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Florida lawmakers expect quieter session as DeSantis focuses on campaign.

On his political ascent, Gov. Ron DeSantis has used Florida’s annual legislative session as rocket fuel, pushing an aggressive agenda in recent years that has rewired state institutions with right-wing orthodoxy, punished critics and enthused conservatives around the country.

But with lawmakers set to reconvene in the Florida Capitol on Tuesday, and DeSantis’ fading presidential ambitions hinging on contests playing out this month more than 1,000 miles away, the two-term governor is returning to Tallahassee this week to what could be his most tamped-down legislative session yet.

While things could change quickly, more than a dozen lawmakers and consultants interviewed by the Times/Herald say they’re expecting a less explosive session than in recent years, when the GOP-controlled Legislature approved restrictions on transgender care, a six-week abortion ban, limits on what can be taught in public schools and a historic expansion on school choice, among other polarizing issues.

But a slower pace in Tallahassee, they say, is not an indication that DeSantis is losing influence over the legislative process as he struggles on the national stage. Like the governor, many Republicans say that after pushing Florida further to the right in recent years, they expect a sleepier session as the race for the Republican presidential nomination plays out.

Florida lawmakers return to Tallahassee for 2024 legislative season.

Florida lawmakers will return to Tallahassee to kick off the 2024 legislative session to discuss some hot-button topics. Including one bill that would lower the minimum age to buy rifles and other long guns. Another bill that will be discussed aims to protect historic monuments. It was filed the day after the city of Jacksonville took down the Confederate monument in Springfield Park.

Bills filed in both the House and Senate call for an increase in the minimum base pay for full-time classroom teachers and certain pre-kindergarten teachers. It would be known as the “Save our Teachers Act.”

Another bill would address Florida’s homeowner’s insurance crisis. It would stop insurance companies from putting a coverage limit on a house that would include the value of the land the house sits on. It would also require companies to offer policies that cover only the unpaid principal on a mortgage.

There is also one that centers around cannabis. If a person is caught with possession of 20 grams or less, this bill calls for lowering the criminal penalties for a first, second, or third violation.

Tampa lawmakers say transportation and insurance are legislative priorities.

The 2024 Florida legislative session kicks off on Tuesday. Friday, Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce members and area lawmakers hobnobbed before the 60 day of debate gets underway in Tallahassee.

Representative Lindsay Cross, D-St. Petersburg, has no doubt what is the most important issue facing the state legislature. "Home insurance," she said emphatically. Cross said it's time for the legislature to deal with the insurance that insurance companies get to cover financial losses.

"The reinsurance market is something that we have to tackle and no one has had the appetite to do that yet," Cross said.

State Senator Jay Collins, R-Tampa, also got a chance to speak one-on-one with Tampa Bay Chamber of Commerce members. He was warning people to go slow on trying to correct the state's ailing property insurance market.

Florida Legislature to consider multiple bills regulating homeowners associations

Florida lawmakers will consider more than a dozen bills in 2024 that would increase transparency and accountability of homeowners associations across the state.

In advance of the 60-day legislative session that begins on Jan. 9, lawmakers say the bills are in response to complaints about HOAs. “We did receive a lot of those” complaints, said Rep. Kristen Arrington, D-Osceola, who has filed two bills on the subject.

One of her bills (HB 431) would prohibit an HOA from imposing more than a $100 fine for any single violation; fines that may be levied for each day of a continuing violation could not exceed $500 unless it is specifically written into the HOA’s governing documents.

“Currently, the fines that one can receive are up to $1,000 per violation,” Arrington said. “Folks on a fixed income, especially like our seniors, were receiving notices for pressure washing or vines growing up on their fence or their building, and receiving fines up to $1,000 for that, which is obviously hard for them.”