Florida Senate - 2026 SB 1378
By Senator Martin
33-00629A-26 20261378__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to traffic enforcement; amending s.
3 316.194, F.S.; defining the term “abandoned vehicle”;
4 revising the circumstances under which law enforcement
5 officers and traffic accident investigation officers
6 may provide for the removal of an abandoned vehicle to
7 the nearest garage or place of safety; requiring that
8 a notice that contains certain information be placed
9 conspicuously on certain abandoned vehicles before
10 such removal; amending s. 320.261, F.S.; prohibiting a
11 person from operating a motor vehicle that the person
12 knows bears a registration license plate or validation
13 sticker that was not issued and assigned or lawfully
14 transferred to the motor vehicle; providing criminal
15 penalties; providing circumstances under which the
16 element of knowledge is satisfied; providing a
17 rebuttable presumption; amending s. 932.703, F.S.;
18 specifying that using a motor vehicle to flee or
19 attempt to elude a law enforcement officer is a
20 circumstance under which a seizure of the motor
21 vehicle may occur under the Florida Contraband
22 Forfeiture Act; providing an effective date.
23
24 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
25
26 Section 1. Present subsections (1) through (4) of section
27 316.194, Florida Statutes, are redesignated as subsections (2)
28 through (5), respectively, a new subsection (1) is added to that
29 section, and paragraph (b) of present subsection (3) of that
30 section is amended, to read:
31 316.194 Stopping, standing or parking outside of
32 municipalities.—
33 (1) As used in this section, the term “abandoned vehicle”
34 means a vehicle that is in a state of disuse, neglect, or
35 abandonment. The term includes a vehicle without a license
36 plate, a vehicle with a license plate that is not registered to
37 the vehicle, a vehicle that does not have a registration sticker
38 affixed to the license plate, or a vehicle that has a
39 registration sticker affixed to the license plate which has been
40 expired for at least 90 days. Evidence of disuse, neglect, or
41 abandonment includes, but is not limited to, the vehicle being
42 wrecked and inoperative; the vehicle being inoperative as
43 evidenced by vegetation growing under the vehicle as high as the
44 vehicle body or frame; refuse or debris collected underneath the
45 vehicle; the vehicle being used solely for storage purposes; the
46 vehicle having major and visible parts that are dismantled; if
47 the vehicle is partially dismantled, the vehicle having no
48 engine, transmission, or other major and visible parts; the
49 vehicle being incapable of functioning as a vehicle in its
50 present state; the vehicle having only nominal salvage value; or
51 the vehicle being in any physical state rendering it
52 inoperative. If the primary apparent evidence of disuse,
53 neglect, or abandonment is vegetation growing under the vehicle,
54 an enforcement officer must use his or her training and
55 experience to determine whether, under the totality of the
56 circumstances, the vehicle is in a state of evident disuse,
57 neglect, or abandonment.
58 (4)(3)
59 (b) Officers and traffic accident investigation officers
60 may provide for the removal of any abandoned vehicle to the
61 nearest garage or other place of safety, cost of such removal to
62 be a lien against the motor vehicle, when an abandoned vehicle
63 is found unattended upon a bridge or causeway or in a any
64 tunnel, or on a any public highway in any of the following
65 instances:
66 1. Where the such vehicle constitutes an obstruction of
67 traffic or blocks visibility such that it is an egregious safety
68 hazard.;
69 2. Where the such vehicle is inoperative and has been
70 parked or stored on the public right-of-way for a period
71 exceeding 48 hours., in other than designated parking areas, and
72 is within 30 feet of the pavement edge; and
73 3. Where an operative vehicle has been parked or stored on
74 the public right-of-way for a period exceeding 10 days, in other
75 than designated parking areas, and is more than 30 feet from the
76 pavement edge. However, the agency removing such vehicle is
77 shall be required to report same to the Department of Highway
78 Safety and Motor Vehicles within 24 hours of such removal.
79
80 Before removal of a vehicle under subparagraph 2. or
81 subparagraph 3., a notice that describes the violation and
82 provides the time period after which the vehicle will be removed
83 must be attached to the vehicle in a conspicuous place.
84 Section 2. Section 320.261, Florida Statutes, is amended to
85 read:
86 320.261 Attaching registration license plate not assigned
87 unlawful; penalty.—
88 (1) A Any person may not who knowingly attach attaches to a
89 any motor vehicle or mobile home a any registration license
90 plate, or who knowingly attach a attaches any validation sticker
91 or mobile home sticker to a registration license plate, which
92 plate or sticker was not issued and assigned or lawfully
93 transferred to such vehicle or mobile home. A person who
94 violates this subsection commits, is guilty of a misdemeanor of
95 the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s.
96 775.083.
97 (2) A person who operates a motor vehicle with knowledge
98 that the vehicle bears a registration license plate or
99 validation sticker that was not issued and assigned or lawfully
100 transferred to such vehicle commits a misdemeanor of the first
101 degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.
102 (3)(a) For purposes of this section, the element of
103 knowledge is satisfied if the person:
104 1. Admits to knowingly attaching or knowing about the
105 attachment of the registration license plate, validation
106 sticker, or mobile home sticker; or
107 2. Has previously been charged with a violation of
108 subsection (1).
109 (b) There is a rebuttable presumption that the element of
110 knowledge is satisfied if the driver of the vehicle is a
111 registered owner of the vehicle.
112 Section 3. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section
113 932.703, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
114 932.703 Forfeiture of contraband article; exceptions.—
115 (1)(a) A contraband article, vessel, motor vehicle,
116 aircraft, other personal property, or real property used in
117 violation of any provision of the Florida Contraband Forfeiture
118 Act, or in, upon, or by means of which any violation of the
119 Florida Contraband Forfeiture Act has taken or is taking place,
120 may be seized and shall be forfeited subject to the Florida
121 Contraband Forfeiture Act. A seizure may occur only if the owner
122 of the property is arrested for a criminal offense that forms
123 the basis for determining that the property is a contraband
124 article under s. 932.701, or one or more of the following
125 circumstances apply:
126 1. The owner of the property cannot be identified after a
127 diligent search, or the person in possession of the property
128 denies ownership and the owner of the property cannot be
129 identified by means that are available to the employee or agent
130 of the seizing agency at the time of the seizure;
131 2. The owner of the property is a fugitive from justice or
132 is deceased;
133 3. An individual who does not own the property is arrested
134 for a criminal offense that forms the basis for determining that
135 the property is a contraband article under s. 932.701 and the
136 owner of the property had actual knowledge of the criminal
137 activity. Evidence that an owner received written notification
138 from a law enforcement agency and acknowledged receipt of the
139 notification in writing, that the seized asset had been used in
140 violation of the Florida Contraband Forfeiture Act on a prior
141 occasion by the arrested person, may be used to establish actual
142 knowledge;
143 4. The owner of the property agrees to be a confidential
144 informant as defined in s. 914.28. The seizing agency may not
145 use the threat of property seizure or forfeiture to coerce the
146 owner of the property to enter into a confidential informant
147 agreement. The seizing agency shall return the property to the
148 owner if criminal charges are not filed against the owner and
149 the active criminal investigation ends or if the owner ceases
150 being a confidential informant, unless the agency includes the
151 final forfeiture of the property as a component of the
152 confidential informant agreement; or
153 5. The property is a monetary instrument. For purposes of
154 this subparagraph, the term “monetary instrument” means coin or
155 currency of the United States or any other country; a traveler’s
156 check; a personal check; a bank check; a cashier’s check; a
157 money order; a bank draft of any country; an investment security
158 or negotiable instrument in bearer form or in other form such
159 that title passes upon delivery; a prepaid or stored value card
160 or other device that is the equivalent of money and can be used
161 to obtain cash, property, or services; or gold, silver, or
162 platinum bullion or coins; or
163 6. The property is a motor vehicle used in violation of s.
164 316.1935.
165 Section 4. This act shall take effect July 1, 2026.