STORAGE NAME: h0543a.IPA
DATE: 3/15/2025
1
FLORIDA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
BILL ANALYSIS
This bill analysis was prepared by nonpartisan committee staff and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.
BILL #: CS/HB 543
TITLE: Third-party Reservation Platforms
SPONSOR(S): Oliver
COMPANION BILL: SB 940 (McClain)
LINKED BILLS: None
RELATED BILLS: None
Committee References
Industries & Professional Activities
17 Y, 0 N, As CS
Commerce
SUMMARY
Effect of the Bill:
The bill prohibits third-party restaurant reservation platforms in the state. The bill defines a "third-party
reservation platform" as any website, mobile application, or internet service that offers reservations at public food
service establishments without a contractual relationship with the establishment. The bill provides an exception
for certain third-party reservation platforms that arrange for reservations at food service establishments in certain
conditions at no cost to the customer. The bill prohibits these platforms from listing, advertising, promoting, or
selling reservations for on-premises service at public food service establishments. The bill authorizes the
Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR), Division of Hotels and Restaurants (Division) to
impose civil penalties of up to $1,000 per violation, that may accrue daily.
Fiscal or Economic Impact:
The bill may have an indeterminate fiscal impact on state funds.
JUMP TO SUMMARY ANALYSIS RELEVANT INFORMATION BILL HISTORY
ANALYSIS
EFFECT OF THE BILL:
The bill prohibits third-party reservation platforms, as follows:
Names the act, the “Restaurant Reservation Anti-Piracy Act.” (Section 1)
Defines "third-party reservation platform" as a website, mobile application, or other Internet service that
satisfies all of the following:
o Offers or arranges for a reservation at a public food service establishment for on-premises service.
o Is owned and operated by a person other than the owner of the public food service establishment.
o Does not have a contractual relationship or agreement with the public food service establishment,
or its contractual designee, to offer or arrange for a reservation at the public food service
establishment for on-premises service.
Clarifies that a third-party reservation platform does not include a contractual designee of an individual
customer which arranges for a personal and nontransferrable reservation at a food service establishment
at the request of the customer and at no cost to the customer, provided that the designee:
o Shares the individual customer's contact information with the food service establishment;
o Allows the food service establishment to confirm the reservation with the individual customer; and
o Honors requests from the food service establishment to opt out of future reservations created by
the designee. (Section 2)
Prohibits a reservation at a public food service establishment from being listed, advertised, promoted,
facilited, sold, or otherwise enabled through a third-party reservation platform.
Authorizes the Division to impose a civil penalty to $1,000 for each violation, and specifies that violations
accrue on a daily basis. (Section 2)
JUMP TO SUMMARY ANALYSIS RELEVANT INFORMATION BILL HISTORY
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The effective date of the bill is July 1, 2025. (Section 3)
FISCAL OR ECONOMIC IMPACT:
STATE GOVERNMENT:
Indeterminate. The bill may have an indeterminate fiscal impact on state funds. The bill authorizes the Division to
impose civil penalties, which accrue on a daily basis. It is unknown how many violations will occur.
PRIVATE SECTOR:
Indeterminate. The bill may have a positive economic impact on restaurant owners and service workers to the
extent that it reduces the number of empty tables that are associated with unauthorized third-party restaurant
reservations.
RELEVANT INFORMATION
SUBJECT OVERVIEW:
Division of Hotels and Restaurants
The Division
1 is responsible
2 for administering and enforcing laws relating to the licensing, inspection, and
regulation of public food service establishments for the purpose of protecting the public health, safety and
welfare.
3
Public Food Service Establishments
A “public food service establishment” is defined as any building, vehicle, place, or structure, or any room or division
in a building, vehicle, place, or structure where food is prepared, served, or sold for immediate consumption on or
in the vicinity of the premises; called for or taken out by customers; or prepared prior to being delivered to another
location for consumption.
4
There are several exclusions from the definition of the term, including:
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Any place maintained and operated by a public or private school, college, or university for the use of
students and faculty, or temporarily to serve events such as fairs, carnivals, and athletic contests;
Any eating place maintained and operated by a church or religious, nonprofit fraternal, or nonprofit civic
organization for the use of members and associates or temporarily to serve events such as fairs, carnivals,
or athletic contests;
Any eating place located on an airplane, train, bus, or watercraft that is a common carrier;
Any eating place maintained by a facility certified or licensed and regulated by the Agency for Health Care
Administration or the Department of Children and Families;
Any place of business issued a permit or inspected by the Department of Agriculture and Consumer
Services;
Any vending machine that dispenses any food or beverage other than potentially hazardous food;
Any place of business serving only ice, beverages, popcorn, and prepackaged items; and
Any research and development test kitchen limited to use by employees and not open to the general public.
The regulation of public food service establishments is preempted to the state.
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Third-Party Reservation Platforms
1
Florida Department of Business & Professional Regulation, Division of Hotels and Restaurants,
https://www2.myfloridalicense.com/hotels-restaurants/ (last visited March 8, 2025).
2
See s. 509.032, F.S.
3
S. 509.032(1), F.S.
4
S. 509.013(5)(a), F.S.
5
S. 509.013(5)(b), F.S.
6
S. 509.032(7), F.S. JUMP TO SUMMARY ANALYSIS RELEVANT INFORMATION BILL HISTORY
3
Third-party reservation platforms are not currently regulated by the State of Florida. According to reports, scalping
reservations has historically been an issue within the restaurant industry; however, recently, third-party websites
and bots
7 have made the problem much worse. In many cases, the reservations do not sell and thus, become a no-
show, which means the table stays empty, the restaurant loses money, and the service workers lose out on their
tips. In addition, such reservations can be made with fake names, which can cause confusion for the businesses.
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New York State
Recently, the State of New York passed a bill that prohibits third-party restaurant reservation services from
arranging unauthorized restaurant reservations with food service establishments. The law, which became effective
February 17, 2025, prohibited listing or selling reservations on a website or mobile application by persons who do
not have a written agreement with the restaurant to include its reservations, and established civil penalties of up to
$1,000 per violation per day.
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BILL HISTORY
COMMITTEE REFERENCE ACTION DATE
STAFF
DIRECTOR/
POLICY CHIEF
ANALYSIS
PREPARED BY
Industries & Professional Activities
Subcommittee
17 Y, 0 N, As CS 3/12/2025 Anstead Thompson
THE CHANGES ADOPTED BY THE
COMMITTEE:
Clarified the definition of “third-party reservation platform.”
Provided an exception from the prohibition for certain third-party
reservation platforms.
Clarified the prohibition and violation provisions.
Commerce Committee
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THIS BILL ANALYSIS HAS BEEN UPDATED TO INCORPORATE ALL OF THE CHANGES DESCRIBED ABOVE.
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7
Cambridge Online Dictionary defines a “bot” as “a computer program that works automatically, especially one that searches
for and finds information on the internet: Criminals create networks of bots that roam the internet infecting PCs with
malware.”
8
Gothamist, New York law aims to kill 'black market' for restaurant reservations, https://gothamist.com/news/new-york-law-
aims-to-kill-black-market-for-restaurant-reservations (last visited March 8, 2025).
9
NY Assembly Bill A10215A (2024).