TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – On Tuesday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed another slate of six bills into law amid a flurry of new legislation.
These new laws cover issues like what qualifies as legal tender, deepfake pornography crimes, and rules for healthcare providers.
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The full list of these new laws is as follows:
HB 547 — Medical Debt
House Bill 547 provides an exception to requirements that hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers provide 30 days’ notice before selling a consumer’s debt.
The exception applies if the facility and debt buyer have a contract that states the debt won’t be subject to interest, fees, or other extraordinary collection actions.
The law is set to take effect on July 1.
HB 757 — Sexual Images
House Bill 757 prohibits the possession of a “lewd or lascivious image” with the intent to promote it, making it a second-degree felony.
In addition, the law prohibits anyone from knowingly soliciting child pornography, which will become a third-degree felony.
Furthermore, the law criminalizes the generation, solicitation, and possession of deepfake pornography, which is set as a third-degree felony.
As a result, the law also allows a victim of deepfake pornography to sue the offender.
The law is set to take effect on Oct. 1.
HB 999 — Silver and Gold
House Bill 999 recognizes certain silver and gold coins as legal tender in Florida.
As a result, this silver and gold are considered tax-exempt, and they can be used to pay taxes and debts incurred as of next year.
The law is set to take effect on July 1, 2026.
SB 112 — Disabled Children
Senate Bill 112 expands services and funding opportunities for children with autism and other developmental disabilities.
Changes under this law include the following:
- Allows a child to remain in the Early Steps program until the beginning of the school year following the child’s fourth birthday
- Provides startup grants for the development of charter schools for autistic children
- Provides grants for specialized summer programs for children with autism
- Provides an autism micro-credential for instructional and child care personnel at no cost to eligible participants
- Requires the Commissioner of Education to review autism-related training curricula and report findings to lawmakers
The law took effect upon being signed.
SB 768 — Countries of Concern
Senate Bill 768 requires a health care provider to ensure that a person or entity with a direct controlling interest in the provider to not also have an interest in an entity that has a business relationship with a foreign country of concern or a scrutinized company.
In Florida, foreign countries of concern include China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, Syria, and Venezuela.
Meanwhile, scrutinized companies are considered those that boycott Israel or have prohibited operations in Cuba, Iran, Sudan or Syria.
The law is set to take effect on July 1.
SB 1546 — Athletic Coaches
Senate Bill 1546 amends state statutes regarding athletic coaches.
Under this law, the date to require a Level 2 background screening for athletic coaches is pushed from Jan. 1, 2025, to July 1, 2026, at the latest.
Furthermore, this law mandates that someone who hasn’t received a background screening may still act as an athletic coach if he/she is directly supervised by another coach who has met the screening requirements.
The law is set to take effect on July 1.
Other batches of bills recently signed into law by DeSantis include the following:
- May 28 — Animal cruelty laws
- May 23 — 10 new laws
- May 22 — 17 new laws
- May 21 — 16 new laws
- May 20 — 8 new laws
- May 19 — 13 new laws
- May 15 — Massive farming bill
- May 2 — Citizen amendment petitions
- April 29 — 8 new laws
- April 18 — 4 new laws
- April 14 — Gulf of America