Florida HB 501: Renaming of Tallahassee Community College

Bill Text

HB 501 2026

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
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A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to construction disruption assistance; 2
creating part XIII of ch. 288, F.S., to be entitled 3
the "Construction Disruption Assistance Act"; creating 4
s. 288.9991, F.S.; providing a short title; creating 5
s. 288.9992, F.S.; providing legislative findings and 6
purpose; creating s. 288.9993, F.S.; defining terms; 7
creating s. 288.9994, F.S.; establishing rulemaking 8
authority; creating s. 288.9995, F.S.; establishing 9
the Construction Impact Relief Revolving Loan Program 10
within the Department of Commerce; authorizing the 11
Legislature to fund the program; requiring the 12
department to provide specified financial assistance 13
to eligible small businesses within construction 14
zones; requiring the department to develop a public 15
awareness and marketing campaign to promote the 16
program in partnership with specified entities; 17
providing requirements for the campaign; requiring 18
applicants to submit specified information with their 19
applications; requiring an applicant to agree to 20
accept consultation from the Florida Small Business 21
Development Center Network as a condition to 22
participate in the program; prohibiting an applicant 23
from participating in the program under certain 24
circumstances; creating s. 288.9996, F.S.; directing 25

HB 501 2026

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
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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 department to maintain and publish certain 26
information about the program on its website, to 27
update such information as changes occur, and to 28
ensure that the website is accessible to certain 29
persons with disabilities; creating s. 288.9997, F.S.; 30
providing that the department or any of its officers, 31
employees, agents, or contractors are not liable in 32
any civil action arising out of or relating to 33
specified duties of the program; requiring an 34
applicant to acknowledge that submitting an 35
application does not guarantee funding; providing that 36
the department is not liable for any damages resulting 37
from the department denying an applicant a loan or 38
delaying loan disbursement or from certain activities; 39
providing construction; providing that certain 40
determinations, prioritizations, and decisions made 41
are deemed final agency action and not subject to 42
further judicial review; providing an exception; 43
authorizing the department to adopt rules; creating s. 44
288.9998, F.S.; requiring the department, by a 45
specified date, to submit an annual report containing 46
certain information to the Governor and the 47
Legislature; providing an effective date. 48
49
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 50

HB 501 2026

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51
Section 1. Part XIII of chapter 288, Florida Statutes, 52
consisting of ss. 288.9991-288.9998, Florida Statutes, is 53
created and entitled "Construction Disruption Assistance Act." 54
Section 2. Section 288.9991, Florida Statutes, is created 55
to read: 56
288.9991 Short title.—This part shall be known and may be 57
cited as the "Construction Disruption Assistance Act." 58
Section 3. Section 288.9992, Florida Statutes, is created 59
to read: 60
288.9992 Legislative findings; purpose.—The Legislature 61
finds and declares that: 62
(1) Prolonged state and local government construction 63
projects that directly block access to small businesses cause 64
significant financial and operational hardships that negatively 65
impact local economies and threaten the livelihoods of business 66
owners and employees. 67
(2) It is the purpose of this act to establish a program 68
to provide financial relief, promotional support, and loss 69
coverage to small businesses adversely impacted by state and 70
local government construction projects, ensuring the resilience 71
and viability of affected businesses during essential 72
infrastructure improvements. 73
Section 4. Section 288.9993, Florida Statutes, is created 74
to read: 75

HB 501 2026

CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.
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288.9993 Definitions.—As used in this part, the term: 76
(1) "Construction zone" means the immediate area where 77
construction activities directly restrict physical or visual 78
access to a small business, including partial or complete 79
obstruction of entryways, parking, or signage visibility. 80
(2) "Demonstrable loss" means a verifiable reduction in 81
revenue, increased operating costs, or property damage directly 82
attributed to state or local government construction activities. 83
(3) "Departm