Florida Senate - 2025 COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
Bill No. CS for SB 1612
Ì733752,Î733752
LEGISLATIVE ACTION
Senate . House
Comm: RCS .
04/17/2025 .
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The Committee on Fiscal Policy (Grall) recommended the
following:
1 Senate Amendment (with title amendment)
2
3 Delete lines 88 - 136
4 and insert:
5 Section 3. Effective upon becoming a law, section 655.97,
6 Florida Statutes, is created to read:
7 655.97 Lawyer or law firm trust account interest rates.—
8 (1) A financial institution may hold funds in an interest
9 bearing trust account of a lawyer or law firm in which the
10 institution remits interest or dividends on the balance of the
11 deposited funds to an entity established by the Supreme Court
12 for the purpose of providing or facilitating the provision of
13 free legal services to low-income individuals or for other
14 purposes authorized by the Supreme Court. If the institution
15 holds such an account, it must pay at least the highest interest
16 rate or dividend generally available from the institution to its
17 comparable business or consumer accounts or nonmaturing deposit
18 accounts, provided that the trust account meets or exceeds the
19 same minimum balance or other account requirements. The trust
20 account interest rate must be at least 0.25 percent if the
21 Federal Funds Effective Rate is less than 4 percent. The trust
22 account interest rate must be at least 0.5 percent if the
23 Federal Funds Effective Rate is 4 percent or greater.
24 (a) The financial institution must submit a rate validation
25 sheet and affidavit to the Chief Financial Officer by the 10th
26 day of each quarter attesting that it will pay at least the same
27 interest rate or dividend on the lawyer or law firm trust
28 accounts that it is paying on its comparable business or
29 consumer accounts or nonmaturing deposit accounts and that the
30 rate will be at least 0.25 percent if the Federal Funds
31 Effective Rate is less than 4 percent or at least 0.5 percent if
32 the Federal Funds Effective Rate is 4 percent or greater.
33 (b) The affidavit must attest that the rate information
34 submitted on the rate validation sheet is true and factual.
35 (c) The Chief Financial Officer shall verify that the rate
36 validation sheet and affidavit have been received by the
37 Department of Financial Services.
38 (2) This section does not apply to interest rates
39 established by written contract or obligations unrelated to the
40 trust accounts described by this section.
41 Section 4. Subsection (6) of section 657.002, Florida
42 Statutes, is amended to read:
43 657.002 Definitions.—As used in this chapter:
44 (6) “Equity” means undivided earnings, regular reserves,
45 and other reserves.
46 Section 5. Subsection (2) of section 657.028, Florida
47 Statutes, is amended to read
48 657.028 Activities of directors, officers, committee
49 members, employees, and agents.—
50 (2) An elected officer, director, or committee member,
51 other than the chief executive officer, may not be compensated
52 for her or his service to the credit union, but an elected
53 officer, director, or committee member may be reimbursed for
54 necessary expenses incidental to performing official business
55 for the credit union as such.
56 Section 6. Subsections (2) and (4) of section 657.043,
57 Florida Statutes, are amended to read:
58 657.043 Reserves.—
59 (2) REGULAR RESERVE.—The regular reserve shall belong to
60 the credit union and shall be used to meet losses. The regular
61 reserve may not be decreased without the prior written approval
62 of the office or as provided by rule of the commission.
63 (3)(4) SPECIAL RESERVES.—In addition to such regular
64 reserve, Special reserves shall be established:
65 (a) To protect members against losses resulting from credit
66 extended or from risk assets when required by rule, or when
67 found by the office, in any special case, to be necessary for
68 that purpose; or
69 (b) As authorized by the board of directors.
70 Section 7. Subsection (1) of section 658.235, Florida
71 Statutes, is amended to read:
72 658.235 Subscriptions for stock; approval of major
73 shareholders.—
74 (1) Within 6 months after commencement of corporate
75 existence, and At least 30 days before prior to opening, the
76 directors shall have completed the stock offering and shall file
77 with the office a final list of subscribers to all of the
78 capital stock of the proposed bank or trust company showing the
79 name and residence of each subscriber and the amount of stock of
80 every class subscribed for by each.
81 Section 8. Subsection (1) of section 658.25, Florida
82 Statutes, is amended to read:
83 658.25 Opening for business.—
84 (1) A bank or trust company corporation shall open and
85 conduct a general commercial bank or trust business within 18
86 months after the issuance of a final order of approval by the
87 office no later than 12 months after the commencement of its
88 corporate existence.
89 Section 9. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this
90 act and except for this section, which shall take effect upon
91 this act becoming a law, this act shall take effect July 1,
92 2025.
93 ================= T I T L E A M E N D M E N T ================
94 And the title is amended as follows:
95 Delete lines 10 - 21
96 and insert:
97 creating s. 655.97, F.S.; authorizing financial
98 institutions to hold funds in specified trust accounts
99 to be used for specified purposes; requiring such
100 financial institutions to pay a certain minimum
101 interest rate or dividend; requiring that the interest
102 rate be at least a specified percentage; requiring a
103 financial institution to submit a quarterly rate
104 validation sheet and affidavit to the Chief Financial
105 Officer attesting that it will pay a certain minimum
106 interest rate or dividend; requiring that the
107 affidavit attest that certain information is true and
108 factual; requiring the Chief Financial Officer to
109 verify certain information; providing applicability;
110 amending s. 657.002, F.S.; revising the definition of
111 the term “equity”; amending s. 657.028, F.S.;
112 authorizing elected officers, directors, or committee
113 members of a credit union to be reimbursed for certain
114 expenses; amending s. 657.043, F.S.; conforming
115 provisions to changes made by the act; amending s.
116 658.235, F.S.; revising the timeframe for certain
117 requirements by the directors of a proposed bank or
118 trust company; amending s. 658.25, F.S.; revising the
119 timeframe within which a bank or trust company
120 corporation is required to open and conduct specified
121 business; providing effective dates.