Florida Senate - 2025 SB 1762
By Senator Gruters
22-01402A-25 20251762__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to local government salaries and
3 benefits; amending s. 145.012, F.S.; revising
4 applicability; amending s. 145.031, F.S.; requiring
5 the use of the county population on a specified date
6 to calculate the group rate element of the salary
7 formula applicable to county commissioners of
8 noncharter counties beginning on a specified date;
9 providing that the salaries of members of the
10 governing body of a chartered or consolidated county
11 government shall be provided in the county charter or
12 as set by ordinance by a specified date; amending s.
13 145.19, F.S.; providing procedures for calculating
14 salary adjustments for members of boards of county
15 commissioners of certain counties; creating s. 145.20,
16 F.S.; requiring a referendum for a board of county
17 commissioners to increase the salary, retirement
18 benefits, or other compensation paid to its members;
19 requiring referendum election costs to be paid by the
20 county; providing applicability; amending s. 166.021,
21 F.S.; requiring a referendum for the governing body of
22 a municipality to increase the salary, retirement
23 benefits, or other compensation paid to its members;
24 requiring referendum election costs to be paid by the
25 municipality; providing applicability; creating s.
26 189.0165, F.S.; requiring a referendum for the
27 governing body of a special district to increase the
28 salary, retirement benefits, or other compensation
29 paid to its members; requiring the referendum election
30 costs to be paid by the special district; providing
31 applicability; providing construction; providing an
32 effective date.
33
34 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
35
36 Section 1. Section 145.012, Florida Statutes, is amended to
37 read:
38 145.012 Applicability.—This chapter applies to all
39 officials herein designated in all counties of the state, except
40 those officials whose salaries are not subject to being set by
41 the Legislature because of the provisions of a county home rule
42 charter and except officials (other than the property appraiser,
43 clerk of the circuit court, superintendent of schools, sheriff,
44 supervisor of elections, and tax collector who if qualified
45 shall receive in addition to their salaries a special
46 qualification salary as provided in this chapter) of counties
47 which have a chartered consolidated form of government as
48 provided in chapter 67-1320, Laws of Florida.
49 Section 2. Section 145.031, Florida Statutes, is amended to
50 read:
51 145.031 Board of county commissioners.—
52 (1)(a) Each member of the board of county commissioners of
53 a noncharter county shall receive as salary the amount
54 indicated, based on the population of his or her county. In
55 addition, compensation shall be made for population increments
56 over the minimum for each population group, which shall be
57 determined by multiplying the population in excess of the
58 minimum for the grouping times the group rate.
59
60
61 Pop. Group County Pop. Range Base Salary Group Rate
62 Minimum Maximum
63 I -0- 9,999 $4,500 $0.150
64 II 10,000 49,999 6,000 0.075
65 III 50,000 99,999 9,000 0.060
66 IV 100,000 199,999 12,000 0.045
67 V 200,000 399,999 16,500 0.015
68 VI 400,000 999,999 19,500 0.005
69 VII 1,000,000 22,500 0.000
70 (b) Effective October 1, 2025, the population of the county
71 as of April 1, 2025, shall be used to calculate the group rate
72 under this subsection.
73 (2) Each No member of a governing body of a chartered
74 county or a county with a consolidated form of government shall
75 receive as salary the amount provided in the county charter. If
76 a county charter authorizes the governing body to set its salary
77 by ordinance, each member of the governing body shall receive as
78 salary the amount provided by an ordinance adopted on or before
79 April 1, 2025 be deemed to be the equivalent of a county
80 commissioner for the purposes of determining the compensation of
81 such member under his or her respective charter.
82 (3) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section or s.
83 145.19, each member of the board of county commissioners may
84 reduce his or her salary rate on a voluntary basis.
85 Section 3. Subsection (2) of section 145.19, Florida
86 Statutes, is amended, and subsection (3) is added to that
87 section, to read:
88 145.19 Annual percentage increases based on increase for
89 state career service employees; limitation; exception.—
90 (2) Each fiscal year, the salaries of all officials listed
91 in this chapter, s. 1001.395, and s. 1001.47, except members of
92 boards of county commissioners, shall be adjusted. The adjusted
93 salary rate shall be the product, rounded to the nearest dollar,
94 of the salary rate granted by the appropriate section of this
95 chapter, s. 1001.395, or s. 1001.47 multiplied first by the
96 initial factor, then by the cumulative annual factor, and
97 finally by the annual factor. The Department of Management
98 Services shall certify the annual factor and the cumulative
99 annual factors. Any special qualification salary received under
100 this chapter, s. 1001.47, or the annual performance salary
101 incentive available to elected superintendents under s. 1001.47
102 shall be added to such adjusted salary rate. The special
103 qualification salary shall be $2,000, but may shall not exceed
104 $2,000.
105 (3) The salary adjustment for each member of a board of
106 county commissioners of a noncharter county or a charter county
107 that has adopted the salary rate for noncharter counties by
108 charter or ordinance shall be calculated as provided in
109 subsection (2) until September 30, 2025. As of October 1, 2025,
110 any future adjustment shall be made only as provided in s.
111 145.20.
112 Section 4. Section 145.20, Florida Statutes, is created to
113 read:
114 145.20 Referendum to increase salary, retirement benefits,
115 or other compensation.—
116 (1) A board of county commissioners may not increase the
117 salary, any retirement benefit, or any other type of
118 compensation paid to its members unless such increase is
119 approved by a majority of the electors of the county voting in a
120 referendum held at a general election during a presidential
121 election year. The election costs of the referendum shall be
122 paid by the county.
123 (2) This section does not apply to any increase in a
124 retirement benefit received as part of the governing body’s
125 participation in the Florida Retirement System.
126 Section 5. Subsection (10) is added to section 166.021,
127 Florida Statutes, to read:
128 166.021 Powers.—
129 (10)(a) The governing body of a municipality may not
130 increase the salary, any retirement benefit, or any other type
131 of compensation paid to its members unless such increase is
132 approved by a majority of the electors of the municipality
133 voting in a referendum held at a general election during a
134 presidential election year. The election costs of the referendum
135 shall be paid by the municipality.
136 (b) This subsection does not apply to any increase in a
137 retirement benefit received as part of the governing body’s
138 participation in the Florida Retirement System
139 Section 6. Section 189.0165, Florida Statutes, is created
140 to read:
141 189.0165 Special districts; compensation of members of
142 governing body.—
143 (1) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the
144 governing body of a special district may not increase the
145 salary, any pension or other retirement benefit, or any other
146 type of compensation paid to members of the governing of a
147 special district unless such increase is approved by a majority
148 of the electors of the special district voting in a referendum
149 held at a general election during a presidential election year.
150 The election costs of the referendum shall be paid by the
151 special district.
152 (2) This section does not apply to any increase in a
153 retirement benefit received as part of the governing body’s
154 participation in the Florida Retirement System.
155 (3) This section does not authorize a referendum to
156 increase the salary, any pension or retirement benefit, or any
157 other type of compensation paid to members of the governing body
158 of a special district if the special district’s charter
159 prohibits such members from receiving compensation or benefits.
160 Section 7. This act shall take effect October 1, 2025.