New laws on fentanyl, retail theft, homelessness and more are going into effect in Florida.
Nearly three dozen new state laws take effect in Florida Tuesday, including a contentious measure that will limit where homeless people can sleep.
Other measures include creating a license plate for Parrot Heads living the life of the late singer Jimmy Buffett and requirements about flood disclosures for home buyers.
Most bills passed during this year’s legislative session took effect July 1, including the budget for the 2024-2025 fiscal year. But 34 of them are taking effect Oct. 1, with the homeless changes (HB 1365) drawing the most attention. See them all here.
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10 laws you should know
- HB 1365: Bans public camping or sleeping on public property. This measure has local cities working furiously to find solutions to avoid fines and arrests and get their homeless populations off the streets.
- HB 341: Allows an applicant for a motor vehicle registration to indicate that they are diagnosed with a a disability or disorder, or that they are a parent or legal guardian of a child with a particular diagnosis
- HB 549: Makes it a third-degree felony to be part of a group of five or more people who overwhelm a merchant to conduct retail theft.
- SB 718: Makes it a second-degree felony for people who possess fentanyl or similar drugs that result in first responders suffering overdoses or serious injuries.
- SB 758: Makes changes to laws about using tracking devices, with exemptions provided under certain circumstances for law-enforcement officers, parents of minors, caregivers of seniors and vehicle owners.
- SB 86: Creates the Hope Card Program for anyone issued a protection order. This is a digital or physical card that has the name of the person who issued the order, the name of the person the order is issued against and other details.
- SB 1036: Increases criminal penalties for immigrants who are arrested for felonies after illegally re-entering the U.S. following deportation for earlier crimes.
- HB 1049: Requires disclosing information to home buyers such as whether the properties have had flood damage and notification that homeowners’ insurance policies don’t include coverage for flood damage.
- HB 1389: Makes changes related to digital voyeurism, including increasing criminal penalties if offenders are age 19 or older and are family members or hold positions of authority over victims.
- HB 403: Creates several potential new license plates, including a “Margaritaville” plate — in honor of Buffett — to benefit the SFC Charitable Foundation, Inc. Other potential new plates include Universal Orlando Resort;” “Support General Aviation;” “Recycle Florida;” “Boating Capital of the World;” and “The Villages: May All Your Dreams Come True.”
