The 2026 Legislative Session concluded as scheduled on March 13^th, however lawmakers left town without fulfilling their only constitutional responsibility: passing a budget.

The chambers were unable to reach agreement on spending levels as the House and Senate’s proposed spending plans remain more than $1 billion apart.  House Speaker Daniel Perez and Senate President Ben Albritton have said lawmakers will return for a budget-focused special session in mid-April. The current state budget funds operations through June 30. 

Lawmakers have already announced a special session on congressional redistricting the week of April 20^th and Governor DeSantis has urged lawmakers to return to Tallahassee to tackle property taxes however no dates have been announced.

Some of the notable outcomes from the 2026 session include: the passage of utility consumer protections related to data centers, but the failure to advance a broader 'AI Bill of Rights', both priorities of Governor DeSantis; the lack of action on reforms to school voucher programs and medical malpractice laws; and the inability to reach consensus on property tax cuts championed by Governor DeSantis.

Also not making it to the finish line, Senate President Ben Albritton’s “Rural Renaissance” legislative package which passed the Senate but was not taken up by the House. Other topics like education, growth management, and health care saw mixed results as the House and Senate struggled to find compromise.  In total, both Chambers were able to find consensus on a total of 237 bills out of the 1,896 filed – the lowest total in 6 years.

The session's outcomes reflect the ongoing political dynamics and differing priorities between the Republican-controlled House and Senate, as well as tensions between the legislature and the governor's office.

Energy policy related to data centers was one of the more controversial issues of the 2026 Florida legislative session. The session played out against a backdrop of surging electricity bills, with the Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) having approved a nearly $7 billion rate increase for Florida Power & Light's 12 million customers — the largest rate hike in the state's history.

Despite widespread bipartisan concern about affordability, the Legislature ultimately shielded utilities from meaningful reform while simultaneously restricting local governments' ability to pursue cleaner, cheaper energy alternatives.  

Summary of FlaSEIA Priority Bills

What Passed

Building Permits and Inspections — HB 803 (Rep. Trabulsy / SB 1234, Sen. DiCeglie)

In one of the more broadly supported construction-related measures of the session, the Legislature passed HB 803, a comprehensive overhaul of the permitting and inspection process aimed at cutting red tape for both commercial and residential building projects. The bill directs the Florida Building Commission to develop a uniform statewide permit application, sets tighter and more predictable timelines for permit approvals, reduces administrative costs, and makes it easier for builders to engage private providers during building code inspections. HB 803 passed both chambers and is currently awaiting action by the Governor.

“Ag Package” - Contractor Payments — SB 290 (Sen. Truenow / HB 433, Rep. Alvarez)

A bill that began as a crackdown on contractors who stiff their subcontractors ended up significantly softened by the time it reached the Governor's desk. An early version would have imposed criminal penalties on prime contractors who failed to pay subcontractors or suppliers within 15 business days without reasonable cause, but that provision was stripped out during the legislative process. The final version extends the payment window to 45 days — or whatever terms the parties have contracted — and replaces criminal liability with the threat of license suspension or revocation for non-compliance. The bill also takes aim at aggressive door-to-door sales tactics, creating fines of up to $500 for commercial solicitors who approach a dwelling that clearly posts a "no solicitation" sign, with repeat violations rising to a second-degree misdemeanor. Governor DeSantis signed SB 290 into law on March 23, 2026.

Department of Environmental Protection / Solar Facility Erosion Controls — HB 1417 (Rep. LaMarca / SB 1510, Sen. Massullo)

Tucked into the Department of Environmental Protection's annual legislative package, HB 1417 establishes new environmental safeguards specifically for the construction of solar facilities. Applicants for certain water-related permits will now be required to develop and implement site-specific erosion and sediment control plans, which must include soil percolation testing, stormwater runoff controls, and protocols for clearing and stabilizing project sites. Projects falling within the Northwest Florida Water Management District's jurisdiction face additional requirements, and all covered sites must be inspected by a certified Florida Stormwater, Erosion, and Sedimentation Control Inspector. Governor DeSantis signed HB 1417 into law on March 19, 2026.

Ban on Local Net-Zero Policies (HB 1217, Rep. Snyder) The most significant energy bill to clear the Legislature was a sweeping restriction on local climate and clean energy action. The Florida Legislature passed HB 1217, a bill blocking local governments from adopting or enforcing policies referencing "net-zero," raising concerns about affordability and the future of clean energy across the state. The bill prohibits governmental entities from adopting net-zero policies, from using public funds in any manner that supports or advances such policies, and from imposing any charge to advance them. The Senate vote was 24-12, with one Miami Republican joining all Democrats in opposition.

Data Center Energy Regulations (SB 484, Sen. Avila) Lawmakers passed regulations aimed at managing the impact of large data centers, including new rules for water and utility usage as demand grows across the state. However, the final bill was a significantly weakened version of what was originally proposed — with business-friendly carve-outs that will keep the early planning stages of data center development under wraps from the public.

What Failed

PSC Reform / Utility Rate Oversight (HB 127, Andrade/ SB 186 Sen. Gaetz) Perhaps the most notable energy failure of the session was the collapse of bipartisan efforts to rein in utility profits and reform the PSC. Sen. Don Gaetz filed legislation for the second time attempting to limit electric utilities from earning returns on equity that exceed the national average and to expand the five-member commission to seven, including a certified public accountant and a financial analyst. Gaetz told the Tampa Bay Times the measure died after significant lobbying from Florida Power & Light.

On the Democratic side, Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith introduced SB 1532, the Affordable Energy Reform Act, which would have required the PSC to ensure utilities don't recover certain costs from ratepayers while capping profits and tying utility returns to efficiency standards. His measure asking for more transparency and accountability in rate hike cases also died in committee. Bills introduced by Rep. Alex Andrade and Sens. Don Gaetz and Carlos Guillermo Smith would have required real reform to lower power bills over the long term, but none made it through.

Utilities / Solar Decommissioning — SB 200 (Sen. Bradley)

As large-scale solar farms have spread across Florida's rural landscape, questions about what happens to them at the end of their useful life have drawn increasing attention. SB 200, filed by Sen. Jennifer Bradley of Fleming Island — who chairs the Senate Regulated Industries Committee — sought to give counties a new tool to address that concern.

The bill would have authorized counties to adopt ordinances requiring solar facilities over one megawatt to be properly decommissioned within 24 months of reaching the end of their useful life,  which the bill defined as occurring when a facility fails to produce power for 12 consecutive months after construction is completed. Decommissioning was defined to mean the removal of the solar facility and the return of agricultural land to a condition similar to that which existed before construction, including the removal of above-ground facilities and infrastructure that no longer serve a continuing purpose. To backstop those requirements, counties would have been authorized to require financial assurance from solar facility owners sufficient to cover the estimated cost of decommissioning.

The bill also included a separate provision requiring that improvements included in utility transmission and distribution storm protection plans demonstrate that their forecasted customer benefits exceed their forecasted costs — a consumer-oriented check on utility infrastructure spending.

Industries and Professional Activities — HB 607 (Rep. Yarkosky)

For the second year in a row, an ambitious effort to restructure the Department of Business and Professional Regulation failed to make it across the finish line. HB 607 would have eliminated continuing education requirements for a range of licensed professions and abolished several oversight boards entirely, including the Construction Industry Licensing Board and the Electrical Contractors Licensing Board — changes that supporters argued would reduce regulatory.

AI Bill of Rights / Broader Data Center Oversight -  Gov. Ron DeSantis' push for an AI Bill of Rights failed to pass, and the House declined to take up broader Senate-approved regulations that would have applied more comprehensive public interest requirements to energy-intensive data centers.

Affordability Measures Energy prices in Florida have been rising at more than twice the rate of inflation, and with electricity bills set to rise further with the coming spring and summer, the failure to act leaves consumers particularly exposed. Despite Tampa recently showing significant savings from clean energy practices — reducing energy use by 9.3% — the Legislature moved to restrict rather than encourage such approaches at the local level.