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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
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to special districts; abolishing 2
certain soil and water conservation districts in this 3
state; transferring the assets and liabilities of such 4
districts to the Department of Agriculture and 5
Consumer Services; amending s. 171.093, F.S.; 6
prohibiting municipalities from assuming certain 7
services in annexed areas; providing that a fire 8
control district remains the provider of specified 9
services in the annexed area; requiring that the 10
district's geographical boundaries continue to include 11
the annexed area; authorizing the district to continue 12
certain levies and assessments; amending s. 189.03, 13
F.S.; revising the legislative purpose and intent for 14
independent special districts; creating s. 189.0331, 15
F.S.; defining the terms "district lands or water 16
areas" and "outdoor recreational purposes"; providing 17
that an independent special district that grants the 18
public access to district lands or water areas for 19
outdoor recreational purposes owes no duty of care to 20
perform specified actions; providing that an 21
independent special district is not responsible for 22
injury to persons or property caused by an act or 23
omission of such person upon such lands or water 24
areas; providing applicability; providing that 25
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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
specified protections, immunities, and limitations of 26
liability apply regardless of whether a person or 27
claimant was engaged in an outdoor recreational 28
purpose at the time of an accident or occurrence; 29
providing certain protection to the owner of private 30
land if an independent special district secures an 31
easement or other access right through such private 32
land to district lands or water areas that the 33
independent special district makes available to the 34
public for outdoor recreational purposes; providing 35
that independent special districts are not relieved of 36
certain liability; amending s. 189.053, F.S.; 37
providing that a special district may purchase 38
commodities and contractual services from the 39
purchasing agreements of this state under certain 40
circumstances; amending s. 189.0695, F.S.; removing a 41
provision requiring the Office of Program Policy 42
Analysis and Government Accountability to conduct 43
performance reviews of independent fire control 44
districts according to a specified schedule; requiring 45
the Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government 46
Accountability to conduct a performance review of 47
certain independent special districts by a specified 48
date; removing provisions requiring the Office of 49
Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability 50
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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
to submit the final report of performance reviews for 51
certain districts according to a specified schedule; 52
creating s. 189.0699, F.S.; providing that an 53
independent special district may require, by 54
resolution, criminal history screening for certain 55
persons; providing requirements for such resolution; 56
providing construction ; amending s. 582.19, F.S.; 57
revising the qualifications of a supervisor of a soil 58
and water conservation district; requiring the 59
Commission on Ethics to investigate whether certain 60
supervisors meet eligibility criteria; amending s. 61
582.20, F.S.; removing p rovisions subjecting certain 62
powers of a soil and water conservation district to 63
another district's approval; requiring the Department 64
of Agriculture and Consumer Services to monitor 65
specified soil and water conservation districts and 66
ensure that each dist rict is winding up administrative 67
and fiscal matters in a timely manner and using 68
certain practices; reenacting s. 189.074(11), F.S., 69
relating to voluntary merger of independent special 70
districts, to incorporate the amendment made to s. 71
171.093, F.S., in a reference thereto; providing 72
effective dates. 73
74
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 75
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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
76
Section 1. Effective December 31, 2025, and 77
notwithstanding ss. 582.31 and 582.32, Florida Statutes, the 78
following soil and water conservatio n districts are abolished, 79
and all assets and liabilities of each district are transferred 80
to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services: 81
(1) Escambia Soil and Water Conservation District. 82
(2) Yellow River Soil and Water Conservation District. 83
(3) Holmes Creek Soil and Water Conservation District. 84
(4) Orange Hill Soil and Water Conservation District. 85
(5) Chipola River Soil and Water Conservation District. 86
(6) Tupelo Soil and Water Conservation District. 87
(7) Franklin Soil and Water Con servation District. 88
(8) Leon Soil and Water Conservation District. 89
(9) Wakulla Soil and Water Conservation District. 90
(10) Jefferson Soil and Water Conservation District. 91
(11) Hamilton County Soil and Water Conservation District. 92
(12) Dixie Soil and Water Conservation District. 93
(13) Santa Fe Soil and Water Conservation District. 94
(14) Levy Soil and Water Conservation District. 95
(15) Bradford Soil and Water Conservation District. 96
(16) Alachua Soil and Water Conservation District. 97
(17) Nassau Soil and Water Conservation District. 98
(18) Duval Soil and Water Conservation District. 99
(19) Clay Soil and Water Conservation District. 100
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(20) St. Johns Soil and Water Conservation District. 101
(21) Volusia Soil and Water Conservation District. 102
(22) Seminole Soil and Water Conservation District. 103
(23) Orange Soil and Water Conservation District. 104
(24) Hillsborough Soil and Water Conservation District. 105
(25) Manatee River Soil and Water Conservation District. 106
(26) Peace River Soil and Water Conser vation District. 107
(27) Sarasota Soil and Water Conservation District. 108
(28) Charlotte Soil and Water Conservation District. 109
(29) Osceola Soil and Water Conservation District. 110
(30) Collier Soil and Water Conservation District. 111
(31) St. Lucie Soil an d Water Conservation District. 112
(32) Broward Soil and Water Conservation District. 113
(33) South Dade Soil and Water Conservation District. 114
(34) Hendry Soil and Water Conservation District. 115
(35) Union Soil and Water Conservation District. 116
Section 2. Present subsection (8) of section 171.093, 117
Florida Statutes, is redesignated as subsection (9), and a new 118
subsection (8) is added to that section, to read: 119
171.093 Municipal annexation within independent special 120
districts.— 121
(8) Notwithstanding this c hapter or any special act to the 122
contrary, a municipality may not elect to assume services of an 123
annexed area which are being provided by an independent special 124
fire control district. Following an annexation pursuant to this 125
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chapter, an independent special fire control district shall 126
remain the service provider in the annexed area, the 127
geographical boundaries of the district must continue to include 128
the annexed area, and the district may continue to levy ad 129
valorem taxes, impact fees, and user fees and asse ssments on the 130
real property located within the annexed area. 131
Section 3. Paragraph (c) is added to subsection (1) of 132
section 189.03, Florida Statutes, to read: 133
189.03 Statement of legislative purpose and intent; 134
independent special districts. — 135
(1) The Legislature finds that: 136
(c) It is in the public interest for the Legislature to 137
encourage an independent special district to make available to 138
the public suitable district lands and water areas for public 139
outdoor recreational purposes and to limit ce rtain liability of 140
the independent special district resulting from persons 141
accessing such lands and areas and from third persons who may 142
incur damages by the acts or omissions of persons going thereon. 143
Section 4. Section 189.0331, Florida Statutes, is created 144
to read: 145
189.0331 Limitation on liability of independent special 146
district with respect to areas made available to the public for 147
recreational purposes without charge. — 148
(1) As used in this section, the term: 149
(a) "District lands or water areas" includes, but is not 150
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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
limited to, all district lands, rights -of-way, and water areas 151
that an independent special district controls, possesses, or 152
maintains, or in which the independent special district has a 153
property or other interest, whether in fee simpl e, easement, 154
leasehold, contract, memorandum of understanding, or otherwise. 155
(b) "Outdoor recreational purposes" includes activities 156
such as, but not limited to, horseback riding, hunting, fishing, 157
bicycling, swimming, boating, camping, picnicking, hikin g, 158
pleasure driving, nature study, water skiing, motorcycling, and 159
visiting historical, archaeological, scenic, or scientific 160
sites. 161
(2)(a) Except as provided in subsection (5), an 162
independent special district that provides the public with 163
access to district lands or water areas for outdoor recreational 164
purposes, or allows access over or use of district lands or 165
water areas for public outdoor recreational purposes, owes no 166
duty of care to do any of the following: 167
1. Keep the district lands or water area s safe for entry 168
or use by others. 169
2. Warn persons entering or going on such district lands 170
or water areas of any hazardous conditions, structures, or 171
activities thereon. 172
3. Extend any assurance that the district lands or water 173
areas are safe for any p urpose solely by allowing access to that 174
district's lands or water areas. 175
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(b) An independent special district does not incur any 176
duty of care toward a person who goes on the district lands or 177
water areas. An independent special district is not responsibl e 178
for any injury to persons or property caused by an act or 179
omission of a person who goes on such lands or water areas. 180
(c) This section applies to any person going on the 181
district lands or water areas, or lands or water areas subject 182
to a joint use or similar agreement, irrespective of whether the 183
person goes as an invitee, licensee, or trespasser or in any 184
other capacity. However, this subsection does not apply if there 185
is any charge made or usually made for entering or using the 186
district lands or water areas, or if any commercial or other 187
activity from which profit is derived from the patronage of the 188
public, excluding the temporary sale of food, beverages, plants, 189
or T-shirts at temporary special events or nonprofit 190
organizational activities associated with temporary special 191
events, is conducted on any such district lands or water areas, 192
or any part thereof. 193
(3) The protections, immunities, and limitations of 194
liability provided in this section to independent special 195
districts apply regardless of wheth er any claimant or person was 196
engaged in an outdoor recreational purpose at the time of an 197
accident or occurrence and apply to district lands or water 198
areas used by the public for recreational activities regardless 199
of whether the district lands or water ar eas were made available 200
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to the public at the time of the accident or occurrence. 201
(4) If an independent special district secures an easement 202
or other right for the purpose of providing access through 203
private land to district lands or water areas that the 204
independent special district provides or makes available to the 205
public for outdoor recreational purposes, the owner of the 206
private land is covered by the liability protection provided in 207
s. 375.251 with regard to the use of such easement by the 208
general public or by employees and agents of the independent 209
special district or other regulatory agencies. 210
(5)(a) This section does not relieve an independent 211
special district of any liability that would otherwise exist for 212
gross negligence or a deliberate, willfu l, or malicious injury 213
to a person or property. 214
(b) This section does not create or increase the liability 215
of an independent special district or person beyond that which 216
is authorized by s. 768.28. 217
Section 5. Section 189.053, Florida Statutes, is ame nded 218
to read: 219
189.053 Purchases from purchasing agreements of other 220
governmental entities special districts, municipalities, or 221
counties.—Special districts may purchase commodities and 222
contractual services, other than services the acquisition of 223
which is governed by s. 287.055, from the purchasing agreements 224
of other special districts, municipalities, or counties, or this 225
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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
state, which have been procured pursuant to competitive bid, 226
requests for proposals, requests for qualifications, competitive 227
selection, or competitive negotiations, and which are otherwise 228
in compliance with general law if the purchasing agreement of 229
the other special district, municipality, or county, or this 230
state was procured by a process that would have met the 231
procurement requiremen ts of the purchasing special district. 232
Section 6. Subsections (2) and (3) of section 189.0695, 233
Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 234
189.0695 Independent special districts; performance 235
reviews.— 236
(2)(a) Each independent special district as describe d in 237
subparagraph (d)1. that is not located in a rural area of 238
opportunity as defined in s. 288.0656(2) and Each independent 239
special district as described in paragraph (c) subparagraph 240
(d)2. must contract with an independent entity to conduct a 241
performance review of the district. The independent entity must 242
have at least 5 years of experience conducting comparable 243
reviews of organizations similar in size and function to the 244
independent special district under review, must conduct the 245
review according to appl icable industry best practices, and must 246
have no affiliation with or financial involvement in the 247
reviewed district. 248
(b) The Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government 249
Accountability must conduct a performance review of each 250
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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
independent special dis trict as described in subparagraph (d)1. 251
that is located in a rural area of opportunity as defined in s. 252
288.0656(2) and may contract as needed to complete this 253
requirement. 254
(c) The final report of the performance review must be 255
filed with the governing board of the district, the Auditor 256
General, the President of the Senate, and the Speaker of the 257
House of Representatives no later than 9 months from the 258
beginning of the district's fiscal year according to the 259
schedule provided in paragraph (c) paragraph (d). However, a 260
performance audit of an independent special district conducted 261
by the Auditor General during the same fiscal year in which a 262
performance review is due pursuant to paragraph (c) paragraph 263
(d) qualifies as that district's scheduled performance review 264
under this section. 265
(c)(d)1. Beginning October 1, 2022, and every 5 years 266
thereafter, each independent special fire control district as 267
defined in s. 191.003 must have a performance review conducted. 268
2. Beginning October 1, 2023, and every 5 ye ars 269
thereafter, each hospital licensed under chapter 395 which is 270
governed by the governing body of a special district as defined 271
in s. 189.012 or by the board of trustees of a public health 272
trust created under s. 154.07 must have a performance review 273
conducted. 274
(3) The Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government 275
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Accountability must conduct a performance review of all 276
independent special districts classified as safe neighborhood 277
improvement districts as defined in s. 163.503(1), no later than 278
September 30, 2025, within the classifications described in 279
paragraphs (a), (b), and (c) and may contract as needed to 280
complete the requirements of this subsection. The Office of 281
Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability shall 282
submit the final report of the performance review to the 283
President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of 284
Representatives as follows: 285
(a) For all independent mosquito control districts as 286
defined in s. 388.011, no later than September 30, 2023. 287
(b) For all soil and water conservation districts as 288
defined in s. 582.01, no later than September 30, 2024. 289
(c) For all safe neighborhood improvement districts as 290
defined in s. 163.503(1), no later than September 30, 2025 . 291
Section 7. Section 189.0699, Florida Statutes, is created 292
to read: 293
189.0699 Criminal history record checks for certain 294
independent special district employees and appointees. — 295
(1) Notwithstanding chapter 435, an independent special 296
district, by resolution, may require a state and national 297
criminal history screening for all of the following: 298
(a) Any position of independent special district 299
employment or appointment, whether paid, unpaid, or contractual, 300
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which the governing body of the independent special district 301
finds is critical to security or pub lic safety. 302
(b) Any private contractor, employee of a private 303
contractor, vendor, repair person, or delivery person who is 304
subject to licensing or regulation by the independent special 305
district. 306
(c) Any private contractor, employee of a private 307
contractor, vendor, repair person, for -hire chauffeur, or 308
delivery person who has direct contact with individual members 309
of the public or access to any public facility or publicly 310
operated facility in such a manner or to such an extent that the 311
governing body of the independent special district finds that 312
preventing unsuitable persons from having such contact or access 313
is critical to security or public safety. 314
(2) The resolution must require each person applying for, 315
or continuing employment or appointment in, a ny such position, 316
applying for initial or continuing licensing or regulation, or 317
having such contact or access to be fingerprinted. The 318
fingerprints shall be submitted to the Department of Law 319
Enforcement for a state criminal history record check and to th e 320
Federal Bureau of Investigation for a national criminal history 321
record check. The information obtained from the criminal history 322
record checks conducted pursuant to the resolution may be used 323
by the independent special district to determine a person's 324
eligibility for such employment or appointment or to determine a 325
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person's eligibility for continued employment or appointment. 326
This section is not intended to preempt or prevent any other 327
background screening, including, but not limited to, criminal 328
history background checks, which an independent special district 329
may lawfully undertake. 330
Section 8. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section 331
582.19, Florida Statutes, is amended, and paragraphs (c) and (d) 332
are added to that subsection, to read: 333
582.19 Qualifications and tenure of supervisors. — 334
(1) The governing body of the district shall consist of 335
five supervisors, elected as provided in s. 582.18. 336
(a) To qualify to serve on the governing body of a 337
district, a supervisor must be a registered an eligible voter in 338
this state who resides in the district and who meets any of the 339
following criteria: 340
1. Is a landowner of land zoned as agricultural or 341
classified as agricultural lands by the applicable property 342
appraiser; 343
2. Is actively engaged in commercia l agriculture 344
production, which for purposes of this section means an 345
individual that produces an agricultural commodity through 346
participation in the day -to-day labor, management, and field 347
operations or that has the legal right to harvest an 348
agricultural commodity; 349
3. Is an actively engaged operator of a farm; 350
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4. Is an owner of or employed by an agriculture business 351
or farm; 352
5. Is an actively engaged agriculture or natural resources 353
professional in a field that is directly related to commercial 354
agriculture or natural resources; 355
6. Is an actively engaged college or university staff 356
member or professor who has expertise in agriculture as defined 357
in s. 570.02; 358
7. Is an actively engaged direct agriculture -related 359
vendor; or 360
8. Has retired from such work or previously owned land as 361
described in subparagraphs 1. -7., provided the person performed 362
such work or owned such land for a minimum of 5 years. 363
(c) Any candidate running to serve as a supervisor 364
pursuant to this section must provide supporting do cumentation 365
to the supervisor of elections at the time of qualification to 366
verify his or her eligibility to serve pursuant to the criteria 367
listed in paragraph (a). Such proof may include, but need not be 368
limited to, a copy of a property tax bill; a copy of an Internal 369
Revenue Service Schedule F, Profit or Loss From Farming form; 370
proof of employment as a professional in the field of 371
agriculture or natural resources; or a curriculum vitae 372
demonstrating expertise in such topics. 373
(d) The Commission on Ethics shall investigate alleged 374
violations of this section upon receipt of a written complaint 375
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based upon personal knowledge or information other than hearsay 376
and signed under oath or affirmation that a supervisor does not 377
meet the eligibility criteria provided for in this section. 378
1. Is actively engaged in, or retired after 10 years of 379
being engaged in, agriculture as defined in s. 570.02; 380
2. Is employed by an agricultural producer; or 381
3. Owns, leases, or is actively employed on land 382
classified as agricult ural under s. 193.461. 383
Section 9. Section 582.20, Florida Statutes, is amended to 384
read: 385
582.20 Powers of districts and supervisors. —A soil and 386
water conservation district organized under the provisions of 387
this chapter shall constitute a governmental subdivision of this 388
state, and a public body corporate and politic, exercising 389
public powers, and such district and the supervisors thereof 390
shall have the following powers, in addition to others granted 391
in other sections of this chapter: 392
(1) To conduct surveys, studies, and research relating to 393
soil and water resources and to publish and disseminate the 394
results of such surveys, studies, research, and related 395
information; 396
(2) To conduct agricultural best management practices 397
demonstration projects and pr ojects for the conservation, 398
protection, and restoration of soil and water resources: 399
(a) Within the district's boundaries; 400
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(b) Within another district's boundaries , subject to the 401
other district's approval ; 402
(c) In areas not contained within any district's 403
boundaries on lands owned or controlled by this state or any of 404
its agencies, with the cooperation of the agency administering 405
and having jurisdiction thereof; or 406
(d) On any other lands within the district's boundaries, 407
within another district 's boundaries subject to the other 408
district's approval, or not contained within any district's 409
boundaries upon obtaining the consent of the owner or occupier 410
of the lands or the necessary rights or interests in such lands; 411
(3) To cooperate, or enter into agreements with, any 412
special district, municipality, county, water management 413
district, state or federal agency, governmental or otherwise, or 414
owner or occupier of lands within the district's boundaries, 415
within another district's boundaries subject to the other 416
district's approval, or not contained within any district's 417
boundaries in furtherance of the purposes and provisions of this 418
chapter; 419
(4) To obtain options upon and to acquire, by purchase, 420
exchange, lease, gift, grant, bequest, devise or otherwis e, any 421
property, real or personal, or rights or interests therein; to 422
maintain, administer, and improve any properties acquired, to 423
receive income from such properties and to expend such income in 424
carrying out the purposes and provisions of this chapter; a nd to 425
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sell, lease, or otherwise dispose of any of its property or 426
interests therein in furtherance of the purposes and provisions 427
of this chapter; 428
(5) To make available, on such terms as it shall 429
prescribe, to any owner or occupier of lands within the 430
district's boundaries, within another district's boundaries 431
subject to the other district's approval , or not contained 432
within any district's boundaries agricultural and engineering 433
machinery and equipment, and such other material or equipment, 434
that will assist such landowners and occupiers to carry on 435
operations upon their lands for the conservation and protection 436
of soil and water resources; 437
(6) To construct, improve, operate, and maintain such 438
structures as may be necessary or convenient for the performan ce 439
of any of the operations authorized in this chapter; 440
(7) To provide, or assist in providing, training and 441
education programs that further the purposes and provisions of 442
this chapter; 443
(8) To sue and be sued in the name of the district; to 444
have a seal, which seal shall be judicially noticed; to have 445
perpetual succession unless terminated as provided in this 446
chapter; to make and execute contracts and other instruments 447
necessary or convenient to the exercise of its powers; upon a 448
majority vote of the sup ervisors of the district, to borrow 449
money and to execute promissory notes and other evidences of 450
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indebtedness in connection therewith, and to pledge, mortgage, 451
and assign the income of the district and its personal property 452
as security therefor, the notes and other evidences of 453
indebtedness to be general obligations only of the district and 454
in no event to constitute an indebtedness for which the faith 455
and credit of the state or any of its revenues are pledged; 456
(9) To use, in coordination with the applicab le county or 457
counties, the services of the county agricultural agents and the 458
facilities of their offices, if practicable and feasible. The 459
supervisors may also employ additional permanent and temporary 460
staff, as needed, and determine their qualifications, duties, 461
and compensation. The supervisors may delegate to the chair, to 462
one or more supervisors, or to employees such powers and duties 463
as they may deem proper, consistent with the provisions of this 464
chapter. The supervisors shall furnish to the departmen t, upon 465
request, copies of rules, orders, contracts, forms, and other 466
documents that the district has adopted or used, and any other 467
information concerning the district's activities, that the 468
department may require in the performance of its duties under 469
this chapter; 470
(10) To adopt rules to implement the provisions of this 471
chapter; and 472
(11) To request that the Governor remove a supervisor for 473
neglect of duty or malfeasance in office by adoption of a 474
resolution at a public meeting. If the district believe s there 475
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is a need for a review of the request, the district may request 476
that the council, by resolution, review its request to the 477
Governor and provide the Governor with a recommendation. 478
479
Any provision with respect to the acquisition, operation, or 480
disposition of property by public bodies of this state does not 481
apply to a district organized under this chapter unless 482
specifically so stated by the Legislature. The property and 483
property rights of every kind and nature acquired by any 484
district organized under the provisions of this chapter are 485
exempt from state, county, and other taxation. 486
Section 10. Effective upon this act becoming a law, the 487
Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services shall monitor 488
all soil and water conservation districts being abol ished in 489
accordance with this act for statutory compliance through the 490
repeal on December 31, 2025, and to ensure that the district is 491
winding up administrative and fiscal matters related to the 492
district in a timely manner while using best practices throug h 493
the dissolution of the district . 494
Section 11. For the purpose of incorporating the amendment 495
made by this act to section 171.093, Florida Statutes, in a 496
reference thereto, subsection (11) of section 189.074, Florida 497
Statutes, is reenacted to read: 498
189.074 Voluntary merger of independent special 499
districts.—Two or more contiguous independent special districts 500
CS/HB 973 2025
CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
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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
created by special act which have similar functions and elected 501
governing bodies may elect to merge into a single independent 502
district through the act of merging the component independent 503
special districts. 504
(11) EFFECT ON ANNEXATION. —Chapter 171 continues to apply 505
to all annexations by a city within the component independent 506
special districts' boundaries after merger occurs. Any moneys 507
owed to a component independent special district pursuant to s. 508
171.093, or any interlocal service boundary agreement as a 509
result of annexation predating the merger, shall be paid to the 510
merged independent district after merger. 511
Section 12. Except as otherwise e xpressly provided in this 512
act and except for this section, which shall take effect upon 513
this act becoming a law, this act shall take effect July 1, 514
2025. 515