CS/CS/HB 1279 Summary

• Establishes Florida Farm TEAM (Tax Exempt Agricultural Materials) card program allowing qualified farmers to claim sales tax exemptions on agricultural purchases, with applications beginning January 1, 2024.

• Requires state agencies, universities, and Florida College System institutions to prioritize purchasing food commodities grown or produced in Florida when available, practical, and feasible by 2025.

• Modernizes food safety regulations by revising permit requirements, renewal procedures, and food establishment definitions; eliminates redundant regulatory inspections and preempts food regulation authority to the Department of Agriculture.

• Reforms milk and dairy product regulations by streamlining permit requirements, eliminating unnecessary reporting requirements, and removing prohibitions on certain testing and repasteurization practices.

• Repeals three advisory councils (Dairy Industry Technical Council, State Agricultural Advisory Council, Florida Young Farmer and Rancher Advisory Council) and creates new provisions for e-mail service, conservation easement approvals, and drone use for agricultural purposes.