Florida SB 244: Residential Swimming Pool Safety

Bill Text

244 
Residential Swimming Pool Requirements 
2025-10-20T04:21:13Z 
Requiring that swimming pools located on residential real property that is transferred or sold on or after a specified date meet certain pool safety and pool barrier requirements; requiring home inspectors to report violations of the law to a local enforcement agency, etc. 
Original Filed Version 
2026 
S 
2026-07-01T00:00:00Z 
GB 
General Bill 
__ 

 Florida Senate - 2026 SB 244 

 By Senator Rodriguez 

 40-00312A-26 2026244__ 
 1 A bill to be entitled 
 2 An act relating to residential swimming pool 
 3 requirements; amending s. 515.27, F.S.; requiring that 
 4 swimming pools located on residential real property 
 5 that is transferred or sold on or after a specified 
 6 date meet certain pool safety and pool barrier 
 7 requirements; requiring home inspectors to report 
 8 violations of the law to a local enforcement agency; 
 9 amending s. 515.31, F.S.; conforming a cross 
 10 reference; making technical changes; providing an 
 11 effective date. 
 12 
 13 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 
 14 
 15 Section 1. Section 515.27, Florida Statutes, is amended to 
 16 read: 
 17 515.27 Residential swimming pool safety feature options; 
 18 penalties.— 
 19 (1) In order to pass final inspection and receive a 
 20 certificate of completion, a residential swimming pool must meet 
 21 at least one of the following requirements relating to pool 
 22 safety features: 
 23 (a) The pool must be isolated from access to a home by an 
 24 enclosure that meets the pool barrier requirements of s. 515.29; 
 25 (b) The pool must be equipped with an approved safety pool 
 26 cover; 
 27 (c) All doors and windows providing direct access from the 
 28 home to the pool must be equipped with an exit alarm that has a 
 29 minimum sound pressure rating of 85 dB A at 10 feet; 
 30 (d) All doors providing direct access from the home to the 
 31 pool must be equipped with a self-closing, self-latching device 
 32 with a release mechanism placed no lower than 54 inches above 
 33 the floor; or 
 34 (e) A swimming pool alarm that, when placed in a pool, 
 35 sounds an alarm upon detection of an accidental or unauthorized 
 36 entrance into the water. Such pool alarm must meet and be 
 37 independently certified to ASTM Standard F2208, titled “Standard 
 38 Safety Specification for Residential Pool Alarms,” which 
 39 includes surface motion, pressure, sonar, laser, and infrared 
 40 alarms. For purposes of this paragraph, the term “swimming pool 
 41 alarm” does not include any swimming protection alarm device 
 42 designed for individual use, such as an alarm attached to a 
 43 child that sounds when the child exceeds a certain distance or 
 44 becomes submerged in water. 
 45 (2) A swimming pool, regardless of the year in which the 
 46 pool was built, located on residential real property that is 
 47 transferred or sold on or after October 1, 2026, must be 
 48 equipped with at least one pool safety feature as required in 
 49 subsection (1). A home inspector licensed under s. 468.8314 must 
 50 report a violation of this subsection to a local enforcement 
 51 agency as defined in s. 553.71. If the inspected pool safety 
 52 feature is the pool barrier, it must meet all of the 
 53 requirements in s. 515.29. 
 54 (3)(2) A person who fails to equip a new residential 
 55 swimming pool with at least one pool safety feature as required 
 56 in subsection (1) or subsection (2) commits a misdemeanor of the 
 57 second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 
 58 775.083, except that no penalty shall be imposed if the person, 
 59 within 45 days after arrest or issuance of a summons or a notice 
 60 to appear, has equipped the pool with at least one safety 
 61 feature as required in subsection (1) or subsection (2) and has 
 62 attended a drowning prevention education program established by 
 63 s. 515.31. However, the requirement of attending a drowning 
 64 prevention education program is waived if such program is not 
 65 offered within 45 days after issuance of the citation. 
 66 Section 2. Subsection (1) of section 515.31, Florida 
 67 Statutes, is amended to read: 
 68 515.31 Drowning prevention education program; public 
 69 information publication.— 
 70 (1) The department shall develop a drowning prevention 
 71 education program. Such program must, which shall be made 
 72 available to the public at the state and local levels and is 
 73 which shall be required as set forth in s. 515.27(3) s. 
 74 515.27(2) for persons in violation of the pool safety 
 75 requirements of this chapter. The department may charge a fee, 
 76 not to exceed $100, for attendance at such a program. The 
 77 drowning prevention education program must shall be funded using 
 78 fee proceeds, state funds appropriated for such purpose, and 
 79 grants. The department, in lieu of developing its own program, 
 80 may adopt a nationally recognized drowning