Latest news with #SB606
CBS News
3 days ago
- Business
- CBS News
Florida restaurants must disclose automatic tips and fees under new law
Restaurants will have to make clear to customers upfront when they will be hit with automatic tips or service fees, under a bill signed Monday by Gov. Ron DeSantis. While the primary focus of the bill involved the removal of non-paying guests from hotels, the measure (SB 606) also will require notifications from "public food service establishments that charge an operations charge," which is an automatic fee other than a tax. The law, which will take effect July 1, requires notices of fees on menus, websites or mobile apps where orders are placed. Addressing hidden fees in dining Many restaurants already impose automatic tips or service charges for large parties. But the issue was pushed in the Legislature after Rep. Demi Busatta, a Coral Gables Republican who grew up in the restaurant industry, told a House panel in March that she had received a restaurant bill that had a service fee and a pre-set gratuity, along with a line to include a tip. "In Miami, we've seen a growing circumstance where all the restaurants are automatically including a 20 percent gratuity, or they're calling it gratuity or service charge or service fee or tip, not just on regular sitdown meals but on take-out as well at fast-casual establishments," Busatta said at the time. For restaurants that don't provide menus or such things as table service, the bill says notices "must appear in an obvious and clearly readable manner on the menu board or on an obvious and clearly readable sign by the register where the customer pays."
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
DeSantis, business groups in Sarasota tout new law for stricter anti-squatting enforcement
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis spoke from behind a lectern that read 'No Tolerance for Squatting' in Sarasota on Monday as he met with local business leaders and politicians to sign two new anti-squatting bills into law. On the sixth floor of the bayfront Westin hotel, DeSantis said the measures would allow for more consistent law enforcement against squatters and illegal tenants in residential businesses − such as motels. Some advocates have criticized a flurry of such legislation around the country as damaging to poor and homeless communities. 'This provides those property owners with a streamlined process to regain possession of the property that is rightfully theirs,' he said. The two bills – SB 322 and SB 606 – are designed to make it easier for local law enforcement to remove people who are staying on a property they don't own (against the owner's wishes) and for those who haven't been paying their rent or residential fee to be evicted. SB 322's bill analysis says it would create a procedure outside of the courts for the county sheriff to remove 'an unauthorized person from commercial real property.' Both laws will go into effect on July 1. The House sponsor of SB 322, Highland Beach Republican State Rep. Peggy Gossett-Seidman, told the Herald-Tribune that it wasn't designed to prosecute homeless people who are staying on an empty estate out of necessity. As long as they comply with law enforcement, they won't be charged, she said. Florida's homeless population has fluctuated since DeSantis took office, but since 2021 it has increased by nearly 49% – from 21,141 to 31,462 − according to Florida Health. This has come amid skyrocketing rent and mortgage rates across the state. Gossett-Seidman tentatively said its possible that the state's affordable housing crisis exacerbates squatting, but there wasn't enough hard data on the topic. 'There aren't a lot of numbers and it's hard to keep track of this issue,' Gossett-Seidman said. 'It's all possibly conjecture since this has been an under-the-radar issue.' She referenced a survey by the National Rental Home Council that said Orlando had the third-highest rate of squatters in the state. The National Housing Law Project, an advocacy group of poor communities, criticized anti-squatting laws by state legislatures in a 2024 report. 'Key dangers include the improper removal of rightful occupants from their homes, the potential for arrest or violent interaction between tenants and police, and a heightened ability of landlords to intimidate tenants by threats of non-judicial police eviction," the report said. The group also criticized the council survey for a lack of transparency and called its findings 'unclear beyond what appears in media reports.' The press conference was filled with DeSantis' usual law and order rhetoric, making comparisons between Florida and states like California and New York. One man several rows of chairs back held a t-shirt in his lap that read 'Don't California My Florida.' Attendees included area state lawmakers such as Sens. Jim Boyd, R-Bradenton, and Joe Gruters, R-Sarasota; State Reps. Fiona McFarland, R-Sarasota, and Danny, R-Englewood; former Sarasota City Commissioner Erik Arroyo, Sarasota Police Chief Rex Troche, and Sarasota County Sheriff Kurt Hoffman. 'I'm not surprised the Legislature and Governor have turned to the sheriffs to be able to enforce this,' Hoffman said to the audience. 'We're up to the task, and we're certainly going to do that.' The sheriff said his office has conducted nearly 700 evictions a year since he took office. Christian Casale covers local government for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. Email him at ccasale@ or christiancasale@ This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: DeSantis signs anti-squatting bills into law in Sarasota
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
DeSantis signs anti-squatting bills benefiting hospitality industry, retail property owners
Miami river skyline on May 30, 2025. (Photo by Jackie Llanos/Florida Phoenix) Gov. Ron DeSantis signed two bills on Monday that allow hotels and business property owners to have police remove squatters. Under SB 606, police can remove a person from a hotel and arrest them after receiving a written notice that they need to leave if they fail to check out on time and refuse to pay for their stay. Similarly, SB 322 allows a business space owner to submit a form to the local sheriff to remove someone unlawfully occupying the property without a lease. 'What we've seen is hotel guests just not pay and squat in the hotel,' DeSantis said during the bill signing ceremony in Sarasota. 'This forces the owner of the hotel to go through basically a traditional eviction process.' Retail property owners will have to pay the sheriff's office for serving the removal notice to the people squatting and for law enforcement to stay while the people leave. However, the alleged squatter can sue for wrongful removal and collect damages if any of their belongings are damaged, and recover their attorney fees. Both measures go into effect on July 1. Hotels and restaurants will have to inform guests about any service charges, such as automatic tips, on their menus and receipts under the bill sponsored by St. Augustine Republican Tom Leek. Gil Reyes, Suncoast chapter president of the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association and general manager of the hotel where the ceremony took place, thanked the governor for signing the bill. 'This legislation is a win for Florida's hospitality industry,' he said. 'It brings our laws in line with current practices, offers clear guidance, and supports both property rights and consumer understanding again.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Gov. DeSantis signs anti-squatting legislation in Sarasota
SARASOTA, Fla. (WFLA) — Gov. DeSantis held a press conference in Sarasota on Monday morning where he signed two pieces of anti-squatting legislation. He signed Senate Bill 322, 'Property Rights,' which authorizes sheriffs to remove people 'unlawfully occupying' commercial property. 'Under current law, the remedies to remove unauthorized applicants or occupants of a commercial property can unfortunately be lengthy and time-consuming, which then incentivizes people to take advantage of the situation,' DeSantis said. 'And we're not going to allow that to happen.' The governor signed similar legislation regarding personal property, such as homes, last year. When officials can remove squatters under new Florida law He also signed SB 606, 'Public Lodging and Public Food Service Establishments,' which will make it easier for hotels, motels and other hospitality businesses to remove squatters or uncooperative guests from their property. 'Property rights are really important,' DeSantis said. 'If you don't have private property rights, you cannot have a free society.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
