State Lawmakers Got Controversial Bills Across the Goal Line in the Final Hours

TALLAHASSEE — The 2024 Florida Legislative Session wrapped up this weekend with the passage of a $117.5 billion budget. Several bills slipped through in the final hours, including one that would severely weaken the ethics complaint process. 

Filing an ethics complaint is one of the few ways that citizens can attempt to hold elected officials even somewhat accountable for their misdeeds. That process is under attack. If Gov. Ron DeSantis signs SB 7014 into law, it will severely weaken the process.

Under the bill, only complaints based on the complainant's "personal knowledge" would be allowed. Local boards would also no longer be able to initiate investigations themselves. All members of our local delegation voted in favor of the bill.

"The only people who have personal knowledge of a violation of the law are those who are committing the violation," said Integrity Florida Research Director Ben Wilcox ahead of the bill's final vote. "If this legislation passes, no longer would someone be able to file an ethics complaint based on a credible report in their local newspaper and have the Florida Commission on Ethics begin an investigation."

On the final day of the session, the Senate did an about-face and voted on a House version of a bill whose companion legislation seemed destined to die on the vine in the higher chamber. HB 433, which was pushed by the state chamber of commerce, severely limits the ability of local governments to regulate wages and working conditions in their communities. 

If signed into law, the bill will prevent local governments from setting a local minimum wage or enacting “fair work week” laws, which require businesses to provide hourly workers their weekly schedules in advance. It would also preempt local ordinances requiring vendors that do business with local governments to pay what they determine is a living wage for their community.

The bill will also prevent communities from enacting regulations aimed at protecting outdoor workers when they are exposed to extreme heat, which Miami had been considering. Once more, all members of our local delegation voted in favor of the bill.

A bill weakening the state's child labor laws also passed on the final day of the session, although it was pared back considerably after intense backlash. As passed, HB 49 will relax hour restrictions. The bill would allow 14 and 15-year-olds to work full-time jobs in the summer.  Currently, 16 and 17-year-olds cannot work more than eight hours when they have school the next day. The bill would remove that restriction on Sundays and holidays while exempting homeschooled and virtual school students from such regulations. Again, our local delegation voted unanimously in favor of the bill.

Florida statutes already advise drivers to be in the right lane unless they are actively passing another vehicle. However, the Interstate Safety bill would outright ban drivers from using the left lane on a highway for anything other than passing another vehicle, exiting the highway, or obeying traffic commands. Gov. DeSantis has said that he will consult law enforcement officials on how they would enforce the proposed legislation before deciding whether to sign the bill into law.

HB 1365, which was supported by the governor and is expected to be signed, would ban local governments from allowing unhoused individuals from camping or sleeping on public property. There would not be penalties for such actions, but it would allow cities and counties to be sued for not following the restrictions.

The bill also allows counties to designate areas for the homeless to camp for up to a year. Supporters said this would not only reduce the nuisance of widespread camping in parks and near beaches but also make it easier to provide services because more of the homeless would be in the same designated places. Those accessing the designated spaces would not be able to use drugs or alcohol on the sites.