In the opening month of the Florida legislative session, H.B. 127 passed both chambers with unanimous support. The bill requires the governing body of local units of government to provide a schedule along with a report of their department budget to justify the fee structure. The bill was sponsored by Sen. Keith Perry (R) and Rep. Jayer Williamson (R), both of whom are contractors.
This legislation brings transparency to the permitting process and gives contractors more clarity when bidding because they’ll be able to accurately account for the permitting cost when submitting a bid. The bill also improves accountability in contracting by requiring a report to be posted on the local government’s website before any changes are made to the fee schedule.
Once signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), the law will take effect July 1.
