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Highland Beach managers report legislative outcomes, insurance exposure and project progress
Summary
Town Attorney Rubin and Town Manager Labadie briefed the commission on the recent legislative session (no property tax relief; sovereign immunity bill passed), potential insurance exposure increases, new financial reporting requirements, audit status, a roughly $2.2 million monthly burn rate, permitting negotiations for the Marine Docking Facility and near-final plans for a fire annex and police station.
Town Attorney Rubin and Town Manager Labadie used the March 24 special meeting to summarize state legislative developments and local administrative priorities. Rubin said the 2026 legislative session ended March 13 without agreement on property tax relief or open-carry measures and that the legislature passed a sovereign immunity bill that will increase municipal exposure, potentially raising local insurance costs.
"They did pass the sovereign immunity bill, so our insurance is going to go up," Rubin said, describing increases in liability exposure discussed by the town’s lobbyist. Rubin also warned that new searchable financial reporting standards will require the town to post machine‑readable financial data on its website and that staff will make the town’s Power BI reports compliant.
Manager Labadie reported the town is in the middle of its annual audit and gave the commissioners a snapshot of operating costs, saying the town’s monthly burn rate is about $2.2 million and that costs are tracking similar to last year. He described progress on the Marine Docking Facility permitting work with the South Florida Water Management District and engagement with Collier’s management and the town engineer. He added that final plans are expected soon for the fire annex and the police station conversion of the old post office, after which the projects will move to bidding.
Why it matters: The sovereign immunity change and new financial-reporting requirements could affect municipal insurance premiums and administrative workload; the town’s reported burn rate and project timelines inform budgeting and capital planning.
Next steps: Staff will provide updates on insurance exposure, ensure compliance with the new financial reporting standards, continue audit responses, and pursue permitting meetings and final bid-ready plans for capital projects.
