standard 1, Fire 1290 
Prevention Code but may not adopt a building, mechanical, 1291 
accessibility, or plumbing code. The State Fire Marshal shall 1292 
adopt the current edition of the Life Safety Code, NFPA 101, 1293 
current editions, by reference. The State Fire Marshal may 1294 
modify the selected codes and standards as needed to accommodate 1295 
the specific needs of t he state. Standards or criteria in the 1296 
selected codes shall be similarly incorporated by reference. The 1297 
State Fire Marshal shall incorporate within sections of the 1298 
Florida Fire Prevention Code provisions that address uniform 1299 
firesafety standards as establi shed in s. 633.206. The State 1300          
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Fire Marshal shall incorporate within sections of the Florida 1301 
Fire Prevention Code provisions addressing regional and local 1302 
concerns and variations. 1303 
 Section 28.  Paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of section 1304 
633.206, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 1305 
 633.206  Uniform firesafety standards. —The Legislature 1306 
hereby determines that to protect the public health, safety, and 1307 
welfare it is necessary to provide for firesafety standards 1308 
governing the construction and utilization of certain buildings 1309 
and structures. The Legislature further determines that certain 1310 
buildings or structures, due to their specialized use or to the 1311 
special characteristics of the person utilizing or occupying 1312 
these buildings or structures, should be subject to firesafety 1313 
standards reflecting these special needs as may be appropriate. 1314 
 (1)  The department shall establish uniform firesafety 1315 
standards that apply to: 1316 
 (b)  All new, existing, and proposed hospitals, nursing 1317 
homes, assisted living facilities, adult family-care homes, 1318 
correctional facilities, public schools, transient public 1319 
lodging establishments, public food service establishments, 1320 
mobile food dispensing vehicles, elevators, migrant labor camps, 1321 
mobile home parks, lodging parks, recreational vehicl e parks, 1322 
recreational camps, residential and nonresidential child care 1323 
facilities, facilities for the developmentally disabled, motion 1324 
picture and television special effects productions, tunnels, 1325          
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energy storage systems, and self-service gasoline stations, of 1326 
which standards the State Fire Marshal is the final 1327 
administrative interpreting authority. 1328 
 1329 
In the event there is a dispute between the owners of the 1330 
buildings specified in paragraph (b) and a local authority 1331 
requiring a more stringent uniform firesafety standard for 1332 
sprinkler systems, the State Fire Marshal shall be the final 1333 
administrative interpreting authority and the State Fire 1334 
Marshal's interpretation regarding the uniform firesafety 1335 
standards shall be co nsidered final agency action. 1336 
 Section 29.  Paragraph (b) of subsection (8) of section 1337 
634.041, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 1338 
 634.041  Qualifications for license. —To qualify for and 1339 
hold a license to issue service agreements in this state, a 1340 
service agreement company must be in compliance with this part, 1341 
with applicable rules of the commission, with related sections 1342 
of the Florida Insurance Code, and with its charter powers and 1343 
must comply with the following: 1344 
 (8) 1345 
 (b)  A service agreement compan y does not have to establish 1346 
and maintain an unearned premium reserve if it secures and 1347 
maintains contractual liability insurance in accordance with the 1348 
following: 1349 
 1.  Coverage of 100 percent of the claim exposure is 1350          
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obtained from an insurer or insurers approved by the office, 1351 
which hold holds a certificate of authority under s. 624.401 to 1352 
do business within this state, or secured through a risk 1353 
retention groups group, which are is authorized to do business 1354 
within this state under s. 627.943 or s. 627.944. Such insurers 1355 
insurer or risk retention groups group must maintain a surplus 1356 
as regards policyholders of at least $15 million. 1357 
 2.  If the service agreement company does not meet its 1358 
contractual obligations, the contractual liability insurance 1359 
policy binds its issuer to pay or cause to be paid to the 1360 
service agreement holder all legitimate claims and cancellation 1361 
refunds for all service agreements issued by the service 1362 
agreement company while the policy was in effect. This 1363 
requirement also applies to those service agreements for which 1364 
no premium has been remitted to the insurer. 1365 
 3.  If the issuer of the contractual liability policy is 1366 
fulfilling the service agreements covered by the contractual 1367 
liability policy and the service agreement holder cancels the 1368 
service agreement, the issuer must make a full refund of 1369 
unearned premium to the consumer, subject to the cancellation 1370 
fee provisions of s. 634.121(3). The sales representative and 1371 
agent must refund to the contractual liability policy issuer 1372 
their unearned pro rata commission. 1373 
 4.  The policy may not be canceled, terminated, or 1374 
nonrenewed by the insurer or the service agreement company 1375          
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unless a 90-day written notice thereof has been given to the 1376 
office by the insurer before the date of the cancellation, 1377 
termination, or nonrenewal. 1378 
 5.  The service agreement company must provide the office 1379 
with the claims statistics. 1380 
 6.  A policy issued in compliance with this paragraph may 1381 
either pay 100 percent of claims as they are incurred, or pay 1382 
100 percent of claims d ue in the event of the failure of the 1383 
service agreement company to pay such claims when due. 1384 
 1385 
All funds or premiums remitted to an insurer by a motor vehicle 1386 
service agreement company under this part shall remain in the 1387 
care, custody, and control of the in surer and shall be counted 1388 
as an asset of the insurer; provided, however, this requirement 1389 
does not apply when the insurer and the motor vehicle service 1390 
agreement company are affiliated companies and members of an 1391 
insurance holding company system. If the m otor vehicle service 1392 
agreement company chooses to comply with this paragraph but also 1393 
maintains a reserve to pay claims, such reserve shall only be 1394 
considered an asset of the covered motor vehicle service 1395 
agreement company and may not be simultaneously cou nted as an 1396 
asset of any other entity. 1397 
 Section 30.  Subsection (5) of section 634.081, Florida 1398 
Statutes, is amended to read: 1399 
 634.081  Suspension or revocation of license; grounds. — 1400          
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 (5)  The office shall suspend or revoke the license of a 1401 
company if it finds that the ratio of gross written premiums 1402 
written to net assets exceeds 10 to 1 unless the company has in 1403 
excess of $750,000 in net assets and is utilizing contractual 1404 
liability insurance which cedes 100 percent of the service 1405 
agreement company's clai ms liabilities to the contractual 1406 
liability insurers insurer or is utilizing contractual liability 1407 
insurance which reimburses the service agreement company for 100 1408 
percent of its paid claims. However, if a service agreement 1409 
company has been licensed by the office in excess of 10 years, 1410 
is in compliance with all applicable provisions of this part, 1411 
and has net assets at all times in excess of $3 million that 1412 
comply with the provisions of part II of chapter 625, such 1413 
company may not exceed a ratio of gross wri tten premiums written 1414 
to net assets of 15 to 1. 1415 
 Section 31.  Subsection (5) of section 634.3077, Florida 1416 
Statutes, is renumbered as subsection (6), subsection (3) is 1417 
amended, and a new subsection (5) is added to that section, to 1418 
read: 1419 
 634.3077  Financial requirements.— 1420 
 (3)  An association may shall not be required to set up an 1421 
unearned premium reserve if it has purchased contractual 1422 
liability insurance which demonstrates to the satisfaction of 1423 
the office that 100 percent of its claim exposure is covere d by 1424 
such insurance. Such contractual liability insurance shall be 1425          
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obtained from an insurer or insurers that hold holds a 1426 
certificate of authority to do business within the state or from 1427 
an insurer or insurers approved by the office as financially 1428 
capable of meeting the obligations incurred pursuant to the 1429 
policy. For purposes of this subsection, the contractual 1430 
liability policy shall contain the following provisions: 1431 
 (a)  In the event that the home warranty association is 1432 
unable to fulfill its obligation under its contracts issued in 1433 
this state for any reason, including insolvency, bankruptcy, or 1434 
dissolution, the contractual liability insurer will pay losses 1435 
and unearned premiums under such plans directly to persons 1436 
making claims under such contracts. 1437 
 (b) The insurer issuing the policy shall assume full 1438 
responsibility for the administration of claims in the event of 1439 
the inability of the association to do so. 1440 
 (c)  The policy may not be canceled or not renewed by 1441 
either the insurer or the association unles s 60 days' written 1442 
notice thereof has been given to the office by the insurer 1443 
before the date of such cancellation or nonrenewal. 1444 
 (d)  The contractual liability insurance policy shall 1445 
insure all home warranty contracts that were issued while the 1446 
policy was in effect whether or not the premium has been 1447 
remitted to the insurer. 1448 
 (5)  An association licensed under this part is not 1449 
required to establish an unearned premium reserve or maintain 1450          
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contractual liability insurance and may allow its premiums to 1451 
exceed the ratio to net assets limitation of this section if the 1452 
association complies with the following: 1453 
 (a)  The association or, if the association is a direct or 1454 
indirect wholly owned subsidiary of a parent corporation, its 1455 
parent corporation has, and mainta ins at all times, a minimum 1456 
net worth of at least $100 million and provides the office with 1457 
the following: 1458 
 1.  A copy of the association's annual audited financial 1459 
statements or the audited consolidated financial statements of 1460 
the association's parent cor poration, prepared by an independent 1461 
certified public accountant in accordance with generally 1462 
accepted accounting principles, which clearly demonstrate the 1463 
net worth of the association or its parent corporation to be 1464 
$100 million, and a quarterly written c ertification to the 1465 
office that the association or its parent corporation continues 1466 
to maintain the net worth required under this paragraph. 1467 
 2.  The association's or its parent corporation's Form 10 -1468 
K, Form 10-Q, or Form 20-F as filed with the United Stat es 1469 
Securities and Exchange Commission or such other documents 1470 
required to be filed with a recognized stock exchange, which 1471 
shall be provided on a quarterly and annual basis within 10 days 1472 
after the last date each such report must be filed with the 1473 
Securities and Exchange Commission, the National Association of 1474 
Securities Dealers Automated Quotation system, or other 1475          
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recognized stock exchange. 1476 
 1477 
Failure to timely file the documents required under this 1478 
paragraph may, at the discretion of the office, subject the 1479 
association to suspension or revocation of its license under 1480 
this part. 1481 
 (b)  If the net worth of a parent corporation is used to 1482 
satisfy the net worth provisions of paragraph (a), the following 1483 
provisions must be met: 1484 
 1.  The parent corporation must guarantee all service 1485 
warranty obligations of the association, wherever written, on a 1486 
form approved in advance by the office. A cancellation, 1487 
termination, or modification of the guarantee does not bec ome 1488 
effective unless the parent corporation provides the office 1489 
written notice at least 90 days before the effective date of the 1490 
cancellation, termination, or modification and the office 1491 
approves the request in writing. Before the effective date of 1492 
the cancellation, termination, or modification of the guarantee, 1493 
the association must demonstrate to the satisfaction of the 1494 
office compliance with all applicable provisions of this part, 1495 
including whether the association will meet the requirements of 1496 
this section by the purchase of contractual liability insurance, 1497 
establishing required reserves, or other method allowed under 1498 
this section. If the association or parent corporation does not 1499 
demonstrate to the satisfaction of the office compliance with 1500          
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all applicable provisions of this part, the association or 1501 
parent association shall immediately cease writing new and 1502 
renewal business upon the effective date of the cancellation, 1503 
termination, or modification. 1504 
 2.  The association must maintain at all times net assets 1505 
of at least $750,000. 1506 
 Section 32.  Section 634.317, Florida Statutes, is amended 1507 
to read: 1508 
 634.317  License and appointment required. —No person may 1509 
solicit, negotiate, or effectuate home warranty contracts for 1510 
remuneration in this state unless such perso n is licensed and 1511 
appointed as a sales representative. A licensed and appointed 1512 
sales representative shall be directly responsible and 1513 
accountable for all acts of the licensee's employees. A 1514 
municipality, a county government, a special district, an entity 1515 
operated by a municipality or county government, or an employee 1516 
or agent of a municipality, county government, special district, 1517 
or entity operated by a municipality or county government is 1518 
exempt from the licensing and appointing requirements under this 1519 
section. 1520 
 Section 33.  Subsection (9) of section 648.25, Florida 1521 
Statutes, is renumbered as subsection (10), and a new subsection 1522 
(9) and subsection (11) are added to that section to read: 1523 
 648.25  Definitions. —As used in this chapter, the term: 1524 
 (9)  "Referring bail bond agent" is the limited surety 1525          
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agent who is requesting the transfer bond. The referring bail 1526 
bond agent is the agent held liable for the transfer bond, along 1527 
with the issuing surety company. 1528 
 (11)  "Transfer bond" means the appearance bond and power 1529 
of attorney form posted by a limited surety agent who is 1530 
registered in the county where the defendant is being held in 1531 
custody. 1532 
 Section 34.  Subsection (3) of section 648.26, Florida 1533 
Statutes, is amended to read: 1534 
 648.26  Department of Financi al Services; administration. — 1535 
 (3)  The papers, documents, reports, or any other 1536 
investigatory records of the department are confidential and 1537 
exempt from s. 119.07(1) until such investigation is completed 1538 
or ceases to be active , unless the department or of fice files a 1539 
formal administrative complaint, emergency order, or consent 1540 
order against the individual or entity . For the purpose of this 1541 
section, an investigation is considered active while the 1542 
investigation is being conducted by the department with a 1543 
reasonable, good faith belief that it may lead to the filing of 1544 
administrative, civil, or criminal proceedings. An investigation 1545 
does not cease to be active if the department is proceeding with 1546 
reasonable dispatch and there is good faith belief that action 1547 
may be initiated by the department or other administrative or 1548 
law enforcement agency. This subsection does not prevent the 1549 
department or office from disclosing the content of a complaint 1550          
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or such information as it deems necessary to conduct the 1551 
investigation, to update the complainant as to the status and 1552 
outcome of the complaint, to review the details of the 1553 
investigation with the subject or the subject's representative, 1554 
or to share such information with any law enforcement agency or 1555 
other regulatory body. 1556 
 Section 35.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section 1557 
648.30, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 1558 
 648.30  Licensure and appointment required; prohibited 1559 
acts; penalties.— 1560 
 (1)(a)  A person or entity may not act in the capacity of a 1561 
bail bond agent or bail bond agency or perform any of the 1562 
functions, duties, or powers prescribed for bail bond agents or 1563 
bail bond agencies under this chapter unless that person or 1564 
entity is qualified, licensed, and appointed as provided in this 1565 
chapter and employed by a bail bond agency. 1566 
 Section 36.  Subsection (1) of section 648.355, Florida 1567 
Statutes, is amended to read: 1568 
 648.355  Limited surety agents and professional bail bond 1569 
agents; qualifications. — 1570 
 (1)  The applicant shall furnish, with the application for 1571 
license, a complete set of the applicant's fingerprints in 1572 
accordance with s. 626.171(4) and a recent credential -sized, 1573 
fullface photograph of the applicant . The department may not 1574 
issue a license under this section until the department has 1575          
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received a report fro m the Department of Law Enforcement and the 1576 
Federal Bureau of Investigation relative to the existence or 1577 
nonexistence of a criminal history report based on the 1578 
applicant's fingerprints. 1579 
 Section 37.  Effective July 1, 2024, section 655.0323, 1580 
Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 1581 
 655.0323  Unsafe and unsound practices. — 1582 
 (1)  Financial institutions must make determinations about 1583 
the provision or denial of services based on an analysis of risk 1584 
factors unique to each current or prospective customer or membe r 1585 
and may not engage in an unsafe and unsound practice as provided 1586 
in subsection (2). This subsection does not restrict a financial 1587 
institution that claims a religious purpose from making such 1588 
determinations based on the current or prospective customer's o r 1589 
member's religious beliefs, religious exercise, or religious 1590 
affiliations. 1591 
 (2)  It is an unsafe and unsound practice for a financial 1592 
institution to deny, or cancel, suspend, or terminate its 1593 
services to a person, or to otherwise discriminate against a 1594 
person in making available such services , or in the terms or 1595 
conditions of such services, on the basis of: 1596 
 (a)  The person's political opinions, speech, or 1597 
affiliations; 1598 
 (b)  Except as provided in subsection (1), the person's 1599 
religious beliefs, religious exercise, or religious 1600          
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affiliations; 1601 
 (c)  Any factor if it is not a quantitative, impartial, and 1602 
risk-based standard, including any such factor related to the 1603 
person's business sector; or 1604 
 (d)  The use of any rating, scoring, analysis, tabulation, 1605 
or action that considers a social credit score based on factors 1606 
including, but not limited to: 1607 
 1.  The person's political opinions, speech, or 1608 
affiliations. 1609 
 2.  The person's religious beliefs, religious exercise, or 1610 
religious affiliations. 1611 
 3.  The person's lawful ownership of a firearm. 1612 
 4.  The person's engagement in the lawful manufacture, 1613 
distribution, sale, purchase, or use of firearms or ammunition. 1614 
 5.  The person's engagement in the exploration, production, 1615 
utilization, transportation, sale, or manufa cture of fossil 1616 
fuel-based energy, timber, mining, or agriculture. 1617 
 6.  The person's support of the state or Federal Government 1618 
in combating illegal immigration, drug trafficking, or human 1619 
trafficking. 1620 
 7.  The person's engagement with, facilitation of, 1621 
employment by, support of, business relationship with, 1622 
representation of, or advocacy for any person described in this 1623 
paragraph. 1624 
 8.  The person's failure to meet or commit to meet, or 1625          
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expected failure to meet, any of the following as long as such 1626 
person is in compliance with applicable state or federal law: 1627 
 a.  Environmental standards, including emissions standards, 1628 
benchmarks, requirements, or disclosures; 1629 
 b.  Social governance standards, benchmarks, or 1630 
requirements, including, but not limited to, enviro nmental or 1631 
social justice; 1632 
 c.  Corporate board or company employment composition 1633 
standards, benchmarks, requirements, or disclosures based on 1634 
characteristics protected under the Florida Civil Rights Act of 1635 
1992; or 1636 
 d.  Policies or procedures requiring or encouraging 1637 
employee participation in social justice programming, including, 1638 
but not limited to, diversity, equity, or inclusion training. 1639 
 (3)  Beginning July 1, 2023, and by July 1 of each year 1640 
thereafter, financial institutions as defined in s. 655.005 1641 
subject to the financial institutions codes must attest, under 1642 
penalty of perjury, on a form prescribed by the commission 1643 
whether the entity is acting in compliance with subsections (1) 1644 
and (2). 1645 
 (4)  If a person who is a customer or member of a financial 1646 
institution suspects that such financial institution has acted 1647 
in violation of subsection (2), the aggrieved customer or member 1648 
may submit a complaint to the office on a form prescribed by the 1649 
commission within 30 days after such action. A complaint is 1650          
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barred if not timely submitted. The complaint must, at a 1651 
minimum, contain the name and address of the customer or member; 1652 
the name of the financial institution; and the facts upon which 1653 
the customer or member bases his or her allegation. 1654 
 (5)  After receipt of a customer's or member's complaint 1655 
under subsection (4): 1656 
 (a)  The office must notify the financial institution that 1657 
a complaint has been filed. 1658 
 (b)  Within 90 calendar days after receiving the notice 1659 
from the office, the financial institution must fil e with the 1660 
office a complaint response report containing such information 1661 
as the commission requires by rule, unless precluded by law. 1662 
 (c)  If the complaint response report indicates that the 1663 
financial institution took action due to suspicious activity, a s 1664 
defined in s. 655.50(3), the initial investigation by the office 1665 
must be handled in accordance with s. 655.50. If the office 1666 
determines that the financial institution's action was taken 1667 
without any basis under s. 655.50, the office must continue to 1668 
investigate the financial institution's action and determine 1669 
whether the financial institution has acted in violation of 1670 
subsection (2). 1671 
 (d)  Within 90 calendar days after receiving the complaint 1672 
submitted pursuant to this subsection, the office shall begin an 1673 
investigation of the alleged violation. 1674 
 (e)  After the investigation is completed or ceases to be 1675          
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active, the office shall: 1676 
 1.  Within 30 calendar days after the completion or 1677 
cessation of the investigation, create a report on the findings 1678 
of the investigation. Such report, however, may not contain or 1679 
must redact any information that remains confidential and exempt 1680 
from s. 119.07(1). If the office determines that no violation of 1681 
subsection (2) has occurred, the report must only: 1682 
 a.  Identify the complai nt for which the report is made; 1683 
and 1684 
 b.  State that a determination has been made that no 1685 
violation of subsection (2) has occurred. 1686 
 2.  Except as otherwise provided or prohibited by law, 1687 
within 45 calendar days after the completion or cessation of the 1688 
investigation, send such report to the customer or member who 1689 
submitted the complaint pursuant to this subsection, via 1690 
certified mail, return receipt requested, delivery restricted to 1691 
the addressee; and to the subject financial institution. 1692 
 (f)  Except as otherwise provided or prohibited by law, if 1693 
the office determines that a violation of subsection (2) has 1694 
occurred, the office must provide notice of such violation to 1695 
the customer or member and to the Department of Financial 1696 
Services and the enforcing autho rity, as defined in s. 1697 
501.203(2), and provide a copy of the report created pursuant to 1698 
this subsection. 1699 
 (6)(4) Engaging in a practice described in subsection (2) 1700          
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or failing to timely provide the attestation under subsection 1701 
(3) is a failure to comply wi th this chapter, constitutes a 1702 
violation of the financial institutions codes, and is subject to 1703 
the applicable sanctions and penalties provided for in the 1704 
financial institutions codes. 1705 
 (7)(5) Notwithstanding ss. 501.211 and 501.212, a failure 1706 
to comply with subsection (1) or engaging in a practice 1707 
described in subsection (2) constitutes a violation of the 1708 
Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act under part II 1709 
of chapter 501. Violations must be enforced only by the 1710 
enforcing authority, as defined i n s. 501.203(2), and subject 1711 
the violator to the sanctions and penalties provided for in that 1712 
part. If such action is successful, the enforcing authority is 1713 
entitled to reasonable attorney fees and costs. 1714 
 (8)(6) The office and the commission may not exer cise 1715 
authority pursuant to s. 655.061 in relation to this section. 1716 
 (9)  The commission may adopt rules to administer this 1717 
section. 1718 
 Section 38.  Paragraph (f) of subsection (26) of section 1719 
280.02, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 1720 
 280.02  Definitions.—As used in this chapter, the term: 1721 
 (26)  "Qualified public depository" means a bank, savings 1722 
bank, or savings association that: 1723 
 (f)  Does not engage in the unsafe and unsound practice of 1724 
denying, or canceling, suspending, or terminating its services 1725          
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to a person, or otherwise discriminating against a person in 1726 
making available such services or in the terms or conditions of 1727 
such services, on the basis of: 1728 
 1.  The person's political opinions, speech, or 1729 
affiliations; 1730 
 2.  Except as provided in paragraph (e), the person's 1731 
religious beliefs, religious exercise, or religious 1732 
affiliations; 1733 
 3.  Any factor if it is not a quantitative, impartial, and 1734 
risk-based standard, including any such factor related to the 1735 
person's business sector; or 1736 
 4.  The use of any rating, scoring, analysis, tabulation, 1737 
or action that considers a social credit score based on factors 1738 
including, but not limited to: 1739 
 a.  The person's political opinions, speech, or 1740 
affiliations. 1741 
 b.  The person's religious beliefs, religious exercise, or 1742 
religious affiliations. 1743 
 c.  The person's lawful ownership of a firearm. 1744 
 d.  The person's engagement in the lawful manufacture, 1745 
distribution, sale, purchase, or use of firearms or ammunition. 1746 
 e.  The person's engagement in the exploration, production, 1747 
utilization, transportation, sale, or manufacture of fossil 1748 
fuel-based energy, timber, mining, or agriculture. 1749 
 f.  The person's support of the state or Federal Government 1750          
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in combating illegal immigration, drug trafficking, or human 1751 
trafficking. 1752 
 g.  The person's engagement with, facilitation of, 1753 
employment by, support of, business relationship with, 1754 
representation of, or advocacy for any person described in this 1755 
subparagraph. 1756 
 h.  The person's failure to meet or commit to meet, or 1757 
expected failure to meet, any of the following as long as such 1758 
person is in compliance with applicable state or federal law: 1759 
 (I)  Environmental standards, including emissions 1760 
standards, benchmarks, requirements, or disclosures; 1761 
 (II)  Social governance standards, benchmarks, or 1762 
requirements, including, but not limited to, environmental or 1763 
social justice; 1764 
 (III)  Corporate board or company employment composition 1765 
standards, benchmarks, requirements, or disclosures based on 1766 
characteristics protected under the Florida Civil Rights Act of 1767 
1992; or 1768 
 (IV)  Policies or procedures requiring or encouraging 1769 
employee participation in social justice programming, including, 1770 
but not limited to, diversity, equity, or inclusion training. 1771 
 Section 39.  Section 717.101, Florida Statutes, is amended 1772 
to read: 1773 
 717.101  Definitions. —As used in this chapter, unless the 1774 
context otherwise requires: 1775          
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 (1)  "Aggregate" means the amounts reported for owners of 1776 
unclaimed property of less than $10 $50 or where there is no 1777 
name for the individual or entity listed on the holder's 1778 
records, regardless of the amount to be reported. 1779 
 (2)  "Apparent owner" means the person whose name appears 1780 
on the records of the holder as the person entitled to property 1781 
held, issued, or owing by the holder. 1782 
 (3)  "Audit" means an actio n or proceeding to examine and 1783 
verify a person's records, books, accounts, and other documents 1784 
to ascertain and determine compliance with this chapter. 1785 
 (4)  "Audit agent" means a person with whom the department 1786 
enters into a contract with to conduct an au dit or examination. 1787 
The term includes an independent contractor of the person and 1788 
each individual participating in the audit on behalf of the 1789 
person or contractor. 1790 
 (5)(3) "Banking organization" means any and all banks, 1791 
trust companies, private bankers, s avings banks, industrial 1792 
banks, safe-deposit companies, savings and loan associations, 1793 
credit unions, and investment companies in this state, organized 1794 
under or subject to the laws of this state or of the United 1795 
States, including entities organized under 1 2 U.S.C. s. 611, but 1796 
does not include federal reserve banks. The term also includes 1797 
any corporation, business association, or other organization 1798 
that: 1799 
 (a)  Is a wholly or partially owned subsidiary of any 1800          
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banking, banking corporation, or bank holding comp any that 1801 
performs any or all of the functions of a banking organization; 1802 
or 1803 
 (b)  Performs functions pursuant to the terms of a contract 1804 
with any banking organization state or national bank, 1805 
international banking entity or similar entity, trust company, 1806 
savings bank, industrial savings bank, land bank, safe -deposit 1807 
company, private bank, or any organization otherwise defined by 1808 
law as a bank or banking organization . 1809 
 (6)(4) "Business association" means any for-profit or 1810 
nonprofit corporation other than a public corporation; joint 1811 
stock company; investment company; unincorporated association or 1812 
association of two or more individuals for business purposes, 1813 
whether or not for profit; partnership; joint venture; limited 1814 
liability company; sole proprietorship; business trust; trust 1815 
company; land bank; safe -deposit company; safekeeping 1816 
depository; financial organization; insurance company; federally 1817 
chartered entity; utility company; or other business entity, 1818 
whether or not for profit corporation (other than a p ublic 1819 
corporation), joint stock company, investment company, business 1820 
trust, partnership, limited liability company, or association of 1821 
two or more individuals for business purposes, whether for 1822 
profit or not for profit . 1823 
 (7)(5) "Claimant" means the person on whose behalf a claim 1824 
is filed. 1825          
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 (8)  "Claimant's representative" means an attorney who is a 1826 
member in good standing of The Florida Bar, a certified public 1827 
accountant licensed in this state, or private investigator who 1828 
is duly licensed to do business in the state, registered with 1829 
the department, and authorized by the claimant to claim 1830 
unclaimed property on the claimant's behalf. The term does not 1831 
include a person acting in a representative capacity, such as a 1832 
personal representative, guardian, trustee, or attorney, whose 1833 
representation is not contingent upon the discovery or location 1834 
of unclaimed property; provided, however, that any agreement 1835 
entered into for the purpose of evading s. 717.135 is invalid 1836 
and unenforceable. 1837 
 (9)(6) "Credit balance" means an account balance in the 1838 
customer's favor. 1839 
 (10)(7) "Department" means the Department of Financial 1840 
Services. 1841 
 (11)(8) "Domicile" means the state of incorporation for a 1842 
corporation; the state of filing for a business ass ociation, 1843 
other than a corporation, whose formation or organization 1844 
requires a filing with a state; the state of organization for a 1845 
business association, other than a corporation, whose formation 1846 
or organization does not require a filing with a state; the 1847 
state of home office for a federally charted entity incorporated 1848 
under the laws of a state, or, for an unincorporated business 1849 
association, the state where the business association is 1850          
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organized. 1851 
 (12)(9) "Due diligence" means the use of reasonable and 1852 
prudent methods under particular circumstances to locate 1853 
apparent owners of inactive accounts using the taxpayer 1854 
identification number or social security number, if known, which 1855 
may include, but are not limited to, using a nationwide 1856 
database, cross-indexing with other records of the holder, 1857 
mailing to the last known address unless the last known address 1858 
is known to be inaccurate, providing written notice as described 1859 
in this chapter by electronic mail if an apparent owner has 1860 
elected such delivery, or engaging a licensed agency or company 1861 
capable of conducting such search and providing updated 1862 
addresses. 1863 
 (13)  "Electronic"  means relating to technology having 1864 
electrical, digital, magnetic, wireless, optical, 1865 
electromagnetic, or similar capabilities. 1866 
 (14)(10) "Financial organization" means a state or federal 1867 
savings association, savings and loan association, savings bank, 1868 
industrial bank, bank, banking organization, trust company, 1869 
international bank agency, cooperative bank, building and loan 1870 
association, or credit union. 1871 
 (15)(11) "Health care provider" means any state -licensed 1872 
entity that provides and receives payment for health care 1873 
services. These entities include, but are not limited to, 1874 
hospitals, outpatient centers, physician practices, and skilled 1875          
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nursing facilities. 1876 
 (16)(12) "Holder" means: 1877 
 (a) A person, wherever organized or domiciled, who is in 1878 
possession or control or has custody of property or the rights 1879 
to property belonging to another; is indebted to another on an 1880 
obligation; or is obligated to hold for the account of, or to 1881 
deliver or pay to, the owner, property subject to this chapter; 1882 
or: 1883 
 (a)  In possession of property belonging to another; 1884 
 (b)  A trustee in case of a trust ; or 1885 
 (c)  Indebted to another on an obligation . 1886 
 (17)(13) "Insurance company" means an association, 1887 
corporation, or fraternal or mutual benefit organization, 1888 
whether for profit or not for profit, which is engaged in 1889 
providing insurance coverage. 1890 
 (18)(14) "Intangible property" includes, by way of 1891 
illustration and not limitation: 1892 
 (a)  Moneys, checks, virtual currency, drafts, deposits, 1893 
interest, dividends, and income. 1894 
 (b)  Credit balances, customer overpayments, security 1895 
deposits and other instruments as defined by chapter 679, 1896 
refunds, unpaid wages, unused airline t ickets, and unidentified 1897 
remittances. 1898 
 (c)  Stocks, and other intangible ownership interests in 1899 
business associations. 1900          
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 (d)  Moneys deposited to redeem stocks, bonds, bearer 1901 
bonds, original issue discount bonds, coupons, and other 1902 
securities, or to make di stributions. 1903 
 (e)  Amounts due and payable under the terms of insurance 1904 
policies. 1905 
 (f)  Amounts distributable from a trust or custodial fund 1906 
established under a plan to provide any health, welfare, 1907 
pension, vacation, severance, retirement, death, stock pur chase, 1908 
profit sharing, employee savings, supplemental unemployment 1909 
insurance, or similar benefit. 1910 
 (19)(15) "Last known address" means a description of the 1911 
location of the apparent owner sufficient for the purpose of the 1912 
delivery of mail. For the purposes of identifying, reporting, 1913 
and remitting property to the department which is presumed to be 1914 
unclaimed, "last known address" includes any partial description 1915 
of the location of the apparent owner sufficient to establish 1916 
the apparent owner was a resident of this state at the time of 1917 
last contact with the apparent owner or at the time the property 1918 
became due and payable. 1919 
 (20)(16) "Lawful charges" means charges against dormant 1920 
accounts that are authorized by statute for the purpose of 1921 
offsetting the costs of maintaining the dormant account. 1922 
 (21)(17) "Managed care payor" means a health care plan 1923 
that has a defined system of selecting and limiting health care 1924 
providers as evidenced by a managed care contract with the 1925          
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health care providers. These plans include , but are not limited 1926 
to, managed care health insurance companies and health 1927 
maintenance organizations. 1928 
 (22)(18) "Owner" means a person, or the person's legal 1929 
representative, entitled to receive or having a legal or 1930 
equitable interest in or claim against property subject to this 1931 
chapter; a depositor in the case of a deposit; a beneficiary in 1932 
the case of a trust or a deposit in trust; or a payee in the 1933 
case of a negotiable instrument or other intangible property a 1934 
depositor in the case of a deposit, a beneficiary in the case of 1935 
a trust or a deposit in trust, or a payee in the case of other 1936 
intangible property, or a person having a legal or equitable 1937 
interest in property subject to this chapter or his or her legal 1938 
representative. 1939 
 (23)  "Person" means an individual; estate; business 1940 
association; corporation; firm; association; joint adventure; 1941 
partnership; government or governmental subdivision, agency, or 1942 
instrumentality; or any other legal or commercial entity. 1943 
 (24)(19) "Public corporation" means a corporation created 1944 
by the state, founded and owned in the public interest, 1945 
supported by public funds, and governed by those deriving their 1946 
power from the state. 1947 
 (25)  "Record" means information that is inscribed on a 1948 
tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other 1949 
medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. 1950          
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 (26)(20) "Reportable period" means the calendar year 1951 
ending December 31 of each year. 1952 
 (27)(21) "State," when applied to a part of the United 1953 
States, includes any state, district, commonwealth, territory, 1954 
insular possession, and any other area subject to the 1955 
legislative authority of the United States. 1956 
 (28)(22) "Trust instrument" means a trust instrument as 1957 
defined in s. 736.0103. 1958 
 (23)  "Ultimate equitable owner" means a natural person 1959 
who, directly or indirectly, owns or controls an ownership 1960 
interest in a corporation, a foreign corporation, an alien 1961 
business organization, or any other form of business 1962 
organization, regardless of whether such natural person owns or 1963 
controls such ownership interest through one or more natural 1964 
persons or one or more proxies, powers of attorney, nominees, 1965 
corporations, associations, partnerships, trusts, joint stock 1966 
companies, or other entities or devices, or any combination 1967 
thereof. 1968 
 (29)  "Unclaimed Property Purchase Agreement" means the 1969 
form adopted by the department pursuant to s. 717.135 which must 1970 
be used, without modification or amendment, by a claimant's 1971 
representative to purchase unclaimed property from an owner. 1972 
 (30)  "Unclaimed Property Recovery Agreement" means the 1973 
form adopted by the department pursuant to s. 717.135 which must 1974 
be used, without modification or amendment, by a claimant's 1975          
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representative to obtain an owner's consent and authority to 1976 
recover unclaimed property on the owner's behalf. 1977 
 (31)(24) "United States" means any state, district, 1978 
commonwealth, territory, insular possession, and any other area 1979 
subject to the legislative authority of the United States of 1980 
America. 1981 
 (32)(25) "Utility" means a person who owns or operates, 1982 
for public use, any plant, equipment, property, franchise, or 1983 
license for the transmission of communications or the 1984 
production, storage, transmission, sale, delivery, or furnishing 1985 
of electricity, water, steam, or gas. 1986 
 (33)(a)  "Virtual currency" means digital units of exchange 1987 
that: 1988 
 1.  Have a centralized repository or administrator; 1989 
 2.  Are decentralized and have no centralized repository or 1990 
administrator; or 1991 
 3.  May be created or obtained by computing or 1992 
manufacturing effort. 1993 
 (b)  The term does not include any of the following: 1994 
 1.  Digital units that: 1995 
 a.  Are used solely within online gaming platforms; 1996 
 b.  Have no market or application outside of the online 1997 
gaming platforms in sub -subparagraph a.; 1998 
 c.  Cannot be converted into, or redeemed for, fiat 1999 
currency or virtual currency; and 2000          
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 d.  Can or cannot be redeemed for real -world goods, 2001 
services, discounts, or purchases. 2002 
 2.  Digital units that can be redeemed for: 2003 
 a.  Real-world goods, services, discounts, or purc hases as 2004 
part of a customer affinity or rewards program with the issuer 2005 
or other designated merchants; or 2006 
 b.  Digital units in another customer affinity or rewards 2007 
program, but cannot be converted into, or redeemed for, fiat 2008 
currency or virtual currency. 2009 
 3.  Digital units used as part of prepaid cards. 2010 
 Section 40.  Subsections (3) and (4) are added to section 2011 
717.102, Florida Statutes, to read: 2012 
 717.102  Property presumed unclaimed; general rule. — 2013 
 (3)  A presumption that property is unclaimed is rebut ted 2014 
by an apparent owner's expression of interest in the property. 2015 
An owner's expression of interest in property includes: 2016 
 (a)  A record communicated by the apparent owner to the 2017 
holder or agent of the holder concerning the property or the 2018 
account in which the property is held; 2019 
 (b)  An oral communication by the apparent owner to the 2020 
holder or agent of the holder concerning the property or the 2021 
account in which the property is held, if the holder or its 2022 
agent contemporaneously makes and preserves a record o f the fact 2023 
of the apparent owner's communication; 2024 
 (c)  Presentment of a check or other instrument of payment 2025          
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of a dividend, interest payment, or other distribution, with 2026 
respect to an account, underlying security, or interest in a 2027 
business association; 2028 
 (d)  Activity directed by an apparent owner in the account 2029 
in which the property is held, including accessing the account 2030 
or information concerning the account, or a direction by the 2031 
apparent owner to increase, decrease, or otherwise change the 2032 
amount or type of property held in the account; 2033 
 (e)  A deposit into or withdrawal from an account at a 2034 
financial organization, excluding an automatic deposit or 2035 
withdrawal previously authorized by the apparent owner or an 2036 
automatic reinvestment of dividends or intere st, which does not 2037 
constitute an expression of interest; or 2038 
 (f)  Any other action by the apparent owner which 2039 
reasonably demonstrates to the holder that the apparent owner 2040 
knows that the property exists. 2041 
 (4)  If a holder learns or receives confirmation of an 2042 
apparent owner's death, the property shall be presumed unclaimed 2043 
2 years after the date of death, unless a fiduciary appointed to 2044 
represent the estate of the apparent owner has made an 2045 
expression of interest in the property before the expiration of 2046 
the 2-year period. This subsection may not be construed to 2047 
extend the otherwise applicable dormancy period prescribed by 2048 
this chapter. 2049 
 Section 41.  Subsection (5) of section 717.106, Florida 2050          
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Statutes, is amended to read: 2051 
 717.106  Bank deposits and funds in financial 2052 
organizations.— 2053 
 (5)  If the documents establishing a deposit described in 2054 
subsection (1) state the address of a beneficiary of the 2055 
deposit, and the account has a value of at least $50, notice 2056 
shall be given to the beneficiary as provided for notice to the 2057 
apparent owner under s. 717.117(6) s. 717.117(4). This 2058 
subsection shall apply to accounts opened on or after October 1, 2059 
1990. 2060 
 Section 42.  Section 717.1065, Florida Statutes, is created 2061 
to read: 2062 
 717.1065  Virtual currency. — 2063 
 (1)  Any virtual currency held or owing by a banking 2064 
organization, corporation, custodian, exchange, or other entity 2065 
engaged in virtual currency business activity is presumed 2066 
unclaimed unless the owner, within 5 years, has communicated in 2067 
writing with the banking organization, corporation, custodian, 2068 
exchange, or other entity engaged in virtual currency business 2069 
activity concerning the virtual currency or otherwise indicated 2070 
an interest as evidenced by a memorandum or ot her record on file 2071 
with the banking organization, corporation, custodian, exchange, 2072 
or other entity engaged in virtual currency business activity. 2073 
 (2)  A holder may not deduct from the amount of any virtual 2074 
currency subject to this section any charges imp osed by reason 2075          
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of the virtual currency unless there is a valid and enforceable 2076 
written contract between the holder and the owner of the virtual 2077 
currency pursuant to which the holder may impose those charges 2078 
and the holder does not regularly reverse or othe rwise cancel 2079 
those charges with respect to the virtual currency. 2080 
 Section 43.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section 2081 
717.1101, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 2082 
 717.1101  Unclaimed equity and debt of business 2083 
associations.— 2084 
 (1)(a)  Stock or other equity interest in a business 2085 
association is presumed unclaimed on the date of 3 years after 2086 
the earliest of the following: 2087 
 1.  Three years after The date of the most recent of any 2088 
owner-generated activity or communication related to the 2089 
account, as recorded and maintained in the holder's database and 2090 
records systems sufficient enough to demonstrate the owners 2091 
continued awareness or interest in the property dividend, stock 2092 
split, or other distribution unclaimed by the apparent owner ; 2093 
 2.  Three years after the date of the death of the owner, 2094 
as evidenced by: The date of a statement of account or other 2095 
notification or communication that was returned as 2096 
undeliverable; or 2097 
 a.  Notice to the holder of the owner's death by an 2098 
administrator, beneficiary, rela tive, or trustee, or by a 2099 
personal representative or other legal representative of the 2100          
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owner's estate; 2101 
 b.  Receipt by the holder of a copy of the death 2102 
certificate of the owner; 2103 
 c.  Confirmation by the holder of the owner's death though 2104 
other means; or 2105 
 d.  Other evidence from which the holder may reasonably 2106 
conclude that the owner is deceased; or 2107 
 3.  One year after the date on which the holder receives 2108 
notice under subparagraph 2. if the notice is received 2 years 2109 
or less after the owner's death and the holder lacked knowledge 2110 
of the owner's death during that period of 2 years or less The 2111 
date the holder discontinued mailings, notifications, or 2112 
communications to the apparent owner . 2113 
 Section 44.  Subsection (1) of section 717.112, Florida 2114 
Statutes, is amended, and subsection (6) is added to that 2115 
section, to read: 2116 
 717.112  Property held by agents and fiduciaries. — 2117 
 (1)  Except as provided in ss. 717.1125 and 733.816, All 2118 
intangible property and any income or increment thereon held in 2119 
a fiduciary capacity for the benefit of another person , 2120 
including property held by an attorney in fact or an agent, 2121 
except as provided in ss. 717.1125 and 733.816, is presumed 2122 
unclaimed unless the owner has within 5 years after it has 2123 
become payable or distributable increased or decreased the 2124 
principal, accepted payment of principal or income, communicated 2125          
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in writing concerning the property, or otherwise indicated an 2126 
interest as evidenced by a memorandum or other record on file 2127 
with the fiduciary. 2128 
 (6)  This section does not r elieve a fiduciary of his or 2129 
her duties under applicable general law. 2130 
 Section 45.  Section 717.1125, Florida Statutes, is amended 2131 
to read: 2132 
 717.1125  Property held by fiduciaries under trust 2133 
instruments.—All intangible property and any income or increme nt 2134 
thereon held in a fiduciary capacity for the benefit of another 2135 
person under a trust instrument is presumed unclaimed unless the 2136 
owner has, within 2 years after it has become payable or 2137 
distributable, increased or decreased the principal, accepted 2138 
payment of principal or income, communicated concerning the 2139 
property, or otherwise indicated an interest as evidenced by a 2140 
memorandum or other record on file with the fiduciary. This 2141 
section does not relieve a fiduciary of his or her duties under 2142 
the Florida Trust Code. 2143 
 Section 46.  Effective January 1, 2025, section 717.117, 2144 
Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 2145 
 717.117  Report of unclaimed property. — 2146 
 (1)  Every person holding funds or other property, tangible 2147 
or intangible, presumed unclaimed and subject to custody as 2148 
unclaimed property under this chapter shall report to the 2149 
department on such forms as the department may prescribe by 2150          
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rule. In lieu of forms, a report identifying 25 or more 2151 
different apparent owners must be submitted by the holder via 2152 
electronic medium as the department may prescribe by rule. The 2153 
report must include: 2154 
 (a)  Except for traveler's checks and money orders, the 2155 
name, social security number or taxpayer identification number, 2156 
and date of birth, if known, and last known address, if a ny, of 2157 
each person appearing from the records of the holder to be the 2158 
owner of any property which is presumed unclaimed and which has 2159 
a value of $10 $50 or more. 2160 
 (b)  For unclaimed funds that which have a value of $10 $50 2161 
or more held or owing under any life or endowment insurance 2162 
policy or annuity contract, the identifying information provided 2163 
in paragraph (a) for both full name, taxpayer identification 2164 
number or social security number, date of birth, if known, and 2165 
last known address of the insured or annuitant and of the 2166 
beneficiary according to records of the insurance company 2167 
holding or owing the funds. 2168 
 (c)  For all tangible property held in a safe -deposit box 2169 
or other safekeeping repository, a description of the proper ty 2170 
and the place where the property is held and may be inspected by 2171 
the department, and any amounts owing to the holder. Contents of 2172 
a safe-deposit box or other safekeeping repository which consist 2173 
of documents or writings of a private nature and which hav e 2174 
little or no apparent value shall not be presumed unclaimed. 2175          
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 (d)  The nature or type of property, any accounting or and 2176 
identifying number associated with the property , a if any, or 2177 
description of the property , and the amount appearing from the 2178 
records to be due. Items of value of less than $10 under $50 2179 
each may be reported in the aggregate. 2180 
 (e)  The date the property became payable, demandable, or 2181 
returnable, and the date of the last transaction with the 2182 
apparent owner with respect to the prop erty. 2183 
 (f)  Any other information the department may prescribe by 2184 
rule as necessary for the administration of this chapter. 2185 
 (2)  If the total value of all presumed unclaimed property, 2186 
whether tangible or intangible, held by a person is less than 2187 
$10, a zero balance report may be filed for that reporting 2188 
period. 2189 
 (f)  Any person or business association or public 2190 
corporation holding funds presumed unclaimed and having a total 2191 
value of $10 or less may file a zero balance report for that 2192 
reporting period. The balance brought forward to the new 2193 
reporting period is zero. 2194 
 (g)  Such other information as the department may prescribe 2195 
by rule as necessary for the administration of this chapter. 2196 
 (3)(h) Credit balances, customer overpayments, security 2197 
deposits, and refunds having a value of less than $10 shall not 2198 
be presumed unclaimed. 2199 
 (4)(2) If the holder of property presumed unclaimed and 2200          
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subject to custody as unclaimed property is a successor holder 2201 
or if the holder has changed the holder's name while in 2202 
possession of the property, the holder shall file with the 2203 
holder's report all known names and addresses of each prior 2204 
holder of the property. Compliance with this subsection means 2205 
the holder exercises reasonable and prudent efforts to determine 2206 
the names of all prior holders. 2207 
 (5)(3) The report must be filed before May 1 of each year. 2208 
The report applies shall apply to the preceding calendar year. 2209 
Upon written request by any person required to file a report, 2210 
and upon a showing of good cause, the department may ex tend the 2211 
reporting date. The department may impose and collect a penalty 2212 
of $10 per day up to a maximum of $500 for the failure to timely 2213 
report, if an extension was not provided or if the holder of the 2214 
property failed the failure to include in a report in formation 2215 
required by this chapter which was in the holder's possession at 2216 
the time of reporting . The penalty shall be remitted to the 2217 
department within 30 days after the date of the notification to 2218 
the holder that the penalty is due and owing. As necessar y for 2219 
proper administration of this chapter, the department may waive 2220 
any penalty due with appropriate justification. On written 2221 
request by any person required to file a report and upon a 2222 
showing of good cause, the department may postpone the reporting 2223 
date. The department must provide information contained in a 2224 
report filed with the department to any person requesting a copy 2225          
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of the report or information contained in a report, to the 2226 
extent the information requested is not confidential, within 45 2227 
days after the department determines that the report has been 2228 
processed and added to the unclaimed property database 2229 
subsequent to a determination that the report is accurate and 2230 
acceptable and that the reported property is the same as the 2231 
remitted property. 2232 
 (6)(4) Holders of inactive accounts having a value of $50 2233 
or more shall use due diligence to locate and notify apparent 2234 
owners that the entity is holding unclaimed property available 2235 
for them to recover. Not more than 120 days and not less than 60 2236 
days prior to filing the report required by this section, the 2237 
holder in possession of property presumed unclaimed and subject 2238 
to custody as unclaimed property under this chapter shall send 2239 
written notice by first-class United States mail to the apparent 2240 
owner at the apparent owner's last known address from the 2241 
holder's records or from other available sources, or via 2242 
electronic mail if the apparent owner has elected this method of 2243 
delivery, informing the apparent owner that the holder is in 2244 
possession of property subject to this chapter, if the holder 2245 
has in its records a mailing or electronic an address for the 2246 
apparent owner which the holder's records do not disclose to be 2247 
inaccurate. These two means of contact are not mutually 2248 
exclusive; if the mailing address is deter mined to be 2249 
inaccurate, electronic mail may be used if so elected by the 2250          
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apparent owner. 2251 
 (7)  The written notice to the apparent owner required 2252 
under this section must: 2253 
 (a)  Contain a heading that reads substantially as follows: 2254 
"Notice. The State of Flo rida requires us to notify you that 2255 
your property may be transferred to the custody of the Florida 2256 
Department of Financial Services if you do not contact us before 2257 
(insert date that is at least 30 days after the date of 2258 
notice)." 2259 
 (b)  Identify the type, n ature, and, except for property 2260 
that does not have a fixed value, value of the property that is 2261 
the subject of the notice. 2262 
 (c)  State that the property will be turned over to the 2263 
custody of the department as unclaimed property if no response 2264 
to this letter is received. 2265 
 (d)  State that any property that is not legal tender of 2266 
the United States may be sold or liquidated by the department. 2267 
 (e)  State that after the property is turned over to the 2268 
department, an apparent owner seeking return of the property m ay 2269 
file a claim with the department. 2270 
 (f)  State that the property is currently with a holder and 2271 
provide instructions that the apparent owner must follow to 2272 
prevent the holder from reporting and paying for the property or 2273 
from delivering the property to t he department. 2274 
 (8)(5) Any holder of intangible property may file with the 2275          
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department a petition for determination that the property is 2276 
unclaimed requesting the department to accept custody of the 2277 
property. The petition shall state any special circumstanc es 2278 
that exist, contain the information required by subsection (4) 2279 
(2), and show that a diligent search has been made to locate the 2280 
owner. If the department finds that the proof of diligent search 2281 
is satisfactory, it shall give notice as provided in s. 717. 118 2282 
and accept custody of the property. 2283 
 (9)(6) Upon written request by any entity or person 2284 
required to file a report, stating such entity's or person's 2285 
justification for such action, the department may place that 2286 
entity or person in an inactive status as an unclaimed property 2287 
"holder." 2288 
 (10)(7)(a)  This section does not apply to the unclaimed 2289 
patronage refunds as provided for by contract or through bylaw 2290 
provisions of entities organized under chapter 425 or that ar e 2291 
exempt from ad valorem taxation pursuant to s. 196.2002. 2292 
 (b)  This section does not apply to intangible property 2293 
held, issued, or owing by a business association subject to the 2294 
jurisdiction of the United States Surface Transportation Board 2295 
or its successor federal agency if the apparent owner of such 2296 
intangible property is a business association. The holder of 2297 
such property does not have any obligation to report, to pay, or 2298 
to deliver such property to the department. 2299 
 (c)  This section does not apply to credit balances, 2300          
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overpayments, refunds, or outstanding checks owed by a health 2301 
care provider to a managed care payor with whom the health care 2302 
provider has a managed care contract, provided that the credit 2303 
balances, overpayments, refunds, or outstanding ch ecks become 2304 
due and owing pursuant to the managed care contract. 2305 
 (11)(8)(a)  As used in this subsection, the term "property 2306 
identifier" means the descriptor used by the holder to identify 2307 
the unclaimed property. 2308 
 (b)  Social security numbers and property identifiers 2309 
contained in reports required under this section, held by the 2310 
department, are confidential and exempt from s. 119.07(1) and s. 2311 
24(a), Art. I of the State Constitution. 2312 
 (c)  This exemption applies to social security numbers and 2313 
property identifiers held by the department before, on, or after 2314 
the effective date of this exemption. 2315 
 Section 47.  Subsections (4), (5), and (6) of section 2316 
717.119, Florida Statutes, are renumbered as subsections (5), 2317 
(6), and (7), respectively, and a new subsection ( 4) and 2318 
subsection (8) are added to that section, to read: 2319 
 717.119  Payment or delivery of unclaimed property. — 2320 
 (4)  All virtual currency reported under this chapter on 2321 
the annual report filing required in s. 717.117 shall be 2322 
remitted to the department with the report. The holder shall 2323 
liquidate the virtual currency and remit the proceeds to the 2324 
department. The liquidation must occur within 30 days before the 2325          
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filing of the report. Upon delivery of the virtual currency 2326 
proceeds to the department, the holder is relieved of all 2327 
liability of every kind in accordance with the provisions of s. 2328 
717.1201 to every person for any losses or damages resulting to 2329 
the person by the delivery to the department of the virtual 2330 
currency proceeds. 2331 
 (8)  A holder may not assign or otherwise transfer its 2332 
obligation to report, pay, or deliver property or to comply with 2333 
the provisions of this chapter, other than to a parent, 2334 
subsidiary, or affiliate of the holder. 2335 
 (a)  Unless otherwise agreed to by the parties to a 2336 
transaction, the holder's successor by merger or consolidation, 2337 
or any person or entity that acquires all or substantially all 2338 
of the holder's capital stock or assets, is responsible for 2339 
fulfilling the holder's obligation to report, pay, or d eliver 2340 
property or to comply with the duties of this chapter regarding 2341 
the transfer of property owed to the holder's successor and 2342 
being held for an owner resulting from the merger, 2343 
consolidation, or acquisition. 2344 
 (b)  This subsection does not prohibit a h older from 2345 
contracting with a third party for the reporting of unclaimed 2346 
property, but the holder remains responsible to the department 2347 
for the complete, accurate, and timely reporting of the 2348 
property. 2349 
 Section 48.  Section 717.1201, Florida Statutes, is amended 2350          
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to read: 2351 
 717.1201  Custody by state; holder relieved from liability; 2352 
reimbursement of holder paying claim; reclaiming for owner; 2353 
defense of holder; payment of safe-deposit box or repository 2354 
charges.— 2355 
 (1)  Upon the good faith payment or delivery of unclaimed 2356 
property to the department, the state assumes custody and 2357 
responsibility for the safekeeping of the property. Any person 2358 
who pays or delivers unclaimed property to the department in 2359 
good faith is relieved of all liability to the extent of the 2360 
value of the property paid or delivered for any claim then 2361 
existing or which thereafter may arise or be made in respect to 2362 
the property. 2363 
 (a)  A holder's substantial compliance with s. 717.117(6) 2364 
and good faith payment or delivery of unclaimed property to the 2365 
department releases the holder from liability that may arise 2366 
from such payment or delivery, and such delivery and payment may 2367 
be plead as a defense in any suit or action brought by reason of 2368 
such delivery or payment. This section does not relieve a 2369 
fiduciary of his or her duties under the Florida Trust Code or 2370 
Florida Probate Code. 2371 
 (b)  If the holder pays or delivers property to the 2372 
department in good faith and thereafter any other person claims 2373 
the property from the holder paying or delivering, or ano ther 2374 
state claims the money or property under that state's laws 2375          
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relating to escheat or abandoned or unclaimed property, the 2376 
department, upon written notice of the claim, shall defend the 2377 
holder against the claim and indemnify the holder against any 2378 
liability on the claim, except that a holder may not be 2379 
indemnified against penalties imposed by another state. 2380 
 (2)  For the purposes of this section, a payment or 2381 
delivery of unclaimed property is made in good faith if: 2382 
 (a)  The payment or delivery was made in conjunction with 2383 
an accurate and acceptable report. 2384 
 (b)  The payment or delivery was made in a reasonable 2385 
attempt to comply with this chapter and other applicable general 2386 
law. 2387 
 (c)  The holder had a reasonable basis for believing, based 2388 
on the facts then known, that the property was unclaimed and 2389 
subject to this chapter. 2390 
 (d)  There is no showing that the records pursuant to which 2391 
the delivery was made did not meet reasonable commercial 2392 
standards of practice in the industry. 2393 
 (3)(2) Any holder who has pa id money to the department 2394 
pursuant to this chapter may make payment to any person 2395 
appearing to be entitled to payment and, upon filing proof that 2396 
the payee is entitled thereto, the department shall forthwith 2397 
repay the holder without deduction of any fee o r other charges. 2398 
If repayment is sought for a payment made on a negotiable 2399 
instrument, including a traveler's check or money order, the 2400          
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holder must be repaid under this subsection upon filing proof 2401 
that the instrument was duly presented and that the payee is 2402 
entitled to payment. The holder shall be repaid for payment made 2403 
under this subsection even if the payment was made to a person 2404 
whose claim was barred under s. 717.129(1). 2405 
 (4)(3) Any holder who has delivered property, including a 2406 
certificate of any in terest in a business association, other 2407 
than money to the department pursuant to this chapter may 2408 
reclaim the property if still in the possession of the 2409 
department, without payment of any fee or other charges, upon 2410 
filing proof that the owner has claimed t he property from the 2411 
holder. 2412 
 (5)(4) The department may accept an affidavit of the 2413 
holder stating the facts that entitle the holder to recover 2414 
money and property under this section as sufficient proof. 2415 
 (5)  If the holder pays or delivers property to the 2416 
department in good faith and thereafter any other person claims 2417 
the property from the holder paying or delivering, or another 2418 
state claims the money or property under that state's laws 2419 
relating to escheat or abandoned or unclaimed property, the 2420 
department, upon written notice of the claim, shall defend the 2421 
holder against the claim and indemnify the holder against any 2422 
liability on the claim. 2423 
 (6)  For the purposes of this section, "good faith" means 2424 
that: 2425          
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 (a)  Payment or delivery was made in a reasonable at tempt 2426 
to comply with this chapter. 2427 
 (b)  The person delivering the property was not a fiduciary 2428 
then in breach of trust in respect to the property and had a 2429 
reasonable basis for believing, based on the facts then known to 2430 
that person, that the property was unclaimed for the purposes of 2431 
this chapter. 2432 
 (c)  There is no showing that the records pursuant to which 2433 
the delivery was made did not meet reasonable commercial 2434 
standards of practice in the industry. 2435 
 (6)(7) Property removed from a safe -deposit box or other 2436 
safekeeping repository is received by the department subject to 2437 
the holder's right under this subsection to be reimbursed for 2438 
the actual cost of the opening and to any valid lien or contract 2439 
providing for the holder to be reimbursed for unpaid rent or 2440 
storage charges. The department shall make the reimbursement to 2441 
the holder out of the proceeds remaining after the deduction of 2442 
the department's selling cost. 2443 
 (7)  If it appears to the satisfaction of the department 2444 
that, because of some mistake of fact, error in calculation, or 2445 
erroneous interpretation of a statute, a person has paid or 2446 
delivered to the department pursuant to any provision of this 2447 
chapter any money or other property not required by this chapter 2448 
to be so paid or delivered, the department may, within 5 years 2449 
after such erroneous payment or delivery, refund or redeliver 2450          
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such money or other property to the person, provided that such 2451 
money or property has not been paid or delivered to a claimant 2452 
or otherwise disposed of in accordance with this chapter. 2453 
 Section 49.  Subsection (1) of section 717.1242, Florida 2454 
Statutes, is amended to read: 2455 
 717.1242  Restatement of jurisdiction of the circuit court 2456 
sitting in probate and the department. — 2457 
 (1)  It is and has been the intent of the Legislature t hat, 2458 
pursuant to s. 26.012(2)(b), circuit courts have jurisdiction of 2459 
proceedings relating to the settlement of the estates of 2460 
decedents and other jurisdiction usually pertaining to courts of 2461 
probate. It is and has been the intent of the Legislature that, 2462 
pursuant to this chapter s. 717.124, the department determines 2463 
the merits of claims and entitlement to unclaimed for property 2464 
paid or delivered to the department under this chapter. 2465 
Consistent with this legislative intent, any estate or 2466 
beneficiary, devisee, heir, personal representative, or other 2467 
interested person, as those terms are defined in the Florida 2468 
Probate Code and the Florida Trust Code s. 731.201, of an estate 2469 
seeking to obtain property paid or delivered to the department 2470 
under this chapter must file a claim with the department as 2471 
provided in s. 717.124. 2472 
 Section 50.  Subsection (4) of section 717.1243, Florida 2473 
Statutes, is amended to read: 2474 
 717.1243  Small estate accounts. — 2475          
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 (4)  This section only applies only if all of the unclaimed 2476 
property held by the department on behalf of the owner has an 2477 
aggregate value of $20,000 $10,000 or less and no probate 2478 
proceeding is pending. 2479 
 Section 51.  Subsection (2) of section 717.129, Florida 2480 
Statutes, is amended to read: 2481 
 717.129  Periods of limitation. — 2482 
 (2)  The department may not commence an No action or 2483 
proceeding to enforce this chapter with respect to the 2484 
reporting, payment, or delivery of property or any other duty of 2485 
a holder under this chapter may be commenced by the department 2486 
with respect to any duty of a holder under this chapter more 2487 
than 10 years after the duty arose. The period of limitation 2488 
established under this subsection is tolled by the earlier of 2489 
the department's or audit agent's delivery of a notice t hat a 2490 
holder is subject to an audit or examination under s. 717.1301 2491 
or the holder's written election to enter into an unclaimed 2492 
property voluntary disclosure agreement. 2493 
 Section 52.  Section 717.1301, Florida Statutes, is amended 2494 
to read: 2495 
 717.1301  Investigations; examinations; subpoenas. — 2496 
 (1)  To carry out the chapter's purpose of protecting the 2497 
interest of missing owners through the safeguarding of their 2498 
property and to administer and enforce this chapter, the 2499 
department may: 2500          
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 (a)  Investigate, exami ne, inspect, request, or otherwise 2501 
gather information or evidence on, claim documents from a 2502 
claimant or a claimant's representative during its review of a 2503 
claim. 2504 
 (b)  Audit the records of a person or the records in the 2505 
possession of an agent, representat ive, subsidiary, or affiliate 2506 
of the person subject to this chapter to determine whether the 2507 
person complied with this chapter. Such records may include 2508 
information to verify the completeness or accuracy of the 2509 
records provided, even if such records may no t identify property 2510 
reportable to the department. 2511 
 (c)  Take testimony of a person, including the person's 2512 
employee, agent, representative, subsidiary, or affiliate, to 2513 
determine whether the person complied with this chapter. 2514 
 (d)  Issue an administrative subpoena to require that the 2515 
records specified in paragraph (b) be made available for 2516 
examination or audit and that the testimony specified in 2517 
paragraph (c) be provided. 2518 
 (e)  Bring an action in a court of competent jurisdiction 2519 
seeking enforcement of an a dministrative subpoena issued under 2520 
this section, which the court shall consider under procedures 2521 
that will lead to an expeditious resolution of the action. 2522 
 (f)  Bring an administrative action or an action in a court 2523 
of competent jurisdiction to enforce t his chapter.  2524 
 (2)  If a person is subject to reporting property under 2525          
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this chapter, the department may require the person to file a 2526 
verified report in a form prescribed by the department. The 2527 
verified report must: 2528 
 (a)  State whether the person is holding property 2529 
reportable under this chapter; 2530 
 (b)  Describe the property not previously reported, the 2531 
property about which the department has inquired, or the 2532 
property that is in dispute as to whether it is reportable under 2533 
this chapter; and 2534 
 (c)  State the amount or value of the property. 2535 
 (3)  The department may authorize a compliance review of a 2536 
report for a specified reporting year. The review must be 2537 
limited to the contents of the report filed, as required by s. 2538 
717.117 and subsection (2), and all supporti ng documents related 2539 
to the reports. If the review results in a finding of a 2540 
deficiency in unclaimed property due and payable to the 2541 
department, the department shall notify the holder in writing of 2542 
the amount of deficiency within 1 year after the authoriza tion 2543 
of the compliance review. If the holder fails to pay the 2544 
deficiency within 90 days, the department may seek to enforce 2545 
the assessment under subsection (1). The department is not 2546 
required to conduct a review under this section before 2547 
initiating an audit. 2548 
 (4)  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in a 2549 
contract providing for the location or collection of unclaimed 2550          
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property, the department may authorize the contractor to deduct 2551 
its fees and expenses for services provided under the contract 2552 
from the unclaimed property that the contractor has recovered or 2553 
collected under the contract. The department shall annually 2554 
report to the Chief Financial Officer the total amount collected 2555 
or recovered by each contractor during the previous fiscal year 2556 
and the total fees and expenses deducted by each contractor. 2557 
 (1)  The department may make investigations and 2558 
examinations within or outside this state of claims, reports, 2559 
and other records as it deems necessary to administer and 2560 
enforce the provisions of this chapt er. In such investigations 2561 
and examinations the department may administer oaths, examine 2562 
witnesses, issue subpoenas, and otherwise gather evidence. The 2563 
department may request any person who has not filed a report 2564 
under s. 717.117 to file a verified report stating whether or 2565 
not the person is holding any unclaimed property reportable or 2566 
deliverable under this chapter. 2567 
 (2)  Subpoenas for witnesses whose evidence is deemed 2568 
material to any investigation or examination under this section 2569 
may be issued by the de partment under seal of the department, or 2570 
by any court of competent jurisdiction, commanding such 2571 
witnesses to appear before the department at a time and place 2572 
named and to bring such books, records, and documents as may be 2573 
specified or to submit such book s, records, and documents to 2574 
inspection. Such subpoenas may be served by an authorized 2575          
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representative of the department. 2576 
 (3)  If any person shall refuse to testify, produce books, 2577 
records, and documents, or otherwise refuse to obey a subpoena 2578 
issued under this section, the department may present its 2579 
petition to a court of competent jurisdiction in or for the 2580 
county in which such person resides or has its principal place 2581 
of business, whereupon the court shall issue its rule nisi 2582 
requiring such person to obe y forthwith the subpoena issued by 2583 
the department or show cause for failing to obey said subpoena. 2584 
Unless said person shows sufficient cause for failing to obey 2585 
the subpoena, the court shall forthwith direct such person to 2586 
obey the same subject to such pun ishment as the court may direct 2587 
including, but not limited to, the restraint, by injunction or 2588 
by appointment of a receiver, of any transfer, pledge, 2589 
assignment, or other disposition of such person's assets or any 2590 
concealment, alteration, destruction, or o ther disposition of 2591 
subpoenaed books, records, or documents as the court deems 2592 
appropriate, until such person has fully complied with such 2593 
subpoena and the department has completed its investigation or 2594 
examination. The department is entitled to the summary procedure 2595 
provided in s. 51.011, and the court shall advance the cause on 2596 
its calendar. Costs incurred by the department to obtain an 2597 
order granting, in whole or in part, its petition shall be taxed 2598 
against the subpoenaed person, and failure to comply wit h such 2599 
order shall be a contempt of court. 2600          
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 (4)  Witnesses shall be entitled to the same fees and 2601 
mileage as they may be entitled by law for attending as 2602 
witnesses in the circuit court, except where such examination or 2603 
investigation is held at the place of business or residence of 2604 
the witness. 2605 
 (5)  The material compiled by the department in an 2606 
investigation or examination under this chapter is confidential 2607 
until the investigation or examination is complete. If any such 2608 
material contains a holder's financia l or proprietary 2609 
information, it may not be disclosed or made public by the 2610 
department after the investigation or audit is completed, except 2611 
as required by a court of competent jurisdiction in the course 2612 
of a judicial proceeding in which the state is a par ty, or 2613 
pursuant to an agreement with another state allowing joint 2614 
audits. Such material may be considered trade secret and exempt 2615 
from s. 119.07(1) as provided for in s. 119.0715. The records, 2616 
data, and information gathered material compiled by the 2617 
department in an investigation or audit examination under this 2618 
chapter remain remains confidential after the department's 2619 
investigation or examination is complete if the department has 2620 
submitted the material or any part of it to any law enforcement 2621 
agency or other administrative agency for further investigation 2622 
or for the filing of a criminal or civil prosecution and such 2623 
investigation has not been completed or become inactive. 2624 
 (6)  If an investigation or an audit examination of the 2625          
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records of any person results in the disclosure of property 2626 
reportable and deliverable under this chapter, the department 2627 
may assess the cost of the investigation or audit the 2628 
examination against the holder at the rate of $100 per 8 -hour 2629 
day for each investigator or exami ner. Such fee shall be 2630 
calculated on an hourly basis and shall be rounded to the 2631 
nearest hour. The person shall also pay the travel expense and 2632 
per diem subsistence allowance provided for state employees in 2633 
s. 112.061. The person shall not be required to p ay a per diem 2634 
fee and expenses of an examination or investigation which shall 2635 
consume more than 30 worker -days in any one year unless such 2636 
examination or investigation is due to fraudulent practices of 2637 
the person, in which case such person shall be require d to pay 2638 
the entire cost regardless of time consumed. The fee for the 2639 
costs of the investigation or audit shall be remitted to the 2640 
department within 30 days after the date of the notification 2641 
that the fee is due and owing. Any person who fails to pay the 2642 
fee within 30 days after the date of the notification that the 2643 
fee is due and owing shall pay to the department interest at the 2644 
rate of 12 percent per annum on such fee from the date of the 2645 
notification. 2646 
 Section 53.  Subsection (1) of section 717.1311, F lorida 2647 
Statutes, is amended to read: 2648 
 717.1311  Retention of records. — 2649 
 (1)  Every holder required to file a report under s. 2650          
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717.117 shall maintain a record of the specific type of 2651 
property, amount, name, and last known address of the owner for 2652 
10 5 years after the property becomes reportable, except to the 2653 
extent that a shorter time is provided in subsection (2) or by 2654 
rule of the department. 2655 
 Section 54.  Paragraph (j) of subsection (1) and subsection 2656 
(3) of section 717.1322, Florida Statutes, are amende d to read: 2657 
 717.1322  Administrative and civil enforcement. — 2658 
 (1)  The following acts are violations of this chapter and 2659 
constitute grounds for an administrative enforcement action by 2660 
the department in accordance with the requirements of chapter 2661 
120 and for civil enforcement by the department in a court of 2662 
competent jurisdiction: 2663 
 (j)  Requesting or receiving compensation for notifying a 2664 
person of his or her unclaimed property or assisting another 2665 
person in filing a claim for unclaimed property, u nless the 2666 
person is an attorney licensed to practice law in this state, a 2667 
Florida-certified public accountant, or a private investigator 2668 
licensed under chapter 493, or entering into, or making a 2669 
solicitation to enter into, an agreement to file a claim for 2670 
unclaimed property owned by another, or a contract or agreement 2671 
to purchase unclaimed property, unless such person is registered 2672 
with the department under this chapter and an attorney licensed 2673 
to practice law in this state in the regular practice of her or 2674 
his profession, a Florida -certified public accountant who is 2675          
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acting within the scope of the practice of public accounting as 2676 
defined in chapter 473, or a private investigator licensed under 2677 
chapter 493. This paragraph does not apply to a person who has 2678 
been granted a durable power of attorney to convey and receive 2679 
all of the real and personal property of the owner, is the 2680 
court-appointed guardian of the owner, has been employed as an 2681 
attorney or qualified representative to contest the department's 2682 
denial of a claim, or has been employed as an attorney to 2683 
probate the estate of the owner or an heir or legatee of the 2684 
owner. 2685 
 (3)  A claimant's representative registrant is subject to 2686 
civil enforcement and the disciplinary actions specified in 2687 
subsection (2) for violations of subsection (1) by an agent or 2688 
employee of the registrant's employer if the claimant's 2689 
representative registrant knew or should have known that such 2690 
agent or employee was violating any provision of this chapter. 2691 
 Section 55.  Subsection (1) of section 717.1333, Florida 2692 
Statutes, is amended to read: 2693 
 717.1333  Evidence; estimations; audit reports and 2694 
worksheets, investigator examiner's worksheets, investigative 2695 
reports and worksheets, other related documents. — 2696 
 (1)  In any proceeding involving a holder under ss. 120.569 2697 
and 120.57 in which an audit agent auditor, examiner, or 2698 
investigator acting under authority of this chapter is available 2699 
for cross-examination, any official written report, worksheet, 2700          
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or other related paper, or copy thereof, co mpiled, prepared, 2701 
drafted, or otherwise made or received by the audit agent 2702 
auditor, examiner, or investigator, after being duly 2703 
authenticated by the audit agent auditor, examiner, or 2704 
investigator, may be admitted as competent evidence upon the 2705 
oath of the audit agent auditor, examiner, or investigator that 2706 
the report, worksheet, or related paper was prepared or received 2707 
as a result of an audit, examination, or investigation of the 2708 
books and records of the person audited, examined, or 2709 
investigated, or the a gent thereof. 2710 
 Section 56.  Subsections (1) and (2) of section 717.134, 2711 
Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 2712 
 717.134  Penalties and interest. — 2713 
 (1)  For any person who willfully fails to render any 2714 
report required under this chapter, the department may impose 2715 
and collect a penalty of $500 per day up to a maximum of $5,000 2716 
and 25 percent of the value of property not reported until an 2717 
appropriate a report is provided rendered for any person who 2718 
willfully fails to render any report required under this 2719 
chapter. Upon a holder's showing of good cause, the department 2720 
may waive said penalty or any portion thereof. If the holder 2721 
acted in good faith and without negligence, the department shall 2722 
waive the penalty provided herein. 2723 
 (2)  For any person who willfully refuses to pay or deliver 2724 
unclaimed property to the department as required under this 2725          
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chapter, the department may impose and collect a penalty of $500 2726 
per day up to a maximum of $5,000 and 25 percent of the value of 2727 
property not paid or delivered until the property is paid or 2728 
delivered for any person who willfully refuses to pay or deliver 2729 
abandoned property to the department as required under this 2730 
chapter. 2731 
 Section 57.  Section 717.135, Florida Statutes, is amended 2732 
to read: 2733 
 717.135  Recovery agreements and purchase agreements for 2734 
claims filed by a claimant's representative; fees and costs , or 2735 
total net gain.— 2736 
 (1)  In order to protect the interests of owners of 2737 
unclaimed property, the department shall adopt by rule a form 2738 
entitled "Unclaimed Property Recovery Agreement" and a form 2739 
entitled "Unclaimed Property Purchase Agreement." 2740 
 (2)  The Unclaimed Property Recovery Agreement and the 2741 
Unclaimed Property Purchase Agreement must include and disclose 2742 
all of the following: 2743 
 (a)  The total dollar amount of unclaimed property accounts 2744 
claimed or sold. 2745 
 (b)  The total percentage of all authorized fees and costs 2746 
to be paid to the claimant's representative or the percentage of 2747 
the value of the property to be paid as net gain to the 2748 
purchasing claimant's representative. 2749 
 (c)  The total dollar amount to be deducted and received 2750          
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from the claimant as fees and costs by the claimant's 2751 
representative or the total net dollar amount to be received by 2752 
the purchasing claimant's representative. 2753 
 (d) The net dollar amount to be received by the claimant 2754 
or the seller. 2755 
 (e)  For each account claimed, the unclaimed property 2756 
account number. 2757 
 (f)  For the Unclaimed Property Purchase Agreement, a 2758 
statement that the amount of the purchase price will be remi tted 2759 
to the seller by the purchaser within 30 days after the 2760 
execution of the agreement by the seller. 2761 
 (g)  The name, address, e -mail address, phone number, and 2762 
license number of the claimant's representative. 2763 
 (h)1.  The manual signature of the claimant or seller and 2764 
the date signed, affixed on the agreement by the claimant or 2765 
seller. 2766 
 2.  Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter to 2767 
the contrary, the department may allow an apparent owner, who is 2768 
also the claimant or seller, to sign the agreeme nt 2769 
electronically for claims of $2,000 or less . All electronic 2770 
signatures on the Unclaimed Property Recovery Agreement and the 2771 
Unclaimed Property Purchase Agreement must be affixed on the 2772 
agreement by the claimant or seller using the specific, 2773 
exclusive eSignature product and protocol authorized by the 2774 
department. 2775          
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 (i)  The social security number or taxpayer identification 2776 
number of the claimant or seller, if a number has been issued to 2777 
the claimant or seller. 2778 
 (j)  The total fees and costs, or the total di scount in the 2779 
case of a purchase agreement, which may not exceed 30 percent of 2780 
the claimed amount. In the case of a recovery agreement, if the 2781 
total fees and costs exceed 30 percent, the fees and costs shall 2782 
be reduced to 30 percent and the net balance sha ll be remitted 2783 
directly by the department to the claimant. In the case of a 2784 
purchase agreement, if the total net gain of the claimant's 2785 
representative exceeds 30 percent, the claim will be denied. 2786 
 (3)  For an Unclaimed Property Purchase Agreement form, 2787 
proof that the purchaser has made payment must be filed with the 2788 
department along with the claim. If proof of payment is not 2789 
provided, the claim is void. 2790 
 (4)  A claimant's representative must use the Unclaimed 2791 
Property Recovery Agreement or the Unclaimed Pr operty Purchase 2792 
Agreement as the exclusive means of entering into an agreement 2793 
or a contract with a claimant or seller to file a claim with the 2794 
department. 2795 
 (5)  Fees and costs may be owed or paid to, or received by, 2796 
a claimant's representative only after a filed claim has been 2797 
approved and if the claimant's representative used an agreement 2798 
authorized by this section. 2799 
 (6)  A claimant's representative may not use or distribute 2800          
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any other agreement of any type, conveyed by any method, with 2801 
respect to the claimant or seller which relates, directly or 2802 
indirectly, to unclaimed property accounts held by the 2803 
department or the Chief Financial Officer other than the 2804 
agreements authorized by this section. Any engagement, 2805 
authorization, recovery, or fee agreement that is not authorized 2806 
by this section is void. A claimant's representative is subject 2807 
to administrative and civil enforcement under s. 717.1322 if he 2808 
or she uses an agreement that is not authorized by this section 2809 
and if the agreement is use d to apply, directly or indirectly, 2810 
to unclaimed property held by this state . This subsection does 2811 
not prohibit lawful nonagreement, noncontractual, or advertising 2812 
communications between or among the parties. 2813 
 (7)  The Unclaimed Property Recovery Agreement and the 2814 
Unclaimed Property Purchase Agreement may not contain language 2815 
that makes the agreement irrevocable or that creates an 2816 
assignment of any portion of unclaimed property held by the 2817 
department. 2818 
 (8)  When a claim is approved, the department may pay a ny 2819 
additional account that is owned by the claimant but has not 2820 
been claimed at the time of approval, provided that a subsequent 2821 
claim has not been filed or is not pending for the claimant at 2822 
the time of approval. 2823 
 (9)  This section does not supersede s. 7 17.1241. 2824 
 (10)  This section does not apply to the sale and purchase 2825          
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of Florida-held unclaimed property accounts through a bankruptcy 2826 
estate representative or other person or entity authorized 2827 
pursuant to Title XI of the United States Code or an order of a 2828 
bankruptcy court to act on behalf or for the benefit of the 2829 
debtor, its creditors, and its bankruptcy estate. 2830 
 Section 58.  Subsections (1), (2), and (3) of section 2831 
717.1400, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 2832 
 717.1400  Registration. — 2833 
 (1)  In order to file claims as a claimant's 2834 
representative, acquire ownership of or entitlement to unclaimed 2835 
property, receive a distribution of fees and costs from the 2836 
department, and obtain unclaimed property dollar amounts and 2837 
numbers of reported shares of stock h eld by the department, a 2838 
private investigator holding a Class "C" individual license 2839 
under chapter 493 must register with the department on such form 2840 
as the department prescribes by rule and must be verified by the 2841 
applicant. To register with the departmen t, a private 2842 
investigator must provide: 2843 
 (a)  A legible copy of the applicant's Class "A" business 2844 
license under chapter 493 or that of the applicant's firm or 2845 
employer which holds a Class "A" business license under chapter 2846 
493. 2847 
 (b)  A legible copy of the applicant's Class "C" individual 2848 
license issued under chapter 493. 2849 
 (c)  The business address and telephone number of the 2850          
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applicant's private investigative firm or employer. 2851 
 (d)  The names of agents or employees, if any, who are 2852 
designated to act on beha lf of the private investigator, 2853 
together with a legible copy of their photo identification 2854 
issued by an agency of the United States, or a state, or a 2855 
political subdivision thereof. 2856 
 (e)  Sufficient information to enable the department to 2857 
disburse funds by electronic funds transfer. 2858 
 (f)  The tax identification number of the private 2859 
investigator's firm or employer which holds a Class "A" business 2860 
license under chapter 493. 2861 
 (2)  In order to file claims as a claimant's 2862 
representative, acquire ownership of or entitlement to unclaimed 2863 
property, receive a distribution of fees and costs from the 2864 
department, and obtain unclaimed property dollar amounts and 2865 
numbers of reported shares of stock held by the department, a 2866 
Florida-certified public accountant must registe r with the 2867 
department on such form as the department prescribes by rule and 2868 
must be verified by the applicant. To register with the 2869 
department, a Florida -certified public accountant must provide: 2870 
 (a)  The applicant's Florida Board of Accountancy number. 2871 
 (b)  A legible copy of the applicant's current driver 2872 
license showing the full name and current address of such 2873 
person. If a current driver license is not available, another 2874 
form of identification showing the full name and current address 2875          
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of such person or persons shall be filed with the department. 2876 
 (c)  The business address and telephone number of the 2877 
applicant's public accounting firm or employer. 2878 
 (d)  The names of agents or employees, if any, who are 2879 
designated to act on behalf of the Florida -certified public 2880 
accountant, together with a legible copy of their photo 2881 
identification issued by an agency of the United States, or a 2882 
state, or a political subdivision thereof. 2883 
 (e)  Sufficient information to enable the department to 2884 
disburse funds by electronic f unds transfer. 2885 
 (f)  The tax identification number of the accountant's 2886 
public accounting firm employer. 2887 
 (3)  In order to file claims as a claimant's 2888 
representative, acquire ownership of or entitlement to unclaimed 2889 
property, receive a distribution of fees and costs from the 2890 
department, and obtain unclaimed property dollar amounts and 2891 
numbers of reported shares of stock held by the department, an 2892 
attorney licensed to practice in this state must register with 2893 
the department on such form as the department pres cribes by rule 2894 
and must be verified by the applicant. To register with the 2895 
department, such attorney must provide: 2896 
 (a)  The applicant's Florida Bar number. 2897 
 (b)  A legible copy of the applicant's current driver 2898 
license showing the full name and current ad dress of such 2899 
person. If a current driver license is not available, another 2900          
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form of identification showing the full name and current address 2901 
of such person or persons shall be filed with the department. 2902 
 (c)  The business address and telephone number of th e 2903 
applicant's firm or employer. 2904 
 (d)  The names of agents or employees, if any, who are 2905 
designated to act on behalf of the attorney, together with a 2906 
legible copy of their photo identification issued by an agency 2907 
of the United States, or a state, or a polit ical subdivision 2908 
thereof. 2909 
 (e)  Sufficient information to enable the department to 2910 
disburse funds by electronic funds transfer. 2911 
 (f)  The tax identification number of the attorney's firm 2912 
or employer. 2913 
 Section 59.  Paragraph (c) of subsection (10) of sect ion 2914 
766.302, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 2915 
 766.302  Definitions; ss. 766.301 -766.316.—As used in ss. 2916 
766.301-766.316, the term: 2917 
 (10)  "Family residential or custodial care" means care 2918 
normally rendered by trained professional attendants which is 2919 
beyond the scope of child care duties, but which is provided by 2920 
family members. Family members who provide nonprofessional 2921 
residential or custodial care may not be compensated under this 2922 
act for care that falls within the scope of child care duties 2923 
and other services normally and gratuitously provided by family 2924 
members. Family residential or custodial care shall be performed 2925          
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only at the direction and control of a physician when such care 2926 
is medically necessary. Reasonable charges for expenses for 2927 
family residential or custodial care provided by a family member 2928 
shall be determined as follows: 2929 
 (c)  The award of family residential or custodial care as 2930 
defined in this section shall not be included in the current 2931 
estimates for purposes of s. 766.314(9)(c). 2932 
 Section 60.  Paragraph (c) of subsection (9) of section 2933 
766.314, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 2934 
 766.314  Assessments; plan of operation. — 2935 
 (9) 2936 
 (c)  If the total of all current estimates equals or 2937 
exceeds 100 80 percent of the funds on hand and the f unds that 2938 
will become available to the association within the next 12 2939 
months from all sources described in subsection subsections (4) 2940 
and (5) and paragraph (5)(a) (7)(a), the association may not 2941 
accept any new claims without express authority from the 2942 
Legislature. Nothing in This section does not preclude precludes 2943 
the association from accepting any claim if the injury occurred 2944 
18 months or more before the effective date of this suspension. 2945 
Within 30 days after the effective date of this suspension, the 2946 
association shall notify the Governor, the Speaker of the House 2947 
of Representatives, the President of the Senate, the Office of 2948 
Insurance Regulation, the Agency for Health Care Administration, 2949 
and the Department of Health of this suspension. 2950          
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 Section 61.  Paragraph (a) of subsection (2) of section 2951 
197.582, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 2952 
 197.582  Disbursement of proceeds of sale. — 2953 
 (2)(a)  If the property is purchased for an amount in 2954 
excess of the statutory bid of the certificateholder, the 2955 
surplus must be paid over and disbursed by the clerk as set 2956 
forth in subsections (3), (5), and (6). If the opening bid 2957 
included the homestead assessment pursuant to s. 197.502(6)(c), 2958 
that amount must be treated as surplus and distributed in the 2959 
same manner. The cler k shall distribute the surplus to the 2960 
governmental units for the payment of any lien of record held by 2961 
a governmental unit against the property, including any tax 2962 
certificates not incorporated in the tax deed application and 2963 
omitted taxes, if any. If there remains a balance of 2964 
undistributed funds, the balance must be retained by the clerk 2965 
for the benefit of persons described in s. 197.522(1)(a), except 2966 
those persons described in s. 197.502(4)(h), as their interests 2967 
may appear. The clerk shall mail notices t o such persons 2968 
notifying them of the funds held for their benefit at the 2969 
addresses provided in s. 197.502(4). Such notice constitutes 2970 
compliance with the requirements of s. 717.117(6) s. 717.117(4). 2971 
Any service charges and costs of mailing notices shall be paid 2972 
out of the excess balance held by the clerk. Notice must be 2973 
provided in substantially the following form: 2974 
NOTICE OF SURPLUS FUNDS FROM TAX DEED SALE 2975          
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 CLERK OF COURT 2976 
 .... COUNTY, FLORIDA 2977 
 Tax Deed #........ 2978 
 Certificate #........ 2979 
 Property Description: ........ 2980 
 Pursuant to chapter 197, Florida Statutes, the above 2981 
property was sold at public sale on ...(date of sale)..., and a 2982 
surplus of $...(amount)... (subject to change) will be held by 2983 
this office for 120 days beginning on the date of this notice t o 2984 
benefit the persons having an interest in this property as 2985 
described in section 197.502(4), Florida Statutes, as their 2986 
interests may appear (except for those persons described in 2987 
section 197.502(4)(h), Florida Statutes). 2988 
 To the extent possible, these fu nds will be used to satisfy 2989 
in full each claimant with a senior mortgage or lien in the 2990 
property before distribution of any funds to any junior mortgage 2991 
or lien claimant or to the former property owner. To be 2992 
considered for funds when they are distributed, you must file a 2993 
notarized statement of claim with this office within 120 days of 2994 
this notice. If you are a lienholder, your claim must include 2995 
the particulars of your lien and the amounts currently due. Any 2996 
lienholder claim that is not filed within the 12 0-day deadline 2997 
is barred. 2998 
 A copy of this notice must be attached to your statement of 2999 
claim. After the office examines the filed claim statements, it 3000          
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will notify you if you are entitled to any payment. 3001 
 Dated: ........ 3002 
 Clerk of Court 3003 
 Section 62.  Subsection (1) of section 717.1382, Florida 3004 
Statutes, is amended to read: 3005 
 717.1382  United States savings bond; unclaimed property; 3006 
escheatment; procedure. — 3007 
 (1)  Notwithstanding any other provision of law, a United 3008 
States savings bond in possession of the de partment or 3009 
registered to a person with a last known address in the state, 3010 
including a bond that is lost, stolen, or destroyed, is presumed 3011 
abandoned and unclaimed 5 years after the bond reaches maturity 3012 
and no longer earns interest and shall be reported a nd remitted 3013 
to the department by the financial institution or other holder 3014 
in accordance with ss. 717.117(1) and (5) (3) and 717.119, if 3015 
the department is not in possession of the bond. 3016 
 Section 63.  The Division of Law Revision is directed to 3017 
prepare a reviser's bill for the 2025 Regular Session of the 3018 
Legislature to change the term "Division of Investigative and 3019 
Forensic Services" wherever the term appears in the Florida 3020 
Statutes to "Division of Criminal Investigations." 3021 
 Section 64.  By September 1, 2024, the Florida Birth-3022 
Related Neurological Injury Compensation Association shall, in 3023 
consultation with the Office of Insurance Regulation and the 3024 
Agency for Health Care Administration, submit a report to the 3025          
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Governor, the Chief Financial Officer, the Pre sident of the 3026 
Senate, and the Speaker of the House of Representatives which 3027 
must include, but is not limited to, the following: 3028 
 (1)  Recommendations for defining actuarial soundness for 3029 
the association, including options for phase -in, if appropriate. 3030 
 (2)  Recommendations for timing of reporting actuarial 3031 
soundness and to whom the soundness should be reported. 3032 
 (3)  Recommendations for ensuring a revenue level to 3033 
maintain actuarial soundness, including options for phase -in, if 3034 
appropriate. 3035 
 Section 65.  Effective July 1, 2024, paragraph (b) of 3036 
subsection (1) and subsection (7) of section 17.57, Florida 3037 
Statutes, are amended to read: 3038 
 17.57  Deposits and investments of state money. — 3039 
 (1)(b) The Chief Financial Officer, or other parties with 3040 
the permission of the Chief Financial Officer, shall deposit the 3041 
money of the state or any money in the State Treasury in such 3042 
qualified public depositories of the state as will offer 3043 
satisfactory collateral security for such deposits, pursuant to 3044 
chapter 280. It is the duty of the Chief Financial Officer, 3045 
consistent with the cash requirements of the state, to keep such 3046 
money fully invested or deposited as provided herein in order 3047 
that the state may realize maximum earnings and benefits. 3048 
Nothing in this secti on shall preclude credit unions designated 3049 
as public depositories from participation. 3050          
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 (7)  In addition to the deposits authorized under this 3051 
section and notwithstanding any other provisions of law, funds 3052 
that are not needed to meet the disbursement needs of the state 3053 
may be deposited by the Chief Financial Officer in accordance 3054 
with the following conditions: 3055 
 (a)  The funds are initially deposited in a qualified 3056 
public depository, as defined in s. 280.02, selected by the 3057 
Chief Financial Officer. 3058 
 (b)  The selected depository arranges for depositing the 3059 
funds in financial deposit instruments insured by : 3060 
 1. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in one or 3061 
more federally insured banks or savings and loan associations, 3062 
wherever located, for the account of the state. 3063 
 2. For credit unions designated as qualified public 3064 
depositories, the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund. 3065 
 (c)  The full amount of the principal and accrued interest 3066 
of each financial deposit instrument is insured by the Federal 3067 
Deposit Insurance Corporation or, for credit unions designated 3068 
as qualified public depositories, the National Credit Union 3069 
Share Insurance Fund . 3070 
 (d)  The selected depository acts as custodian for the 3071 
state with respect to each financial deposit instrument issued 3072 
for its account. 3073 
 Section 66.  Effective July 1, 2024, subsection (4) of 3074 
section 17.68, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 3075          
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 17.68  Financial Literacy Program for Individuals with 3076 
Developmental Disabilities. — 3077 
 (4)  Within 90 days after the department establishes the 3078 
website clearinghouse and publishes the brochure, each bank, 3079 
credit union, savings association, and savings bank that is a 3080 
qualified public depository as defined in s. 280.02 shall: 3081 
 (a)  Make copies of the department's brochures available, 3082 
upon the request of the consumer, at its principal place of 3083 
business and each branch office located in this state which has 3084 
in-person teller services by having copies of the brochure 3085 
available or having the capability to print a copy of the 3086 
brochure from the department's website. Upon request, the 3087 
department shall provide copies of the brochure to a bank, 3088 
credit union, savings association, or savings bank. 3089 
 (b)  Provide on its website a hyperlink to the department's 3090 
website clearinghouse. If the department changes the website 3091 
address for the clearinghouse, the bank, credit union, savings 3092 
association, or savings bank must update the hyperlink within 90 3093 
days after notification by the department of such change. 3094 
 Section 67.  Effective July 1, 2024, subsectio ns (6), (10), 3095 
(21), (23), and (26) of section 280.02, Florida Statutes, are 3096 
amended to read: 3097 
 280.02  Definitions. —As used in this chapter, the term: 3098 
 (6)  "Capital account" or "tangible equity capital" means 3099 
total equity capital, as defined on the balance -sheet portion of 3100          
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the Consolidated Reports of Condition and Income (call report) , 3101 
or net worth, as described in the National Credit Union 3102 
Administration 5300 Call Report , less intangible assets, as 3103 
submitted to the regulatory financial banking authority. 3104 
 (10)  "Custodian" means the Chief Financial Officer or a 3105 
bank, credit union, savings association, or trust company that: 3106 
 (a)  Is organized and existing under the laws of this 3107 
state, any other state, or the United States; 3108 
 (b)  Has executed all forms requi red under this chapter or 3109 
any rule adopted hereunder; 3110 
 (c)  Agrees to be subject to the jurisdiction of the courts 3111 
of this state, or of the courts of the United States which are 3112 
located within this state, for the purpose of any litigation 3113 
arising out of this chapter; and 3114 
 (d)  Has been approved by the Chief Financial Officer to 3115 
act as a custodian. 3116 
 (21)  "Pool figure" means the total average monthly 3117 
balances of public deposits held by all banks, savings banks, or 3118 
savings associations or held separately by a ll credit unions 3119 
qualified public depositories during the immediately preceding 3120 
12-month period. 3121 
 (23)  "Public deposit" means the moneys of the state or of 3122 
any state university, county, school district, community college 3123 
district, special district, metrop olitan government, or 3124 
municipality, including agencies, boards, bureaus, commissions, 3125          
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and institutions of any of the foregoing, or of any court, and 3126 
includes the moneys of all county officers, including 3127 
constitutional officers, which are placed on deposit in a bank, 3128 
credit union, savings bank, or savings association. This 3129 
includes, but is not limited to, time deposit accounts, demand 3130 
deposit accounts, and nonnegotiable certificates of deposit. 3131 
Moneys in deposit notes and in other nondeposit accounts such as 3132 
repurchase or reverse repurchase operations are not public 3133 
deposits. Securities, mutual funds, and similar types of 3134 
investments are not public deposits and are not subject to this 3135 
chapter. 3136 
 (26)  "Qualified public depository" means a bank, credit 3137 
union, savings bank, or savings association that: 3138 
 (a)  Is organized and exists under the laws of the United 3139 
States, or the laws of this state , or the laws of any other 3140 
state or territory of the United States. 3141 
 (b)  Has its principal place of business in this state or 3142 
has a branch office in this state which is authorized under the 3143 
laws of this state or of the United States to receive deposits 3144 
in this state. 3145 
 (c)  Is insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance 3146 
Corporation or the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund 3147 
Has deposit insurance pursuant to the Federal Deposit Insurance 3148 
Act, as amended, 12 U.S.C. ss. 1811 et seq . 3149 
 (d)  Has procedures and practices for accurate 3150          
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identification, classification, reporting, a nd collateralization 3151 
of public deposits. 3152 
 (e)  Makes determinations about the provision of services 3153 
or the denial of services based on an analysis of risk factors 3154 
unique to each customer or member. This paragraph does not 3155 
restrict a qualified public deposi tory that claims a religious 3156 
purpose from making such determinations based on the religious 3157 
beliefs, religious exercise, or religious affiliations of a 3158 
customer or member. 3159 
 (f)  Does not engage in the unsafe and unsound practice of 3160 
denying or canceling its services to a person, or otherwise 3161 
discriminating against a person in making available such 3162 
services or in the terms or conditions of such services, on the 3163 
basis of: 3164 
 1.  The person's political opinions, speech, or 3165 
affiliations; 3166 
 2.  Except as provided in paragraph (e), the person's 3167 
religious beliefs, religious exercise, or religious 3168 
affiliations; 3169 
 3.  Any factor if it is not a quantitative, impartial, and 3170 
risk-based standard, including any such factor related to the 3171 
person's business sector; or 3172 
 4.  The use of any rating, scoring, analysis, tabulation, 3173 
or action that considers a social credit score based on factors 3174 
including, but not limited to: 3175          
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 a.  The person's political opinions, speech, or 3176 
affiliations. 3177 
 b.  The person's religious beliefs, religious ex ercise, or 3178 
religious affiliations. 3179 
 c.  The person's lawful ownership of a firearm. 3180 
 d.  The person's engagement in the lawful manufacture, 3181 
distribution, sale, purchase, or use of firearms or ammunition. 3182 
 e.  The person's engagement in the exploration, pro duction, 3183 
utilization, transportation, sale, or manufacture of fossil 3184 
fuel-based energy, timber, mining, or agriculture. 3185 
 f.  The person's support of the state or Federal Government 3186 
in combating illegal immigration, drug trafficking, or human 3187 
trafficking. 3188 
 g.  The person's engagement with, facilitation of, 3189 
employment by, support of, business relationship with, 3190 
representation of, or advocacy for any person described in this 3191 
subparagraph. 3192 
 h.  The person's failure to meet or commit to meet, or 3193 
expected failure to meet, any of the following as long as such 3194 
person is in compliance with applicable state or federal law: 3195 
 (I)  Environmental standards, including emissions 3196 
standards, benchmarks, requirements, or disclosures; 3197 
 (II)  Social governance standards, benchma rks, or 3198 
requirements, including, but not limited to, environmental or 3199 
social justice; 3200          
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 (III)  Corporate board or company employment composition 3201 
standards, benchmarks, requirements, or disclosures based on 3202 
characteristics protected under the Florida Civil R ights Act of 3203 
1992; or 3204 
 (IV)  Policies or procedures requiring or encouraging 3205 
employee participation in social justice programming, including, 3206 
but not limited to, diversity, equity, or inclusion training. 3207 
 (g)  Meets all the requirements of this chapter. 3208 
 (h)  Has been designated by the Chief Financial Officer as 3209 
a qualified public depository. 3210 
 Section 68.  Effective July 1, 2024, subsection (1) of 3211 
section 280.025, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 3212 
 280.025  Attestation required. — 3213 
 (1)  Beginning July 1, 2024 2023, the following entities 3214 
must attest, under penalty of perjury, on a form prescribed by 3215 
the Chief Financial Officer, whether the entity is in compliance 3216 
with s. 280.02(26)(e) and (f): 3217 
 (a)  A bank, savings bank, credit union, or savings 3218 
association, upon application or reapplication for designation 3219 
as a qualified public depository. 3220 
 (b)  A qualified public depository, upon filing the report 3221 
required by s. 280.16(1)(d). 3222 
 Section 69.  Effective July 1, 2024, paragraph (a) of 3223 
subsection (3) of se ction 280.03, Florida Statutes, is amended 3224 
to read: 3225          
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 280.03  Public deposits to be secured; prohibitions; 3226 
exemptions.— 3227 
 (3)  The following are exempt from the requirements of, and 3228 
protection under, this chapter: 3229 
 (a)  Public deposits deposited in a bank , credit union, or 3230 
savings association by a trust department or trust company which 3231 
are fully secured under trust business laws. 3232 
 Section 70.  Effective July 1, 2024, section 280.042, 3233 
Florida Statutes, is created to read: 3234 
 280.042  Credit union designations as qualified public 3235 
depositories; withdrawal by the Chief Financial Officer from 3236 
collateral agreements; limits on public deposits. — 3237 
 (1)  The Chief Financial Officer may not designate a credit 3238 
union as a qualified public depository unless, at the time the 3239 
credit union submits its agreement of contingent liability and 3240 
its collateral agreement. The credit union submits a signed 3241 
statement from a public depositor indicating that if the credit 3242 
union is designated as a qualified public depository, the public 3243 
depositor intends to deposit public funds with the credit union. 3244 
 (2)  Within 10 business days after the Chief Financial 3245 
Officer notifies the credit union that the Chief Financial 3246 
Officer has withdrawn from the collateral agr eement, the credit 3247 
union must return all public deposits that the credit union 3248 
holds to the public depositor who deposited the funds. The 3249 
notice provided for in this subsection may be sent to a credit 3250          
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union by regular mail or by e -mail. 3251 
 (3)(a)  All credit unions designated as qualified public 3252 
depositories may hold only the following public deposits: 3253 
 1.  A total combined amount of not more than 7 percent of 3254 
the total funds held in the state treasury. 3255 
 2.  A total combined amount of not more than 7 percent of 3256 
all public deposits of any state university or any state 3257 
college. 3258 
 (b)  A credit union may not hold public deposits of more 3259 
than 10 percent of its total institution's assets. 3260 
 Section 71.  Effective July 1, 2024, subsection (11) of 3261 
section 280.05, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 3262 
 280.05  Powers and duties of the Chief Financial Officer. —3263 
In fulfilling the requirements of this act, the Chief Financial 3264 
Officer has the power to take the following actions he or she 3265 
deems necessary to protect the integ rity of the public deposits 3266 
program: 3267 
 (11)  Sell securities for the purpose of paying losses to 3268 
public depositors not covered by deposit or share insurance. 3269 
 Section 72.  Effective July 1, 2024, subsection (1) of 3270 
section 280.052, Florida Statutes, is ame nded to read: 3271 
 280.052  Order of suspension or disqualification; 3272 
procedure.— 3273 
 (1)  The suspension or disqualification of a bank , credit 3274 
union, or savings association as a qualified public depository 3275          
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must be by order of the Chief Financial Officer and must be 3276 
mailed to the qualified public depository by registered or 3277 
certified mail. 3278 
 Section 73.  Effective July 1, 2024, paragraph (c) of 3279 
subsection (1) and paragraph (c) of subsection (2) of section 3280 
280.053, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 3281 
 280.053  Period of suspension or disqualification; 3282 
obligations during period; reinstatement. — 3283 
 (1) 3284 
 (c)  Upon expiration of the suspension period, the bank , 3285 
credit union, or savings association may, by order of the Chief 3286 
Financial Officer, be reinstated as a qualifi ed public 3287 
depository, unless the cause of the suspension has not been 3288 
corrected or the bank , credit union, or savings association is 3289 
otherwise not in compliance with this chapter or any rule 3290 
adopted pursuant to this chapter. 3291 
 (2) 3292 
 (c)  Upon expiration of t he disqualification period, the 3293 
bank, credit union, or savings association may reapply for 3294 
qualification as a qualified public depository. If a 3295 
disqualified bank, credit union, or savings association is 3296 
purchased or otherwise acquired by new owners, it may reapply to 3297 
the Chief Financial Officer to be a qualified public depository 3298 
before prior to the expiration date of the disqualification 3299 
period. Redesignation as a qualified public depository may occur 3300          
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only after the Chief Financial Officer has determined t hat all 3301 
requirements for holding public deposits under the law have been 3302 
met. 3303 
 Section 74.  Effective July 1, 2024, section 280.055, 3304 
Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 3305 
 280.055  Cease and desist order; corrective order; 3306 
administrative penalty. — 3307 
 (1)  The Chief Financial Officer may issue a cease and 3308 
desist order and a corrective order upon determining that: 3309 
 (a)  A qualified public depository has requested and 3310 
obtained a release of pledged collateral without approval of the 3311 
Chief Financial Officer; 3312 
 (b)  A bank, credit union, savings association, or other 3313 
financial institution is holding public deposits without a 3314 
certificate of qualification issued by the Chief Financial 3315 
Officer; 3316 
 (c)  A qualified public depository pledges, deposits, or 3317 
arranges for the issuance of unacceptable collateral; 3318 
 (d)  A custodian has released pledged collateral without 3319 
approval of the Chief Financial Officer; 3320 
 (e)  A qualified public depository or a custodian has not 3321 
furnished to the Chief Financial Officer, when the Chief 3322 
Financial Officer requested, a power of attorney or bond power 3323 
or bond assignment form required by the bond agent or bond 3324 
trustee for each issue of registered certificated securities 3325          
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pledged and registered in the name, or nominee name, of the 3326 
qualified public depository or custodian; 3327 
 (f)  A qualified public depository; a bank, credit union, 3328 
savings association, or other financial institution; or a 3329 
custodian has committed any other violation of this chapter or 3330 
any rule adopted pursuant to this chapter that the Chief 3331 
Financial Officer determines may be remedied by a cease and 3332 
desist order or corrective order; or 3333 
 (g)  A qualified public depository no longer meets the 3334 
definition of a qualified public depository under s. 280.02. 3335 
 (2)  Any qualified public depos itory or other bank, credit 3336 
union, savings association, or financial institution or 3337 
custodian that violates a cease and desist order or corrective 3338 
order of the Chief Financial Officer is subject to an 3339 
administrative penalty not exceeding $1,000 for each vi olation 3340 
of the order. Each day the violation of the order continues 3341 
constitutes a separate violation. 3342 
 Section 75.  Effective July 1, 2024, section 280.07, 3343 
Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 3344 
 280.07  Mutual responsibility and contingent liability. — 3345 
 (1)  A Any bank, savings bank, or savings association that 3346 
is designated as a qualified public depository and that is not 3347 
insolvent shall guarantee public depositors against loss caused 3348 
by the default or insolvency of other banks, savings banks, or 3349 
savings associations that are designated as qualified public 3350          
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depositories. 3351 
 (2)  A credit union that is designated as a qualified 3352 
public depository and that is not insolvent shall guarantee 3353 
public depositors against loss caused by the default or 3354 
insolvency of other credit unions that are designated as 3355 
qualified public depositories. 3356 
 3357 
Each qualified public depository shall execute a form prescribed 3358 
by the Chief Financial Officer for such guarantee which must 3359 
shall be approved by the board of directors and must shall 3360 
become an official record of the institution. 3361 
 Section 76.  Effective July 1, 2024, subsections (1) and 3362 
(3) of section 280.08, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 3363 
 280.08  Procedure for payment of losses. —When the Chief 3364 
Financial Officer determines th at a default or insolvency has 3365 
occurred, he or she shall provide notice as required in s. 3366 
280.085 and implement the following procedures: 3367 
 (1)  The Division of Treasury, in cooperation with the 3368 
Office of Financial Regulation of the Financial Services 3369 
Commission or the receiver of the qualified public depository in 3370 
default, shall ascertain the amount of funds of each public 3371 
depositor on deposit at such depository and the amount of 3372 
deposit or share insurance applicable to such deposits. 3373 
 (3)(a)  The loss to p ublic depositors shall be satisfied, 3374 
insofar as possible, first through any applicable deposit or 3375          
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share insurance and then through demanding payment under letters 3376 
of credit or the sale of collateral pledged or deposited by the 3377 
defaulting depository. The Ch ief Financial Officer may assess 3378 
qualified public depositories as provided in paragraph (b) , 3379 
subject to the segregation of contingent liability in s. 280.07, 3380 
for the total loss if the demand for payment or sale of 3381 
collateral cannot be accomplished within 7 business days. 3382 
 (b)  The Chief Financial Officer shall provide coverage of 3383 
any remaining loss by assessment against the other qualified 3384 
public depositories. The Chief Financial Officer shall determine 3385 
such assessment for each qualified public depository b y 3386 
multiplying the total amount of any remaining loss to all public 3387 
depositors by a percentage which represents the average monthly 3388 
balance of public deposits held by each qualified public 3389 
depository during the previous 12 months divided by the total 3390 
average monthly balances of public deposits held by all 3391 
qualified public depositories, excluding the defaulting 3392 
depository, during the same period. The assessment calculation 3393 
must shall be computed to six decimal places. 3394 
 Section 77.  Effective July 1, 2024, s ubsection (4) of 3395 
section 280.085, Florida Statutes, is amended, and subsection 3396 
(1) of that section is republished, to read: 3397 
 280.085  Notice to claimants. — 3398 
 (1)  Upon determining the default or insolvency of a 3399 
qualified public depository, the Chief Financi al Officer shall 3400          
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notify, by first-class mail, all public depositors that have 3401 
complied with s. 280.17 of such default or insolvency. The 3402 
notice must direct all public depositors having claims or 3403 
demands against the Public Deposits Trust Fund occasioned by the 3404 
default or insolvency to file their claims with the Chief 3405 
Financial Officer within 30 days after the date of the notice. 3406 
 (4)  The notice required in subsection (1) is not required 3407 
if the default or insolvency of a qualified public depository is 3408 
resolved in a manner in which all Florida public deposits are 3409 
acquired by another insured bank, credit union, savings bank, or 3410 
savings association. 3411 
 Section 78.  Effective July 1, 2024, section 280.09, 3412 
Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 3413 
 280.09  Public Deposits Trust Fund.— 3414 
 (1)  In order to facilitate the administration of this 3415 
chapter, there is created the Public Deposits Trust Fund, 3416 
hereafter in this section designated "the fund." The proceeds 3417 
from the sale of securities or draw on letters of credit held as 3418 
collateral or from any assessment pursuant to s. 280.08 must 3419 
shall be deposited into the fund. The Chief Financial Officer 3420 
must segregate and separately account for any collateral 3421 
proceeds, assessments, or administrative penalties attributable 3422 
to a credit union from any collateral proceeds, assessments, or 3423 
administrative penalties attributable to any bank, savings bank, 3424 
or savings association. Any administrative penalty collected 3425          
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pursuant to this chapter shall be deposited into the Treasury 3426 
Administrative and Investment Trust Fund. 3427 
 (2)  The Chief Financial Officer is authorized to pay any 3428 
losses to public depositors from the fund, subject to the 3429 
limitations provided in subsection (1), and there are hereby 3430 
appropriated from the fund such sums as may be necessary from 3431 
time to time to pay the losses. The term "losses," for purposes 3432 
of this chapter, must shall also include losses of interest or 3433 
other accumulations to the public depositor as a result of 3434 
penalties for early withdrawal required by Depos itory 3435 
Institution Deregulatory Commission Regulations or applicable 3436 
successor federal laws or regulations because of suspension or 3437 
disqualification of a qualified public depository by the Chief 3438 
Financial Officer pursuant to s. 280.05 or because of withdraw al 3439 
from the public deposits program pursuant to s. 280.11. In that 3440 
event, the Chief Financial Officer is authorized to assess 3441 
against the suspended, disqualified, or withdrawing public 3442 
depository, in addition to any amount authorized by any other 3443 
provision of this chapter, an administrative penalty equal to 3444 
the amount of the early withdrawal penalty and to pay that 3445 
amount over to the public depositor as reimbursement for such 3446 
loss. Any money in the fund estimated not to be needed for 3447 
immediate cash requirem ents shall be invested pursuant to s. 3448 
17.61. 3449 
 Section 79.  Effective July 1, 2024, subsections (1) and 3450          
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(3) of section 280.10, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 3451 
 280.10  Effect of merger, acquisition, or consolidation; 3452 
change of name or address. — 3453 
 (1)  When a qualified public depository is merged into, 3454 
acquired by, or consolidated with a bank, credit union, savings 3455 
bank, or savings association that is not a qualified public 3456 
depository: 3457 
 (a)  The resulting institution shall automatically become a 3458 
qualified public depository subject to the requirements of the 3459 
public deposits program. 3460 
 (b)  The contingent liability of the former institution 3461 
shall be a liability of the resulting institution. 3462 
 (c)  The public deposits and associated collateral of the 3463 
former institution shall be public deposits and collateral of 3464 
the resulting institution. 3465 
 (d)  The resulting institution shall, within 90 calendar 3466 
days after the effective date of the merger, acquisition, or 3467 
consolidation, deliver to the Chief Financial Of ficer: 3468 
 1.  Documentation in its name as required for participation 3469 
in the public deposits program; or 3470 
 2.  Written notice of intent to withdraw from the program 3471 
as provided in s. 280.11 and a proposed effective date of 3472 
withdrawal which shall be within 180 days after the effective 3473 
date of the acquisition, merger, or consolidation of the former 3474 
institution. 3475          
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 (e)  If the resulting institution does not meet 3476 
qualifications to become a qualified public depository or does 3477 
not submit required documentation within 90 calendar days after 3478 
the effective date of the merger, acquisition, or consolidation, 3479 
the Chief Financial Officer shall initiate mandatory withdrawal 3480 
actions as provided in s. 280.11 and shall set an effective date 3481 
of withdrawal that is within 180 days a fter the effective date 3482 
of the acquisition, merger, or consolidation of the former 3483 
institution. 3484 
 (3)  If the default or insolvency of a qualified public 3485 
depository results in acquisition of all or part of its Florida 3486 
public deposits by a bank, credit union, savings bank, or 3487 
savings association that is not a qualified public depository, 3488 
the bank, credit union, savings bank, or savings association 3489 
acquiring the Florida public deposits is subject to subsection 3490 
(1). 3491 
 Section 80.  Effective July 1, 2024, subse ction (1) of 3492 
section 280.13, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 3493 
 280.13  Eligible collateral. — 3494 
 (1)  Securities eligible to be pledged as collateral by 3495 
qualified public depositories banks and savings associations 3496 
shall be limited to: 3497 
 (a)  Direct obligations of the United States Government. 3498 
 (b)  Obligations of any federal agency that are fully 3499 
guaranteed as to payment of principal and interest by the United 3500          
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States Government. 3501 
 (c)  Obligations of the following federal agencies: 3502 
 1.  Farm credit banks. 3503 
 2.  Federal land banks. 3504 
 3.  The Federal Home Loan Bank and its district banks. 3505 
 4.  Federal intermediate credit banks. 3506 
 5.  The Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation. 3507 
 6.  The Federal National Mortgage Association. 3508 
 7.  Obligations guaranteed by the Gove rnment National 3509 
Mortgage Association. 3510 
 (d)  General obligations of a state of the United States, 3511 
or of Puerto Rico, or of a political subdivision or municipality 3512 
thereof. 3513 
 (e)  Obligations issued by the Florida State Board of 3514 
Education under authority of t he State Constitution or 3515 
applicable statutes. 3516 
 (f)  Tax anticipation certificates or warrants of counties 3517 
or municipalities having maturities not exceeding 1 year. 3518 
 (g)  Public housing authority obligations. 3519 
 (h)  Revenue bonds or certificates of a state o f the United 3520 
States or of a political subdivision or municipality thereof. 3521 
 (i)  Corporate bonds of any corporation that is not an 3522 
affiliate or subsidiary of the qualified public depository. 3523 
 Section 81.  Effective July 1, 2024, paragraph (b) of 3524 
subsection (4) of section 280.17, Florida Statutes, is amended, 3525          
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and paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of that section is 3526 
reenacted, to read: 3527 
 280.17  Requirements for public depositors; notice to 3528 
public depositors and governmental units; loss of protection. —In 3529 
addition to any other requirement specified in this chapter, 3530 
public depositors shall comply with the following: 3531 
 (1)(a)  Each official custodian of moneys that meet the 3532 
definition of a public deposit under s. 280.02 shall ensure such 3533 
moneys are placed in a qual ified public depository unless the 3534 
moneys are exempt under the laws of this state. 3535 
 (4)  If public deposits are in a qualified public 3536 
depository that has been declared to be in default or insolvent, 3537 
each public depositor shall: 3538 
 (b)  Submit to the Chief Financial Officer for each public 3539 
deposit, within 30 days after the date of official notification 3540 
from the Chief Financial Officer, the following: 3541 
 1.  A claim form and agreement, as prescribed by the Chief 3542 
Financial Officer, execu ted under oath, accompanied by proof of 3543 
authority to execute the form on behalf of the public depositor. 3544 
 2.  A completed public deposit identification and 3545 
acknowledgment form, as described in subsection (2). 3546 
 3.  Evidence of the insurance afforded the dep osit pursuant 3547 
to the Federal Deposit Insurance Act or the Federal Credit Union 3548 
Act, as appropriate. 3549 
 Section 82.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3550          
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incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3551 
Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, subsection (1) of 3552 
section 24.114, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 3553 
 24.114  Bank deposits and control of lottery transactions. — 3554 
 (1)  All moneys received by each retailer from the 3555 
operation of the state lottery, including, but not limited t o, 3556 
all ticket sales, interest, gifts, and donations, less the 3557 
amount retained as compensation for the sale of the tickets and 3558 
the amount paid out as prizes, shall be remitted to the 3559 
department or deposited in a qualified public depository, as 3560 
defined in s. 280.02, as directed by the department. The 3561 
department shall have the responsibility for all administrative 3562 
functions related to the receipt of funds. The department may 3563 
also require each retailer to file with the department reports 3564 
of the retailer's recei pts and transactions in the sale of 3565 
lottery tickets in such form and containing such information as 3566 
the department may require. The department may require any 3567 
person, including a qualified public depository, to perform any 3568 
function, activity, or service in connection with the operation 3569 
of the lottery as it may deem advisable pursuant to this act and 3570 
rules of the department, and such functions, activities, or 3571 
services shall constitute lawful functions, activities, and 3572 
services of such person. 3573 
 Section 83.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3574 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3575          
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Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, paragraph (e) of 3576 
subsection (3) of section 125.901, Florida Statutes, is 3577 
reenacted to read: 3578 
 125.901  Children's services; independent special district; 3579 
council; powers, duties, and functions; public records 3580 
exemption.— 3581 
 (3) 3582 
 (e)1.  All moneys received by the council on children's 3583 
services shall be deposited in qualified public depositories, as 3584 
defined in s. 280.02, with separate and distinguishable accounts 3585 
established specifically for the council and shall be withdrawn 3586 
only by checks signed by the chair of the council and 3587 
countersigned by either one other member of the council on 3588 
children's services or by a c hief executive officer who shall be 3589 
so authorized by the council. 3590 
 2.  Upon entering the duties of office, the chair and the 3591 
other member of the council or chief executive officer who signs 3592 
its checks shall each give a surety bond in the sum of at least 3593 
$1,000 for each $1 million or portion thereof of the council's 3594 
annual budget, which bond shall be conditioned that each shall 3595 
faithfully discharge the duties of his or her office. The 3596 
premium on such bond may be paid by the district as part of the 3597 
expense of the council. No other member of the council shall be 3598 
required to give bond or other security. 3599 
 3.  No funds of the district shall be expended except by 3600          
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check as aforesaid, except expenditures from a petty cash 3601 
account which shall not at any time exceed $1 00. All 3602 
expenditures from petty cash shall be recorded on the books and 3603 
records of the council on children's services. No funds of the 3604 
council on children's services, excepting expenditures from 3605 
petty cash, shall be expended without prior approval of the 3606 
council, in addition to the budgeting thereof. 3607 
 Section 84.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3608 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3609 
Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, section 136.01, 3610 
Florida Statutes, is reenacte d to read: 3611 
 136.01  County depositories. —Each county depository shall 3612 
be a qualified public depository as defined in s. 280.02 for the 3613 
following funds: county funds; funds of all county officers, 3614 
including constitutional officers; funds of the school board ; 3615 
and funds of the community college district board of trustees. 3616 
This enumeration of funds is made not by way of limitation, but 3617 
of illustration; and it is the intent hereof that all funds of 3618 
the county, the board of county commissioners or the several 3619 
county officers, the school board, or the community college 3620 
district board of trustees be included. 3621 
 Section 85.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3622 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3623 
Florida Statutes, in a reference the reto, subsection (11) of 3624 
section 159.608, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 3625          
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 159.608  Powers of housing finance authorities. —A housing 3626 
finance authority shall constitute a public body corporate and 3627 
politic, exercising the public and essential governm ental 3628 
functions set forth in this act, and shall exercise its power to 3629 
borrow only for the purpose as provided herein: 3630 
 (11)  To invest and reinvest surplus funds of the housing 3631 
finance authority in accordance with s. 218.415. However, in 3632 
addition to the investments expressly authorized in s. 3633 
218.415(16)(a)-(g) and (17)(a)-(d), a housing finance authority 3634 
may invest surplus funds in interest -bearing time deposits or 3635 
savings accounts that are fully insured by the Federal Deposit 3636 
Insurance Corporation regardl ess of whether the bank or 3637 
financial institution in which the deposit or investment is made 3638 
is a qualified public depository as defined in s. 280.02. This 3639 
subsection is supplementary to and may not be construed as 3640 
limiting any powers of a housing finance a uthority or providing 3641 
or implying a limiting construction of any other statutory 3642 
provision. 3643 
 Section 86.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3644 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3645 
Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, section 175.301, 3646 
Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 3647 
 175.301  Depository for pension funds. —For any 3648 
municipality, special fire control district, chapter plan, local 3649 
law municipality, local law special fire control district, or 3650          
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local law plan under th is chapter, all funds of the 3651 
firefighters' pension trust fund of any chapter plan or local 3652 
law plan under this chapter may be deposited by the board of 3653 
trustees with the treasurer of the municipality or special fire 3654 
control district, acting in a ministeria l capacity only, who 3655 
shall be liable in the same manner and to the same extent as he 3656 
or she is liable for the safekeeping of funds for the 3657 
municipality or special fire control district. However, any 3658 
funds so deposited with the treasurer of the municipality or 3659 
special fire control district shall be kept in a separate fund 3660 
by the treasurer or clearly identified as such funds of the 3661 
firefighters' pension trust fund. In lieu thereof, the board of 3662 
trustees shall deposit the funds of the firefighters' pension 3663 
trust fund in a qualified public depository as defined in s. 3664 
280.02, which depository with regard to such funds shall conform 3665 
to and be bound by all of the provisions of chapter 280. 3666 
 Section 87.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3667 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3668 
Florida Statutes, in references thereto, subsection (8) of 3669 
section 175.401, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 3670 
 175.401  Retiree health insurance subsidy. —For any 3671 
municipality, special fire control distri ct, chapter plan, local 3672 
law municipality, local law special fire control district, or 3673 
local law plan under this chapter, under the broad grant of home 3674 
rule powers under the State Constitution and chapter 166, 3675          
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municipalities have the authority to establish and administer 3676 
locally funded health insurance subsidy programs. In addition, 3677 
special fire control districts may, by resolution, establish and 3678 
administer locally funded health insurance subsidy programs. 3679 
Pursuant thereto: 3680 
 (8)  DEPOSIT OF HEALTH INSURANCE SUBSIDY FUNDS.—All funds 3681 
of the health insurance subsidy fund may be deposited by the 3682 
board of trustees with the treasurer of the municipality or 3683 
special fire control district, acting in a ministerial capacity 3684 
only, who shall be liable in the same manner a nd to the same 3685 
extent as he or she is liable for the safekeeping of funds for 3686 
the municipality or special fire control district. Any funds so 3687 
deposited shall be segregated by the treasurer in a separate 3688 
fund, clearly identified as funds of the health insur ance 3689 
subsidy fund. In lieu thereof, the board of trustees shall 3690 
deposit the funds of the health insurance subsidy fund in a 3691 
qualified public depository as defined in s. 280.02, which shall 3692 
conform to and be bound by the provisions of chapter 280 with 3693 
regard to such funds. In no case shall the funds of the health 3694 
insurance subsidy fund be deposited in any financial 3695 
institution, brokerage house trust company, or other entity that 3696 
is not a public depository as provided by s. 280.02. 3697 
 Section 88.  Effective J uly 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3698 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3699 
Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, section 185.30, 3700          
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Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 3701 
 185.30  Depository for retirement fund. —For any 3702 
municipality, chapter plan, local law municipality, or local law 3703 
plan under this chapter, all funds of the municipal police 3704 
officers' retirement trust fund of any municipality, chapter 3705 
plan, local law municipality, or local law plan under this 3706 
chapter may be deposited by the board of trustees with the 3707 
treasurer of the municipality acting in a ministerial capacity 3708 
only, who shall be liable in the same manner and to the same 3709 
extent as he or she is liable for the safekeeping of funds for 3710 
the municipality. However, any fund s so deposited with the 3711 
treasurer of the municipality shall be kept in a separate fund 3712 
by the municipal treasurer or clearly identified as such funds 3713 
of the municipal police officers' retirement trust fund. In lieu 3714 
thereof, the board of trustees shall depo sit the funds of the 3715 
municipal police officers' retirement trust fund in a qualified 3716 
public depository as defined in s. 280.02, which depository with 3717 
regard to such funds shall conform to and be bound by all of the 3718 
provisions of chapter 280. 3719 
 Section 89. Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3720 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3721 
Florida Statutes, in references thereto, subsection (8) of 3722 
section 185.50, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 3723 
 185.50  Retiree health insuranc e subsidy.—For any 3724 
municipality, chapter plan, local law municipality, or local law 3725          
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plan under this chapter, under the broad grant of home rule 3726 
powers under the State Constitution and chapter 166, 3727 
municipalities have the authority to establish and administ er 3728 
locally funded health insurance subsidy programs. Pursuant 3729 
thereto: 3730 
 (8)  DEPOSIT OF PENSION FUNDS. —All funds of the health 3731 
insurance subsidy fund may be deposited by the board of trustees 3732 
with the treasurer of the municipality, acting in a ministerial 3733 
capacity only, who shall be liable in the same manner and to the 3734 
same extent as he or she is liable for the safekeeping of funds 3735 
for the municipality. Any funds so deposited shall be segregated 3736 
by said treasurer in a separate fund, clearly identified as 3737 
funds of the health insurance subsidy fund. In lieu thereof, the 3738 
board of trustees shall deposit the funds of the health 3739 
insurance subsidy fund in a qualified public depository as 3740 
defined in s. 280.02, which shall conform to and be bound by the 3741 
provisions of chapter 280 with regard to such funds. In no case 3742 
shall the funds of the health insurance subsidy fund be 3743 
deposited in any financial institution, brokerage house trust 3744 
company, or other entity that is not a public depository as 3745 
provided by s. 280.02. 3746 
 Section 90.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3747 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3748 
Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, subsection (3) of 3749 
section 190.007, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 3750          
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 190.007  Board of supervisors; general duties. — 3751 
 (3)  The board is authorized to select as a depository for 3752 
its funds any qualified public depository as defined in s. 3753 
280.02 which meets all the requirements of chapter 280 and has 3754 
been designated by the Chief Financial Offic er as a qualified 3755 
public depository, upon such terms and conditions as to the 3756 
payment of interest by such depository upon the funds so 3757 
deposited as the board may deem just and reasonable. 3758 
 Section 91.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3759 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3760 
Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, subsection (16) of 3761 
section 191.006, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 3762 
 191.006  General powers. —The district shall have, and the 3763 
board may exercise by ma jority vote, the following powers: 3764 
 (16)  To select as a depository for its funds any qualified 3765 
public depository as defined in s. 280.02 which meets all the 3766 
requirements of chapter 280 and has been designated by the Chief 3767 
Financial Officer as a qualified public depository, upon such 3768 
terms and conditions as to the payment of interest upon the 3769 
funds deposited as the board deems just and reasonable. 3770 
 Section 92.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3771 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to sect ion 280.02, 3772 
Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, subsection (2) of 3773 
section 215.34, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 3774 
 215.34  State funds; noncollectible items; procedure. — 3775          
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 (2)  Whenever a check, draft, or other order for the 3776 
payment of money is returned by the Chief Financial Officer, or 3777 
by a qualified public depository as defined in s. 280.02, to a 3778 
state officer, a state agency, or the judicial branch for 3779 
collection, the officer, agency, or judicial branch shall add to 3780 
the amount due a service fee of $15 or 5 percent of the face 3781 
amount of the check, draft, or order, whichever is greater. An 3782 
agency or the judicial branch may adopt a rule which prescribes 3783 
a lesser maximum service fee, which shall be added to the amount 3784 
due for the dishonored chec k, draft, or other order tendered for 3785 
a particular service, license, tax, fee, or other charge, but in 3786 
no event shall the fee be less than $15. The service fee shall 3787 
be in addition to all other penalties imposed by law, except 3788 
that when other charges or pe nalties are imposed by an agency 3789 
related to a noncollectible item, the amount of the service fee 3790 
shall not exceed $150. Proceeds from this fee shall be deposited 3791 
in the same fund as the collected item. Nothing in this section 3792 
shall be construed as authoriz ation to deposit moneys outside 3793 
the State Treasury unless specifically authorized by law. 3794 
 Section 93.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3795 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3796 
Florida Statutes, in references thereto, pa ragraph (c) of 3797 
subsection (16), paragraph (c) of subsection (17), and paragraph 3798 
(a) of subsection (23) of section 218.415, Florida Statutes, are 3799 
reenacted to read: 3800          
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 218.415  Local government investment policies. —Investment 3801 
activity by a unit of local gover nment must be consistent with a 3802 
written investment plan adopted by the governing body, or in the 3803 
absence of the existence of a governing body, the respective 3804 
principal officer of the unit of local government and maintained 3805 
by the unit of local government o r, in the alternative, such 3806 
activity must be conducted in accordance with subsection (17). 3807 
Any such unit of local government shall have an investment 3808 
policy for any public funds in excess of the amounts needed to 3809 
meet current expenses as provided in subsec tions (1)-(16), or 3810 
shall meet the alternative investment guidelines contained in 3811 
subsection (17). Such policies shall be structured to place the 3812 
highest priority on the safety of principal and liquidity of 3813 
funds. The optimization of investment returns shal l be secondary 3814 
to the requirements for safety and liquidity. Each unit of local 3815 
government shall adopt policies that are commensurate with the 3816 
nature and size of the public funds within its custody. 3817 
 (16)  AUTHORIZED INVESTMENTS; WRITTEN INVESTMENT POLICIE S.—3818 
Those units of local government electing to adopt a written 3819 
investment policy as provided in subsections (1) -(15) may by 3820 
resolution invest and reinvest any surplus public funds in their 3821 
control or possession in: 3822 
 (c)  Interest-bearing time deposits or s avings accounts in 3823 
qualified public depositories as defined in s. 280.02. 3824 
 (17)  AUTHORIZED INVESTMENTS; NO WRITTEN INVESTMENT 3825          
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POLICY.—Those units of local government electing not to adopt a 3826 
written investment policy in accordance with investment policies 3827 
developed as provided in subsections (1) -(15) may invest or 3828 
reinvest any surplus public funds in their control or possession 3829 
in: 3830 
 (c)  Interest-bearing time deposits or savings accounts in 3831 
qualified public depositories, as defined in s. 280.02. 3832 
 3833 
The securities listed in paragraphs (c) and (d) shall be 3834 
invested to provide sufficient liquidity to pay obligations as 3835 
they come due. 3836 
 (23)  AUTHORIZED DEPOSITS. —In addition to the investments 3837 
authorized for local governments in subsections (16) and (17) 3838 
and notwithstanding any other provisions of law, a unit of local 3839 
government may deposit any portion of surplus public funds in 3840 
its control or possession in accordance with the following 3841 
conditions: 3842 
 (a)  The funds are initially deposited in a qualified 3843 
public depository, as defined in s. 280.02, selected by the unit 3844 
of local government. 3845 
 Section 94.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3846 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3847 
Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, paragraph (h) of 3848 
subsection (4) of section 255.502, Florida Statutes, is 3849 
reenacted to read: 3850          
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 255.502  Definitions; ss. 255.501 -255.525.—As used in this 3851 
act, the following words and terms shall have the following 3852 
meanings unless the context otherwise requires: 3853 
 (4)  "Authorized investments" means and includes without 3854 
limitation any investment in: 3855 
 (h)  Savings accounts in, or certificates of deposit of, 3856 
qualified public depositories as defined in s. 280.02, in an 3857 
amount that does not exceed 15 percent of the net worth of the 3858 
institution, or a lesser amount as determined by rule by the 3859 
State Board of Administration, provided such savings accounts 3860 
and certificates of deposit are secured in the manner prescribed 3861 
in chapter 280. 3862 
 3863 
Investments in any security authorized in this subs ection may be 3864 
under repurchase agreements or reverse repurchase agreements. 3865 
 Section 95.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3866 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3867 
Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, subsection (15) of 3868 
section 280.051, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 3869 
 280.051  Grounds for suspension or disqualification of a 3870 
qualified public depository. —A qualified public depository may 3871 
be suspended or disqualified or both if the Chief Financial 3872 
Officer determines that the qualified public depository has: 3873 
 (15)  No longer meets the definition of a qualified public 3874 
depository under s. 280.02. 3875          
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 Section 96.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3876 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02 , 3877 
Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, subsection (1) of 3878 
section 280.18, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 3879 
 280.18  Protection of public depositors; liability of the 3880 
state.— 3881 
 (1)  When public deposits are made in accordance with this 3882 
chapter, there shall be protection from loss to public 3883 
depositors, as defined in s. 280.02, in the absence of 3884 
negligence, malfeasance, misfeasance, or nonfeasance on the part 3885 
of the public depositor or on the part of his or her agents or 3886 
employees. 3887 
 Section 97.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3888 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3889 
Florida Statutes, in references thereto, subsections (1) and (2) 3890 
of section 331.309, Florida Statutes, are reenacted to read: 3891 
 331.309  Treasurer; depositories; fiscal agent. — 3892 
 (1)  The board shall designate an individual who is a 3893 
resident of the state, or a qualified public depository as 3894 
defined in s. 280.02, as treasurer of Space Florida, who shall 3895 
have charge of the funds of Space Florida. Such funds shall be 3896 
disbursed only upon the order of or pursuant to the resolution 3897 
of the board by warrant, check, authorization, or direct deposit 3898 
pursuant to s. 215.85, signed or authorized by the treasurer or 3899 
his or her representative or by such other p ersons as may be 3900          
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authorized by the board. The board may give the treasurer such 3901 
other or additional powers and duties as the board may deem 3902 
appropriate and shall establish the treasurer's compensation. 3903 
The board may require the treasurer to give a bond in such 3904 
amount, on such terms, and with such sureties as may be deemed 3905 
satisfactory to the board to secure the performance by the 3906 
treasurer of his or her powers and duties. The board shall audit 3907 
or have audited the books of the treasurer at least once a year. 3908 
 (2)  The board is authorized to select as depositories in 3909 
which the funds of the board and of Space Florida shall be 3910 
deposited any qualified public depository as defined in s. 3911 
280.02, upon such terms and conditions as to the payment of 3912 
interest by such depository upon the funds so deposited as the 3913 
board may deem just and reasonable. The funds of Space Florida 3914 
may be kept in or removed from the State Treasury upon written 3915 
notification from the chair of the board to the Chief Financial 3916 
Officer. 3917 
 Section 98.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3918 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3919 
Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, subsection (2) of 3920 
section 373.553, Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 3921 
 373.553  Treasurer of the b oard; payment of funds; 3922 
depositories.— 3923 
 (2)  The board is authorized to select as depositories in 3924 
which the funds of the board and of the district shall be 3925          
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deposited in any qualified public depository as defined in s. 3926 
280.02, and such deposits shall be sec ured in the manner 3927 
provided in chapter 280. 3928 
 Section 99.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3929 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3930 
Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, section 631.221, 3931 
Florida Statutes, is reenacted to read: 3932 
 631.221  Deposit of moneys collected. —The moneys collected 3933 
by the department in a proceeding under this chapter shall be 3934 
deposited in a qualified public depository as defined in s. 3935 
280.02, which depository with regards to such funds shall 3936 
conform to and be bound by all the provisions of chapter 280, or 3937 
invested with the Chief Financial Officer pursuant to chapter 3938 
18. For the purpose of accounting for the assets and 3939 
transactions of the estate, the receiver shall use such 3940 
accounting books, records, and systems as the court directs 3941 
after it hears and considers the recommendations of the 3942 
receiver. 3943 
 Section 100.  Effective July 1, 2024, for the purpose of 3944 
incorporating the amendment made by this act to section 280.02, 3945 
Florida Statutes, in a reference thereto, paragraph (c) of 3946 
subsection (3) of section 723.06115, Florida Statutes, is 3947 
reenacted to read: 3948 
 723.06115  Florida Mobile Home Relocation Trust Fund. — 3949 
 (3)  The department shall distribute moneys in the Florida 3950          
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Mobile Home Relocation Trust Fund to the Florida Mobile Home 3951 
Relocation Corporation in accordance with the following: 3952 
 (c)  Funds transferred from the trust fund to the 3953 
corporation shall be transferred electronically and shall be 3954 
transferred to and maintained in a qualified public depository 3955 
as defined in s. 280.02 which is specified by the corporation. 3956 
 Section 101.  Except as otherwise expressly provided in 3957 
this act, this act shall take effect upon becoming a law. 3958