The 2026 Florida Legislative Session Is Already Revving Up

Highlights

Florida lawmakers have filed bills for the upcoming regular session of the Florida Legislature.
Determining the best way to deliver meaningful property tax relief is already a flashpoint for the 2026 legislative session. Other areas of focus include property insurance, auto insurance, medical malpractice, healthcare and education.
This Holland & Knight alert provides an overview of the key issues for stakeholders, as the time is now to engage with legislators on the policymaking process.

The next regular session of the Florida Legislature begins on Jan. 13, 2026, but bills are already filed, and only a few weeks of interim committee meetings remain. One of the most significant issues that will dominate this session is property tax relief. Other policy areas that will be in focus include property insurance, auto insurance, medical malpractice, healthcare and education. For those interested in these or other subjects, now is the time to engage with Florida policymakers.

Property Tax Relief

Determining the best way to deliver meaningful property tax relief to the people of Florida is already a flashpoint in the 2026 legislative session. Gov. Ron DeSantis has called for the elimination of property taxes for homeowners. On Oct. 17, 2025, the Florida House of Representatives released eight proposals for property tax relief, seven would be ballot initiatives for November 2026:

House Joint Resolution (HJR) 201 would eliminate non-school homestead property taxes.
HJR 203 would phase out non-school homestead property taxes over 10 years.
HJR 205 would exempt Florida residents who are age 65 and older from paying non-school homestead property taxes.
HJR 207 would create a new homestead exemption for non-school property taxes equal to 25 percent of the assessed home's value.
HJR 209 would create an additional $100,000 exemption for homeowners with property insurance.
HJR 211 would eliminate the cap on portability.
HJR 213 would limit the growth in assessed value to 3 percent for homestead property over three years and 15 percent for non-homestead property over three years.
HB 215 would require a two-thirds vote for any increase in the millage rate and would allow newly married couples to combine their Save Our Homes benefits.

The House proposals keep intact all taxes that fund schools. The proposals also shield law enforcement by prohibiting local governments from making reductions to law enforcement if property taxes are cut. At least 60 percent of Florida voters must approve a constitutional amendment to change property taxation.

Property Insurance

Property insurance has been a hotly debated topic during most recent Florida legislative sessions. Although no storm made landfall this hurricane season, the upcoming legislative session is likely to be no different. During the 2025 legislative session, many property insurance bills were filed, but none were passed. Several of the bills that failed last session are likely to be filed again for the 2026 session. These dealt with such topics as affiliated party transactions and fees, insurer accountability, claims handling, insurers' business practices, lawsuits against insurers and attorneys' fees.

Gov. DeSantis has already urged the legislature not to reverse the sweeping property insurance changes that were passed in 2022 and 2023, because those changes are having a positive effect on insurance rates in Florida. But many bills pertaining to property insurance have already been filed:

Senate Bill (SB) 30 would limit annual property insurance rate increases to 10 to 15 precent in comparison to the prior year and grant the Florida Insurance Consumer Advocate authority to request administrative hearings, administer oaths and issue subpoenas.
SB 78 proposes permanently eliminating sales taxes on impact-resistant doors, garage doors and windows.
SB 84 creates the Insurance Solutions Advisory Council to analyze property and auto insurance data and provide annual reports with recommendations to the legislature and governor.
SB 108 would require parties in a property insurance claim dispute to participate in mediation as a condition precedent to litigation.
SB 128 would require insurers to reimburse homeowners for the cost of a specified roof inspection up to $300 if the inspector determines that the roof has five years or more of useful life remaining.
SB 234 proposes strengthening oversight of property insurers through the Office of Insurance Regulation, addressing concerns about affiliates receiving undisclosed profits while premiums rise.
SB 160 would create the Emergency Residential Property Insurance Assistance Trust Fund to provide financial assistance to homeowners with household income not exceeding $250,000 who can demonstrate financial need or an inability to pay their homeowners' insurance due to rate increases.

Auto Insurance

Florida is one of the few remaining states with a motor vehicle no-fault insurance law. The no-fault system was designed to ensure that insurance benefits could be provided to passengers injured in motor vehicle accidents without requiring a determination who was at-fault in the accident. In 2021, the Legislature passed SB 54 to repeal the state's motor vehicle no-fault insurance law and replace it with a new system providing coverage for property damage and bodily injury, but Gov. DeSantis vetoed the bill. Expect another bill to be filed during the 2026 session to repeal Florida's no-fault insurance law and replace it with a fault-based system.

Medical Malpractice Insurance

During the 2025 session, the Legislature passed House Bill (HB) 6017, which eliminated a prohibition on the recovery of non-economic damages when adult children lose a parent or parents of adult children lose their child due to medical negligence. Gov. DeSantis vetoed the bill on May 29, 2025, on the grounds that the bill could cause litigation to increase, which would ultimately raise medical malpractice insurance rates in Florida.

Five months after the governor vetoed HB 6017, a new bill addressing the same issue has been filed in the Florida House of Representatives. On Oct. 15, 2025, the House Civil Justice and Claims Subcommittee voted 16-2 to approve HB 6003. The bill would repeal the prohibition on adult children and certain parents from recovering damages for medical negligence resulting in death. Meanwhile, SB 164 would allow recovery for the wrongful death of an unborn child provided that a right of action would be prohibited against the mother or medical provider for lawful medical care.

Healthcare

Medicaid and healthcare insurance also will be central to the upcoming legislative session.

SB 152 would require Medicaid managed care plans and providers to negotiate mutually acceptable rates, methods and terms of payment for purposes of Medicaid reimbursement.
SB 40 would require at least 50 percent of primary care providers participating in a plan provider network to offer appointment availability to Medicaid enrollees outside of regular business hours.
SB 38 would require the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) to reimburse non-nursing services provided by licensed providers at the same rate or higher than the rate it reimburses unlicensed providers for such services under the Medicaid long-term managed care program.
SB 46 would prohibit AHCA and others from restricting participants from obtaining care from nonparticipating or out-of-network licensed nurse registries or home health agencies.
SB 114 would require a health insurer and a healthcare practitioner to allow certain policyholders terminated for any reason for whom treatment was active to continue coverage and care through completion of treatment but not longer than six months.
SB 68 would require hospital emergency departments to develop and implement policies and procedures for pediatric patient care in the emergency department.
SB 162 would require hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers to adopt and implement policies requiring the use of smoke evacuation systems during certain surgical procedures.

Education and School Safety

In the wake of more campus shootings, lawmakers introduced two bills to address school safety. SB 176 would require state universities and colleges to adopt and implement policies and procedures relating to safety. HB 23 would revise teacher preparation programs and certified educator eligibility criteria to require training in mass casualty incidents. A few other education bills are pending. SB 72 proposes to require a school district to complete an evaluation to determine if a student is eligible for an individualized education plan (IEP) within a specified time frame. SB 124 would delete provisions requiring Florida Virtual School to give priority to certain students and enable it to accrue supplemental revenue from direct support organizations. HB 19 would set aside funds to provide tuition assistance to spouses and children of active members of the Florida National Guard.

Local Term Limits

HJR 27 proposes amendments to the state constitution to provide term limits for members of county commissions and district school boards. County commissioners and school board members could serve for 12 consecutive years before having to sit out for at least four years with an exception for a chairperson of the county commission or county mayor elected county-wide.

Immigration and Commercial Motor Vehicles

SB 86 would require law enforcement officers to take "unauthorized aliens" operating commercial motor vehicles into custody and facilitate the transfer of such persons into the custody of a federal immigration agency.

Getting Involved

These are only a handful of the topics the legislature will tackle for the 2026 session. For those interested in these topics or other public policy solutions to specific issues that the legislature has not yet addressed, please contact one of the authors or another member of the Florida Government Advocacy Team for assistance.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.