Governor Ron DeSantis at the state budget bill signing, June 29, 2026. Courtesy, EOG
We hope you had a happy and safe Fourth of July holiday and are returning to work ready to tackle the second half of 2026! My family and I were proud to join our friends, neighbors, and community in celebrating America’s 250th anniversary this past weekend. The principles of our democratic republic, including the separate powers of the three branches of government, were at play last week in Florida. Governor DeSantis vetoed $810 million out of the legislature’s total $117.6 billion spending plan for the new fiscal year that began July 1 (the $114.5 billion state budget plus another $3.1 billion lawmakers had added to fund items in the previous budget). Legislative leaders will now decide whether to accept the vetoes or try to override some of them, as they did last fall in the previous year’s budget.
The Governor also vetoed the electric bicycles bill (SB 382), which passed unanimously in both chambers and represented the first state regulation on the ever-popular e-bikes. It would have established a 10-mph speed limit within 50 feet of a pedestrian, required yielding to pedestrians, and to make an audible noise, such as a horn or bell or voice, when passing them. There was a $30 fine for violations while a task force would track “traffic incidents, injuries and fatalities” and make further regulatory recommendations, including potential license, registration, and insurance requirements as New Jersey recently enacted.
In his veto letter, the Governor wrote “The bill establishes a standard that would certainly be difficult for a bicyclist to measure when safely operating an e-bike…(and) will likely lead to enhanced surveillance by local governments against citizens.” During legislative hearings, we saw sheriffs plead for regulation, noting there is no age minimum or limit to operate e-bikes and e-bikers don’t always follow the rules of the road. There have been several deaths and injuries around the state, from the more densely populated St. Petersburg to the bucolic Key Biscayne and Palm Coast. LMA is puzzled by this outcome, especially given that it directly affects automobiles and other insurable interests – as well as public safety.
Up next: The technical report on the deadly Surfside condominium collapse, more insurance regulation changes, the steady downward trend in Florida homeowners insurance premiums over the past two years, the significant increase in lightening-related insurance losses, the flow of federal funding for Elevate Florida, how AI is forecasting hurricanes, plus the role Saharan dust from across the Atlantic Ocean is expected to play in keeping our hurricane season quiet for a while.
LMA Newsletter of 7-6-26
