TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Just before the end of the month, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed nearly a dozen more bills — including a new law that implements more tax rules.
The rules come as part of HB 7031E, which was rolled into this year’s overall state budget plan. The bill takes effect in full on Wednesday, July 1.
Below is a lineup of these new tax rules, per legislative analysts:
SALES TAXES
- Back-to-School Tax Holiday — The new back-to-school sales tax holiday created last year will now begin on July 20 (before school starts) and run through Aug. 20 each year.
- New Tax Holiday — Creates a new hunting, fishing and camping sales tax holiday from Sept. 1 - Dec. 31 this year. The items covered by this provision are as follows:
| Item | Sales Price Cap |
|---|---|
| Tents | $200 |
| Fishing rods and reels (sold as a set) | $150 |
| Fishing rods and reels (sold individually) | $75 |
| Sleeping bags | $50 |
| Portable hammocks | $50 |
| Camping stoves | $50 |
| Collapsible camping chairs | $50 |
| Camping lanterns | $30 |
| Flashlights | $30 |
| Tackle boxes or bags | $30 |
| Bait or fishing tackles (multiple sold together) | $20 |
| Bait or fishing tackles (sold individually) | $10 |
| Ammunition | -- |
| Firearms | -- |
| Firearm accessories (ex: holsters, barrels) | -- |
| Bows | -- |
| Crossbows | -- |
| Arrows and bolts | -- |
| Quivers, sights and wristguards | -- |
- Home Hardening — Allows purchasers of home hardening products — such as impact-resistant doors, garage doors and windows — to seek a sales tax refund for purchases between July 1, 2026, and June 30, 2029.
- Propane Tanks — Creates a permanent tax exemption for propane tanks with a capacity of 20 pounds or less.
- State Universities — Allows state colleges and universities to obtain refunds for sales tax paid by contractors on materials used in public works contracts.
- Sports Tournaments — Exempts admissions to any Association of Tennis Professionals’ ATP Masters 1000 tournament or any Women’s Tennis Association’s WTA 1000 tournament from sales taxes through July 1, 2029.
- Heavy Trucks — Allows purchasers of certain heavy trucks to designate up to $105 of sales tax paid to an eligible nonprofit scholarship-funding organization under the Florida Tax Credit Scholarship Program.
PROPERTY TAXES
- Mobile Home Parks — Limits annual assessment increases for certain mobile home parks to 3% starting on Jan. 1, 2027.
- Save Our Homes — Allows the “Save Our Homes” benefit to transfer to a new homestead from any homestead abandoned in the prior three years.
- Listing Websites — Requires online property listing platforms to include the estimated property taxes for residential properties.
- Intelligence Officers — Lets a homeowner continue to qualify for homestead benefits when the property is rented to another person, so long as the homeowner is a diplomatic, intelligence, consular, or foreign service officer of the federal government who is required to live outside of Florida.
- Military Members — Adds additional named military operations for the deployed servicemember property tax exemption and allows deployments in 2023, 2024 and 2025 on named operations to qualify for the exemption.
OTHER RULES
- School Levies — Removes the requirement for a board of county commissioners to call an election for school district levies, instead requiring school board-approved resolutions to be voted on by voters in the next general election held over 90 days after adoption.
- Alarm Systems — Extends a temporary exemption through June 30, 2028, for non-interest-bearing written obligations to pay $3,500 or less, when given by a customer to an alarm system contractor for the sale of an alarm system.
- Slot Machines — Reduces the tax on slot machine revenues from 35% to 34%.
- Cardroom Revenues — Reduces the gross receipts tax on cardroom revenues from 8% to 5%.
- Childcare Program — Extends the Child Care Tax Credit Program through FY 2027-2029.
Meanwhile, all other new Florida laws signed on Monday include the following:
SB 2506-E — Fuel Taxes
Senate Bill 2506-E amends state statutes relating to distributions from the fuel sales tax.
The law provides an increase to the Agricultural Emergency Eradication Trust Fund; the Marine Resources Conservation Trust Fund; the State Game Trust Fund; and the Invasive Plant Trust Fund.
This aims to conform the law to the most recent budget act.
The law takes effect on July 1
SB 2508-E — Law Enforcement Radios
Senate Bill 2508-E continues a $3 surcharge on certain criminal offenses and noncriminal moving traffic violations, which would otherwise expire on July 1.
Funds from this surcharge support the cost of the Statewide Law Enforcement Radio System.
This aims to conform the law to the most recent budget act.
The law took effect immediately upon being signed.
HB 5001-E — Budget Act
House Bill 5001-E is the budget act for the 2026-2027 fiscal year.
This time around, the state budget amounts to roughly $117.6 billion — a total figure after the governor vetoed nearly $810 million line items.
The law takes effect in full on July 1.
HB 5003-E — Budget Implementation
House Bill 5003-E helps implements the state’s budget act for FY 2026-2027 by making a variety of statutory changes.
The statutory changes provided by this law will remain in effect until next year.
The law takes effect in full on July 1.
HB 5201-E — Collective Bargaining
House Bill 5201-E provides that the resolution of collective bargaining issues at an impasse for FY 2026-2027 regarding state employees will ultimately be resolved based on spending decisions included in the budget act.
The law takes effect on July 1.
HB 5205-E — Retirement Contributions
House Bill 5205-E conforms state law to the budget act, as retirement contributions are included in the budget act.
The law revises employer contribution rates for the normal costs and the unfunded actuarial liability of the Florida Retirement System based on the annual actuarial study for FY 2026-2027 and the following FRS changes:
- Authorization of an elected officer (other than a lawmaker) who has completed his/her Deferred Retirement Option Program participation to receive his/her accumulated funds after reaching 59.5 years of age without terminating from office
- Establishment of an alternative cost-of-living adjustment for eligible Special Risk Class members of 1.5%
The law takes effect on July 1.
HB 5301-E — Health Care
House Bill 5301-E conforms several statutes to the budget act, including:
- Makes changes to the FDOH’s revolving loan program, new newborn screening testing, infant nutritional needs, and trauma centers
- Establishes a formula to allocate funds related to the Slots for Doctors Program
- Makes the Step into Success Workforce Education and Internship Program permanent
- Establishes the Foster and Family Support Grant Program
- Establishes the Eligibility Assistance Program to provide Medicaid eligibility information, referral, and navigation services for people with disabilities
The law takes effect on July 1.
HB 5403-E — Correctional Facilities
House Bill 5403-E conforms current law to the budget act, establishing Legislative intent to provide funding to address critical fixed capital outlay needs of the Department of Corrections (FDC). Changes include:
- Requires $50 million in recurring funds from the General Revenue Fund over the next 30 years
- Requires FDC to use funding to develop a capital improvement plan for new and existing correctional facilities
- Directs FDC to begin planning a new 600-bed correctional hospital unit starting on July 1
The law takes effect on July 1.
HB 5601-E — Higher Education
House Bill 5601-E conforms current law to the budget act, making the following changes:
- Revises performance metrics used by the Board of Governors (BOG) to allocate performance-based funding among state universities
- Creates the Disaster Preparedness Center at Florida International university as a statewide center for disaster prep, response, recovery and resilience training
- Allows each university board of trustees toe stablish out-of-state fees for nonresident students
- Allows the State Board of Education and the BOG to approve, reject or amend the list of general education courses for Florida College System institutions and state universities
The law took effect immediately upon being signed.
HB 5701-E — Petroleum Cleanup
House Bill 5701-E conforms current law to the budget act, amending the Petroleum Cleanup Participation Program and the Florida Petroleum Liability and Restoration Insurance Program.
This law removes program deductibles, copayments, and monetary caps for eligible parties and has the costs absorbed by the Inland Protection Trust Fund.
The law takes effect on July 1.
SB 7040 — Emergency Fund
Senate Bill 7040 recreates the Emergency Preparedness and Response Fund within the Executive Office of the Governor.
The fund is meant to be used to prepare for or respond to disasters declared by the governor as a state of emergency.
The law took effect immediately upon being signed.