Senate Finance and Tax committee advances transportation, privacy and flood-mitigation measures

CS for CS for Senate Bill 1290, SB 1292, SJR 174 and CS for SB 176 were reported favorably by the Senate Committee on Finance and Tax during a committee meeting; most votes were unanimous and one bill passed on a 5–1 roll call.

SB 1290: Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles agency package

Senator Kelli Collins, sponsor, told the committee that "SB 1290 is the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles agency package." She said the bill brings Florida into compliance with the International Fuel Tax Association (IFTA) articles of agreement, amends definitions of motor fuels, raises the crash-reporting threshold and updates the definition of tank vehicles to align with federal motor carrier safety regulations. Collins said the bill also amends registration application processes and expands when the Department may use email instead of U.S. mail to communicate with customers.

The committee adopted an amendment (barcode 323356) offered by Senator Collins that allows nonprofit organizations to enter into memoranda of understanding with the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles to perform vehicle identification number inspections for Florida titles and authorizes a specialty license plate marking for qualifying disabled veterans with the initials "DV" embossed in the top-left corner. Collins said the MOU option "allows for quicker insurance claims, reduces claim costs, and permits consumers to take possession of the vehicles more quickly." The amendment was adopted by voice vote.

The committee reported CS for CS for SB 1290 favorably by roll call with all recorded senators voting yes (Senators Bernard, Gates, Gens, Passadoma, Gruters and Chair Avila).

SB 1292: Public-records exemption for certain email addresses

Senator Collins explained that SB 1292 "exempts email addresses collected under specified statutes and used for notification purposes from public [records disclosure]." She described the change as a privacy protection for addresses used for official notice. The committee reported SB 1292 favorably; the roll call was: Yes—Senators Bernard, Jones, Passadoma, Gruters and Chair Avila; No—Senator Gates (5 yes, 1 no).

SJR 174: Constitutional amendment on assessment limits for flood-mitigation improvements

Senator Desigli described SJR 174 as a proposed amendment to the Florida Constitution that would allow the Legislature to exclude improvements to real property made to mitigate flood damage from assessed value. He said, "The amendment would be on the ballot of the 2026 general election," and framed the change as an incentive for homeowners to elevate or otherwise mitigate flood risk. Desigli noted the item is similar to a prior amendment that received 50% of the vote but did not reach the 60% threshold required for constitutional change; he urged favorable support and tied urgency to recent hurricane seasons. The committee reported SJR 174 favorably by roll call (Senators Bernard, Gates, Jones, Passadoma, Gruters and Chair Avila all recorded yes).

CS for SB 176: Assessment rules tied to elevation and rebuilding

Senator Desigli explained CS for SB 176 in greater detail, saying eligible property must lie in areas where elevation is necessary to comply with FEMA’s National Flood Insurance Program or the Florida Building Code or has experienced previous flood damage. Under the measure as explained: homestead property greater than 2,000 square feet may be increased in size during elevation by up to 10% of the previous square footage without increasing assessed value; homestead property under 2,000 square feet may be enlarged up to 2,000 square feet during elevation without increasing assessed value. Desigli said access points, storage areas and parking will not count toward additional square footage, portions exceeding the 10% or 2,000-square-foot limits will be assessed at just value, and change in assessed value after elevation would be subject to Save Our Homes limitations. He also said property appraisers may require elevation certificates or other documentation to substantiate eligibility.

A technical amendment (barcode 485324) was adopted. The committee reported CS for SB 176 favorably by roll call with all recorded senators voting yes (Senators Bernard, Gates, Jones, Passadoma, Gruters and Chair Avila).

Votes at a glance

- CS for CS for Senate Bill 1290: Amendment (barcode 323356) adopted (voice vote). Final committee action: reported favorably by roll call (Yes: Bernard, Gates, Gens, Passadoma, Gruters, Chair Avila) — outcome: reported favorably.

- Senate Bill 1292: Final committee action: reported favorably by roll call (Yes: Bernard, Jones, Passadoma, Gruters, Chair Avila; No: Gates) — outcome: reported favorably (5–1).

- SJR 174: Final committee action: reported favorably by roll call (Yes: Bernard, Gates, Jones, Passadoma, Gruters, Chair Avila) — outcome: reported favorably (constitutional amendment to be placed on 2026 ballot).

- CS for SB 176: Technical amendment (barcode 485324) adopted (voice vote). Final committee action: reported favorably by roll call (Yes: Bernard, Gates, Jones, Passadoma, Gruters, Chair Avila) — outcome: reported favorably.

Why this matters

The package reported in committee affects multiple areas of state policy: SB 1290 updates motor-vehicle rules, crash-reporting thresholds and agency communications practices; SB 1292 narrows public-records disclosure for notification email addresses; SJR 174 and CS for SB 176 aim to reduce the property-tax disincentive for flood mitigation by excluding certain elevation or rebuild work from assessed value, which sponsors said would encourage homeowner investment in resiliency.

What the record shows

One witness, Eric DeCampos of the National Insurance Crime Bureau, filed an appearance form in support of SB 1290 and its amendment and waived speaking. No other public appearance forms were recorded for these items in the committee record.