Senate Third-Party Litigation Financing Transparency Bill Clears Last Committee
On Tuesday, the Senate litigation financing bill was heard in its last committee stop, the Senate Rules Committee, and is now ready for the Senate Floor. SB 1396, by Senator Collen Burton, introduces transparency and accountability around foreign parties that invest in Florida’s civil justice system for monetary gain. The bill requires notice that a litigation financing agreement exists to all parties involved in the litigation if the financier is a foreign entity, including notice to the state. The bill also prohibits any litigation financier from directing or making any decisions in the civil action they are investing in to prevent them from influencing the outcome or seeking an increased return. Additionally, the bill includes consumer protections to ensure funders do not receive a larger percentage of the settlement than the plaintiff.
This year’s litigation financing bill is more limited than previous efforts given the dynamics of this year’s legislature, but is intended to educate lawmakers on this growing industry where hedge funds and investors fund litigation in exchange for a percentage of the settlement or judgement. For example, in the instance of foreign entities, sovereign wealth fund investors like the Sovereign Wealth Fund of Saudi Arabia, and companies or investment groups controlled by foreign nation states, such as China, could be investing in litigation in Florida’s civil justice system without any transparency or safeguards in place.
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Data Center Bill Charges Through Second Committee Stop
The attraction and development of data centers while protecting Floridians is an important conversation this session, with both the House and Senate taking different approaches. SB 484, sponsored by Senator Bryan Avila, passed the Senate Community Affairs Committee on an 8-0 vote earlier this week, which creates a broad regulatory framework for data centers in Florida. SB 484 maintains local government discretion in the development of data centers through their comprehensive plans and land development regulations and restricts state and local governments from entering into nondisclosure agreements pertaining to potential data center developments. The nondisclosure requirements in SB 484 and its related public records exemption (SB 1118) would treat data centers differently than all other large-scale economic development projects. Additionally, SB 484 ensures large load customers, such as data centers, pay the full cost of the provision of their energy need without shifting costs to other energy consumers. Finally, SB 484 protects Florida’s water resources by creating consumptive use permit requirements for large-scale data centers and encourages the use of reclaimed water in lieu of surface groundwater when available. SB 484 is the only one of three bills filed this session aimed at regulating data centers that is moving so far and is the least restrictive.
The Florida Chamber believes there are pathways to welcoming the economic benefits of data centers without negatively impacting communities and utility ratepayers and will continue working to ensure public policy proposals include the business community’s feedback. It’s estimated that the addition of a one-gigawatt data center in Florida would generate $2.6 billion in sustained annual economic impact and an additional $405.8 million annually in state and local tax revenue.
The Florida Chamber has met with bill sponsors, committee members and the Governor’s office to share the business community’s feedback and concerns on data center legislation. If you would like to share your company’s feedback, please contact Carolyn Johnson at cjohnson@flchamber.com. |
Legislation to Clarify Statute of Limitations under the Florida Civil Rights Act Moves in House and Senate
Both SB 1096 and HB 1407, related to remedies of violations of the Florida Civil Rights Act, moved through committees this week. SB 1096, by Senator Danny Burgess, and HB 1407, by Representative Wyman Duggan, help create clarity on the statute of limitations to file a complaint under the Florida Civil Rights Act to ensure the timely resolution of the complaint to the benefit of both the employer and employee. Under the bill, a complainant has one year to file suit if the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issues a Right to Sue notice within the statutory 180 days. This matches the current statute of limitations when the Commission on Human Relations issues a reasonable cause determination within the statutory timeframe. If a determination is not made within the 180-day period by the Commission or the EEOC, the complainant has 18 months to file a civil action under the bill.
Both bills passed unanimously this week, and the House bill is ready for the Floor. Led by the Florida Chamber, these bills ensure alleged discrimination complaints are resolved efficiently and not filed years after the alleged action took place. |
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