Florida Special Session Part 2: Property Insurance, Special Districts, and Data Privacy

On April 19, 2022, lawmakers gaveled in for Florida’s special session on Congressional redistricting, and the day prior Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that he will issue a proclamation later this week to convene a second special session on property insurance in mid- to late-May.

Florida’s property insurance market has been in crisis for more than a year and continues to get worse, causing homeowner policy rates to skyrocket. Many insurance carriers have chosen to leave the state while others have closed up shop or reached insolvency. Because of this, the state-run “insurance of last resort,” Citizens Property Insurance, has seen a dramatic increase in policies.

In addition, it is possible that other legislation which died during the regular session -- such as data privacy and building structure reform -- will be added to the second special session proclamation. Details on the proclamation are expected in the coming days.

Also on Tuesday, hours before the redistricting special session began, DeSantis announced he was expanding the call for the current special session to include considering legislation that sunsets Disney’s independent special district (Reedy Creek Improvement District) in June 2023 and repeals a specific Disney exemption to the social media platform censorship legislation that passed in 2021. These bills are expected to pass as filed and become law.

The current special session is set to end no later than April 22.