Florida 2025 Regular Session

Florida House Bill H0755 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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10	10	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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12	12
13	13
14	14	A bill to be entitled 1
15	15	An act relating to construction contracting; amending 2
16	16	s. 489.111, F.S.; requiring an applicant for licensure 3
17	17	to submit a specified notarized statement to the 4
18	18	Department of Business and Professional Regulation; 5
19	19	subjecting a licensed contractor to disciplina ry 6
20	20	action under certain circumstances; amending s. 7
21	21	489.126, F.S.; requiring a contractor to return a 8
22	22	contractee's deposit under certain circumstances; 9
23	23	authorizing the contractor to retain a portion of the 10
24	24	deposit under certain circumstances; subjecting a 11
25	25	contractor to disciplinary action, including the 12
26	26	suspension of his or her license, under certain 13
27	27	circumstances; amending s. 489.127, F.S.; providing 14
28	28	criminal penalties for certain violations; creating s. 15
29	29	489.1285, F.S.; requiring the department to create an d 16
30	30	adopt by a date certain a standardized disciplinary 17
31	31	form for a certain purpose; providing requirements for 18
32	32	local construction regulation boards; requiring the 19
33	33	department to record each submitted form in a 20
34	34	specified automated system; requiring a specified 21
35	35	report by a date certain; amending ss. 1003.41 and 22
36	36	1003.4282, F.S.; requiring financial literacy 23
37	37	standards to include specified content for consumer 24
38	38	protection awareness relating to construction 25
39	39
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47	47	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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49	49
50	50
51	51	contracting beginning in a specified school year; 26
52	52	amending ss. 489.119, 489.13, and 489.131, F.S.; 27
53	53	conforming cross-references; providing an effective 28
54	54	date. 29
55	55	30
56	56	Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 31
57	57	32
58	58	Section 1. Subsection (4) of section 489.111, Florida 33
59	59	Statutes, is renumbered as subsection (5), subsection (2) of 34
60	60	that section is amended, and a new subsection (4) is added to 35
61	61	that section, to read: 36
62	62	489.111 Licensure by examination. — 37
63	63	(2) A person is shall be eligible for licensure by 38
64	64	examination if the person meets all of the following 39
65	65	requirements: 40
66	66	(a) Is 18 years of age .; 41
67	67	(b) Is of good moral character .; and 42
68	68	(c) Meets eligibility requirements according to one of the 43
69	69	following criteria: 44
70	70	1. Has received a baccalaureate degree from an accredited 45
71	71	4-year college in the appropriate field of engineering, 46
72	72	architecture, or building construction and has 1 year of proven 47
73	73	experience in the category in which the person seeks to qualify. 48
74	74	For the purpose of this part, a minimum of 2,000 person -hours 49
75	75	shall be used in determining full -time equivalency. An applicant 50
76	76
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84	84	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
85	85
86	86
87	87
88	88	who is exempt from passing an examination under s. 489.113(1) is 51
89	89	eligible for a license under this section. 52
90	90	2. Has a total of at least 4 years of active experience as 53
91	91	a worker who has learned the trade by serving an apprenticeship 54
92	92	as a skilled worker who is able to command the rate of a 55
93	93	mechanic in the particular trade or as a foreman who is in 56
94	94	charge of a group of workers and usually is responsible to a 57
95	95	superintendent or a contractor or his or her equivalent; 58
96	96	provided, however, that at l east 1 year of active experience 59
97	97	shall be as a foreman. 60
98	98	3. Has a combination of not less than 1 year of experience 61
99	99	as a foreman and not less than 3 years of credits for any 62
100	100	accredited college-level courses; has a combination of not less 63
101	101	than 1 year of experience as a skilled worker, 1 year of 64
102	102	experience as a foreman, and not less than 2 years of credits 65
103	103	for any accredited college -level courses; or has a combination 66
104	104	of not less than 2 years of experience as a skilled worker, 1 67
105	105	year of experience as a forem an, and not less than 1 year of 68
106	106	credits for any accredited college -level courses. All junior 69
107	107	college or community college -level courses shall be considered 70
108	108	accredited college-level courses. 71
109	109	4.a. An active certified residential contractor is 72
110	110	eligible to receive a certified building contractor license 73
111	111	after passing or having previously passed the building 74
112	112	contractors' examination if he or she possesses a minimum of 3 75
113	113
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121	121	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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123	123
124	124
125	125	years of proven experience in the classification in which he or 76
126	126	she is certified. 77
127	127	b. An active certified residential contractor is eligible 78
128	128	to receive a certified general contractor license after passing 79
129	129	or having previously passed the general contractors' examination 80
130	130	if he or she possesses a minimum of 4 years of proven experience 81
131	131	in the classification in which he or she is certified. 82
132	132	c. An active certified building contractor is eligible to 83
133	133	receive a certified general contractor license after passing or 84
134	134	having previously passed the general contractors' examination if 85
135	135	he or she possesses a m inimum of 4 years of proven experience in 86
136	136	the classification in which he or she is certified. 87
137	137	5.a. An active certified air -conditioning Class C 88
138	138	contractor is eligible to receive a certified air -conditioning 89
139	139	Class B contractor license after passing or having previously 90
140	140	passed the air-conditioning Class B contractors' examination if 91
141	141	he or she possesses a minimum of 3 years of proven experience in 92
142	142	the classification in which he or she is certified. 93
143	143	b. An active certified air -conditioning Class C contrac tor 94
144	144	is eligible to receive a certified air -conditioning Class A 95
145	145	contractor license after passing or having previously passed the 96
146	146	air-conditioning Class A contractors' examination if he or she 97
147	147	possesses a minimum of 4 years of proven experience in the 98
148	148	classification in which he or she is certified. 99
149	149	c. An active certified air -conditioning Class B contractor 100
150	150
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158	158	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
159	159
160	160
161	161
162	162	is eligible to receive a certified air -conditioning Class A 101
163	163	contractor license after passing or having previously passed the 102
164	164	air-conditioning Class A co ntractors' examination if he or she 103
165	165	possesses a minimum of 1 year of proven experience in the 104
166	166	classification in which he or she is certified. 105
167	167	6.a. An active certified swimming pool servicing 106
168	168	contractor is eligible to receive a certified residential 107
169	169	swimming pool contractor license after passing or having 108
170	170	previously passed the residential swimming pool contractors' 109
171	171	examination if he or she possesses a minimum of 3 years of 110
172	172	proven experience in the classification in which he or she is 111
173	173	certified. 112
174	174	b. An active certified swimming pool servicing contractor 113
175	175	is eligible to receive a certified commercial swimming pool 114
176	176	contractor license after passing or having previously passed the 115
177	177	swimming pool commercial contractors' examination if he or she 116
178	178	possesses a minimum of 4 years of proven experience in the 117
179	179	classification in which he or she is certified. 118
180	180	c. An active certified residential swimming pool 119
181	181	contractor is eligible to receive a certified commercial 120
182	182	swimming pool contractor license after passing or having 121
183	183	previously passed the commercial swimming pool contractors' 122
184	184	examination if he or she possesses a minimum of 1 year of proven 123
185	185	experience in the classification in which he or she is 124
186	186	certified. 125
187	187
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195	195	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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197	197
198	198
199	199	d. An applicant is eligible to receive a certified 126
200	200	swimming pool/spa servicing contractor license after passing or 127
201	201	having previously passed the swimming pool/spa servicing 128
202	202	contractors' examination if he or she has satisfactorily 129
203	203	completed 60 hours of instruction in courses related to the 130
204	204	scope of work covered by that lic ense and approved by the 131
205	205	Construction Industry Licensing Board by rule and has at least 1 132
206	206	year of proven experience related to the scope of work of such a 133
207	207	contractor. 134
208	208	(d) Submits a notarized statement from a licensed 135
209	209	contractor who has direct knowledge o f the work experience the 136
210	210	applicant provided in his or her application for licensure. 137
211	211	(4) If the board finds that a licensed contractor 138
212	212	completes a notarized statement for an applicant that is 139
213	213	intentionally and purposefully misleading or false, the licen sed 140
214	214	contractor is subject to discipline by the department. 141
215	215	Section 2. Subsection (2) and paragraph (b) of subsection 142
216	216	(3) of section 489.126, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 143
217	217	489.126 Moneys received by contractors. — 144
218	218	(2)(a) A contractor who ent ers into a contract and 145
219	219	receives a deposit for a construction project and subsequently 146
220	220	cancels the construction project or rescinds the contract must, 147
221	221	if the contract does not contain a cancellation or rescission 148
222	222	provision, return the deposit to the contra ctee within 30 days 149
223	223	after the date of such cancellation or rescission. The 150
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232	232	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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234	234
235	235
236	236	contractor may retain any portion of the deposit that has been 151
237	237	spent on the construction project before cancellation or 152
238	238	rescission if the contractor provides to the contractee a 153
239	239	detailed statement of such expenditure. 154
240	240	(b) A contractor who receives, as initial payment, money 155
241	241	totaling more than 10 percent of the contract price for repair, 156
242	242	restoration, improvement, or construction to residential real 157
243	243	property must: 158
244	244	1. Apply for permits necessary to do work within 30 days 159
245	245	after the date payment is made, except where the work does not 160
246	246	require a permit under the applicable codes and ordinances, and 161
247	247	2. Start the work within 90 days after the date all 162
248	248	necessary permits for work, if any, are issued, 163
249	249	164
250	250	unless the contractor has just cause for failing to apply for 165
251	251	the necessary permits, starting the work, or refunding the 166
252	252	payment, or unless the person who made the payment agreed, in 167
253	253	writing, to a longer period to apply for the necessary perm its 168
254	254	or start the work or to longer periods for both. 169
255	255	(c)1.(b)1. If a contractor fails to comply with the 170
256	256	requirements of paragraph (a) or paragraph (b), the contractee 171
257	257	must make written demand to the contractor in the form of a 172
258	258	letter that includes a dem and to apply for the necessary 173
259	259	permits, to start the work, or to refund the payment sent via 174
260	260	certified mail, return receipt requested, mailed to the address 175
261	261
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269	269	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
270	270
271	271
272	272
273	273	listed in the contract contracting agreement . If there is no 176
274	274	address for the contractor listed in t he contract contracting 177
275	275	agreement, or a contract does not exist no written agreement 178
276	276	exists, the contractee must mail the written demand letter to 179
277	277	the address listed for licensing purposes with the department or 180
278	278	the local construction industry licensing bo ard, if applicable. 181
279	279	If the contractor fails to return, in a reasonable time, the 182
280	280	amount of the deposit owed or any other payment owed after 183
281	281	receipt of a written demand, the contractor is subject to 184
282	282	discipline as provided in this section, and the department may 185
283	283	suspend the contractor's license. 186
284	284	2. It may be inferred that a contractor does not have just 187
285	285	cause if the contractor fails to apply for the necessary 188
286	286	permits, start the work, or refund payments within 30 days after 189
287	287	of receiving a written demand to apply for the necessary 190
288	288	permits, start the work, or refund the payment from the person 191
289	289	who made the payment. 192
290	290	(3) 193
291	291	(b) It is prima facie evidence that a contractor received 194
292	292	money for the repair, restoration, addition, improvement, or 195
293	293	construction of reside ntial real property and that the amount 196
294	294	received exceeds the value of the work performed by the 197
295	295	contractor if all of the following occur when: 198
296	296	1. The contractor failed to perform any of the work for 199
297	297	which he or she contracted during any 90 -day period or any 200
298	298
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306	306	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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308	308
309	309
310	310	period that is mutually agreed upon and specified in the 201
311	311	contract.; 202
312	312	2. The failure to perform any such work during the 90 -day 203
313	313	period or such period that is mutually agreed upon and specified 204
314	314	in the contract was not related to the owner's termination of 205
315	315	the contract or a material breach of the contract by the owner .; 206
316	316	and 207
317	317	3. The contractor failed to perform for the 90 -day period 208
318	318	or such period that is mutually agreed upon and specified in the 209
319	319	contract without just cause or terminated the contract with out 210
320	320	proper notification to the owner. 211
321	321	a. Proper notification of termination for purposes of this 212
322	322	subparagraph must be made by the contractor in the form of a 213
323	323	letter that includes the reason for termination of the contract 214
324	324	or the reason for failure to per form sent via certified mail, 215
325	325	return receipt requested, mailed to the address of the owner 216
326	326	listed in the contract contracting agreement . If a no written 217
327	327	agreement or contract does not exist exists, the letter must be 218
328	328	mailed to the address where the work wa s to be performed or the 219
329	329	address listed on the permit, if applicable. 220
330	330	b. If a contractor fails to comply with paragraph (a), 221
331	331	written demand must be made to the contractor in the form of a 222
332	332	letter that includes a demand to perform work, or refund the 223
333	333	money received in excess of the value of the work performed, 224
334	334	sent via certified mail, return receipt requested, mailed to the 225
335	335
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340	340	CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
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343	343	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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347	347	address listed in the contract contracting agreement . If there 226
348	348	is no address for the contractor listed in the contract, or a 227
349	349	written agreement or contract does not exist contracting 228
350	350	agreement, or no agreement exists , the letter must be mailed to 229
351	351	the address listed with the department for licensing purposes or 230
352	352	the local construction industry licensing board, if applicable. 231
353	353	c. It may be inferred that a contractor does not have just 232
354	354	cause if the contractor fails to perform work, or refund the 233
355	355	money received in excess of the value of the work performed, 234
356	356	within 30 days after receiving a written demand to perform the 235
357	357	work, or refund the mone y received in excess of the value of the 236
358	358	work performed, from the person who made the payment. 237
359	359	Section 3. Subsections (2) through (6) of section 489.127, 238
360	360	Florida Statutes, are renumbered as subsections (3) through (7), 239
361	361	respectively, present subsections (1) and (2) are amended, and a 240
362	362	new subsection (2) is added to that section, to read: 241
363	363	489.127 Prohibitions; penalties. — 242
364	364	(1) A person may not No person shall: 243
365	365	(a) Falsely hold himself or herself or a business 244
366	366	organization out as a licensee, certificateholder, or 245
367	367	registrant; 246
368	368	(b) Falsely impersonate a certificateholder or registrant; 247
369	369	(c) Present as his or her own the certificate or 248
370	370	registration of another; 249
371	371	(d) Knowingly give false or forged evidence to the board 250
372	372
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380	380	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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382	382
383	383
384	384	or a member thereof; 251
385	385	(e) Use or attempt to use a certificate or registration 252
386	386	that has been suspended or revoked; 253
387	387	(f) Engage in the business or act in the capacity of a 254
388	388	contractor or advertise himself or herself or a business 255
389	389	organization as available to engage in the business o r act in 256
390	390	the capacity of a contractor without being duly registered or 257
391	391	certified; 258
392	392	(g) Operate a business organization engaged in contracting 259
393	393	after 60 days following the termination of its only qualifying 260
394	394	agent without designating another primary qualifyi ng agent, 261
395	395	except as provided in ss. 489.119 and 489.1195; 262
396	396	(h) Commence or perform work for which a building permit 263
397	397	is required pursuant to part IV of chapter 553 without such 264
398	398	building permit being in effect; or 265
399	399	(i) Willfully or deliberately disregard o r violate any 266
400	400	municipal or county ordinance relating to uncertified or 267
401	401	unregistered contractors. 268
402	402	(2) For purposes of this section subsection, a person or 269
403	403	business organization operating on an inactive or suspended 270
404	404	certificate or registration is not duly certified or registered 271
405	405	and is considered unlicensed. A business tax receipt issued 272
406	406	under the authority of chapter 205 is not a license for purposes 273
407	407	of this part. 274
408	408	(3) A person who violates subsection (2) commits: 275
409	409
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417	417	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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421	421	(a) A misdemeanor of the first degree, punishable as 276
422	422	provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083, if the total money 277
423	423	contracted for is less than $1,000. 278
424	424	(b) A felony of the third degree, punishable as provided 279
425	425	in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084, if the total money 280
426	426	contracted for is $1,000 or m ore, but less than $20,000. 281
427	427	(c) A felony of the second degree, punishable as provided 282
428	428	in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084, if the total money 283
429	429	contracted for is $20,000 or more, but less than $200,000. 284
430	430	(d) A felony of the first degree, punishable a s provided 285
431	431	in s. 775.082, s. 775.083, or s. 775.084, if the total money 286
432	432	contracted for is $200,000 or more. 287
433	433	(e) A felony of the third degree, punishable as provided 288
434	434	in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083, if the violation occurred during 289
435	435	the existence of a state of emergency declared by executive 290
436	436	order of the Governor. 291
437	437	(2)(a) Any unlicensed person who violates any of the 292
438	438	provisions of subsection (1) commits a misdemeanor of the first 293
439	439	degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083. 294
440	440	(b) Any unlicensed person who commits a violation of 295
441	441	subsection (1) after having been previously found guilty of such 296
442	442	violation commits a felony of the third degree, punishable as 297
443	443	provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083. 298
444	444	(c) Any unlicensed person who commits a violation of 299
445	445	subsection (1) during the existence of a state of emergency 300
446	446
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454	454	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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456	456
457	457
458	458	declared by executive order of the Governor commits a felony of 301
459	459	the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 302
460	460	775.083. 303
461	461	(d) Any person who operates as a pollutant storage systems 304
462	462	contractor, precision tank tester, or internal pollutant storage 305
463	463	tank lining applicator in violation of subsection (1) commits a 306
464	464	felony of the third degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 307
465	465	or s. 775.083. 308
466	466	309
467	467	The remedies set forth in this subsection are not exclusive and 310
468	468	may be imposed in addition to the remedies set forth in s. 311
469	469	489.129(2). 312
470	470	Section 4. Section 489.1285, Florida Statutes, is created 313
471	471	to read: 314
472	472	489.1285 Disciplinary forms. — 315
473	473	(1) The department shall create and adopt a standardized 316
474	474	disciplinary form to be used by each local construction 317
475	475	regulation board to uniformly report a violation of this part to 318
476	476	the department. The department shall create the standardized 319
477	477	disciplinary form and publish a notice of proposed rule pursuant 320
478	478	to s. 120.54(3)(a) by July 1, 2026. 321
479	479	(2)(a) Upon adoption of a standardized disciplinary form 322
480	480	by the department, each local construction regulation board must 323
481	481	use the form when reporting any disciplinary action to the 324
482	482	department. The department shall record each submitted form in 325
483	483
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491	491	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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493	493
494	494
495	495	the automated information system created by s. 455.2286. 326
496	496	(b) Each local construction regulation board must search 327
497	497	the automated information system for any recorded disciplinary 328
498	498	forms before issuing a license or registration under this part. 329
499	499	(3) By December 1, 2026, each local construction 330
500	500	regulation board must submit to the department a report 331
501	501	regarding the board's implementation of this section. 332
502	502	Section 5. Paragraph (d) of subsection (2) of section 333
503	503	1003.41, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 334
504	504	1003.41 State academic standards. — 335
505	505	(2) The state academic standards must meet the following 336
506	506	requirements: 337
507	507	(d)1. Social Studies standards must establish specific 338
508	508	curricular content for, at a minimum, geography, United States 339
509	509	and world history, g overnment, civics, humanities, economics, 340
510	510	and financial literacy. 341
511	511	2. Effective for students entering grade 9 in the 2023 -342
512	512	2024 school year and thereafter, financial literacy standards 343
513	513	must establish specific curricular content for, at a minimum, 344
514	514	personal financial literacy and money management and include 345
515	515	instruction in the areas specified in s. 1003.4282(3)(h). 346
516	516	3. Effective for students entering grade 9 in the 2025 -347
517	517	2026 school year and thereafter, financial literacy standards 348
518	518	must establish specific cur ricular content for, at a minimum, 349
519	519	consumer protection awareness relating to construction 350
520	520
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528	528	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
529	529
530	530
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532	532	contracting and include instruction in the areas specified in s. 351
533	533	1003.4282(3)(i). 352
534	534	Section 6. Paragraph (g) of subsection (3) and paragraph 353
535	535	(a) of subsection (9) o f section 1003.4282, Florida Statutes, 354
536	536	are amended, and paragraph (i) is added to subsection (3) of 355
537	537	that section, to read: 356
538	538	1003.4282 Requirements for a standard high school 357
539	539	diploma.— 358
540	540	(3) STANDARD HIGH SCHOOL DIPLOMA; COURSE AND ASSESSMENT 359
541	541	REQUIREMENTS.— 360
542	542	(g)1. Credits in electives. —School districts must develop 361
543	543	and offer coordinated electives so that a student may develop 362
544	544	knowledge and skills in his or her area of interest, such as 363
545	545	electives with a STEM or liberal arts focus. Such electives must 364
546	546	include opportunities for students to earn college credit, 365
547	547	including industry-certified career education programs or series 366
548	548	of career-themed courses that result in industry certification 367
549	549	or articulate into the award of college credit, or career 368
550	550	education courses for which there is a statewide or local 369
551	551	articulation agreement and which lead to college credit. 370
552	552	2. A student entering grade 9 before the 2023 -2024 school 371
553	553	year must earn eight credits in electives. A student entering 372
554	554	grade 9 in the 2023-2024 school year or thereafter must earn 373
555	555	seven and one-half credits in electives. A student entering 374
556	556	grade 9 in the 2025-2026 school year or thereafter must earn 375
557	557
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565	565	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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569	569	seven credits in electives. 376
570	570	(i) One-half credit in consumer protection awareness 377
571	571	relating to construction co ntracting.—Beginning with students 378
572	572	entering grade 9 in the 2025 -2026 school year, each student must 379
573	573	earn one-half credit in consumer protection awareness relating 380
574	574	to construction contracting. This instruction must include 381
575	575	discussion of or instruction cover ing basic consumer protection 382
576	576	principles relating to construction, including, but not limited 383
577	577	to: 384
578	578	1. Construction contracts. 385
579	579	2. Construction fraud. 386
580	580	3. Deposit and escrow requirements. 387
581	581	4. Homeowners' rights under state law. 388
582	582	(9) CAREER AND TECHNICA L EDUCATION GRADUATION PATHWAY 389
583	583	OPTION.—Beginning with the 2019 -2020 school year, a student is 390
584	584	eligible to complete an alternative pathway to earning a 391
585	585	standard high school diploma through the Career and Technical 392
586	586	Education (CTE) pathway option. Receipt of a standard high 393
587	587	school diploma awarded through the CTE pathway option requires 394
588	588	the student's successful completion of at least 18 credits. A 395
589	589	student completing the CTE pathway option must earn at least a 396
590	590	cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 2.0 on a 4.0 scale. 397
591	591	(a) In order for a student to satisfy the requirements of 398
592	592	the CTE pathway option, he or she must meet the GPA requirement 399
593	593	and: 400
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606	606	1. Meet the requirements in paragraphs (3)(a) -(d) and, 401
607	607	additionally, for students entering grade 9 in the 2023 -2024 402
608	608	school year and thereafter, paragraph (3)(h), and for students 403
609	609	entering grade 9 in the 2025 -2026 school year and thereafter, 404
610	610	paragraph (3)(i); 405
611	611	2. Complete two credits in career and technical education. 406
612	612	The courses must result in a program completion and an industry 407
613	613	certification; and 408
614	614	3.a. For a student who enters grade 9 before the 2023 -2024 409
615	615	school year, complete two credits in electives or work -based 410
616	616	learning programs. A one -half credit in financial literacy may 411
617	617	be included in the two credits of electi ves; or 412
618	618	b. For a student who enters grade 9 in the 2023 -2024 413
619	619	school year and thereafter, complete one and one -half credits in 414
620	620	electives or work-based learning programs. 415
621	621	Section 7. Paragraph (f) of subsection (5) of section 416
622	622	489.119, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 417
623	623	489.119 Business organizations; qualifying agents. — 418
624	624	(5) 419
625	625	(f) In addition to any other penalty prescribed by law, a 420
626	626	local government may impose a civil fine pursuant to s. 421
627	627	489.127(6) s. 489.127(5) against a person who is not certifie d 422
628	628	or registered under this part if the person: 423
629	629	1. Claims to be licensed in any offer of services, 424
630	630	business proposal, bid, contract, or advertisement, but does not 425
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639	639	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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643	643	possess a valid competency -based license issued by a local 426
644	644	government in this state to perf orm the specified construction 427
645	645	services; or 428
646	646	2. Claims to be insured in any offer of services, business 429
647	647	proposal, bid, contract, or advertisement, but whose performance 430
648	648	of the subject work is not covered by a general liability or 431
649	649	workers' compensation ins urance policy. 432
650	650	Section 8. Subsection (7) of section 489.13, Florida 433
651	651	Statutes, is amended to read: 434
652	652	489.13 Unlicensed contracting; notice of noncompliance; 435
653	653	fine; authority to issue or receive a building permit; web 436
654	654	page.— 437
655	655	(7) The remedies set forth in this section are not 438
656	656	exclusive and may be imposed in addition to the remedies set 439
657	657	forth in s. 489.127(3) s. 489.127(2). In addition, nothing in 440
658	658	this section is intended to prohibit the department or any local 441
659	659	governing body from filing a civil action or seeking criminal 442
660	660	penalties against an unlicensed contractor. 443
661	661	Section 9. Paragraph (c) of subsection (6) of section 444
662	662	489.131, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 445
663	663	489.131 Applicability. — 446
664	664	(6) 447
665	665	(c) Each local board or agen cy that licenses contractors 448
666	666	must transmit quarterly to the board a report of any 449
667	667	disciplinary action taken against contractors and of any 450
668	668
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676	676	F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
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680	680	administrative or disciplinary action taken against unlicensed 451
681	681	persons for engaging in the business or acting in the capacity 452
682	682	of a contractor including any cease and desist orders issued 453
683	683	pursuant to s. 489.113(2)(b) and any fine issued pursuant to s. 454
684	684	489.127(6) s. 489.127(5). 455
685	685	Section 10. This act shall take effect July 1, 2025. 456