Lobbyist Mike Moore briefs New Port Richey council on session wins, local impacts

Mike Moore, the city's contracted lobbyist from the Southern Group, presented a legislative update to the New Port Richey City Council and outlined how this year's session could affect the city's permitting, resiliency projects and local finance.

Moore opened with session statistics, saying, "So this year, 1,951 bills were filed," and that 269 bills passed both chambers and 246 were signed into law. He described the enacted tax package as producing about "$1,300,000,000 in tax savings" and summarized the state's budget process and priorities, including increased reserves and large allocations for health care and education.

The most immediate local win, Moore told the council, was a state appropriation for New Port Richey: "You have $1,130,000 for your resiliency improvement project," he said, and he added that state staff had already reached out to the city about the appropriation. Councilman Peter Altman noted local benefits of those funds: "This will directly benefit new pipes and outfalls for Berkeley, Carlton, Dartmouth, Palmetto, and Astor Drive," Altman said, citing improved street safety and river quality.

Moore described SB 180 as a far-reaching bill affecting emergency response and local land-use authority. He said the bill restricts local governments from adopting more restrictive building regulations or raising permitting and inspection fees for a period after a declared natural emergency within 100 miles. He also said the law would require municipalities to publish storm-specific updates (including fee waivers or reductions) on their websites and to provide online options for receiving and delivering substantial-damage and substantial-improvement letters. Moore cautioned he would confirm exact deadline dates, saying he would "double check that in a second."

On land-development process changes, Moore said provisions moving plats to administrative review would mean certain plat approvals no longer need council action and that some comprehensive-plan amendments not adopted at a second hearing would be deemed withdrawn unless adopted within 180 days. He also told the council that increasing impact fees would now require a unanimous vote rather than the prior 0.667 threshold.

Moore flagged several other statewide items of local consequence. He said bills that would have restricted Community Redevelopment Authorities (CRAs) ' including automatic sunsets and bans on new projects or new debt ' did not pass this session, but he warned similar measures likely will return. Moore also said several proposals to change tourist-development tax (TDT) rules and the powers of destination marketing organizations (DMOs) failed, but he expects renewed debate next year.

On taxation, Moore said the session created a permanent sales-tax holiday for the entire month of August (back-to-school) and a long sales-tax holiday for hunting, fishing and camping supplies from Sept. 8 through Dec. 31, 2025. He described ongoing work on property-tax reform and an EDR study requested by the Legislature; an attached $1,000,000 appropriation for that study was vetoed by the governor, Moore said.

Council members asked several follow-ups. Peter Altman pressed for clarity on a $2.8 million local funding initiative for Town and Country Villas that was vetoed; city staff said the project remains in the capital-improvement plan and will not be pushed back. Council members also asked about SB 1730'an affordable-housing measure Moore described as allowing churches to build housing on church property in some circumstances'and whether such projects would be taxable or exempt; Moore asked for time to follow up because the bill contained extensive and technical language.

Moore and council members discussed the My Safe Florida Home program and HB 393; Moore noted the application window had reopened and agreed to help ensure the city circulates the opportunity to residents and to the city's grant writers. On federal funding, Moore said the Southern Group maintains a Washington office and can facilitate congressional meetings, but that sustained federal lobbying would require a separate contract; he recommended the city continue to use its grant writers for competitive federal grants.

Moore closed by offering to return to the council next month to brief them further on tourism-development issues and other pending items; council and staff thanked him for the presentation and the state delegation's support for New Port Richey projects.

The council recorded the presentation as a work-session briefing; no formal motions or votes were taken during the session, and staff were asked to follow up on specific bill details and grant notices for residents.