Legislative Updates

On Wednesday, March 19, the FICPA’s priority legislation, CS/SB 160 – Public Accountancy by Sen. Joe Gruters, unanimously passed the Florida Senate by a vote of 39-0.

The FICPA's priority legislation in the Senate is one of the 10 fastest-moving bills in Tallahassee, demonstrating the strong support and respect CPAs have in the Florida Legislature.

On Day 2 of Florida's 2025 Legislative Session, the FICPA's priority legislation - CS/SB 160 - unanimously passed the Senate Appropriations Committee on Agriculture, Environment, and General Government. Advancing to a final committee in the Senate this early into Session is a significant accomplishment.

The FICPA's priority legislation, Senate Bill 160, passed unanimously out of its first committee stop, Senate Regulated industries, on Tuesday. We thank the legislators on the committee for their support. Reaching this step before Session even starts is a fantastic news.

The momentum from CPA Day is already driving results. Our priority legislation, SB 160 – Public Accountancy, has been placed on the Senate Regulated Industries Committee agenda for Tuesday, Feb. 18 at 4 p.m., a critical first step in modernizing CPA licensure in Florida.

On Wednesday, Feb. 5, more than 100 FICPA members, volunteer leaders and staff paid visit to the offices of all 160 members of the Florida House and Senate, staging more than 50 meetings with legislators and their aides.

After a week off thanks to a historic snowstorm in North Florida, the Legislative Update is back with a new edition covering the FICPA’s legislative priorities, our CPA Day at the Capitol and the Florida Legislature’s Special Session.

The Supreme Court of the United States on Thursday lifted an injunction barring enforcement of the Corporate Transparency Act, but the beneficial ownership information (BOI) reporting freeze remains in effect thanks to a separate injunction in another case.

Ahead of next week's CPA Day at the Capitol and with condo reform in the headlines, FICPA State Legislative Policy Chair Guy Strum joined the Senate Regulated Industries Committee this week, serving on a panel focused on condo law.

Rep. Mike Caruso, CPA, on Thursday filed HB 133: Public Accountancy, FICPA’s 2025 priority bill, which proposes important legislative changes that seek to modernize CPA licensure for the future. Sen. Joe Gruters is expected to file the Senate companion very soon.

The injunction related to beneficial ownership information (BOI) reporting is back in effect, after a Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals panel on Thursday reversed a vacated a stay issued just days prior.

Following the appellate court's ruling, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network offered a series of short filing extensions to those companies with upcoming due dates, including the Jan. 1, 2025, filing date for those entities formed prior to 2024.

President Joe Biden on Thursday signed H.R. 5863, the “Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act of 2023,” which will designate a series of presidentially-declared disasters as qualified disaster events.

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The FICPA remains plugged into the ongoings in Tallahassee as members settle into their offices and fill the halls of the Capitol. The FICPA continues to monitor legislation as it is filed and will begin weekly bill reports soon.

On Wednesday, the U.S. Senate unanimously passed Federal Disaster Tax Relief Act. The legislation would allow Americans who were subjected to damages from hurricanes and other federally declared disasters to claim such losses without itemizing such deductions. Moreover, such losses would not have to exceed 10% of a claimant’s adjusted gross income to qualify.

On Tuesday, the Florida Legislature met for the purpose of organizing committees, formally electing leadership, and swearing in the 35 newly elected legislators.

The FICPA Governmental Affairs team has been hard at work traveling the state and actively collaborating with our members and esteemed leaders in the CPA profession. This week, the team had the pleasure of honoring Rep. Cyndi Stevenson, CPA, with a Lifetime Champion of the CPA Profession Award.

The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network on Tuesday issued a series of extensions to those entities which are required to file beneficial ownership information (BOI) reports.

The Internal Revenue Service on Friday that taxpayers all taxpayers in Florida now have until May 1, 2025, to file various federal individual and business tax returns and make tax payments following a series of storms including Hurricanes Milton, Helene and Debby.

Hurricane Helene has prompted filing extensions to May 1, 2025, from both the Internal Revenue Service and the Florida Department of Revenue for taxpayers in 41 affected counties. We've put together this county-by-county list of due dates.

The Florida primary was held on Tuesday, Aug. 20, and individuals across the state headed to the polls to make their voices heard. Read the latest issue of Legislative Update for a breakdown of turnout figures by party, how the primary compared to previous elections and race reviews. It also provides a look ahead to November's election and information on how to support the Florida CPA/PAC.

Hurricane Debby on Monday made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane near the city of Steinhatchee in Florida's Big Bend region. The Steinhatchee River near Cross City rose nearly 8 feet as Debby came ashore, and state officials said residents in the area could expect continuing heavy flooding into the next week. The FICPA would like to extend its heartfelt sympathies to the individuals, families and businesses impacted by this storm.

With July coming to an end and August on approach, Florida's primary election, a new school year and the start of the college football season are all on the horizon

All bills passed by the Legislature during the 2024 Session have now been acted on by Gov. Ron DeSantis. Although Session ended more than four months ago, it took until the last week of June for all legislation to make its way to the governor’s desk and for him to make final decisions on the fate of those bills. This officially signals the end of the legislative cycle, with all eyes now on the 2024 elections.

The FICPA Governmental Affairs Team is happy to welcome you back to the Legislative Update. After a short hiatus, the team returns to our regular bi-weekly update. We would like to say THANK YOU to all of those who joined us at Sapphire Falls Resort for MEGA 2024.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday signed HB 5001 – General Appropriation Act, commonly referred to as the state budget, for fiscal year 2024-25.

We are pleased to report that the Florida Board of Accountancy (BOA) this week officially began the rulemaking process for the FICPA’s priority bill, HB 813 by Rep. Mike Caruso, creating a retired CPA status in statue.

Some legislative activities took a bit of a back seat this week as strong storms and several tornados did significant damage to Tallahassee and the surrounding areas, shifting the focus to storm recovery.

HR 5863 by Congressman Greg Stuebe (R-FL) provides key disaster relief to individuals impacted by Hurricane Ian. The bill resolves issues around tax rules relating to personal losses during declared disasters.

Florida's 2024 tax package includes the FICPA-priority language for automatic tax extensions when a state of emergency has been declared within five days of a deadline.

With legislators back in their respective districts, the FICPA Governmental Affairs team is transitioning into more post-Session activities with an eye towards the fast-approaching 2024 campaign season.

Monday, April 15, was a celebratory day for the FICPA's Governmental Affairs team, as Gov. DeSantis signed our retired CPA bill and we welcomed a new member to our staff.

“We want to thank Gov. DeSantis for signing this great bill, CPA Lawmakers Rep. Caruso and Sen. Gruters for sponsoring it, and the entire Legislature for supporting the profession. This is a proud day in our history,” FICPA President & CEO Shelly Weir said.

On Tuesday, April 2, HB 813 by Rep. Mike Caruso (SB 954) was signed by the presiding officers and officially presented to Gov. DeSantis for his review. The Governor now has until April 17 to act on the bill. He may sign, let it go into law without his signature, or veto.

In the final week, the Legislature worked to hammer out the final budget and passed the last bills on the House and Senate Floors. The Budget Conference process wrapped up on Monday evening, March 4, allowing the budget to be laid on the members’ desks on Tuesday, March 5 at 11:48 am. This allowed the constitutionally required 72-hour cooling off period to begin and the Session to end on time.

Today, the Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants (FICPA) commemorated the passage of its priority legislation, CS/House Bill 813 – Certified Public Accountants by Rep. Mike Caruso (SB 954 by Sen. Joe Gruters). This bill creates a new “retired CPA” license status in Florida statute, which is an extremely meaningful change for CPAs in the state of Florida. The legislation will now be sent to Gov. Ron DeSantis for consideration to be signed into law.

At the end of Week 8, the 2024 Legislative Session finale is near, but there is still much work to be done – and brief time to do it. As the work on legislation has concluded, the focus turned to passing bills on the House and Senate Floor and completing the state budget.

By Week 7, for many bills that have not yet cleared all committees or passed one or both Chambers, time is of the essence. As final agenda notices were made public late last week and early this week, advocates with legislation still up for consideration by the last committee of reference either felt relieved or were disappointed.

With the second half of Florida's 2024 Legislative Session now underway, the Legislature mainly focuses on working to refine bills for final consideration. Committee agendas were packed to the brim this week with proposed legislation during the scheduled meetings, as the Legislature continues to move forward policy items. The Legislature will continue to hear legislation until the latter half of next week. After that, the full committees will slowly stop meeting and the legislative members will spend most of their time on the Chamber Floor for final passage of bills.

This week marked the official halfway point of the 2024 Legislative Session. Day 30 of 60 passed without much fanfare outside the halls of the Capitol, but this milestone marks a significant point in the life of the legislative process and bills being considered.

Week 4 of the Legislative Session was highlighted by continued progress on several key bills, as well as the House and Senate officially presenting their respective 2024 Budget proposals.

Several bills that are now moving forward could threaten CPA mobility. Our entire lobby team is fully engaged in educating legislators and staff and taking the necessary actions to protect the profession.

The FICPA would like to thank all its members who took time out of their busy schedules to travel to Tallahassee to participate in our CPA Day at the Captiol, a key event that will make a tremendous impact on our legislative priorities.

With Florida's 2024 Legislative Session underway, two FICPA priority bills have been filed in the House and Senate, as the Governmental Affairs team tracks nearly 300 pieces of legislation.

Florida House and Senate members returned to Tallahassee this week for their sixth Interim Committee Week. This is the final week for committee meetings before the start of the 2024 Session. This week, more bills were placed on the agenda and began to move forward through committees.

Sen. Joe Gruters on Thursday filed Senate Bill 954 - Certified Public Accountants in the Florida Senate. This bill – which is among the FICPA’s 2024 legislative priorities – creates a new “retired status” license category for CPAs. This is the companion bill to House Bill 813 - Certified Public Accountants, filed by Rep. Mike Caruso on Monday. The bills are identical.

Rep. Mike Caruso on Monday filed House Bill 813 - Certified Public Accountants in the Florida House. This bill – which is among the FICPA’s 2024 legislative priorities – creates a new “retired status” license category for CPAs

Florida House and Senate members returned to Tallahassee this week for their fifth Interim Committee Week. With only a few weeks left before the start of the 2024 Regular Session, the Legislature is working quickly to prepare and vet numerous issues and file legislation that may be considered when they officially gavel-in in January.