Florida Laws Changing on July 1: From Condos To Dangerous Dogs
Many are in response to observed issues concerning the health of student athletes as well as other threats to Floridians such as opioids and dangerous dogs.
Drawn from media reports and state legislation, below are some of the most significant new laws taking effect in Florida from Tuesday.
SB 1514: Anaphylaxis in Public and Charter Schools
The bill, approved by Governor Ron DeSantis in May, requires each district and charter school board to ensure that adequate training is provided to school personnel regarding anaphylactic shocks-potentially life-threatening reactions to allergens. Training should ensure that school personnel are able to recognize the signs of anaphylaxis and know how to administer an epinephrine delivery device, or EpiPen.
SB 1070: Electrocardiograms for Student Athletes
The bill, also known as the "Second Chance Act," requires the Florida High School Athletic Association to increase the use of electrocardiogram (EKG) tests for student athletes and adopt policies barring students with abnormal EKGs from participating in sports without medical clearance. It mandates athletes to complete at least one screening before participating in interscholastic athletic competitions. It comes after a student from Port St. Joe High School student died while competing in a football game in September last year.
HB 597: Diabetes Management in Schools
The bill, referred to the House of Representative's educational and health subcommittees, aims to ensure schools are better equipped to handle diabetic emergencies. It authorizes schools to maintain stocks of undesignated glucagon, a medication used to treat severe hypoglycemia, authorizing flexible acquisition options such as via purchase, reduced pricing, free donation and transferred supplies that meet certain safety standards. It also requires that these glucagon supplies be kept in secure and easily accessible storage.
HB 593: Dangerous Dogs
The "Pam Rock Act" is aimed at regulating dangerous dogs and increasing the penalty for owners whose pets cause serious injury or death. The bill, unanimously passed in both chambers, was named after Pamela Rock, a woman killed in 2022 by a group of dogs with known histories of aggressive behaviour. HB 593 requires that dogs which have killed or seriously injured a human be confiscated, and that owners of dogs classified as dangerous obtain liability insurance of at least $100,000, microchip the dogs and securely confine them in suitable enclosures.
HB 255: Aggravated Animal Cruelty
Otherwise known as "Dexter's Law," this provides harsher sentences for individuals involved in aggravated cases of animal cruelty, while making it more likely that those found guilty of these crimes will go to prison. The bill was named after Dexter, a rescue dog who was adopted in 2024 and found beheaded in a public park days later. The bill will also create an online database of convicted animal abusers, allowing pet adoption services to screen applicants.
HB 351: Dangerous Excessive Speeding
This bill will impose harsher penalties and jail time for those who exceed speed limits by 50 miles per hour or more, or those who operate a vehicle at 100 mph or more "in a manner that threatens the safety of other persons or property or interferes with the operation of any vehicle." Those convicted of "dangerous excessive speeding" will face imprisonment of up to 30 days, a fine of $500 or both. Subsequent convictions will be punishable by up to 90 days in jail, a fine of $1,000 or both.
HB 913: Condominium and Cooperative Associations
The bill prohibits anyone whose community association manager (CAM) license is revoked from having any ownership interest in a community association management firm-a company contracted by a homeowner's association to handle the day-to-day management of a community-for a specified period. CAMS must also maintain up-to-date online accounts with Florida's Department of Business and Professional Regulation.
SB 1388: Vessels
The "Boater Freedom Act" is designed to safeguard access to Florida's waters and reduce regulatory impediments for boaters. It bars local government entities from banning gas-powered boats, prohibits authorities from conducting vessel inspections without probable case, and directs the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to proactively provide Florida Freedom Boater decals which will demonstrate to law enforcement that boaters have "taken the necessary steps to maintain proper safety requirements," per a statement on the governor's website.
HB 279: False Reporting
HB 279 aims to increase the penalties for those who misuse emergency communication services, specifically in cases where this results in serious harm or death. If found guilty of making false emergency calls-or "swatting"-individuals will have to pay restitution to victims as well as expenses incurred by law enforcement.
SB 994: Driver License Education Requirements
The bill requires that anyone aged 18 or older applying for a driver license must first complete a traffic law and substance abuse education course. Learner driver licenses may also be issued for anyone aged 15 who has completed an approved driver education course.
HB 259: Special Observances
HB 259 designates August 21 as Florida's Fentanyl Awareness & Education Day, encouraging schools to "sponsor events to promote awareness of dangers of fentanyl & potential overdoses" on this date.
HB 549: Gulf of America
This bill requires state agencies to rename the Gulf of Mexico in all geographic materials, reflecting the change adopted at the federal level earlier this year. The bill also mandates that public and charter schools adopt the new name in instructional and library materials after July 1.
HB 209: State Land Management
The legislation, also referred to as the "State Park Preservation Act," mandates that the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) encourage the protection of the state's public lands for recreational use. HB 209, which passed both chambers unanimously, also encourages transparency from the DEP regarding the use of public lands with public hearings and publicly available electronic copies of land management plans for parcels of a certain size and those located in state parks.
SB 700: Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
Also known as the "Florida Farm Bill," this was signed into law by DeSantis in May. It introduces several departmental reforms, including expanded authority over hiring practices, giving the agency greater flexibility in staffing decisions. While it does not specifically mention the word fluoride, the bill bans "the use of certain additives in a water system" which do not meet strict new requirements. In effect, this will make Florida the second state after Utah to ban fluoride from public drinking water.
Florida Representative Judson Sapp, who sponsored the Dangerous Dogs bill, said: "This bill addresses the rising number of attacks and fatalities caused by dangerous dogs in Florida by clearly defining what constitutes a dangerous dog, establishing a tracking system, and providing a process for removal when necessary. At the same time, it includes safeguards to prevent misidentification and protect responsible pet owners."
Florida Representative Anne Gerwig, sponsor of the Special Observances bill, said: "Thousands of lives are lost every year due to opioid and fentanyl overdoses and this particularly affects our young adults and youth. Some lives are lost due to unintentional exposure including babies, young children and public servants that come into contact with this drug. The pain of addiction and the loss of lives due to fentanyl touches almost every family.
"Bringing awareness of the dangers and hope for those that need it can change lives. By bringing attention to the fact that almost 60,000 lives were lost to fentanyl last year, we can spread awareness of this deadly crisis."
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'Fluoride's predominant benefit to teeth comes from topical contact with the outside of the teeth, not from ingestion,' an HHS spokesperson told POLITICO. 'There is no need, therefore, to ingest fluoride.' The impact the retreat from fluoridation has on oral health will show whether dentists are right, that a cavity crisis will follow, or whether Kennedy's view, that Americans can get the fluoride they need in toothpaste and mouthwash, will bear out. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an agency within HHS, has held out fluoridation as one of the 10 greatest public health achievements of the 20th century, citing data that it reduces tooth decay by as much as 70 percent in children and tooth loss by as much as 60 percent in adults. But Kennedy nonetheless believes the case to remove fluoride is urgent because of evidence that it can curtail children's brain development. 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Before Utah and Florida's moves, residents of Hawaii, New Jersey and Oregon were the least likely to have fluoride in their water, according to a review of 2022 data by the United Health Foundation, a philanthropy started by the insurer UnitedHealth Group to promote better public health. (The same study found 79 percent of Floridians and 43 percent of Utahns drank fluoridated water.) Health researchers have mostly found that low levels of fluoride, including the amounts found in drinking water systems across the U.S., are safe and can help fortify teeth against decay and other ailments. Many communities began to fluoridate their water in the mid-1900s at the behest of voters and their local and state governments. In 1962, HHS started providing guidance on fluoride in drinking water, and the Environmental Protection Agency invoked the Safe Drinking Water Act years later to enforce these standards, though fluoridation is still done at states' discretion. But research, much of it in China, has since prompted the Trump administration to question those standards. The findings suggest higher levels of fluoride in groundwater are linked to neurobehavioral issues and reduced IQ in children, but those results are not definitive due to study designs and methodology. Opponents of fluoridation in blue jurisdictions like Portland, Oregon, and Hawaii, historically have made the case that the best water is the least touched by human hands. 'The attitude was, 'don't ruin our pure water,'' said Barry Taylor, the executive director of the Oregon Dental Association. He says the Chinese studies have only made convincing Oregonians otherwise harder because they've added 'a new element of doubt.' Kessler contends the studies are not applicable to the U.S. because of the difference in fluoride levels and confounding variables. 'It could be lower IQ parents. It could be a lack of special foods that could help brain development. And it could just be DNA or genetics,' Kessler said. Dental health advocates also see a flaw in Kennedy's case that mouthwash and toothpaste are all people need. They argue that some Americans don't use the products, either because they can't get to a store, can't afford them or because they choose not to, putting them at risk. 'This is a lot of forces coming together to undermine oral health for particularly people that are lower income or in areas that may not have as many resources to get the oral health care they need,' said Melissa Burroughs, senior director of public policy at CareQuest, an oral health advocacy group aligned with the dentists. The American Dental Association's Kessler says the battle is far from over, pointing to the ADA's success this year in persuading state lawmakers to reject bills that would have banned fluoridation or otherwise impeded fluoridation efforts in 16 states across the political spectrum, including Hawaii. Kennedy's campaign Kennedy traveled to Salt Lake City in April to praise Utah for becoming the first state to ban fluoride in a state's water. The rule took effect in May. 'It makes no sense to have it in our water supply,' Kennedy said at a news conference with state lawmakers. 'I'm very, very proud of this state for being the first state to ban it, and I hope many more will come.' Kennedy hasn't withdrawn Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance encouraging fluoridation but he's threatening to do so. Earlier this year, he directed the CDC to reconvene the Community Preventive Services Task Force, an independent panel of experts, to study the issue. And his concerns about fluoride are filtering into other agencies' agendas. The Food and Drug Administration has announced it plans to ban ingestible fluoride pills and drops marketed to children. It's convening a public meeting on the issue on July 23. The response has not always followed partisan lines. When Kennedy appeared before a House Appropriations subcommittee in May, Rep. Mike Simpson of Idaho, a Republican and a dentist, said he'd seen the benefits of fluoride during his 22 years taking care of patients' teeth. 'If you are successful in banning fluoride, we better put a lot more money into dental education because we're going to need a whole lot more dentists,' Simpson said. Kennedy didn't back down. 'We now know that virtually all the benefit is topical, and we can get that through mouthwashes,' he said.
