Text of FL H 1329 (2026)

HB 1329 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1329-00 Page 1 of 12 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S A bill to be entitled 1 An act relating to local government spending; 2 providing a short title; amending s. 129.03, F.S.; 3 revising the length of time tentative budgets and 4 final budgets must be posted on county websites; 5 requiring the posting of such budgets to allow members 6 of the public to download and review certain 7 information and data in specified formats; requiring 8 the county budget officer to perform a certain 9 exercise within a specified time period before final 10 adoption of a budget; requiring that such exercise be 11 posted on the county's website; amending s. 129.06, 12 F.S.; revising the length of time a public hearing for 13 an amendment to a county budget must be advertised; 14 revising the length of time an adopted amendment must 15 be posted on the county's website; requiring the 16 posting of such adopted amendment to meet certain 17 requirements; creating s. 163.212, F.S.; prohibiting a 18 local government from expending public funds for the 19 purpose of diversity, equity, and inclusion; 20 prohibiting a local government from contracting with a 21 private vendor for services for promoting, advocating 22 for, or providing training or education on diversity, 23 equity, and inclusion; requiring such contracts to 24 include specified language; requiring local 25 HB 1329 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1329-00 Page 2 of 12 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S governments to annually make a specified certification 26 to the Chief Financial Officer; authorizing the Chief 27 Financial Officer to adopt rules; authorizing a person 28 to call the governmental efficiency hotline in certain 29 circumstances; requiring the Chief Financial Officer 30 to conduct a specified evaluation; specifying that 31 local governments that violate certain provisions are 32 subject to administrative fines; requiring such fines 33 to be deposited in the Insurance Regulatory Trust 34 Fund; providing construction; defining the term 35 "diversity, equity, and inclusion"; amending s. 36 166.241, F.S.; revising the length of time tentative 37 budgets and final budgets must be posted on 38 municipality or county websites, as applicable; 39 requiring the posting of such budgets to allow members 40 of the public to download and review certain 41 information and data in specified formats; requiring 42 the governing body of a municipality to perform a 43 certain exercise within a specified time period before 44 final adoption of a budget; requiring that such 45 exercise be posted on the county's website; revising 46 the length of time an adopted amendment must be posted 47 on the municipality's or county's website, as 48 applicable; requiring the posting of such adopted 49 amendment to meet certain requirements; providing an 50 HB 1329 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1329-00 Page 3 of 12 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S effective date. 51 52 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 53 54 Section 1. This act may be cited as the "Local Government 55 Financial Transparency and Accountability Act." 56 Section 2. Paragraph (c) of subsection (3) of section 57 129.03, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 58 129.03 Preparation and adoption of budget.— 59 (3) The county budget officer, after tentatively 60 ascertaining the proposed fiscal policies of the board for the 61 next fiscal year, shall prepare and present to the board a 62 tentative budget for the next fiscal year for each of the funds 63 provided in this chapter, including all estimated receipts, 64 taxes to be levied, and balances expected to be brought forward 65 and all estimated expenditures, reserves, and balances to be 66 carried over at the end of the year. 67 (c)1. The board shall hold public hearings to adopt 68 tentative and final budgets pursuant to s. 200.065. The hearings 69 shall be primarily for the purpose of hearing requests and 70 complaints from the public regarding the budgets and the 71 proposed tax levies and for explaining the budget and any 72 proposed or adopted amendments. The tentative budget must be 73 posted on the county's official website at least 14 2 days 74 before the public hearing to consider such budget and must 75 HB 1329 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1329-00 Page 4 of 12 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S remain on the website for at least 45 days. The final budget 76 must be posted on the website within 30 days after adoption and 77 must remain on the website for at least 5 2 years. 78 2. Any tentative budget or final budget posted on the 79 county's official website must allow members of the public to: 80 a. View budget data in a searchable format. 81 b. Review historical spending trends and filter data 82 according to categories in the county's chart of accounts, 83 including, but not limited to, fund, department, division, 84 program, or activity. 85 c. Download financial data and graphs. 86 d. View data in different graphical formats, including, 87 but not limited to, stacked line, trend line, bar graph, and pie 88 chart. 89 e. View information for multiple county departments, 90 divisions, funds, or financial categories simultaneously. 91 f. View and compare revenue and expense trends 92 simultaneously on the same graph for any level of financial 93 data. 94 g. View all employee salaries in a searchable format. 95 h. View all travel expenses for all county employees in a 96 searchable format. 97 3. At least 14 days before final adoption of the budget by 98 the board of county commissioners, the county budget officer 99 must perform a budget cutting exercise, identifying specific 100 HB 1329 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1329-00 Page 5 of 12 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S reductions to the tentative budget for the ensuing fiscal year 101 which total 10 percent of the tentative budget, without 102 compromising essential public services, such as law enforcement 103 or fire services, or legal obligations. The county budget 104 officer must post such exercise on the county's official website 105 in accordance with subparagraph 2. 106 4. The tentative budgets, adopted tentative budgets, and 107 final budgets shall be filed in the office of the county auditor 108 as a public record. Sufficient reference in words and figures to 109 identify the particular transactions must be made in the minutes 110 of the board to record its actions with reference to the 111 budgets. 112 Section 3. Paragraph (f) of subsection (2) of section 113 129.06, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 114 129.06 Execution and amendment of budget.— 115 (2) The board at any time within a fiscal year may amend a 116 budget for that year, and may within the first 60 days of a 117 fiscal year amend the budget for the prior fiscal year, as 118 follows: 119 (f) Unless otherwise prohibited by law, if an amendment to 120 a budget is required for a purpose not specifically authorized 121 in paragraphs (a)-(e), the amendment may be authorized by 122 resolution or ordinance of the board of county commissioners 123 adopted following a public hearing. 124 1. The public hearing must be advertised at least 7 2 125 HB 1329 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1329-00 Page 6 of 12 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S days, but not more than 5 days, before the date of the hearing. 126 The advertisement must appear in a newspaper of paid general 127 circulation and must identify the name of the taxing authority, 128 the date, place, and time of the hearing, and the purpose of the 129 hearing. The advertisement must also identify each budgetary 130 fund to be amended, the source of the funds, the use of the 131 funds, and the total amount of each fund's appropriations. 132 2. If the board amends the budget pursuant to this 133 paragraph, the adopted amendment must be posted on the county's 134 official website within 7 5 days before after adoption and must 135 remain on the website for at least 5 2 years. The adopted 136 amendment must be posted in accordance with s. 129.03(3)(c)2. 137 Section 4. Section 163.212, Florida Statutes, is created 138 to read: 139 163.212 Prohibiting local government expenditure of public 140 funds for diversity, equity, and inclusion.— 141 (1) A local government may not expend public funds, or 142 otherwise expend any funds derived from bequests, charges, 143 deposits, donations, grants, gifts, income, receipts, or any 144 other source of funds, for the purpose of diversity, equity, and 145 inclusion. 146 (2)(a) A local government may not contract with a private 147 vendor for the provision of services for promoting, advocating 148 for, or providing training or education on diversity, equity, 149 and inclusion. 150 HB 1329 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1329-00 Page 7 of 12 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S (b) A contract between a local government and a private 151 vendor that includes language promoting, advocating for, or 152 providing training or education on diversity, equity, and 153 inclusion shall constitute grounds for immediate termination of 154 the contract, in which case the local government shall provide a 155 written notice of termination to the representative of the 156 private vendor. 157 (3) By September 1, 2026, and annually thereafter, each 158 local government must certify to the Chief Financial Officer 159 that it is in compliance with this section. The Chief Financial 160 Officer may adopt rules to implement this subsection. 161 (4)(a) A person may call the governmental efficiency 162 hotline established in s. 17.325 if he or she believes that a 163 local government has violated this section. Upon receipt of such 164 information, the Chief Financial Officer shall conduct an 165 evaluation pursuant to s. 17.325. 166 (b)1. If the Chief Financial Officer determines that a 167 local government has violated this section, the Chief Financial 168 Officer may impose the following administrative fines: 169 a. For a first violation, $1,000 per day. 170 b. For a second or subsequent violation, $5,000 per day. 171 2. The proceeds of the fines shall be deposited in the 172 Insurance Regulatory Trust Fund. 173 (5) This section does not prohibit the expenditure of 174 public funds through local government contracting which is 175 HB 1329 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1329-00 Page 8 of 12 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S reasonably necessary to the normal operation of government 176 functions. 177 (6) For purposes of this section, the term "diversity, 178 equity, and inclusion" means any effort by a local government 179 to: 180 1. Affect the composition of its employees as it relates 181 to race, sex, color, or ethnicity, other than to ensure 182 compliance with relevant state and federal antidiscrimination 183 laws; 184 2. Promote differential treatment of or provide special 185 benefits to a person based on his or her race, sex, color, or 186 ethnicity; 187 3. Promote or adopt policies or procedures designed or 188 implemented with reference to race, sex, color, or ethnicity, 189 other than policies or procedures approved in writing by the 190 Attorney General for the sole purpose of ensuring compliance 191 with any applicable court order or state or federal law; 192 4. Promote or adopt training, programming, or activities 193 designed or implemented with reference to race, color, 194 ethnicity, gender identity, or sexual orientation, other than 195 training, programming, or activities developed by an attorney 196 licensed in this state and approved in writing by the Attorney 197 General for the sole purpose of ensuring compliance with any 198 applicable court order or state or federal law; 199 5. Promote, as the official position of a local government 200 HB 1329 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1329-00 Page 9 of 12 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S agency, a particular opinion referencing unconscious or implicit 201 bias, cultural appropriation, allyship, transgender ideology, 202 microaggressions, group marginalization, antiracism, systemic 203 oppression, social justice, intersectionality, neopronouns, 204 heteronormativity, disparate impact, gender theory, racial or 205 sexual privilege, or any related formulation of such 206 concepts; or 207 6. Advance, promote, entertain, or support fundamental 208 considerations of social justice, including, but not limited to, 209 critical race theory, or otherwise defend the concept that 210 mankind is inherently racist, sexist, or oppressive, whether 211 consciously or unconsciously, solely by virtue of his or her 212 race or sex. This also includes the concept that mankind is 213 responsible for the past actions of other members of the same 214 race or sex. 215 216 The term does not include equal opportunity or equal employment 217 opportunity materials designed to inform the public about the 218 prohibition on discrimination based on protected status under 219 state or federal law. 220 Section 5. Subsections (3) and (9) of section 166.241, 221 Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 222 166.241 Fiscal years, budgets, appeal of municipal law 223 enforcement agency budget, and budget amendments.— 224 (3)(a) The tentative budget must be posted on the 225 HB 1329 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1329-00 Page 10 of 12 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S municipality's official website at least 14 2 days before the 226 budget hearing, held pursuant to s. 200.065 or other law, to 227 consider such budget and must remain on the website for at least 228 45 days. The final adopted budget must be posted on the 229 municipality's official website within 30 days after adoption 230 and must remain on the website for at least 5 2 years. If the 231 municipality does not operate an official website, the 232 municipality must, within a reasonable period of time as 233 established by the county or counties in which the municipality 234 is located, transmit the tentative budget and final budget to 235 the manager or administrator of such county or counties who 236 shall post the budgets on the county's website. 237 (b) Any tentative budget or final budget posted on the 238 municipality's official website or the county's official 239 website, as applicable, must allow members of the public to: 240 1. View budget data in a searchable format. 241 2. Review historical spending trends and filter data 242 according to categories in the county's chart of accounts, 243 including, but not limited to, fund, department, division, 244 program, or activity. 245 3. Download financial data and graphs. 246 4. View data in different graphical formats, including, 247 but not limited to, stacked line, trend line, bar graph, and pie 248 chart. 249 5. View information for multiple county departments, 250 HB 1329 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1329-00 Page 11 of 12 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S divisions, funds, or financial categories simultaneously. 251 6. View and compare revenue and expense trends 252 simultaneously on the same graph for any level of financial 253 data. 254 7. View all employee salaries in a searchable format. 255 8. View all travel expenses for all county employees in a 256 searchable format. 257 (c) At least 14 days before final adoption of the budget 258 by the governing body of a municipality, the municipality must 259 perform a budget cutting exercise, identifying specific 260 reductions to the tentative budget for the ensuing fiscal year 261 which total 10 percent of the tentative budget, without 262 compromising essential public services, such as law enforcement 263 or fire services, or legal obligations. The municipality must 264 publish this exercise on its official website or the county's 265 official website, as applicable, in accordance with paragraph 266 (b). 267 (9) If the governing body of a municipality amends the 268 budget pursuant to paragraph (8)(c), the adopted amendment must 269 be posted on the official website of the municipality within 7 5 270 days before after adoption and must remain on the website for at 271 least 5 2 years. If the municipality does not operate an 272 official website, the municipality must, within a reasonable 273 period of time as established by the county or counties in which 274 the municipality is located, transmit the adopted amendment to 275 HB 1329 2026 CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions. hb1329-00 Page 12 of 12 F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S the manager or administrator of such county or counties who 276 shall post the adopted amendment on the county's website. The 277 adopted amendment must be posted in accordance with paragraph 278 (3)(b). 279 Section 6. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026. 280