2026 Florida Legislative Report

The 2026 CFHLA Legislative Report can now be downloaded below. This publication includes the CFHLA Government Relations Team, as well as the 2026 Legislative priorities CFHLA advocated for on behalf of the Central Florida tourism and hospitality industry.

Download the 2026 CFHLA Legislative Report

Tourist Development Tax (TDT) - DIED

This session, CFHLA strongly opposed adding any new or expanded uses for Tourist Development Tax (TDT) revenues. Any new or expanded uses of TDT will only serve to dilute the effectiveness of these dollars, which are statutorily established for the local promotion and marketing of tourism.

Lastly, CFHLA opposed the periodic readoption of the TDT through local voter referendum. Requiring the periodic readoption of the TDT through voter referendum would eliminate the ability of local governments to pledge these funds for bonding for any project that would exceed the period of readoption (typically 30 years). In addition to expending the additional dollars to pay for these referenda, local governments will spend time and resources every five years to promote re-adoption rather than concentrating their efforts on the work of tourism promotion.

Each of these bills related to TDT failed at the conclusion of the 2026 Florida Legislative Session.

SB 446: LARGE-SCALE COUNTY DMOs (SEN. SMITH) - Died in Senate Commerce and Tourism.
SB 454/HB 6007: TOURIST DEVELOPMENT TAXES (SEN. SMITH/REP. ESKAMANI) - Died in Senate Commerce and Tourism.
SB 456: TOURIST DEVELOPMENT TAX (SEN. SMITH) – Died in Senate Commerce and Tourism.
SB 458: TOURIST DEVELOPMENT TAX (SEN. SMITH) – Died in Senate Commerce and Tourism.
SB 976: TOURIST DEVELOPMENT TAX USES (SEN. SMITH) – Died in Senate Commerce and Tourism.

Neither annual tax package from the House nor the Senate included any provisions impacting TDT revenue - a first in several years. However, with the recent special session on property taxes and the potential need to seek alternative local revenue sources, TDT remains a target for further reform discussions in future sessions.

Open Carry Clarification - DIED

In September 2025, a court ruling paved the way for the open carry of firearms in Florida. This ruling has led to questions about where it is acceptable to carry a firearm openly throughout the state, leading to the need for clarifying statements by businesses and law enforcement officials. CFHLA supported any effort by the Legislature to update statutes to reflect the open carry ruling and clarify that private property owners, including hotels, restaurants, theme parks, and other privately owned venues, retain the right to prohibit weapons of any kind, including firearms, on their property.

During the 2026 Legislative Session, there were no substantive conversations regarding the open carry of firearms.

Increased Funding for Transportation and Infrastructure Projects - PASSED

This session, CFHLA supported the increased funding of essential transportation and infrastructure projects across the Central Florida region (excluding using TDT funds). This included the Moving Florida Forward Initiative and expanding our region's intermodal transportation system through projects including the Sunshine Corridor, connecting SunRail to MCO, and the tourism corridor.

In this year’s budget, the Legislature included $13.3 billion for the Department of Transportation, which fully funds the Transportation Work Program at $11.56 billion, as well as the Moving Florida Forward Infrastructure Initiative (MFF) at $1.8 billion. These select projects will help resolve and address issues related to safety, congestion, quality of life, resiliency, and modernization in some of the state’s most-traveled corridors. In so doing, the Legislature agreed to carry forward any unexpended dollars dedicated to MFF into this new fiscal year to ensure that any programmed projects continue to receive funding.

VISIT FLORIDA Funding - PASSED

This session, CFHLA supported the continued annual recurring funding of VISIT FLORIDA. Funding of VISIT FLORIDA ensures that our state continues to be top of mind as the leading vacation destination in the country. Additionally, CFHLA supports extending VISIT FLORIDA's sunset date to facilitate strategic planning and marketing for the near and long term.

CFHLA also opposed any efforts to replace VISIT FLORIDA funding from the state budget with county-level TDT revenues. Local TDT revenues are committed to vital projects and organizations that generate visitation – providing local economic development and job creation.

In this year’s budget, the House and Senate agreed to allocate $80 million to support VISIT FLORIDA; however, its sunset date was not extended. This is the same amount allocated to VISIT FLORIDA in last year's budget and reinforces the Legislature’s ongoing commitment to support VISIT FLORIDA’s tourism marketing efforts.

Additional Education Funding for Hospitality/Culinary Programs at our Local Schools, Colleges, and Universities - PASSED

This session, CFHLA supported additional funding for our hospitality and culinary programs at our local high schools, as well as the Increased per-student funding at Valencia College, Seminole State College, and the University of Central Florida. Currently, Valencia College and Seminole State are among the lowest per-student funding institutions in the state.

This is why it is imperative that CFHLA supported the Florida College System Council of Presidents allocation request in new, recurring funds to help recruit and retain the best faculty and invest in rapid credentialling workforce development programs that increase capacity within our region (including new and existing advanced accelerated programs).

This year’s budget included $1.71 billion for the Florida College System Program fund, including $30 million for workload increase. Of the $30 million, Valencia College received over $4.7 million, and Seminole State College received over $1.5 million. Additionally, funds are included for the Work Florida Student Success Incentive Fund, which supports college strategies and initiatives that align career education programs with statewide and regional workforce demands and high-paying job opportunities. This includes the following additional allocations for FY 2026 - 2027:

Seminole State College of Florida: $782,336
Valencia College: $1,808,130

Statewide Regulation of Vacation Rentals and Advertising Platforms - DIED

While vacation home rentals have long been available in Florida, the option to list available units online through advertising platforms has caused this lodging sector to explode by more than 50,000 units across the Central Florida region. Florida’s statutes need to be updated to ensure that all of Florida’s public lodging establishments provide safe and quality experiences for their guests and communities - without infringing on the rights of local governments or unduly burdening vacation rental owners and rental platforms.

Florida also ranks as the third highest state for human trafficking cases in the United States. Each year, thousands are trafficked in the United States, and traffickers often rely on businesses to sustain their operations. Recently, traffickers have begun to utilize vacation home rentals for their criminal activity. With millions of visitors coming to our state each year, Florida’s hospitality industry must serve as a leader in the fight to combat human trafficking, and it is critical that our industry continues to raise awareness through education and training.

This session, CFHLA strongly supported the following:

Requiring initiatives that ensure vacation home rentals on advertising platforms also practice the same safety standards as traditional lodging to protect visitors and their experience. These standards include but are not limited to: human trafficking awareness, training and prevention, regular health and safety standards and inspections, pool safety and drowning prevention, hygiene, and cleaning procedures, as well as mandatory occupancy requirements to protect visitors and their experience.
Requiring advertising platforms to confirm the licensing/registration of vacation home rentals with the State Department of Revenue and the Department of Business and Professional Regulation prior to listing.
Requiring advertising platforms to collect and remit all taxes.
Requiring advertising platforms to list the vacation rental license number on the
advertisement of the units.
Allowing local governments the option to establish a robust local registration system for vacation rentals.
Requiring the proper homeowners and commercial insurance coverage.
Requiring advertising platforms to confirm licensure of units being advertised and protect consumers from fraudulent transactions.
Reasonable and effective penalty provisions for noncompliance, such as higher monetary penalties and vacation rental license revocation provisions; and
Clear and consistent audit provisions to allow for accurate assessment of compliance.

There were two bills, later combined into one bill, that made their way through the Legislature this session. Unfortunately, neither made it across the finish line.

HB 79/SB 658: WATER SAFETY REQUIREMENTS FOR THE RENTAL OF RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY(REP. MAGGARD/SEN. BURGESS) - Died in Housing, Agriculture and Tourism
SB 608: VACATION RENTALS (SEN. SMITH) – Combined into SB 658, died in House Messages.

Workforce Housing - PASSED

This session, CFHLA supported the continued full funding for the Sadowski Fund, as the Central Florida community has a dire need for more reliable and affordable housing options.

CFHLA also urged the Legislature to consider modifications to the Live Local Act, including broadening the innovative approaches to affordable housing development (excluding using TDT funds) and fostering support from local county and municipal governments.

In this year’s budget, the Florida State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) program is funded at $165.7 million, and the State Apartment Incentive Loan (SAIL) program is funded at $70.77 million. This funding is in addition to the nonrecurring $50 million from the General Revenue Fund to the Florida Housing Finance Corporation for Fiscal Year 2025-2026 for the Florida Hometown Heroes Housing program. The unexpended balance of funds on June 30, 2026, shall revert and be appropriated to the corporation for the same purpose for Fiscal Year 2026-2027.

Legislation (SB 1548, HB 1389) sponsored by Sen. Calatayud and Rep. Redondo made a series of changes to the Live Local Act. These changes include:

Authorizes multifamily and mixed-use residential as allowable uses on property owned by a county, municipality, school district, or religious institution, provided certain criteria are satisfied.
Prohibits local governments from restricting the height of a proposed development through the use of setbacks or stepbacks.
Specifies that farms and farm operations are not considered “commercial uses” or “industrial uses” for purposes of the Act.
Exempts certain areas from the requirements of the Act.
Removes the ability of local governments to “opt out” of exempting certain property used for affordable housing from ad valorem taxation.

Property Taxes - PASSED

The Florida House filed several pieces of legislation during the 2026 Legislative Session. Ultimately, after weeks of committee discussion and debate, the House passed HJR 203 by Rep. Miller, which increased the second homestead exemption for ad valorem taxes that currently applies to the assessed value of homestead properties between $50,000 and $75,000, adjusted annually for inflation, by adding $100,000 per year to this exemption for ten years. Beginning in 2037, the entire assessed value of homestead properties would be exempt from all ad valorem taxes other than school taxes. The joint resolution also proposed a new Section 7 of Article VIII of the Florida Constitution to prohibit local governments from reducing funding for services provided by law enforcement, firefighters, and first responders below a specified base year. That legislation did not pass out of the Senate before the Regular Session concluded in March. In June, Governor DeSantis called a special session dedicated to property tax reform. The Senate filed two bills:

HJR 1-F / SJR 2-F: SAVE OUR HOMES FROM EXCESSIVE PROPERTY TAXES (REP. OVERDORF/SEN. AVILA)

Reduces the assessment limitation for non-homestead residential and non-residential property from 10 percent to 5 percent.
Real property owned by persons who maintained permanent residence as of December 31, 2026, and have established or will establish homestead, is eligible for the following exemption:
- Beginning on January 1, 2027, up to $150,000 of the assessed value.
- Beginning on January 1, 2028, up to $250,000 of the assessed value. The exemption value is adjusted annually for positive inflation growth beginning January 1, 2029.
Real property owned by persons who maintain permanent residence on or after January 1, 2027, and establish homestead, is eligible for the following exemption:
- Beginning January 1, 2027, up to $50,000 of assessed value. The exemption value is adjusted annually for positive inflation growth beginning January 1, 2028.
- Beginning with the 5th year of the exemption, such persons may be exempted up to the amount of the exemption available to a person who maintained homestead on or before December 31, 2026.

HB 3-F / SB 4-F: PROPERTY TAX ADMINISTRATION (REP. OVERDORF/SEN. AVILA)
Requires the Department of Revenue to establish a uniform notice of a proposed constitutional amendment, if such amendment revises Article VII, sections 4, 6, and 9 of the State Constitution. The notice must conform to the formatting and content requirements specified in the bill and include a link and a QR code to a website provided by the Department of Revenue for estimating the ad valorem tax savings that the proposed amendment may have on each homestead property.

The Legislature passed these bills, and language from HJR 1-F/SJR 2-F will appear on the November 2026 ballot, requiring voter approval of at least 60%. If approved, they will take effect January 1, 2027.

Interchange Fees on Sales Tax - DIED

CFHLA supported prohibiting the collection of interchange on sales tax will provide relief to businesses, which will in turn provide relief to consumers.

The cost of labor, goods, and equipment continues to rise, while margins continue to remain tight. Florida merchants pay over $288 million annually in interchange fees on the sales taxes and bed taxes they are required to collect. Credit card companies and banks should not be permitted to profit from merchants’ required performance of a public duty. Interchange fees should not be paid on sales taxes collected by Florida merchants.

Interchange fees are being increased yet again, and more merchants are turning to surcharging as a means of absorbing this cost, which impacts consumers directly.

Unfortunately, there were no substantive conversations regarding interchange fees on sales tax throughout the 2026 Florida Legislative Session.

Timeshares - DIED

CFHLA supported the American Resort Development Association’s 2026 legislative priority: Clarifying conflicts between Florida’s Timeshare Act, Chapter 721 F.S., and Florida’s Community Association Manager statutes, Chapter 468, Part VIII, F.S.

Rep. Nix and Sen. Gruters filed legislation to clarify conflicts between the Timeshare Act and the Community Association Managers (CAMs) statutes (HB 465/SB 822).

Unfortunately, it died on the House Floor.

Commercial Property Insurance Reform - PASSED

CFHLA supported any legislative efforts that are aimed at reducing the cost of commercial insurance In Florida.

The Legislature passed SB 1028 by Sen. Gruters (HB 943 by Rep. Redondo), which requires Citizens Property Insurance Corporation (Citizens) to amend its plan of operation and establish a commercial lines clearinghouse for soliciting offers of coverage from authorized insurers and a separate commercial lines clearinghouse for soliciting offers of coverage from approved surplus lines insurers. The commercial clearinghouses must be established by January 1, 2027.

The bill provides detailed requirements for the new commercial lines clearinghouse for surplus lines insurance offers. Other than this authorization and language providing that current Citizens' eligibility standards would apply to offers from authorized insurers, the bill generally does not create new standards for establishing a commercial lines clearinghouse for authorized insurers. However, many of the existing standards for the personal lines clearinghouse would apply to the commercial lines clearinghouse for authorized insurers. The bill provides an exception to the requirement that Citizens establish the commercial lines clearinghouses by providing that Citizens need not establish any component of a commercial lines clearinghouse that lacks sufficient commercial support.

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