Florida SB 998: Housing

Bill Text

998 
Department of Commerce 
2025-12-22T11:09:29Z 
Repealing provisions relating to the Florida Small Cities Community Development Block Grant Program Act; providing an exemption for certain conveyances of state lands to certain federal agencies which revert to the Board of Trustees of the Internal Improvement Trust Fund if such land is not used for its intended purposes as a military installation buffer or if the military installation closes; requiring employers who are required to use the E-Verify system to verify a new employee’s employment eligibility to maintain an E-Verify case result for each employee which shows that the employee is authorized to work; requiring the department to provide an employer knowingly employing an unauthorized alien with a written determination, etc. 
Original Filed Version 
2026 
S 
2026-07-01T00:00:00Z 
GB 
General Bill 
__ 

 Florida Senate - 2026 SB 998 

 By Senator Yarborough 

 4-00724C-26 2026998__ 
 1 A bill to be entitled 
 2 An act relating to the Department of Commerce; 
 3 repealing ss. 290.0401, 290.0411, 290.042, 290.043, 
 4 290.0455, 290.046, 290.047, 290.0475, and 290.048, 
 5 F.S., relating to the Florida Small Cities Community 
 6 Development Block Grant Program Act; amending s. 
 7 253.025, F.S.; providing an exemption for certain 
 8 conveyances of state lands to certain federal agencies 
 9 which revert to the Board of Trustees of the Internal 
 10 Improvement Trust Fund if such land is not used for 
 11 its intended purposes as a military installation 
 12 buffer or if the military installation closes; 
 13 amending s. 288.0656, F.S.; revising the definition of 
 14 the term “rural community”; amending s. 290.044, F.S.; 
 15 defining terms; designating the department as the 
 16 state agency to receive and administer federal funding 
 17 from the United States Department of Housing and Urban 
 18 Development (HUD) to administer the Florida Small 
 19 Cities Community Development Block Grant Program; 
 20 authorizing the department to award grants and 
 21 disburse funds received from HUD; requiring the 
 22 department to administer additional federal funding 
 23 through HUD for certain expenses in accordance with 
 24 the law authorizing such funding; authorizing the 
 25 department to adopt rules; amending s. 448.095, F.S.; 
 26 defining the terms “employer” and “noncompliance”; 
 27 requiring employers who are required to use the E 
 28 Verify system to verify a new employee’s employment 
 29 eligibility to maintain an E-Verify case result for 
 30 each employee which shows that the employee is 
 31 authorized to work; requiring that the E-Verify case 
 32 result visibly show the employee’s work authorization 
 33 status; providing that each failure of an employer to 
 34 provide documentation within a specified timeframe 
 35 constitutes noncompliance; requiring the department to 
 36 issue a notification of noncompliance to an employer 
 37 before issuing fines or suspending licenses; providing 
 38 that an employer’s failure to provide copies of any 
 39 documentation relied upon by the employer constitutes 
 40 a reasonable basis that the employer failed to use the 
 41 E-Verify system; requiring the department to notify 
 42 the employer to comply within a specified timeframe; 
 43 authorizing the department to grant extensions up to a 
 44 specified timeframe upon a showing of good cause; 
 45 requiring the department to issue a final 
 46 determination of noncompliance if the employer does 
 47 not timely cure its noncompliance; authorizing an 
 48 employer found to be noncompliant to request a 
 49 hearing; providing requirements for such hearings; 
 50 requiring an employer to repay any economic 
 51 development incentive if the administrative law judge 
 52 rules in favor of the department or if the employer 
 53 loses its appeal; defining the terms “employer” and 
 54 “unauthorized alien”; revising the fines and penalties 
 55 that may be imposed on an employer found to be in 
 56 noncompliance; providing how an employer may cure 
 57 noncompliance; authorizing the department to adopt 
 58 rules and procedures; authorizing the department to 
 59 recover reasonable costs of investigation and 
 60 prosecution; requiring the department to determine 
 61 such costs; authorizing the department to contract 
 62 with a collections agent if such costs are not paid 
 63 within a specified timeframe; requiring that any 
 64 amounts recovered be deposited into the State Economic 
 65 Enhancement and Development Trust Fund; prohibiting 
 66 the department from investigating complaints based 
 67 solely on race, color, or national origin; revising an 
 68 expiration; amending s. 448.09, F.S.; defining the 
 69 term “knowingly employs”; requiring the department to 
 70 provide an employer knowingly employing an 
 71 unauthorized alien with a written determination; 
 72 providing requirements for hearings; requiring 
 73 employers placed on probation t