2025 Florida Legislative Session Summary
Missed Deadlines and…
The 2025 Florida legislative session was one of the longest and most turbulent in recent memory. Originally slated for 60 days, the session stretched to 105 days – the longest regular session since 2002 – because of an impasse over the state budget. Governor Ron DeSantis and the Republican-dominated Legislature clashed as both chambers sought to reassert legislative independence.
Despite this rocky path, the Legislature passed 269 bills (down from 313 in 2024), mostly focused on consensus topics such as tax relief, infrastructure, and disaster preparedness. Agreement on Florida's $115 billion budget was eventually reached during the June extension. Several more controversial proposals that had drawn headlines – including those targeting education, the media, and abortion rights – ultimately failed to advance. Of the passed bills, dozens await DeSantis’s signature; he also may exercise his line-item veto authority as relates to the budget.
While the Republican supermajority could have passed sweeping legislation, internal GOP divisions and growing public pressure constrained the eventual sweep of legislation. For reform-minded Floridians, this session again showed the rigidity of entrenched partisan power. However, it also demonstrated the power of civic engagement and the importance of prior reforms (for example, if DeSantis was not term-limited, the legislative dynamic would have been much different and the legislative agenda likely more adverse).
…Missed Opportunities
Of the about 2,000 bills introduced for this session, the Florida Forward Party (FFP) focused on the small portion of these that impact voter access, candidate viability, and the functioning of Florida’s democratic systems. We closely tracked this subset, eventually taking positions on seven bills that had some chance of passing and would have had substantial impact if they did. We supported Democratic- and Republican-sponsored bills and similarly opposed bills sponsored by both parties.
Unfortunately, four bills FFP supported failed to pass:
- SB 216: Would have barred state agencies from using public funds to support or oppose constitutional amendments
- SB 588: Would have reduced unwanted texts and calls voters are bombarded with during campaigns
- SJR 802: Would have allowed term limits for county commissions and school boards
- HB 637: Would have revised existing term limits for state representatives and senators
More positively, two bills we opposed also failed to pass:
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SB208: Would have surrendered Florida’s Electoral College votes
SB 280: Would have added obstacles to qualifying for third-party candidates
FFP also opposed the worst bill introduced in the session, which unfortunately did pass. HB 1205 effectively eliminates citizen-sponsored amendments to the Florida Constitution. This effectively adds another brick to the wall protecting the Red-Blue duopoly.
These seven of the bills and their implications are discussed in detail below.
Help Build a Better System
Florida’s 2025 legislative session made one thing abundantly clear: our political system is built to favor insiders and suppress competition. The passage of HB 1205 is the perfect illustration of the suffocating nature of the prevailing political duopoly. But the Forward Party remains undeterred. We believe most Floridians want a political system that works – one where voters have better choices, new voices can emerge, and we can make progress on our biggest challenges. That’s why we’re building something new.
And we need your help:
- Volunteer to join the cause - check out the multiple open positions needing your talent
- Donate to support nonpartisan electoral reform and help independents compete on a level playing field
- Run for office to answer the question “why not me?” and make a difference
- Register as a member of the Florida Forward Party
We are not about partisanship. We are about solutions. If you believe that democracy should be open, representative, and fair — then join us. Together, we can build a Florida that moves not left, not right, but Forward.
Forward Stances: Select Bills and What They Mean for Reform
Bills FFP Supported
SB 216: Campaign Finance – Public Neutrality in Amendment Campaigns
- Party of Primary Sponsor: Democrat
- Status: Did not pass
- FFP Stance: Supported
- SB 216 would have barred state agencies from using public funds to support or oppose any constitutional amendment or revision under consideration by voters. The bill is a direct response to reports that in 2024, multiple state agencies drew from the Florida opioid settlement trust and other public funds to fight Amendment 3, which would have legalized recreational marijuana, and Amendment 4, which would have expanded abortion access. Florida Forward supported this bill as a needed guardrail against the use of taxpayer dollars to influence ballot campaigns
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Impact: The failure of this bill allows incumbent powers to continue using state funds to actively campaign against the initiatives of citizens. It’s another example of a legacy
party retaining the power to tilt the system against opposition.
SB 588: Campaign Communications Transparency
- Party of Primary Sponsor: Republican
- Status: Did not pass
- FFP Stance: Supported
- SB 588 would have required campaigns and political committees to honor opt-out requests from voters who no longer wish to receive political texts, calls, or digital messages. It also would have allowed voters to recover legal fees when enforcing these requests.
- Impact: Florida Forward supported this bill as a step toward restoring consent in political communications and discouraging politicians from sending unwanted texts and calls. It’s worth revisiting.
SJR 802: Term Limits for County and School Board Members
- Party of Primary Sponsor: Democrat
- Status: Did not pass
- FFP Stance: Supported
- SJR 802 was a proposed amendment that would have allowed voters to impose term limits on members of county commissions and school boards across Florida in the 2026 election. FFP supported this bill as a commonsense reform to break cycles of local political entrenchment and create more accessible pathways for new civic leaders. Term limits promote political renewal and discourage the kind of careerism that often disconnects elected officials from their communities.
- Impact: Though it didn’t pass, term limits remain popular with voters across the political spectrum.
HB 637: Term Limits for State Legislators
- Party of Primary Sponsor: Republican
- Status: Did not pass
- FFP Stance: Supported
- HB 637 was a proposed amendment to revise term limits for state representatives and senators, reducing maximum service from 12 years to eight years in each chamber. Florida Forward supported HB 637 as a natural extension of the term limit reform proposed in SJR 802 (see above), which applied to local county and school board officials. Both measures reflect FFP’s core belief that turnover in elected office is essential to preventing political stagnation and insider dominance.\
- Impact: FFP views legislative term limits as an important accountability reform worth pursuing in future sessions.
Bills FFP Opposed
HB 1205: Restrictions on Citizen Ballot Initiatives
- Party of Primary Sponsor: Republican
- Status: Passed and signed
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FFP Stance: Opposed
Described by Florida Forward as a bill that "effectively eliminates citizen-sponsored amendments to the Florida Constitution," this sweeping new law imposes heavy restrictions on the process by which citizens place constitutional amendments on the ballot. - Impact: In a state where constitutional amendments have been one of the few ways for citizens to enact meaningful reforms these restrictions raise the barrier to direct democracy precisely at a time when voters are seeking alternatives to partisan gridlock. Lawsuits have been filed challenging the law on First Amendment grounds, as noted by groups like Florida Decides Healthcare and the Southern Poverty Law Center. The FFP has flagged HB 1205 as the most damaging bill of the session and one that could derail future attempts to bring open primaries or ranked choice voting to the ballot.
SB 208: National Popular Vote Interstate Compact
- Party of Primary Sponsor: Democrat
- Status: Did not pass
- FFP Stance: Opposed
- SB 208 proposed that Florida join the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, committing the state’s electoral votes to the winner of the national popular vote if enough other states do the same. FFP opposed SB 208, citing concerns that it makes voters in the country’s largest population centers, which excludes most Floridians, supreme and strengthens the national Democrat-Republican duopoly.
- Impact: Its defeat aligns with FFP’s emphasis on empowering voters through system-level innovations that increase participation and fairness. The Forward Party advocates tackling primary reform and ballot access first, rather than altering presidential vote counting mechanisms in isolation.
SB 280: Candidate Qualification Requirements
- Party of Primary Sponsor: Democrat
- Status: Passed Senate, failed in House
- FFP Stance: Opposed
- SB 280 would have imposed a strict 365-day affiliation rule on all candidates seeking to run under a political party or as no-party-affiliation (NPA). Candidates would be disqualified if they had not maintained that registration status for the entire year prior.
- Impact: FFP opposed this bill on the grounds that it would make it harder for new voices, including independents, reformers, and third-party candidates, to enter races. It entrenches the two-party duopoly and disadvantaged grassroots challengers who often emerge closer to election season. Thankfully, the measure failed.
